Recorded music on the outs?

[futuresailors]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13645_3-10421881-47.html



Discuss.

[CBGB]

It's been downhill for Steve Guttenberg since 3 Men And A Little Lady.

[iblamesummers]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFI1Zup__mI[/youtube]

[smile_man]

Home recording is killing off professional studios, and that's clearly tied to plummeting record sales and profits. Home digital recordings can sound acceptable, but the technology can't duplicate the great acoustics of a first-rate studio. You can't record the sound of a band in a great sounding room, unless you have a great sounding room. No wonder most new recordings sound so contrived. Just because you can make a record at home doesn't mean you should. Truly talented, professional recording engineers are a dying breed.

[nad]

Stupid. A substantial portion of masterpiece albums I own were created by bands who still work day jobs.

The album as medium is NOT dead. To state otherwise is revealing your own laziness in seeking out great music.

[Mudfuzz]

The album as medium is NOT dead. To state otherwise is revealing your own laziness in seeking out great music.

I agree 100%

The Big fuckers like to complain that they arn't selling yet they don't put out anything new or interesting [to me], everything I hear that comes off the majors sounds like things I've heard before, over and over and over. I don't want to hear a song with nostalgic references, I don't want Disney mindfuckedness shoved done my throat, I could give a flying fuck about about a contestant off of some dumbass Tv show, I don't even watch Tv. I don't care how the "industry" is doing, if they are doing badly it is their own fault for putting out shit that can't get enough people to care about.

As for professional studios. I have been in and recorded in a few and even got to work with a grammy winning producer, and what we got in the end was no better [or even as good] then what I can get in a home/production studio with a little hard work and determination.

[metalmariachi]

I’ll agree and disagree on this one.
Major Studios seem to be putting out the same over processes sound over and over again; to the point you can’t tell one artist from another.
In an era where people will watch the same movie 30 times, I guess they are selling what the buyers want.

Most of the “artists” seem to spend more time on their choreography than the do on their music.

Home studios can put out great work, and so do pro studios.
Will a 4 grand mike into 2 inch tape sound better than a $50 mike into a Mac?
No contest.
Can the average listener hear the difference?
Hell forums are full of “musicians” who can’t tell a Hyperion from a Big Muff.

I forgot where I was going.

MM

[futuresailors]

I’ll agree and disagree on this one.
Major Studios seem to be putting out the same over processes sound over and over again; to the point you can’t tell one artist from another.
In an era where people will watch the same movie 30 times, I guess they are selling what the buyers want.

Most of the “artists” seem to spend more time on their choreography than the do on their music.

Home studios can put out great work, and so do pro studios.
Will a 4 grand mike into 2 inch tape sound better than a $50 mike into a Mac?
No contest.
Can the average listener hear the difference?
Hell forums are full of “musicians” who can’t tell a Hyperion from a Big Muff.

I forgot where I was going.

MM

Well put. I think you were going toward the "even though it sounds better most people can't tell the difference." I'm a fan of comparing the popularity of ipods among "music aficionados" versus zunes which can play FLAC (and I think are cheaper?)...

I'd say the issue at hand is that "popular" music today sucks giant donkey balls and like you said is all the same over processed sound, which is why no one wants to buy the shit, which is why artist who record at home are getting a larger share of the market. I interned at a smaller post production studio for a while, and almost went over to one of the major ones, and the difference between their rooms, equipment and knowledge and what I was doing on my 4 track was retarded.

Moral of the story: this guy annoyed me...

[archlilim]

Generalizing that all music sucks today is just sheer laziness. Some of the best (and some of my favorite) albums I've ever heard came out this year, and I humbly think I've listened to enough music from all time periods to have a reasonable opinion on the matter. There was no mention of independent labels in that article. Also, musicians are becoming savvier toward major labels in general. The album is becoming an artistic endeavor more than a commercial one now more than ever, which is nothing but a good thing as it gives rise to the talent (though in a narrower spectrum) versus what can sell. Everything is niche now. The mainstream is a minority, it just has the loudest platform on which to sell itself. No matter how records are produced and distributed the album will always exist.

[ShaolinDolemite]

This all sounds eerily similar to the "Will the CD kill the vinyl?" and "Will the download kill the CD?" debate. Sort of.

I worked @ Amoeba Music in SF from 1998 - 2005 (plus countless other record stores prior to that), and after looking at that article, I could not disagree more with his last paragraph. I knew, and still know, a ton of talented musicians that worked there, and not all of them were all about big money, big cars and all that bullbleep. We (like most of you out there hopefully) would like to think that making great music is it's own self reward, that it's far more important to have control over your music than let some industry goons dictate how you should sound. That ability to have control over your music is what led to the music conundrum the industry faces now. Those stiffs continually choose to ignore the real musical talent out there (especially on this forum...Yeah, I am sucking up, bear with me here), and go with the next American Idol winner. Duh.

I know there's some redundancy with previous statements posted, but guys like Goofenberg really piss me off, because if you're a true musician, then you know it's not about the benjis. It's about leaving your own personal audio legacy.

Music will always be here. It is therapy. It is emotion. It is a statement. It is communication. It can be...cosmic.

(Damn, I gotta stop smoking this...never mind.)

Recorded music will always be around. It's the format that will always change.

FUZZ OUT, FUZZ LOUD, AND FUZZ THE FUCKING WORLD IN 2010!

[Nychthemeron]

I worked @ Amoeba Music in SF from 1998 - 2005 (plus countless other record stores prior to that),

I LOVE AMOEBA. Whenever I'm back in the bay I hit up the one in Berkeley.


Also, as long as music is still around, there will be albums sold. Sure, music is available on the internet for free (albeit most of it illegally) but that doesn't stop people from supporting musicians by buying merchandise. Plus, it's not just about the recorded stuff; many gigs are recorded now and people can enjoy them via youtube or some other site. But someone has to go out and record them, and even then you see a ton of people in the audience because they want to enjoy the real experience. It's the same way with albums. People download the record, but then they purchase the album to get the full experience (CD sampling > MP3s, even if you can't exactly hear the difference). The album is not dead. It won't die until music as a medium falls out, and that won't happen anytime soon.

[ShaolinDolemite]

Couldn't agree with you more.

BTW: I seem to recall a Last Exit live album based on a cassette recording. Just sayin'. Quite sure there are other examples of this.

Vinyl album covers have a look that just can't be duplicated digitally either. How many times have you heard your friend tell you they bought an album mainly because of the cover?

Damn, now I want to go record shopping...

[the raytownian]

One word + two words combined into one word: UTTER. BULLSHIT.

Just like cassettes were allegedly killing the music industry (and as if that scenario were a BAD thing).

[the raytownian]

PS: This has got to be the most retarded, pretentious, annoying article I've ever read in my life (I actually took the time to read most of it after my initial post).

UGH!

[Chumley]