Something Else to Argue About

[leonaozaki]

So, I saw this on the Guardian and expecting rain:

http://music.guardian.co.uk/pop/stor...992465,00.html

It reminded me of some things we'd been talking about a while back.

Thoughts?

rob

[Spike-X]

"There's nothing wrong with distorted over-limited CDs per se..."

Er, yes there is, actually. Some people like to listen to music for pleasure, rather than have their ears assaulted.

Ryan Adams' album Cold Roses seems to be a victim of this phenomenon. It's a beautifully recorded and mixed record, but the actual volume level, especially on the first song Magnolia Mountain, has been pumped up to such an insane level that by the time you get to the actual loud part of the song, it sounds distorted and harsh.

[Jonathan Bogart]

I agree with the gist of the article -- I mean, the compression wars are pretty extensively documented -- but I'm not so certain that it's as bad a thing as the audiophiles make out. But then I mostly listen to music via already-compromised, lossy mp3s; even the mixCDs I burn come from mp3s. I don't have any high-end equipment, and I have extensive hearing loss anyway. As far as dynamic range goes, though, yeah, it's certainly missed in most current music. (There are compensations, of course.)

But on the larger audiophilic issue, I'm always reminded of what Tom Waits's standard answer in the 70s and 80s whenever a dopey interviewer would ask him what his favorite music to listen to was: "a staticky radio two hotel rooms down playing some old mariachi 78s." And his own music justifies that obsession with muddiness, distortion, and surface noise, even if recent CDs do have a highly-compressed digital sheen to them.

The hollow scrapings of wax cylinders, the limited range of acoustic (pre-1927) recording processes, so that voices sound hollow and violins sound like cats being murdered, the rustle and pop of vinyl, the muffled dissolve on disintegrating tape ... all these things are part of some of my favorite music. Too much focus on minutely detailed sound, on clarity, can lead an artist up his own ass really fast.

[Jonathan Bogart]

Er, yes there is, actually. Some people like to listen to music for pleasure, rather than have their ears assaulted.

But some people want their ears assaulted, too. What's poor Merzbow to do?

[Adam C]

Iggy Pop and the Stooges
Raw Power (Columbia, 1997)

Remixed by Pop in 1997, this remains among "the loudest CDs ever made".

It is? Wow. Oh well, I guess this means that Iggy got his wish.

[Sanagi]

I don't like it, but I'm not the target audience and I wouldn't buy those CDs anyway.

[Ontir]

Maybe this explains why my Costeau album is 3 times louder than any other CD I own?

[Punchy]

Good article and pretty spot on. This is what happens when have lawyers releasing records.

The hollow scrapings of wax cylinders, the limited range of acoustic (pre-1927) recording processes, so that voices sound hollow and violins sound like cats being murdered, the rustle and pop of vinyl, the muffled dissolve on disintegrating tape ... all these things are part of some of my favorite music. Too much focus on minutely detailed sound, on clarity, can lead an artist up his own ass really fast.

This is a totally different situation. The vinyl pops, etc. that you are describing add to the character of the recordings because of the lack of technology at the time. Now there is too much technology and engineers are trying to force volume out of the performance that isn't there.

[TheLazy]

I always thought it was wierd that my Megadeth and Maiden albums always sound quieter than say Pantera or Trivium. I propper bothers me becaue I have to turn them down because they're too loud, and then I lose what little detail the music as to it. It sounds like a guitar tuner going through notes most of the time.

:)

[PanzerMega]

I always thought it was wierd that my Megadeth and Maiden albums always sound quieter than say Pantera or Trivium. I propper bothers me becaue I have to turn them down because they're too loud, and then I lose what little detail the music as to it. It sounds like a guitar tuner going through notes most of the time.

:)

Exactly!

I bought most of my Megadeth CDs in the early 90s, and Peace Sells, So Far So Good, and Rust In Peace are so quiet. It's even more noticable now that I have them burned to my Ipod, and have to adjust the volume when they come on.

Apparently the newer releases are better.

[Ilash]

Well, I'm certainly not going to argue with this article. It's pretty much right on the money but of course, I don't think calling a Stooges album "among the loudest CDs ever made" is much of an insult.

[howyadoin]

It's even more noticable now that I have them burned to my Ipod, and have to adjust the volume when they come on.

If you turn Sound Check on (Preferences > Playback) it balances that out some.

[rick]

It should come as no surprise that it's things like digital manipulation of volume this that make me very happy that the vast majority of my music collection is on good old fashioned vinyl.

I also have to say that while I would be a complete liar if I tried to claim that you can have records without hiss and popping, if you get a good quality pressing and take very good care of it, you really can keep any kind of scratching to a minimum.