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RE: Why contemporary music sounds terrible
If it's on a CD it is 'digital' and thereby called 'digitally
mastered'. The mastering engineer on those reissues uses an analog EQ
/ compression chain.
>You know, I kinda wonder if the reason they mastered
>these new sets is because of digital, after all, those
>early Zep albums were done in analog, which brings
>back the onverly exhasted debate about digial and
>analog.
>
>Aside from that, I once read an article about Van
>Halen releasing a Best Of compilation, and some of the
>new material was mastered with no compression. His
>reason for doing it...He wanted to see what it would
>sound like and the radio stations compress the hell
>out of them again to make for consistent volumes from
>song to song, so by leaving it uncompressed, the song
>would sound rather dynamic throught the radio
>station's compressors...clever.
>--- Charles Zwicky <cazwicky@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>>
>> Too bad that the remastered Zep CDs are too loud way
>> too bright...
>>
>>
>> >Absolutely Brian!those Zeppelin record production
>> >still amaze me,and they are made to be turned
>> up!those
>> >drum sounds still sound fresh and the sounds page
>> got
>> >out of those small amps and guitars are the most
>> >interesting ive heard in rock n roll history.What
>> ive
>> >always found brilliant about such a band was the
>> >passion behind it,there are mistakes all over the
>> >place like the solo on "baby i am gonna leave you"
>> the
>> >instrumental "black mountain side" or the bleeding
>> >echo at the end of "you shook me" or the cut off
>> lost
>> >part by their engineer which i believe page fired
>> on
>> >the spot which they had to solve by pasting another
>> >part at the begining of "celebration day"...
>> >but is the honesty power and passion,no frills or
>> >thrills they played back in those days that make
>> them
>> >so special to this day,almost as if it was the last
>> >time they were going to live...
>> >Luis
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >--- greg williams <gregorwilliams@comcast.net>
>> wrote:
>> >
>> >> Brian,
>> >>
>> >> I am also a fan of Page and his production in
>> >> general in terms of dynamics,
>> >> but have you heard "How the West was Won"? It
>> was
>> >> hugely disappointing for
>> >> me in this regard; it is squashed beyond belief,
>> and
>> >> so is the sound on the
>> >> Zeppelin DVD, which was released around the same
>> >> time. I don't know if it
>> >> was Page himself who suddenly caved in or his
>> >> mastering engineer, but I
>> >> really wish I could hear those recordings with
>> some
>> >> dynamics still intact.
>> >>
>> >> ~Greg
>> >>
>> >> -----Original Message-----
>> >> From: Brian Kupferschmid
>> >> [mailto:apparitionapparition@yahoo.com]
>> >> Sent: Monday, February 26, 2007 8:48 AM
>> >> To: Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com
>> >> Subject: Re: Why contemporary music sounds
>> terrible
>> >>
>> >> I wholly agree with this, I believe a lot of
>> today's
>> >> music is crap, not just because the talent is
>> >> lacking,
>> >> but the dynamics as a whole is lacking. Aside
>> from
>> >> super compressed material, the bands themselves
>> only
>> >> see to know two sounds, clean and dirty.
>> Where's
>> >> the
>> >> middle ground? I can listen to a blues song and
>> >> still
>> >> hear the dynamics, I can hear the accentuations
>> on
>> >> the
>> >> notes being played to create emotion. A lot of
>> >> today's pop and rock music lacks that. Mind
>> you,
>> >> Metal in all it's forms, isn't supposed to be
>> >> dynamic
>> >> in the musical sense, but why would you squeeze
>> the
>> >> life out of any song to make it in your face?
>> My
>> >> favorite stuff to listen to would be anything
>> Jimmy
>> >> Page produced(Led Zeppelin for sure). He
>> composed
>> >> his
>> >> songs and used the studio to enhance his
>> material
>> >> with
>> >> what he refers to "light and shade". The
>> >> combination
>> >> of close and room micing, soft versus loud and
>> >> layering acoustics with clean electrics and so
>> on.
>> >> If
>> >> you think about it, even some of the heaviest
> > >> sounding
>> >> stuff he did, wasn't all that distorted.
>> >> Ultimately,
>> >> his use of dynamics traslated over into the
>> >> mastering
>> >> part as well, what makes the big parts sound big
>> is
>> >> the small parts, thus making the song truly
>> >> engulfing.
>> >> Another band to use dynamics to it's fullest is
>> >> Tool,
>> >> because of the ebb and flow, you can listen to
>> an 8
>> >> minute tune and not get bored, because the
>> shifts in
>> >> phrasing and dynamics keeps you there, and
>> what's
>> >> more, everytime you listen to it, a new part
>> pops up
>> >> you didn't realise was there before. Anyway,
>> I've
>> >> spoken what I think, so I have to agree, part of
>> > > what
>> >> is annoying about today's music is the lack of
>> >> dynamics, it wears you out.
>> >> --- Krispen Hartung <khartung@cableone.net>
>> wrote:
>> >>
>> >> > This is an interesting article posted on the
>> jazz
>> >> > guitar discussion group.
>> >> > Jeff Kaiser and I had some interesting
>> discussions
>> >> > about the abuses or
>> >> > misgivings of compression and the quest for
>> hotter
>> >> > levels in newer CDs when
>> >> > I was mastering the discs for the Boise
>> >> Experimental
>> >> > Music Festival....all
>> >> > the different ways you can increase levels
>> (for
>> >> CDs
>> >> > to sound comparable to
>> > > > other professional CDs in your player), yet
>> >> > maintain natural dynamics, etc.
>> >> > Now, it has occured to me that often times
>> when I
>> >> > hear a CD, especially
>> >> > pop/rock CDs, and I think to myself, wow that
>> is a
>> >> > really hot and "in your
>> >> > face" level", the mix also doesn't have much
>> of a
>> >> > dynamic range...some guy
>> >> > is screaming his lyrics, or you can tell that
>> is
>> >> is
>> >> > practically blowing his
>> >> > brains out to get that tone out of his
>> horn...but
>> >> it
>> >> > is no louder than the
>> >> > section where he is wispering poetry over an
>> >> ambient
>> >> > section. It's like
>> >> > compress, compress, compress, limit, limit,
>> >> > limit....turn that wave form
>> >> > into a solid bar, and then raise it to
>> 0db...in
>> >> your
>> >> > face, 100% of the time.
>> >> > Below is the first time I've seen this
>> referred to
>> >> > as exhausting, but it
>> >> > makes sense. Even if you turn your stereo
>> down,
>> >> > there might be something to
>> >> > be said of giving the human pyche a break with
>> >> > natural dynamics and more
>> >> > space.
>> >> >
>> >>
>>
>>Tension....release....tension...release....louder....softer,
>> >> > etc,
>> >> > etc.
>> >> >
>> >> > This article/topic, could I suppose turn into
>> the
>> >> > discussion of the
>> >> > pschological results/benefits of adding more
>> space
>> >> > to one's compositions
>> >> > (not making the composition "better" or
>> "worse,"
>> >> > mind you). Can adding more
>>
>=== message truncated ===
>
>
>
>
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