I hadn't thought about it in terms of production, especially the kind of technical pinpointing you did there. It may have had a subconscious impact, though, because you nailed my reaction perfectly.

When I first listened to the entire album, my first thought was, "Why would anybody think this is a great album??? The songs are okay, but they're so depressing that listening to them, back-to-back, could make Pollyanna suicidal!"

But after learning more of the band's history, and listening to the lyrics in that light, I got the same feeling that you got from the panning effect. I felt like I was eavesdropping on a conversation. I can't explain why (at least not in 10,000 characters or less). Regardless, it completely turned my prior opinion on its end; and the album is now one of my favorites. Still depressing, at times, but I get it.

That's why I've always been amused by Jon's and Richie's "confusion" (genuine or not) in response to the question about what was going on when they recorded it that made it so depressing.