Right on.

I play in one such folk group, with 6 or 7 others. Much ado, nothing accomplished sometimes. I've oftimes complained that we don't need a mandolin, bouzouki, and guitar all at once, it clutters up their respective ranges terribly. (If I suggest a switch to bass, it prevents others from switching to non-rhythm instruments (it seems), so I remain the guitarist/time-keeper.) Same happens vocally.

I much prefer smaller combos like the rockin' blues group I'm in. Drums, bass (me), guitar/vocal, sax. Even last week when we added an extra sax and trumpet, the brass acted as a sub-entity and didn't clutter up the sound.

Along with those 32 tracks comes a tendency for producers to take the crisp timbres out of instruments in a "wash" of sound. Reverb and chorus effects, never mind distortion, can make it all sound mushy to my ears. Dis-similar reverb on instruments in the same tune drives me crazy too, as if each were played in different rooms...so much for a "live" feel.

Peace, Mooh.