I'd like a "mixed for people who can hear both loud and quiet sounds" version, please. My go-to example for terrible mastering is Dropkick Murphys' "The Meanest of Times" album. "The State of Massachusetts" starts with some mandolin (I think?) picking, then launches into drums and distorted guitars at exactly the same volume. I loaded the song in a sample editor and its waveform at 100% loudness the whole time. The album's songs are great, but I can't bear to listen to it.
It's at the point where people regularly record the vinyl LPs of an album and post those online because the mastering constraints of vinyl force these lunatic mixers (or their corporate bosses) to stay within the realms of sanity.
Otherwise it's just early 2000s loudness wars all over again.
It’s so you can hear all of the song when it’s played in public at a volume quiet enough to have a conversation over. Should be reserved for the radio edit IMO.
