Dark and laid back vs bright and forward

I love these questions, as I get to see if I really speak the same language as everyone else. Well, here goes:
I would use forward & bright to refer to an emphasis on the upper end/treble side of the spectrum. The resulting sound is still clear, but the upper end has been emphasized.
I would use dark to refer to an emphasis on the lower end/bass side of the spectrum.
I would use laid back to refer to a sound that is unexciting ... sounds perfectly OK ... but, the pace seems a bit off.
Keep in mind that this is all equipment dependent ... so it is how the amp sounds with the speakers being used, etc.
Regards, Rich

Good question.

I think I disagree with Rar1's answer. Bright refers to an emphasis on the upper mid-range/treble. The sound has an unnatural glare to it. Dark refers to a diminished upper mid-range/treble. The sound is somewhat "shut-in" and doesn't sparkle when it should. Forward is more of a prominence in the mid-range. For instance a solo vocal recorded with the microphone inches from the performer's mouth should sound very upfront and present, but the same performer recorded in a mid to large size hall with more distant miking technique should sound the opposite. There's another phrase, warm, that describes an emphasis in the lower mid-range/upper bass.

Onhwy61:
Interesting ... I never looked at dark sounding as being the mirror opposite of bright sounding. What I was referring to as "dark" ... you might call "boomy" (the sound of old Bogen and Grundig tube amplifiers come to mind ... if that metaphor makes any sense). From my reading of the British HiFi magazines, I see forward & bright used together a fair bit (a speaker will be a bit tipped or forward in the treble region) ... whereas, forward in your usage is almost part of the recording technique. Way cool. Regards, Rich