There was a fear in some quarters in the early '80s that real drums were becoming obsolete because people were using the LinnDrum and other increasingly sophisticated drum machines for pop music. Although drum machines were and are popular they’ve never replaced a real drummer and are often used in a complimentary way rather than replacing a living drummer. Some songs from the era when this style predominated stand the test of time, others don’t. The same will be the case with the obviously auto-tuned tracks nowadays.
Which is really freaking me out. I don’t remember ever hearing that recording before about 2008. So, it flew under my radar for about ten years.
ETA: Autotuner sucks. It should automatically make any recording that is is used on ineligible to be distributed for money. I have spoken.
They’ve been doing this for a while. And it’s good pop music!
The problem is, used subtly, it is unnoticeable. It had been used long before it was abused to produce the “Cher Effect”. If it is used as intended, to tweeze a note or two in an otherwise great performance that was slightly flat or sharp, it is a tool for good. Even the greatest singers in the world can hit the occasional clunker, and prior to Autotune we had to do one of three things:
[ol]
[li]Do another whole performance (which might not be as good)[/li][li]Punch in the note (which might not work)[/li][li]Dub the note to another tape and vary the speed to correct (see above)[/li][/ol]
Autotune is better than any of those three options. It should not be used to turn attractive mediocrities into pop stars, but that seems to be the current direction the industry has taken.
Is synthesized food real food?
The word itself says that it is not. The molecules may match, but the source doesn’t
Yeah, I have to say I’ve liked it in precisely two instances, where it was used as a special effect, not a necessity:
- Cher’s Do You Believe in Love, as mentioned above.
- Madonna’s Music.
Otherwise, when I hear it in songs by little pipsqueaks trying to be real singers, I want to smack someone.
Autotune used for good effect - Rihanna’s “Disturbia” - she’s supposed to sound weird and distorted and unnatural. It completely fits with the idea of the song. Using it for the whole song just because it’s cool - not good (T. Pain, I’m looking at you).
Frankly, this analogy is silly on several levels. First of all, the word itself says makes no such judgment. Second, anything that makes sound can be an instrument. What the hell difference does it make what the source is? It’s the musician behind the sound-generating device that turns it into an instrument, and turns that sound into what we call music. Thirdly, yes, I would say synthesized food is real food. It doesn’t make any difference to me where it comes from, as long as the result provides me with nutrition and sustenance. It may not be naturally occurring food, but it’s “real” food nonetheless.
A Glorious Dawn featuring Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking. - One of my favorite examples of using autotune in this way.
Nope. Neither one most likely. Many audio technologies that were once thought of as somehow substituting for talent and feared as having the potential to ruin music, have become great artistic tools that were used in ways no one at the time could’ve possibly imagined.
Turntablism and sampling (originally just playing other people’s music as something to rap over evolved into a complex art form), distortion (my dad once said that guitar players who can’t play use it to cover their mistakes), harmonizer effects (my guitar teacher in the 80s thought that guitarists like Vai and Satriani were just being lazy using harmonizers instead of playing all the harmonies). Heck, I don’t know for a fact, but I’d guess electronic amplification and microphones signaled the end of singers with talent at some point since opera singers in the 19th century didn’t need them to fill a concert hall.
Personally I like the autotune effect in general, though I hate the way it’s currently used. I’m very curious to see what the great artists will soon be doing with it.
If you’re using it to fix stuff, there’s better options out there. Autotune is specifically designed to be automatic, and that’s why it sucks. I think it will just be used for effects like flangers and stuff were, and on cheap albums that can’t afford the time to fix things up manually.
The “crooning” style became possible with the advent of the electric microphone and I recall reading that initially the BBC was suspicious of this new style and refused to allow crooning artists on air.
You just described one of my favorite bands, Xiu Xiu. They are one of the more interesting bands currently making records.