@@StatetrooperBillyBill nah I'm gonna be real with you for every Aerosmith there was 200 Warrants and even Aerosmith flopped hard sometimes. music isn't necessarily better or worse now because every era has it's share of iconic records and shitbrick bargain bin nobodies
This quote should be sung and framed and placed upon the walls of the internet so that everyone shall read it. Or, oh the irony, be sampled by AI and earn you a ton of money 😂
everyone said the same thing, upload 1 song every week. and hope your stale music will be able to fool some drunk dude, and hope that he'll save your mediocre song into his playlist and with AI, the problem become worse exponentially, now all the Normie and their mom can throw their junks into spotify and youtube, hoping to make some quick cash some AI Normies even pick a fight with a real producers on the internet, thinking that with AI now they're above everyone else
@@jensenraylight8011 instrument is instrument, when synths are born with all knobs than presets no one consinder it real instruments just like samplers.. Sampling generated sounds from stolen tracks, and now making new generated sound from not copyrighted samples with knowlage in sound design, music theory and producing is better than old sampling.. remember Korg M1!!? ; or Mellotron from 1963, which used loops of audio tape to play back the sounds... Every one can make something even in stone age.. Stay creative and be curious
Listening to BH is like a breath of fresh air. Not only does all modern pop music sound the same, all young UA-camrs use the same droning voice (usually with a so-called Vocal Fry end to each sentence). BH's voice has character and reminds me of my childhood!
I've often said that one thing you no longer get, is "player fatigue". Used to, in pop/rock, you could hear the musicians and singers fatigue slightly towards the end, and that affected their playing. The listener could feel that excitement. Think of a great record like, "Baby, It's You" by Smith (1969). Or anything by Janis Joplin. Now you don't get that natural expenditure of human energy.
Great observation and one I've not considered before. It's the life force that translates through the music, and new productions are missing much or all of that
Apparently Chino Moreno deliberately recorded vocals for the entire Deftones album Gore in one go so that he would get more and more fatigued through the record and that would come through in his performance. There's a lot of debate about the mixing of that record (so this might not have come off as good as it could have). But that dropped in 2016 so not old old. There are still people doing interesting things if you look hard enough. Especially in underground scenes.
your are so right, I'm 70 years old, everything is perfect today but real life is not, not just music, photography and all art forms i don't comment much on UA-cam but this deserves a comment as you have nail everything.
Absolutely spot on. Also the melody lines are all one note with a few minor note movements at the end of major sections - Just listen to Taylor Swift - why do people like the songs? because it is not singing up and down scales or a dynamic range of notes. Another reason why Hip Hop is so popular - same beat, one tempo, no vocal dynamics. Cheers, Kim Australia
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHumeLOL, back in my day in 84’/85’, I did literally carry my Seymour Duncan Convertible 100 combo in my arms with me to my high school (down the street about a quarter mile) many a day to play in our jazz band and pop band ensembles. Luckily I grew up in Vegas so flat and no snow involved lol. I must’ve had a good back because I’d laugh at trying that these days lol 😂
@@KimboH55 you saying hip-hop is same beat, one tempo, no vocal dynamics confirm that you really don't listen to rap. If you did, your opinion would be different. It's totally okay not to like something, but your reasoning is off.
This is exactly how pianos work. Only the strings in the very lowest part of the soundboard are single strings; everything from about C3 upwards has at least two strings, each slightly out-of-tune with each other but centered on the perfect pitch, and everything from about C5 up uses 3 strings, with the middle string perfectly on-pitch, with the other two being slightly detuned or over-tuned, which gives pianos their rich tones. It's also why 12-string guitars were invented and why instruments like mandolins have doubled strings.
Yes, in fact the two defining aspects of choral, or even double tracking, is that the pitches vary against each other due to independent rate of vibrato in each. in a big choir, like gospel, you also hear the actual breathing sounds as a separate effect. You won't get this if you digitally duplicate vocal elements.
This is one the aspects I like the most of rock bands that are very piano-centered, like The Rolling Stones. I've always found it difficult to express in words, but the little pitch variations make it sound like the band is on the edge of a cliff, a little mistake and everything will fall, but, like a miracle, everything works.
What is the biggest problem are the few different 4 chord progressions most songs use from start to end and the overly simplististic melodies, like it is all made for kids I think this is a bigger problem than the sounds sounding more or less different Pop music is containing less and less different chord progressions has also been measured each following 10 years the amount of progressions decreased as well as tge complexity of the chords. This is much more important than the "details"in this video in my opinion at least
Man I am so honored to have worked with you at Tree Sound in the late 90s. With so many sessions since, picking on panic stands out to this day. I know I was green but I noticed. Much love to you.
Ps. You are totally speaking my mind in this vidja. Also. Why do you care if folks who see this video of absolute truth don’t agree? This is confusing to me. You are a singular ear at the console. One day, very soon, the industry will switch to people who are artists humbly and boisterously making hand made crafted actual music. I understand acknowledging automation and stacking and cut and pasting. That’s All in an analytic app now. Just short of AI. Perfection is not perfect. The last record I did we drew in some vocal points. Other than that, it was pretty much exactly how I remember you doing things at Tree. You know there’s gonna come a day where people recognize six fingers on a hand musically and it’s not going to illicit the same emotional response as some people, standing on a tight rope. I firmly believe whether it’s retro progressive or old new stuff whatever you wanna call it. The human artist and the spirit conjured Will have no imitators.
Awesome video! I've made it a habit for 15 years to record all of my own stuff from scratch, not use stock or bought presets, or sounds. My creativity and control of the complexity is through the roof! I push myself each day to not sound like everyone else.
@ i think you misunderstood him. He’s comparing over-processed homogenous beats to mcdonalds. Whereas live-room mic recorded instruments and stuff like that would be, idk, like, a home-cooked meal
0:10 Man, I remember positively drooling over the Soundcraft Ghost in like 1996. I would read the full-color brochure over and over and dream about how I'd set it up. Now you can find them for pennies on the dollar. 🤷♂
Isn't that crazy? I have friends who have bought way bigger and more expensive boards for a few hundred bucks. If you want some old analog gear now is the time to buy.
I’ve recorded guitar tracks with mic’ed amps in open fields and on city rooftops in the summer sun. You can very much hear it, and it makes a huge difference.
@@4lssis468 The air plane reference is to Led Zeppelins Black Country Woman plus the engineers chatter that goes with it (the track was recorded outside), the telephones are in the "The Ocean" on Houses of the Holy at about 2.30 into the track, there is more engineers (or band) chatter in Out On the Tiles at about 1.30 ("Stop") there are probably more that i haven't picked up - there's also the notorious bass drum pedal squeak on a few of there tracks
The other reason you did not mention is that many of those kids just want to be famous and earn money by copying what’s been successful in the past. Those kids are not artist but just cloud chasers. Edit: and don’t forget the publishers and record labels; they are pushing only the sound that is (in their eyes) ‘current’ and solely dictated by money. And let’s not forget many of the audiences don’t care about ‘good’ music.
They don’t copy the the successful people from back then, cause then mainstream music would be good. What happens is the music industry finds people with talent and personality and signs them to a label that forces them to copy what else is popular today making all the music super boring and sound the same
Yep. This is why "artists" like JoJo Siwa cop so much hate. It's clear that she's not actually interested in being a musician. She isn't creating music because it's her passion. She is just aware that she can sing, and that she already has PR connections.
Bang on! I don't know how many times I've mentioned the word dynamics to artists; it feels so redundant on my behalf. And what about fermatas? Where have those gone? Listen to the fermata in the Pointer Sister's version of Fire. I love how after the bridge everything slows right down and gets quiet before they sing, "Romeo and Julliet" to come back into the last verse. I also love the dead air between the riffs in the intro of Fire. Ah... a moment of silence before each one gets played again, and not "let's fill it all up with some sound from some loop or keyboard pad". And what about bridges, why have those disappeared? And it's so rare that we hear great solos, too. Is it because they take up too much time and songs must be 3:00 minutes or less? Great video that I recommend people pay attention to.
19y.o. analog enthusiast here, thanks alot for this masterpiece of a video! it objectively answers to some of my questions to what I didn't find answers before, instead of just shitting on modern music without being able to argument the point. I've also tried to understand my natural preference to the older music, to find more objective arguments for the "the music was better before" thesis from the audio engineering perspective (and not promotional/songwriting one). Highly appreciate the hard work and passion put into the creation of this video!
As a 22 year old producer/engineer, I can agree with all of this. I think your videos are hitting really close to home for me, especially with how I see the industry moving. I personally feel that a lot of engineers/producers from my generation are quite misinformed about a lot of these things, as well as under the impression that these things are necessary for success. In hip hop producers are producing directly into not 1, but 2 clippers, and sending that to the artist/mixer. I feel that a lot of younger musicians are not only scared to step outside of “perfection”, but under the impression that it’s necessary to be “perfect” to succeed. I have told plenty of people that we don’t have to master to -5LuFS (yes, that loud) and they still do it, purely because they’re scared that the audience won’t listen to a dynamic master. Anyways. I’m grateful you are making these videos so that I can send them to my friends and beg them to step outside of “perfect.”
Throw away Ableton.Throw away the grid. Do linear tape. Play all parts. For the entire track. Add emphasis and dynamics all through, the entire track. Be a human.
A lot of "type beats" here on YT are unlistenable, and I think it's just for the reason you said about mixing into 2 clipper. It's all kick hi hat and snare smacked in your face. They have a really unnatural image and balance...
One thing to also consider is that most people aren’t making money off music like they used to, especially thanks to streaming. So for a lot of people, especially younger artists, producers, engineers, etc. it’s getting harder and harder to justify investing in these analog pieces of gear they will likely see little to no return on any time soon.
cant afford the investment of time either...everything old school doesn't just take more money, it takes more time...people will prioritize efficiency and ease of use over feel and experience,..cause they cant afford to spend the same amount of time making music as before
It's a different grind for sure, I find as a producer in 2024 there's a lot of weird pressures to be a lot more than a producer, and I think for me where I struggle is with social media, that doesn't mean I roll over and accept my fate as a hobbyist, but I don't really feel the need or want to be like in the forefront of public consciousness. It's literally the only thing that keeps me tied to smart technology in general is the fact that there's this element of necessity to be this influencer, like bro I just wanna sell beats, do sessions. Y'know?
I think the main difference is with playing real/miked instruments, whole songs/jams, not correcting everything to death. This costs no extra cent and add a lot of individuality. I think it's hard for young artist with no band background to realize how much fun it is to work on stuff with other people even if it's not all perfect.
Not to mention the cost of hiring a studio to record in. Even the ”lower quality” ones where i live cost a hefty amount for half a day. I’ve instead invested in alot of modest equipment at home, and the digital stuff is updating and getting better every year. In the long term, its better for me and my band.
Its interesting that its the evolution of youtube channels, like on a lot of car channels I watch as they get big with bigger budgets they become more boring as they chase bigger projects. I then go back to a newer channels a the early struggle is more real and details. this channel is like getting a Rick Beato3. its back to a fresher start.
But he's still confusing music with music industry, two separate things. Obviously the record industry started its descent from the end of the 80s, with machines replacing real musicians. And the final blow was later coming from Napster.
Spot on 100%. Being unique is the way to go. I just recorded a new solo album with a few different guitars, a couple different amp set ups and effects for diversity and sounds refreshing every time. Recording live is definitely the way to go. A lot of musicians feel that they have to use the same amp plug in or same guitar for the whole record ( to me I think that's boring cause there is no excitement to it) Back in the day musicians were messing around with multiple guitars, amps & effects. One thing I feel that is missing in todays music is musicians stepping outside the box expanding on dissonant melodies and chords. Some musicians do it, but most don't. I love music. It is a never ending journey. Throw a odd time signature here and there. It adds excitement, but not many artists do that too.
I too am 70. Started engineering in the early 70s on an old API. Ended in NYC through the 90s on an SSL. Burnt through thousands of 2” & 1/2” reels of 456! So many Studios & Music Stores bk around 42nd - 54th street & 7th.. It was a real community! Anyway, just wanted to give props on a master class look at the industry. The compressor / limiter demo was great! FYI: one of the better, higher tech studios in NYC circa 1980s was actually named “Unique Recording”.
In the mid 80's my band recorded at Unique on two occasions, always an overnight 8 hr session. One session we had to start 2hrs late as Chaka Kahn was tracking her vocal parts on Windwoods Higher Love. She came out and apologized. Good times!
Great video Billy, you laid out a very complex happening in very easy to understand terms. “Sameness” is immediately noticeable when recording most of your tracks in a native environment and (guilty as charged) copying and pasting most to all verse or chorus instruments, even lead vocal! I also think there is a lot of emotion, excitement and magical chemistry that works its way into a live recording with tangible instruments that just cannot be emulated in a DAW or layering tracks one at a time!
Providing a small correction: You’re right about the fact that most people in pop and rap music arent really making their own sounds on synths. But in music like House, Dubstep, Glitch, Electronic Ambient, and even certain subsets of Drum and Bass people program and design their own sounds ALL OF THE TIME.
I think that the biggest difference between ‘then’ and ‘now’ Is the fact that back then if you wanted to make a song you either had to know how to play an instrument or get in touch with some people who knew. No musician? No song. Now, aNyone can ‘produce’ a song with just a bunch of loops and samples. Not knocking it, I use them heavily in my sound but mostly rhythmic and percussive aspects of the song. I’m not a good keyboardist but I’m pretty good. I can play exactly what I want on keys, bass, strings, etc. I also play guitar so I put my own guitar tracks, along with whatever samples or guitar VSTs I choose to add to the mix. So I’m not pulling melodies from some very common source that thousands and thousands of people have access to and use many times on a daily basis. That’s part of the ‘sameness’ that we’re hearing. People are using great sample libraries like Splice for instance, because a lot of those hooks sound really really good. I don’t blame people for using them, but they get used over and over and over. It’s still a great idea to learn how to actually play an instrument or two. No one can copy what’s in your head. Not yet anyway.
It's not about the process of making the music. It mostly boils down to the ease of access for the average listener. The average listener isn't curious anymore.
It really ends with how people use the tools they have in my eyes. When you see competitions where people HAVE to all use the same loops, you start seeing how absolutely insane people can get with limitations like that. I just don't put the blame on anything, it's really easy to find music you've never heard before, but you gotta put yourself in a situation where you're always seeking out new music ;) Splice vocals though yeah I find it funny when like 3 people use the same hook in the same scene lmao
Splice is really useful for drum samples, anything else I avoid because I’d rather express myself through my own instrument playing. I don’t own a drum kit but I usually play virtual drums in logic on a drum pad and quantize them about 50% so they maintain that messy human quality. I also add distortion and slight reverb so it sounds different than the stock sound.
I listen to a lot of punk & metal...a few months ago i took my step daughter's truck to the shop. Her radio was on a metal station. I literally couldn't tell the difference between the bands. Every guitar sounded like it was recorded on the same amp, in the same room, with the same microphones in the exact same positions (if they were recorded with real amps or mics at all.) The vocals were basically the same. It was absolutely ridiculous. & yeah, I listen to new bands I like...but man, that stuff on the radio was ridiculous.
BeCuz the radio can only play certain types of production or cater to a certain demonstrating, so If you want your work to be included in their playlist thats the requirement sadly.
@blulacez4421 yeah. I've noticed it elsewhere too though. There are a couple UA-cam channels about recording music that I've watched (I'd rather not say who.) & literally everything they record sounds the same. I understand for a certain individual or band that's fine. But even when he records different bands on the show, they mostly sound the same too. I have learned a few things from their videos, which is cool, but dang, to me that gets old real quick.
You forgot to say that today anything that doesn't sound EXACTLY the same (literally) like 'top10' of a matching genre playlist/record label, your song will be rejected. I'm talking about things like "this hihat has more reverb than tracks in our playlist" - real life example. We really reached this level of nonsense. There's no point to even release music these days, especially when we want to do something different. It's better to make music for ourselves, eventually some friends. As making music is a type of self-therapy, it's beneficial to us, even when not released. Much better than dealing with money-hungry, music-hating leeches that took over the music industry. Nice video by the way. I can't listen to modern music anymore myself. It makes me feel tired because everything is pushed 'in your face' and there's no dynamics anymore. But my friends love it and they cannot imagine making music without brickwalling everything.
Yep, although that has sort of always been the case, there was possibly a bit more variety from mainstream labels in the 60s and early 70s as there were more labels, and independents as well, and as nobody knew where 'contemporary' music was going labels took more risks, rather than risk being left behind/missing out on the next big thing. The best and well known example of this (not knowing where the market was going) was Decca turning down the Beatles as "guitar groups are on the way out." I would also suggest that back then the people working for the labels were genuinely interested in the music rather than being run by 'accountants' and the bottom line being the 'be all and end all'.
@@zvonimirsarcevic7928 I released music in the past and these are the reasons why I gave up on releasing music: - record labels are not doing proper marketing and they don't invest in artists anymore, instead they're starting to ask artists to pay for it, which renders record labels completely useless - dealing with playlist curators etc. is nothing than horrible experience - hundreds of thousands tracks is published every day - to get listeners you have to spend tons of your time and money on marketing and promotion and: - to do that today you must put yourself and your image above your music I wrote it with the most nice words I could find because if I wrote what I really think about the current music industry my post would be removed by YT ;) I'm not gonna waste any more of my lifetime on any of that c**p. I have better things to do.
@@ralphhathaway-coley5460 these days, labels are asking artists to fund marketing & PR :D So it's literally paying labels so they can take copyrights of your music. This industry is becoming more and more ridiculous with each year. Recently I read about touring and even this is apparently becoming a bigger and bigger scam (I'm not talking about the classic "play a gig for free in our pub and be thankful for the exposure" ;)
The heart or feeling is just not there...I try to correct it when making music not perfect vocals. Changing dynamics to not being overly loud sounding. Whatever works if it's recognised or not what can I do but be myself.
I totally agree with everything you said! I recorded using Pro Tools and HDX plugins for years and enjoyed every bit of the convenience and sound. Then I tracked an album with an old school Americana artist who insisted I did everything using hardware(Neve, 1176, mic cabs, different rooms, external FX, etc.) and he didn't want me to do any corrections at all! Once we finished tracking and mixing I was blown away at how amazing the album sounded. I dig your vids (nice and clear and understandable for us bass players :) I would love to see more of your techniques.
I was trapped in my bad productions. You've saved me and think this is the most important lesson for me in the last 10 years. You're a master in analyzing stuff. Thanks from the bottom of my heart man 🙏🏼✌🏼
As an in the box musician (a side from vocals and simple percussion) I am always trying to get some distance and air that is quite different from what most reverb plugins -- I do use reverb for a bit of sparkle, stereo enhancement and 3Dness but even with it I always feel like my ITB software instrument based compositions feel right on top of you. Best thing I've found to approximate the "air" described in this vid is a plugin from Airwindows called Distance ("Distance is specifically set up to mimic through-air high frequency attenuation"). You might like it and find it useful. I put one instance on my mix bus to set a basic depth for the whole composition and then use it here and there on individual instruments, pushing and pulling them until it sounds pretty close to a real band playing. Airwindows ToTape8 and his CreamCoat reverb are pretty mind blowingly good and useful as well. Let me know if the Distance plugin helps you out as I am curious what you think
8:15 as a musician growing up with African(ised) music, I find notes that are exactly on the beat are not perfect but primitive, musically without flavour. Listen to authentic Gnawa, Ethiopian Music, Sidney Bechet or Miles Davis: how many notes are actually flat on the beat, and where exactly are they if not? Those microrhythms are exactly where groove happens.
This is why I use a digital 8 track away from the computer, only use it to upload the WAV when finished and mastered. So no copy and paste of anything when I'm recording! Thanks for the great video 😅
22 year old producer here, you're definitely right. My favorite producers use analog equipment and have VERY unique sound signatures, regardless of the actual musical content, and that's something I'm hoping to build. This video's almost like a tutorial on how to humanize music if you think about it.
I love the convenience of a modern DAW but I love the breath and air and personality and character of music where every line and part is sung and performed (rather than copy/pasted). I love hearing pitch wobbles on a vocal, or on a harmony or backing vocal. When I record I want it to not only be the best version of that song, capturing all the power and emotion and dynamic, but also a true representation of the musicians at the time they recorded. When I listen back I want to get the feeling that we had in the room on those days. Great video, points well made.
As a producer that works mostly in digital, I go to really great lengths to give my music a human feel. I try to introduce tons of little imperfections, glitches, noise, bit crushing, all sorts of things to give everything a sense of motion and humanity.
Interested reading the other day that when recording the strings on "Eleanor Rigby", Geoff Emerick put the microphones right up to the instruments. The musicians hated it and moved back, whereupon Geoff moved the microphones back up to the instruments. The musicians eventually accepted the microphone positions, played the score, hated the session, didn't want to hear the playback, and left. But at least Geoff got that unique string sound. Sometimes you have to upset musicians to get the right sound.
I just cannot agree more with you. Every single point you covered made sense. PLEASE make a video with each of the topics you wanted to include in this video. Cheers from CR 🇨🇷 !
I think music is more diverse than it was in the 60's, and the 70's and the 80's... we live in Avery diverse musical world now. the thing that makes everything sound the same is the discovery/the way music is consumed. Go try find the strangest music you can! It's out there. There's loads of interesting crossover Classical electronic, Jazz and Hiphop. We've never had such a diverse musical landscape, just be careful which big label is paying to narrow your musical discovery journey toward there artists
Whole genres of music were created in the 60s and 70s. That's not happening now. Electric blues, psychedelic, folk, acid rock, heavy metal, R&B, Soul, Disco, Progressive Rock were all pretty much INVENTED in the 60s and 70s. They are not inventing much that's new now.
I agree there’s some wild stuff being made. I think it’s never in the mainstream you find experimentation and innovation. However, there is a lot of generic sounding stuff being created and it’s because it’s never been easier to make music using a laptop and very simple set up to produce a proficient professional sounding track. Unfortunately this can make production lazy and by numbers like building a Lego model. The key when making music is to find the heart of the song and build an aesthetic for that.
Ridiculous comment. There has never been a LESS diverse time for music in my lifetime, and I’m 45. But unlike yourself (I’m presuming based on your comment) and younger generations now, my cohorts and I were obsessed with tracking down and consuming music that preceded our generation, so we were buying CD’s, tapes, and vinyl of music from 60’s, 70’s, and early 80’s that we missed, especially the funk and blue note jazz-funk-fusion stuff from the 70’s that formed the basis of our favorite hip hop by people like Wu-tang, Boot Camp, Tribe, and Outkast. I was also big on using the library to hear old vinyl, cassettes and CD’s, which you could check out (still can, actually). The amount of pure genius and creativity that existed from that time period is virtually endless. I’m still discovering new favorite artists, bands, and songs from fertile period all the time. The modern music scene … is a wasteland. Everything does, in fact, sound the same as everything else, or is completely derivative in the most obvious and lazy ways. I still have a hunger for discovering music. If there were modern artists worth discovering, I would find them and and listen (the Louis Cole’s of the world are few and far between). There simply isn’t anything going on. The only people who could possibly think differently, and sorry if this is insulting … are VERY limited (nicer way of saying ignorant) in their musical knowledge, probably a product of the modern generations reliance on steaming services? Whereas we would discover an artist we like-James Brown, Otis Redding, Bill Evans, Prince, The Beatles, Led Zepplin, etc.-and proceed to find and devour everything they’ve ever recorded, including lost demos, side projects, solo careers, live concert albums and VHS tapes … kids today simply hear the one or two songs an artist has on steaming services rotation or playlists, or whatever songs happens to be floating around tik tok. It’s a very different culture in terms of music enthusiasm, which also probably explains the lack of innovation or unique sounds? Everyone is just in a general malaise and apathy about music because it’s so readily available to you whenever you want; there’s nothing exciting about music anymore; there’s no hunger for discovery on the part of the consumer, or conversely, a hunger to do something no one has ever done before in terms of the artists. This video nails a lot of points that Rock Beato left out of some of his recent criticisms, or had different angle on some of the points he typically makes as well. Good stuff.
@@79Glitch So I am slightly younger than you and a musician and am more than a casual music listener so here's my input to your input. First I am curious what are the newest bands you listen to since you mentioned some 90's hip hop so I wonder if that's around the period you stopped searching for new music. Around the 90's is when there was a wide divergence in musical genres and if you were still waiting for the next great rock band you were robbing yourself of the best new music because rock just wasn't where music was heading by then, save for maybe red hot chili peppers or Oasis but as popular as they were there was better stuff to be found. Radiohead has been the most critically acclaimed band since around 2000 which proves that music was heading in a different direction by the 90's/2000s. Indie music became huge around this time, Dinosaur Jr., Pavement, Elliott Smith, Modest Mouse then later Arcade Fire, Death Cab for Cutie, Bright Eyes and one of my personal favorites Fleet Foxes. Metal became huge in the 90's with bands like Faith No More, Death, Immortal. Evolving into newer bands like Necrophagist, Mastodon, and one of my favorites Between the Buried and Me. The only caveat is you have to like screaming vocals but you can't say that all the metal that's come out isn't good music just because you don't like screaming, or at least you can't say it's repetitive and derivative, I guess taste is subjective. Hip hop and rap, I admit I only listen to 90's stuff like the bands you mentioned and can't stand the newer stuff. Rap took off more than any other genre and is the new rock and roll. If I were to say any new genre is unoriginal and derivative I'd pick rap(outside of radio pop music), I think the 90's hip hop was the peak and since Lil Wayne onwards it's all awful but hey that's just me. Kendrick Lamar and Kanye West are both popular and critically acclaimed and I wouldn't say there's not something to their popularity because of my own taste. Post hardcore and punk became bigger even though the 80's had a lot of great hardcore and punk as well. Fugazi, Lagwagon, NOFX, Rancid, The Descendants. Some of my favorite music was the earlier emo/screamo stuff like Alexisonfire, Coheed and Cambria, At the Drive-In, and one of my personal favorites mewithoutYou. Post-Rock and math-rock. Slint, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Tortoise, Mogwai. Hella, Don Caballero, Tera Melos, Minus the Bear. There's been a lot of amazing music but the tastes have changed. Even my musical tastes are slightly outdated because a lot of the music I've listed was 90's-2010's bands. There is an oversaturation of music these days because of home recording being more accessible and there is a lot of copycat bands as well because of that but I just don't think you can say in all fairness that there's no good music anymore. If you look around you can find pretty much anything under the sun but a lot of it isn't stuff the casual music fan would stumble upon.
Oh yes. That - and, man, it's the saddest thing going to live gigs and even there they'll all sound the same. That's most refreshing video I've seen in a while, helps me save hundreds on therapy - thank you!
Wow this is my first time on your channel and immediately subscribed. This was the most eloquently concise I’ve ever seen this info broken down. Amazing, man, Fckin hats off 🤠
I recognized this inevitability years ago. Many did. The difference between me and many of my cohorts though, is that MANY have taken all of the shortcuts anyway, and prioritized time and money and relieving themselves of their own inhibitions. “Make everything perfect” is something that virtually no listeners ever asked for. Only producers and musicians.
I know a pretty famous producer who uses amp sims. He's produced a bunch of bands, and all of them have the same guitar tones on their records! It's almost like he doesn't even know how to use amp sims other than picking his favourite preset. Meanwhile I have used four different amp sims on a single song. I am not saying everyone needs to do this, but what really needs to happen is for people to explore their software more thoroughly instead of sticking to the same few presets. Pod Farm is a really old amp sim, but even it had 78 different guitar amps and 28 bass amps. It alone can be a source of infinite variety if people just used it properly.
You should try what Alive In Chains did and try different IRs, mics, and amps for the lows, mids, and highs. I have my own secret formula for my IR mix that's fucking killer.
Yea sure 78+28 eq curves... Another issue with coded plugins is they're the same very often just different GUIs it's called in-house code, especially when mixed a certain way by the same engineer it will sound the same. Also even if they were that different you're asking one guy to learn 100+ amp sims and what you can do with them... quite the learning curve assuming a guy of a certain age, it makes more sense to use a few that you know & like, plus if the band likes it the job is done! Anyway typical thing with plugins , eg. u can easily match different uad eqs, or with soft synths emulations a new comes out and it sounds like the previous one , too much hype.
@@josephfigueroa3527 I haven't gone that crazy yet but I do intend to. Amp blending is such a deep rabbit hole you can get lost in. So far, I have used it more traditionally, in trying to blend amps that have different kinds of distortion. There is one amp in there that is just unusable. I have tried it on so many tracks and never found a good place for it. But I will keep trying till I find a place to use it 🙂
Love the way you explain every concept you introduce without taking it all for granted. This video is GOLD 💯 More like this, please 🙏 It's hard to believe this channel has only 17K subscribers.
yeah thats not gonna happen I think. Loudness has won, since it usually makes stuff sound better to the ear. Not as unique, but warmer, punchier, more qualitative. All the good stuff. However the reals pros actually don't overdo it, or if they do it know how to still have everything sound dynamic.
Wow, I just have to say, you are a genius the way you explained how everything sounds the same today. Your expertise and experience shine through. You’ve done a great job in shedding light on these issues, and I’m sure it’s going to open the eyes of a lot of people. I started my music journey with Pink Floyd, and now I can really appreciate the difference between the old and new sounds. Hats off to you for sharing these important insights! Please make more videos.
Great Video, Constant DAW usage and recognizing my songs were becoming robotic led me to go completely dawless in 2020. I've never looked back. Go Analogue!
i think theres a tendency today for artists to be scared to step outside of the tried and tested drum loops and plugins. also not listening to a diversity of music. thinking they have to like X,Y or Z otherwise they will passed over.
Its also the sources of information we share. Pre-internet days how did you find things out? Hopefully a magizine or a published book. If you're really lucky...knowing like minds that like passing the info. Even the forum days you still had to read, but you can completely interpret what you read differently. Now we have UA-cam. We're shown, we can hear, we can download the same files, influenced to grab the same gear, theres algorithms. There was a time where most people swore to keep lots of knowledge to themselves or amongst the crew they were working with.
This was sooo much fun to watch...and since we're pretty much of the same generation I have witnessed all that you spoke of. Unfortunately a good amount of today's music listeners don't know what they don't know (and are missing with the human elements being removed). The majority of my music equipment is analog, I listen to vinyl and shoot film in my camera.
actually, i myself, who is a part of gen z, don't actually like the music on the radio right now. it's become quite stale. it was actually at least slightly better 4 years ago and before. now it's just taylor swift and country music and rap. it's too boring. ADD SOME STUFF or TAKE AWAY STUFF.
Even if you're playing 4 on floor techno with zero real variation. PLAY IT! Even if it's the same motif over rand over, press record, play the entire tune. THE ENTIRE TUNE. PLAY IT!!! Every bassist worth their salt will tell you that ever bar is different, even when it's the same.
There are many of us who are making music that does NOT sound the same. Many, many of us. I would suggest that some of you veterans of the industry--if you really care about the future of music--do some deep diving for that music, and then promote it, so that it has a fighting chance.
thissss. i swear sometimes older gens blame their isolation from good music (which 100% still exists - amyl and the sniffers, fontaines dc, big thief, mitski, courtney barnett, i could go onnn) on kids not having like a 'real artistic understanding' or something to make themselves feel better about not being young anymore. these kinda videos do nothing to promote good music, they just pander to people feeling out of the loop
Finally i found someone who i can relate too...i totally get it...and this is why the best music ever made was done in this raw form..like recording a live band all the way through the song and just living it like that.... thats the way i want to make my music! thank you so much for sharing this!!!
I’m a producer/songwriter and the things you said about air got me hooked. Using voice/instrument/mic just leaves so much room for frequencies. I wanna add more choir now since I really like it! I also have the perfection disease. Tryna not to quantize my drums on 100% now, maybe 95%… and focusing on just recording more sounds instead of searching on splice… Thanks a lot!
my 2 cent worth opinion: ONE major factor for the invention of all those gadgets & auto-tuners is due to the fact that we lack talent, sure we have a bunch of modern technology, but those techs aren't a substitute for real talent: Modern day vocalists don't have the talent as the previous generation had, so they rely on modern tech to help them along , because they don't want to invest 20 years of their life to hoeing their vocals & really learn to sing for real, so hence we have auto-tuners.. it's true music isn't supposed to be perfect it's supposed to have glitches & one other major factor why live bands & singers have to use backing tracks & auto-tuners live is because they can't duplicate live what was recorded in the studio , so I am 100% sure based on my opinion that auto-tune has to be used live. because the live performance just can't be reproduced ... & this is what I think killed live music.. I bet most of our famous vocalists are using auto-tuners live or lip sinking ,because based on my opinion it's just too impossible to sing night after night on tour night after night because if they did their voice would go out.. nobody in my opinion can sing night after night & go on tour night after night. Maybe perhaps back in the day before all this modern tech was invented the concert goers expected to hear mistakes during a live performance so it wasn't a big deal . And also most people only have relative pitch having perfect pitch is very rare in humans, so the music during a live performance doesn't have to be perfect. Most people can't hear the glitches or the mistakes anyway, so why is modern music have to be perfect in pitch & time? in summary all this modern tech & all those cool gadgets are designed to cover up for the lack of talent we lack pure talent. I've been inside the studios in the late 80's early 90's before all this modern apps, & tech stuff was invented.. Back in the day before all this modern tech was invented it took months even years to complete a whole record, or album, or a single LP/EP studio musicians would spend hours upon hours in the studio working on their sound & going over take after take.. just putting down vocals would take weeks modern music in my opinion sucks, because it all sounds the same being produced on the same sound board & gadgets.
Thank you… I had theories, but holy SH**! I didn't realize the death by a thousand cuts aspect of why everything sounds so homogenized even across genres. Wow.
The only reason anyone would think modern music all sounds the same is because they have stopped actively seeking out new music. This is like listening to a "best of the 80s" radio station and saying it all sounds the same because they all use the same synth patches and snare sound.
people have been trying to figure out “why new music sounds the same” for so long that the first stuff it was said about is now old music that sounds different
I've been trying to find new bands that don't sound like every other trash modern band out there. I've gone to underground shows and have dug into the depths of 4chan. Everybody sounds the same. Even in the 80s, you could tell who you were listening to regardless of the vibe of the era.
Enjoying. I got turned onto your channel by another studio friend. I feel like I'm listening to myself, lol. I've had these arguments and complaints for years.I was so pro tech back at the beginning, literally, working at West LA Music starting in 89, as the only Apple for music dealer in LA. Getting Digidesign proto types including Sound Tools. In fact Pro Tools partially existed due to feedback from Karl and myself and input we got from showing prototypes to Producers etc. Any way I started going anti tech because of musical problems going into the 2000s. Sure, digital media is so easy to mess with but all I think about is old consoles, tape and machines.
Ever since I started mixing about a year ago I was always so confused about the loudness concept. I never understood why I was supposed to make a verse with acoustic guitar sound as loud as a chorus with a full band. This demonstration is so helpful. Thank you.
Been talking about this for years! Couldn't agree more! Expressiveness and dynamics are so underrated they should be the most important thing to look for when putting a song together. As for the custom sounds I believe there's so much decision impairment that you are kinda stuck with presets, personally I choose to have limitations so I come up with my personal point of view. Today I feel most artists and musician arrangements sound like they are entirely on grid and sound plasticky. btw excellent content! :D
Super inspiring and On the spot Billy. Same sounds. Same plugins. Same output etc. But I really would have loved if this DAW stuff was around when I was fresh faced and a Youngee version. I had my 4 track 🎉
I agree whole heartedly! I am in this music production course, and everyone is saying, "your song's too dynamic." "You need to stop trying to be unique, cause if you do your mixes will be horrible." "don't reinvent the wheel." Shut up. I am going to make what I like and only what I like, and if I have to spend a long time learning how to mix and master it so be it. I'm not an NPC who likes everything everyone else likes. And AI is a whole other issue that will probably add a huge layer to this problem. Anyone can give an AI a prompt and have it make something and take all the credit. What happened to actual skill, talent and commitment? Good stuff. Speak the truth boldly!
This was such a great video! I’m a new singer-songwriter finally working on recording my own songs. Don’t have much money or equipment just my guitar, a simple interface, one mic, and GarageBand but I’m prioritizing singing and playing songs full through as much as possible (no copy-paste sections except some of the GB drummer stuff). It’s slow and steady since I’m learning and developing my sound, but I think the resulting uniqueness and variation through each part of a song is what I’m after.
![Chris Langan - The Interview THEY Didn't Want You To See - CTMU [Full Version; Timestamps]](/img/n.gif)
I like that you base your presentation on facts and not just “analog/hardware is better” or “things were better back in the day” attitudes. Great job.
@@StatetrooperBillyBill nah I'm gonna be real with you for every Aerosmith there was 200 Warrants and even Aerosmith flopped hard sometimes. music isn't necessarily better or worse now because every era has it's share of iconic records and shitbrick bargain bin nobodies
@@erin4nowsince the 30’s writers at Tin Pan Alley were churning out “my baby loves me” type songs, the industry has always been a cash grab
Totally agree!
But it had nothing to do with analog. The producers were just better@@StatetrooperBillyBill
@@erin4nowyou're delusional
You know what ? You've got nothing to sell, no books, no formation, no t-shirt and it's the reason why your channel is so different. Thanks!
oh damn.... I need Merch! But seriously I have been getting requests for courses and such but had not thought much about it.
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHume😂 yeah asap.
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHume May I suggest T-shirts with "Watch the video until the end" on them?
Amen to that! The big sales pitching of books and whatnot can be very irritating and off putting, but I guess everyone needs to make a buck
Thanks! I'm a 24 old year producer from Spain and I really appreciate content coming from experienced people like you!
Same but from Argentina
Same from Dominican Republic. Hello Hispanohablantes!
A las buenas buenas!! No creéis que deberíamos hacer piña internacional para poder hacer trabajos conjuntos??
@ estoy de acuerdo.
Long ago, artists focussed on making music and hoped that they made money. Today artists focus on making money and hope that they make music.
except there is no money in music anymore...
oh damn.... never thought of it quite like that.
This quote should be sung and framed and placed upon the walls of the internet so that everyone shall read it. Or, oh the irony, be sampled by AI and earn you a ton of money 😂
everyone said the same thing, upload 1 song every week.
and hope your stale music will be able to fool some drunk dude, and hope that he'll save your mediocre song into his playlist
and with AI, the problem become worse exponentially,
now all the Normie and their mom can throw their junks into spotify and youtube,
hoping to make some quick cash
some AI Normies even pick a fight with a real producers on the internet, thinking that with AI now they're above everyone else
@@jensenraylight8011 instrument is instrument, when synths are born with all knobs than presets no one consinder it real instruments just like samplers.. Sampling generated sounds from stolen tracks, and now making new generated sound from not copyrighted samples with knowlage in sound design, music theory and producing is better than old sampling.. remember Korg M1!!? ; or Mellotron from 1963, which used loops of audio tape to play back the sounds... Every one can make something even in stone age.. Stay creative and be curious
Listening to BH is like a breath of fresh air. Not only does all modern pop music sound the same, all young UA-camrs use the same droning voice (usually with a so-called Vocal Fry end to each sentence). BH's voice has character and reminds me of my childhood!
Yes it is.....except he left the autotune on for a lot of the video apparently, the 'but' at 16:32 got me laughing.
I've often said that one thing you no longer get, is "player fatigue". Used to, in pop/rock, you could hear the musicians and singers fatigue slightly towards the end, and that affected their playing. The listener could feel that excitement. Think of a great record like, "Baby, It's You" by Smith (1969). Or anything by Janis Joplin. Now you don't get that natural expenditure of human energy.
Great observation and one I've not considered before. It's the life force that translates through the music, and new productions are missing much or all of that
Apparently Chino Moreno deliberately recorded vocals for the entire Deftones album Gore in one go so that he would get more and more fatigued through the record and that would come through in his performance. There's a lot of debate about the mixing of that record (so this might not have come off as good as it could have). But that dropped in 2016 so not old old.
There are still people doing interesting things if you look hard enough. Especially in underground scenes.
Some virtual instruments emulate this. For example, ML Sound Lab's drum plugins has various adjustments for player fatigue/tiredness.
@@RevisionSeventeen thats pretty sick
Yea! John Lennon recording Twist and Shout at 10.30pm after a full day recording and a totally hoarse voice.....and it sounded great!
your are so right, I'm 70 years old, everything is perfect today but real life is not, not just music, photography and all art forms i don't comment much on UA-cam but this deserves a comment as you have nail everything.
Thanks so much!
Absolutely spot on. Also the melody lines are all one note with a few minor note movements at the end of major sections - Just listen to Taylor Swift - why do people like the songs? because it is not singing up and down scales or a dynamic range of notes. Another reason why Hip Hop is so popular - same beat, one tempo, no vocal dynamics. Cheers, Kim Australia
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHumeLOL, back in my day in 84’/85’,
I did literally carry my Seymour Duncan Convertible 100 combo in my arms with me to my high school (down the street about a quarter mile) many a day to play in our jazz band and pop band ensembles. Luckily I grew up in Vegas so flat and no snow involved lol.
I must’ve had a good back because I’d laugh at trying that these days lol 😂
@@KimboH55 you saying hip-hop is same beat, one tempo, no vocal dynamics confirm that you really don't listen to rap.
If you did, your opinion would be different. It's totally okay not to like something, but your reasoning is off.
@ yeah matey I help produce hip hop tracks. Compared to the older music as was the topic here it is as flat as it comes
Really like the tuning notes part how being slightly off actually made it bigger
This is exactly how pianos work. Only the strings in the very lowest part of the soundboard are single strings; everything from about C3 upwards has at least two strings, each slightly out-of-tune with each other but centered on the perfect pitch, and everything from about C5 up uses 3 strings, with the middle string perfectly on-pitch, with the other two being slightly detuned or over-tuned, which gives pianos their rich tones.
It's also why 12-string guitars were invented and why instruments like mandolins have doubled strings.
Yes, in fact the two defining aspects of choral, or even double tracking, is that the pitches vary against each other due to independent rate of vibrato in each. in a big choir, like gospel, you also hear the actual breathing sounds as a separate effect.
You won't get this if you digitally duplicate vocal elements.
This is one the aspects I like the most of rock bands that are very piano-centered, like The Rolling Stones. I've always found it difficult to express in words, but the little pitch variations make it sound like the band is on the edge of a cliff, a little mistake and everything will fall, but, like a miracle, everything works.
literally how pianos work lol
What is the biggest problem are the few different 4 chord progressions most songs use from start to end and the overly simplististic melodies, like it is all made for kids
I think this is a bigger problem than the sounds sounding more or less different
Pop music is containing less and less different chord progressions has also been measured each following 10 years the amount of progressions decreased as well as tge complexity of the chords. This is much more important than the "details"in this video in my opinion at least
Yes. I had planned on talking about that but the video was getting long. Thought I would stick with what I know best.
This is the best breakdown ever. I always tell people “get your own toolbox, dont use what everyone else uses”.
Man I am so honored to have worked with you at Tree Sound in the late 90s. With so many sessions since, picking on panic stands out to this day. I know I was green but I noticed. Much love to you.
Ps. You are totally speaking my mind in this vidja. Also. Why do you care if folks who see this video of absolute truth don’t agree? This is confusing to me. You are a singular ear at the console. One day, very soon, the industry will switch to people who are artists humbly and boisterously making hand made crafted actual music. I understand acknowledging automation and stacking and cut and pasting. That’s All in an analytic app now. Just short of AI. Perfection is not perfect. The last record I did we drew in some vocal points. Other than that, it was pretty much exactly how I remember you doing things at Tree. You know there’s gonna come a day where people recognize six fingers on a hand musically and it’s not going to illicit the same emotional response as some people, standing on a tight rope. I firmly believe whether it’s retro progressive or old new stuff whatever you wanna call it. The human artist and the spirit conjured Will have no imitators.
Hey! That was a good record!
Awesome video! I've made it a habit for 15 years to record all of my own stuff from scratch, not use stock or bought presets, or sounds. My creativity and control of the complexity is through the roof! I push myself each day to not sound like everyone else.
You rock! Go hard!
And? Do you have a golden Record?
That's how we rocked in the old days. Music sounds to robotic with no soul today.
@@karlsmith2451 Because making it in music is basically just marketing. You don't earn money from streams, it's from everything else around it.
It's like food... It is not fresh, but completely over processed and flat.
yes youre right, mcpop , mcpunk , mcrocknroll 😬
Very good analogy. I agree
no it's not "like food"... there're huge variations with what is called food
@ i think you misunderstood him. He’s comparing over-processed homogenous beats to mcdonalds. Whereas live-room mic recorded instruments and stuff like that would be, idk, like, a home-cooked meal
@@jesusislukeskywalker4294i think mcrocknroll went bankrupt in the 2000s
0:10 Man, I remember positively drooling over the Soundcraft Ghost in like 1996. I would read the full-color brochure over and over and dream about how I'd set it up. Now you can find them for pennies on the dollar. 🤷♂
Isn't that crazy? I have friends who have bought way bigger and more expensive boards for a few hundred bucks. If you want some old analog gear now is the time to buy.
Roger that, I had a Soundcraft Spirit when they came out, a Fostex E16. And Tascam 8 track. I loved that little desk. King of the hill I was.
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHume By the way, what is that console you're sitting at now? I know I know it but I can't place it. It's driving me crazy! 😂
THIS MAN BROKE IT DOWN BETTER THAN ANYONE POSSIBLY EVER iM 8 MINUTES IN AND BRO IS SPITTIN NOTHING BUT FACTS.
I’ve recorded guitar tracks with mic’ed amps in open fields and on city rooftops in the summer sun. You can very much hear it, and it makes a huge difference.
not to mention the airplane flying overhead or the phone ringing or the back chatter in the park all of which adds texture
@@Bristolcentaurus wanna hear your music
@@4lssis468 The air plane reference is to Led Zeppelins Black Country Woman plus the engineers chatter that goes with it (the track was recorded outside), the telephones are in the "The Ocean" on Houses of the Holy at about 2.30 into the track, there is more engineers (or band) chatter in Out On the Tiles at about 1.30 ("Stop") there are probably more that i haven't picked up - there's also the notorious bass drum pedal squeak on a few of there tracks
The other reason you did not mention is that many of those kids just want to be famous and earn money by copying what’s been successful in the past. Those kids are not artist but just cloud chasers. Edit: and don’t forget the publishers and record labels; they are pushing only the sound that is (in their eyes) ‘current’ and solely dictated by money. And let’s not forget many of the audiences don’t care about ‘good’ music.
They don’t copy the the successful people from back then, cause then mainstream music would be good. What happens is the music industry finds people with talent and personality and signs them to a label that forces them to copy what else is popular today making all the music super boring and sound the same
Yep. This is why "artists" like JoJo Siwa cop so much hate.
It's clear that she's not actually interested in being a musician.
She isn't creating music because it's her passion.
She is just aware that she can sing, and that she already has PR connections.
Clout not cloud.
@@Phil_529 what else would they be trying to say??? 💀💀💀💀
@@dtango3531 Uh, nothing? I was merely helping them. 💀💀💀💀
Bang on! I don't know how many times I've mentioned the word dynamics to artists; it feels so redundant on my behalf. And what about fermatas? Where have those gone? Listen to the fermata in the Pointer Sister's version of Fire. I love how after the bridge everything slows right down and gets quiet before they sing, "Romeo and Julliet" to come back into the last verse. I also love the dead air between the riffs in the intro of Fire. Ah... a moment of silence before each one gets played again, and not "let's fill it all up with some sound from some loop or keyboard pad". And what about bridges, why have those disappeared? And it's so rare that we hear great solos, too. Is it because they take up too much time and songs must be 3:00 minutes or less? Great video that I recommend people pay attention to.
Thanks! I shouldv'e mention the disappearance of bridges. Also, "Fire" is FIRE!
Daaamn, what channel did I just found. Keep it up
" find" not found
19y.o. analog enthusiast here, thanks alot for this masterpiece of a video! it objectively answers to some of my questions to what I didn't find answers before, instead of just shitting on modern music without being able to argument the point. I've also tried to understand my natural preference to the older music, to find more objective arguments for the "the music was better before" thesis from the audio engineering perspective (and not promotional/songwriting one). Highly appreciate the hard work and passion put into the creation of this video!
As a 22 year old producer/engineer, I can agree with all of this. I think your videos are hitting really close to home for me, especially with how I see the industry moving. I personally feel that a lot of engineers/producers from my generation are quite misinformed about a lot of these things, as well as under the impression that these things are necessary for success. In hip hop producers are producing directly into not 1, but 2 clippers, and sending that to the artist/mixer. I feel that a lot of younger musicians are not only scared to step outside of “perfection”, but under the impression that it’s necessary to be “perfect” to succeed. I have told plenty of people that we don’t have to master to -5LuFS (yes, that loud) and they still do it, purely because they’re scared that the audience won’t listen to a dynamic master. Anyways. I’m grateful you are making these videos so that I can send them to my friends and beg them to step outside of “perfect.”
Thanks! When artists are not be scared of imperfections they discover real beauty.
What do you mean by 2 clippers?
-5LuFS! Integrated or short? Wowsers.
Throw away Ableton.Throw away the grid. Do linear tape. Play all parts. For the entire track. Add emphasis and dynamics all through, the entire track. Be a human.
A lot of "type beats" here on YT are unlistenable, and I think it's just for the reason you said about mixing into 2 clipper. It's all kick hi hat and snare smacked in your face. They have a really unnatural image and balance...
One thing to also consider is that most people aren’t making money off music like they used to, especially thanks to streaming. So for a lot of people, especially younger artists, producers, engineers, etc. it’s getting harder and harder to justify investing in these analog pieces of gear they will likely see little to no return on any time soon.
cant afford the investment of time either...everything old school doesn't just take more money, it takes more time...people will prioritize efficiency and ease of use over feel and experience,..cause they cant afford to spend the same amount of time making music as before
It's a different grind for sure, I find as a producer in 2024 there's a lot of weird pressures to be a lot more than a producer, and I think for me where I struggle is with social media, that doesn't mean I roll over and accept my fate as a hobbyist, but I don't really feel the need or want to be like in the forefront of public consciousness. It's literally the only thing that keeps me tied to smart technology in general is the fact that there's this element of necessity to be this influencer, like bro I just wanna sell beats, do sessions. Y'know?
I think the main difference is with playing real/miked instruments, whole songs/jams, not correcting everything to death. This costs no extra cent and add a lot of individuality. I think it's hard for young artist with no band background to realize how much fun it is to work on stuff with other people even if it's not all perfect.
Not to mention the cost of hiring a studio to record in. Even the ”lower quality” ones where i live cost a hefty amount for half a day. I’ve instead invested in alot of modest equipment at home, and the digital stuff is updating and getting better every year. In the long term, its better for me and my band.
you dont have to go broke getting equipment. there's plenty of options of gear. its what you do with it .
The "sensationalist" title belies the depth of this very comprehensive video. So stick with it kids, it's spot on.
I guess it is a bit of a sensationalist title..... but hopefully people will get my points. Thanks for watching and commenting!!!
Not compared to most UA-cam click bait titles. His is more forgiving
@@morbidmanmusic Yeah my thoughts exactly. That is not sensationalist at all. It's exactly what the video is about.
Its interesting that its the evolution of youtube channels, like on a lot of car channels I watch as they get big with bigger budgets they become more boring as they chase bigger projects. I then go back to a newer channels a the early struggle is more real and details. this channel is like getting a Rick Beato3. its back to a fresher start.
But he's still confusing music with music industry, two separate things. Obviously the record industry started its descent from the end of the 80s, with machines replacing real musicians. And the final blow was later coming from Napster.
Awesome vid - thanks for sharing your experience and insight. I'm sure this will influence a few folk (fingers crossed!).
Spot on 100%. Being unique is the way to go. I just recorded a new solo album with a few different guitars, a couple different amp set ups and effects for diversity and sounds refreshing every time. Recording live is definitely the way to go. A lot of musicians feel that they have to use the same amp plug in or same guitar for the whole record ( to me I think that's boring cause there is no excitement to it) Back in the day musicians were messing around with multiple guitars, amps & effects. One thing I feel that is missing in todays music is musicians stepping outside the box expanding on dissonant melodies and chords. Some musicians do it, but most don't. I love music. It is a never ending journey. Throw a odd time signature here and there. It adds excitement, but not many artists do that too.
I too am 70. Started engineering in the early 70s on an old API. Ended in NYC through the 90s on an SSL. Burnt through thousands of 2” & 1/2” reels of 456! So many Studios & Music Stores bk around 42nd - 54th street & 7th.. It was a real community!
Anyway, just wanted to give props on a master class look at the industry. The compressor / limiter demo was great!
FYI: one of the better, higher tech studios in NYC circa 1980s was actually named “Unique Recording”.
Duke Bootee invited to a session at Unique studios. Chris Lord -Agee was one of the engineers on his session. The good old days
In the mid 80's my band recorded at Unique on two occasions, always an overnight 8 hr session. One session we had to start 2hrs late as Chaka Kahn was tracking her vocal parts on Windwoods Higher Love. She came out and apologized. Good times!
Makes sense why most songs sound the same. Well said Billy!
Yes to getting out of the box! So many fun, easy and cheap ways to add a unique sonic signature to your sound. Yes, please do make that video.
Thanks! Will do!
Great video Billy, you laid out a very complex happening in very easy to understand terms. “Sameness” is immediately noticeable when recording most of your tracks in a native environment and (guilty as charged) copying and pasting most to all verse or chorus instruments, even lead vocal! I also think there is a lot of emotion, excitement and magical chemistry that works its way into a live recording with tangible instruments that just cannot be emulated in a DAW or layering tracks one at a time!
Providing a small correction: You’re right about the fact that most people in pop and rap music arent really making their own sounds on synths. But in music like House, Dubstep, Glitch, Electronic Ambient, and even certain subsets of Drum and Bass people program and design their own sounds ALL OF THE TIME.
I think that the biggest difference between ‘then’ and
‘now’
Is the fact that back then if you wanted to make a song you either had to know how to play an instrument or get in touch with some people who knew. No musician? No song.
Now, aNyone can ‘produce’ a song with just a bunch of loops and samples. Not knocking it, I use them heavily in my sound but mostly rhythmic and percussive aspects of the song. I’m not a good keyboardist but I’m pretty good. I can play exactly what I want on keys, bass, strings, etc.
I also play guitar so I put my own guitar tracks, along with whatever samples or guitar VSTs I choose to add to the mix. So I’m not pulling melodies from some very common source that thousands and thousands of people have access to and use many times on a daily basis.
That’s part of the ‘sameness’ that we’re hearing. People are using great sample libraries like Splice for instance, because a lot of those hooks sound really really good. I don’t blame people for using them, but they get used over and over and over.
It’s still a great idea to learn how to actually play an instrument or two. No one can copy what’s in your head. Not yet anyway.
It's not about the process of making the music. It mostly boils down to the ease of access for the average listener. The average listener isn't curious anymore.
one solution to using samples is, i suppose, to do a bit of a daft punk thing. get funky with it!
It really ends with how people use the tools they have in my eyes. When you see competitions where people HAVE to all use the same loops, you start seeing how absolutely insane people can get with limitations like that.
I just don't put the blame on anything, it's really easy to find music you've never heard before, but you gotta put yourself in a situation where you're always seeking out new music ;)
Splice vocals though yeah I find it funny when like 3 people use the same hook in the same scene lmao
Splice is really useful for drum samples, anything else I avoid because I’d rather express myself through my own instrument playing. I don’t own a drum kit but I usually play virtual drums in logic on a drum pad and quantize them about 50% so they maintain that messy human quality. I also add distortion and slight reverb so it sounds different than the stock sound.
I listen to a lot of punk & metal...a few months ago i took my step daughter's truck to the shop. Her radio was on a metal station. I literally couldn't tell the difference between the bands. Every guitar sounded like it was recorded on the same amp, in the same room, with the same microphones in the exact same positions (if they were recorded with real amps or mics at all.) The vocals were basically the same. It was absolutely ridiculous. & yeah, I listen to new bands I like...but man, that stuff on the radio was ridiculous.
BeCuz the radio can only play certain types of production or cater to a certain demonstrating, so If you want your work to be included in their playlist thats the requirement sadly.
@blulacez4421 yeah. I've noticed it elsewhere too though. There are a couple UA-cam channels about recording music that I've watched (I'd rather not say who.) & literally everything they record sounds the same. I understand for a certain individual or band that's fine. But even when he records different bands on the show, they mostly sound the same too.
I have learned a few things from their videos, which is cool, but dang, to me that gets old real quick.
You forgot to say that today anything that doesn't sound EXACTLY the same (literally) like 'top10' of a matching genre playlist/record label, your song will be rejected. I'm talking about things like "this hihat has more reverb than tracks in our playlist" - real life example.
We really reached this level of nonsense.
There's no point to even release music these days, especially when we want to do something different. It's better to make music for ourselves, eventually some friends. As making music is a type of self-therapy, it's beneficial to us, even when not released. Much better than dealing with money-hungry, music-hating leeches that took over the music industry.
Nice video by the way. I can't listen to modern music anymore myself. It makes me feel tired because everything is pushed 'in your face' and there's no dynamics anymore. But my friends love it and they cannot imagine making music without brickwalling everything.
Yep, although that has sort of always been the case, there was possibly a bit more variety from mainstream labels in the 60s and early 70s as there were more labels, and independents as well, and as nobody knew where 'contemporary' music was going labels took more risks, rather than risk being left behind/missing out on the next big thing. The best and well known example of this (not knowing where the market was going) was Decca turning down the Beatles as "guitar groups are on the way out."
I would also suggest that back then the people working for the labels were genuinely interested in the music rather than being run by 'accountants' and the bottom line being the 'be all and end all'.
why wouldn't you release ?... You can have day job, and have music as a hobby. Frankly, not many friends will listen your song anyway :)
@@zvonimirsarcevic7928 I released music in the past and these are the reasons why I gave up on releasing music:
- record labels are not doing proper marketing and they don't invest in artists anymore, instead they're starting to ask artists to pay for it, which renders record labels completely useless
- dealing with playlist curators etc. is nothing than horrible experience
- hundreds of thousands tracks is published every day - to get listeners you have to spend tons of your time and money on marketing and promotion and:
- to do that today you must put yourself and your image above your music
I wrote it with the most nice words I could find because if I wrote what I really think about the current music industry my post would be removed by YT ;)
I'm not gonna waste any more of my lifetime on any of that c**p. I have better things to do.
@@ralphhathaway-coley5460 these days, labels are asking artists to fund marketing & PR :D So it's literally paying labels so they can take copyrights of your music. This industry is becoming more and more ridiculous with each year.
Recently I read about touring and even this is apparently becoming a bigger and bigger scam (I'm not talking about the classic "play a gig for free in our pub and be thankful for the exposure" ;)
The heart or feeling is just not there...I try to correct it when making music not perfect vocals. Changing dynamics to not being overly loud sounding. Whatever works if it's recognised or not what can I do but be myself.
Man, you are telling the truth. This music today has become so copy paste copy paste I can’t stand it. 4:04
Dude you are amazing. I susbscribed immediately after this video.
Yep! Me, too!!
I totally agree with everything you said! I recorded using Pro Tools and HDX plugins for years and enjoyed every bit of the convenience and sound. Then I tracked an album with an old school Americana artist who insisted I did everything using hardware(Neve, 1176, mic cabs, different rooms, external FX, etc.) and he didn't want me to do any corrections at all! Once we finished tracking and mixing I was blown away at how amazing the album sounded. I dig your vids (nice and clear and understandable for us bass players :) I would love to see more of your techniques.
I was trapped in my bad productions. You've saved me and think this is the most important lesson for me in the last 10 years. You're a master in analyzing stuff. Thanks from the bottom of my heart man 🙏🏼✌🏼
As a live engineer I'm constantly trying to simulate the acoustic properties of air since I'm always close micing.
How so?
As an in the box musician (a side from vocals and simple percussion) I am always trying to get some distance and air that is quite different from what most reverb plugins -- I do use reverb for a bit of sparkle, stereo enhancement and 3Dness but even with it I always feel like my ITB software instrument based compositions feel right on top of you. Best thing I've found to approximate the "air" described in this vid is a plugin from Airwindows called Distance ("Distance is specifically set up to mimic through-air high frequency attenuation"). You might like it and find it useful. I put one instance on my mix bus to set a basic depth for the whole composition and then use it here and there on individual instruments, pushing and pulling them until it sounds pretty close to a real band playing. Airwindows ToTape8 and his CreamCoat reverb are pretty mind blowingly good and useful as well.
Let me know if the Distance plugin helps you out as I am curious what you think
Sometimes a "Sound reinforcement" approach works. Even if it's not 4 violins on stage but 4 heavy metal dudes.
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHumelive mixing is its own beast no isolation, PA coming back into the mics etc
I mixed live sound for a few months and ran away as fast as I could. it's sooo hard. Good live mixing engineers are heroes.
Am a 20 year old music prodigy. And I can tell you, I feel the emotion on the waves, the bad thing is, acoustic instruments are expensive
So much experience, knowledge and fundamental facts in this video. Rarely commenting YT videos, but this is gold.
Well thanks so much for commenting! Glad you liked it!
Thanks for sharing, didn't skip any part of the video😁. I enjoyed hearing your opinion!
THank you!!!!
Most ppl don't create, they just regurgitate the music that already exists.
sad but true. - be unique is a heartful reminder that YOU make something and not the THINGS are made of you.
// Thanks for that great video.
8:15 as a musician growing up with African(ised) music, I find notes that are exactly on the beat are not perfect but primitive, musically without flavour. Listen to authentic Gnawa, Ethiopian Music, Sidney Bechet or Miles Davis: how many notes are actually flat on the beat, and where exactly are they if not? Those microrhythms are exactly where groove happens.
Absolutely 100% agree.
This is why I use a digital 8 track away from the computer, only use it to upload the WAV when finished and mastered. So no copy and paste of anything when I'm recording! Thanks for the great video 😅
22 year old producer here, you're definitely right. My favorite producers use analog equipment and have VERY unique sound signatures, regardless of the actual musical content, and that's something I'm hoping to build. This video's almost like a tutorial on how to humanize music if you think about it.
exactly!
Or I guess de-unhumanize, haha.
I love the convenience of a modern DAW but I love the breath and air and personality and character of music where every line and part is sung and performed (rather than copy/pasted). I love hearing pitch wobbles on a vocal, or on a harmony or backing vocal.
When I record I want it to not only be the best version of that song, capturing all the power and emotion and dynamic, but also a true representation of the musicians at the time they recorded.
When I listen back I want to get the feeling that we had in the room on those days.
Great video, points well made.
As a producer that works mostly in digital, I go to really great lengths to give my music a human feel. I try to introduce tons of little imperfections, glitches, noise, bit crushing, all sorts of things to give everything a sense of motion and humanity.
Interested reading the other day that when recording the strings on "Eleanor Rigby", Geoff Emerick put the microphones right up to the instruments. The musicians hated it and moved back, whereupon Geoff moved the microphones back up to the instruments. The musicians eventually accepted the microphone positions, played the score, hated the session, didn't want to hear the playback, and left. But at least Geoff got that unique string sound. Sometimes you have to upset musicians to get the right sound.
Really appreciated this video. Brilliantly done. Oh... The KTEL album. Fabulous touch.
I just cannot agree more with you. Every single point you covered made sense. PLEASE make a video with each of the topics you wanted to include in this video. Cheers from CR 🇨🇷 !
Awesome video!! The quality of your videos and knowledge of music in general is pleasing. Keep crushing it man, just subscribed!
Love it! Thanks for putting this information out there. I’m inspired! ❤️
I think music is more diverse than it was in the 60's, and the 70's and the 80's... we live in Avery diverse musical world now. the thing that makes everything sound the same is the discovery/the way music is consumed. Go try find the strangest music you can! It's out there. There's loads of interesting crossover Classical electronic, Jazz and Hiphop. We've never had such a diverse musical landscape, just be careful which big label is paying to narrow your musical discovery journey toward there artists
I don't think you understand
Whole genres of music were created in the 60s and 70s. That's not happening now.
Electric blues, psychedelic, folk, acid rock, heavy metal, R&B, Soul, Disco, Progressive Rock were all pretty much INVENTED in the 60s and 70s.
They are not inventing much that's new now.
I agree there’s some wild stuff being made. I think it’s never in the mainstream you find experimentation and innovation. However, there is a lot of generic sounding stuff being created and it’s because it’s never been easier to make music using a laptop and very simple set up to produce a proficient professional sounding track. Unfortunately this can make production lazy and by numbers like building a Lego model. The key when making music is to find the heart of the song and build an aesthetic for that.
Ridiculous comment. There has never been a LESS diverse time for music in my lifetime, and I’m 45.
But unlike yourself (I’m presuming based on your comment) and younger generations now, my cohorts and I were obsessed with tracking down and consuming music that preceded our generation, so we were buying CD’s, tapes, and vinyl of music from 60’s, 70’s, and early 80’s that we missed, especially the funk and blue note jazz-funk-fusion stuff from the 70’s that formed the basis of our favorite hip hop by people like Wu-tang, Boot Camp, Tribe, and Outkast.
I was also big on using the library to hear old vinyl, cassettes and CD’s, which you could check out (still can, actually). The amount of pure genius and creativity that existed from that time period is virtually endless. I’m still discovering new favorite artists, bands, and songs from fertile period all the time.
The modern music scene … is a wasteland. Everything does, in fact, sound the same as everything else, or is completely derivative in the most obvious and lazy ways. I still have a hunger for discovering music. If there were modern artists worth discovering, I would find them and and listen (the Louis Cole’s of the world are few and far between). There simply isn’t anything going on. The only people who could possibly think differently, and sorry if this is insulting … are VERY limited (nicer way of saying ignorant) in their musical knowledge, probably a product of the modern generations reliance on steaming services?
Whereas we would discover an artist we like-James Brown, Otis Redding, Bill Evans, Prince, The Beatles, Led Zepplin, etc.-and proceed to find and devour everything they’ve ever recorded, including lost demos, side projects, solo careers, live concert albums and VHS tapes … kids today simply hear the one or two songs an artist has on steaming services rotation or playlists, or whatever songs happens to be floating around tik tok. It’s a very different culture in terms of music enthusiasm, which also probably explains the lack of innovation or unique sounds? Everyone is just in a general malaise and apathy about music because it’s so readily available to you whenever you want; there’s nothing exciting about music anymore; there’s no hunger for discovery on the part of the consumer, or conversely, a hunger to do something no one has ever done before in terms of the artists.
This video nails a lot of points that Rock Beato left out of some of his recent criticisms, or had different angle on some of the points he typically makes as well. Good stuff.
@@79Glitch So I am slightly younger than you and a musician and am more than a casual music listener so here's my input to your input.
First I am curious what are the newest bands you listen to since you mentioned some 90's hip hop so I wonder if that's around the period you stopped searching for new music. Around the 90's is when there was a wide divergence in musical genres and if you were still waiting for the next great rock band you were robbing yourself of the best new music because rock just wasn't where music was heading by then, save for maybe red hot chili peppers or Oasis but as popular as they were there was better stuff to be found. Radiohead has been the most critically acclaimed band since around 2000 which proves that music was heading in a different direction by the 90's/2000s.
Indie music became huge around this time, Dinosaur Jr., Pavement, Elliott Smith, Modest Mouse then later Arcade Fire, Death Cab for Cutie, Bright Eyes and one of my personal favorites Fleet Foxes.
Metal became huge in the 90's with bands like Faith No More, Death, Immortal. Evolving into newer bands like Necrophagist, Mastodon, and one of my favorites Between the Buried and Me. The only caveat is you have to like screaming vocals but you can't say that all the metal that's come out isn't good music just because you don't like screaming, or at least you can't say it's repetitive and derivative, I guess taste is subjective.
Hip hop and rap, I admit I only listen to 90's stuff like the bands you mentioned and can't stand the newer stuff. Rap took off more than any other genre and is the new rock and roll. If I were to say any new genre is unoriginal and derivative I'd pick rap(outside of radio pop music), I think the 90's hip hop was the peak and since Lil Wayne onwards it's all awful but hey that's just me. Kendrick Lamar and Kanye West are both popular and critically acclaimed and I wouldn't say there's not something to their popularity because of my own taste.
Post hardcore and punk became bigger even though the 80's had a lot of great hardcore and punk as well. Fugazi, Lagwagon, NOFX, Rancid, The Descendants. Some of my favorite music was the earlier emo/screamo stuff like Alexisonfire, Coheed and Cambria, At the Drive-In, and one of my personal favorites mewithoutYou.
Post-Rock and math-rock. Slint, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Tortoise, Mogwai. Hella, Don Caballero, Tera Melos, Minus the Bear.
There's been a lot of amazing music but the tastes have changed. Even my musical tastes are slightly outdated because a lot of the music I've listed was 90's-2010's bands. There is an oversaturation of music these days because of home recording being more accessible and there is a lot of copycat bands as well because of that but I just don't think you can say in all fairness that there's no good music anymore. If you look around you can find pretty much anything under the sun but a lot of it isn't stuff the casual music fan would stumble upon.
Billy, you got me freaking out! Great vid!
Oh no.... you're not supposed to freak out. I'm handling the freaking out for everybody.
@@FreakingOutWithBillyHume Phew! Thank you for that… I’m feeling much better, now!
New favourite recording channel, this is gold.
Totally agree with everything you say. Technology squeezing the life out of music.
Technology squeezing the life out of EVERYTHING! 😢😢😢
THIS is the info I’ve been looking for. Definitely earned a subscriber!!
Oh yes. That - and, man, it's the saddest thing going to live gigs and even there they'll all sound the same. That's most refreshing video I've seen in a while, helps me save hundreds on therapy - thank you!
Wow this is my first time on your channel and immediately subscribed. This was the most eloquently concise I’ve ever seen this info broken down. Amazing, man, Fckin hats off 🤠
Awesome! Thank you so much!
The very best comparison of analog and digital music, and the overuse of technology in music I have heard. Brilliant video 🙏🫡🏴🇬🇧♥️
I recognized this inevitability years ago. Many did. The difference between me and many of my cohorts though, is that MANY have taken all of the shortcuts anyway, and prioritized time and money and relieving themselves of their own inhibitions. “Make everything perfect” is something that virtually no listeners ever asked for. Only producers and musicians.
And it's based on fear that you're not professional and show some vulnerability. But that is what makes art interesting.
And not all types of musicians. I'm a classical musician and taking all this stuff away to me sounds kinda like taking away "music".
Texture, dynamics, imperfections. Music is much more than a math equation.
I know a pretty famous producer who uses amp sims. He's produced a bunch of bands, and all of them have the same guitar tones on their records! It's almost like he doesn't even know how to use amp sims other than picking his favourite preset. Meanwhile I have used four different amp sims on a single song. I am not saying everyone needs to do this, but what really needs to happen is for people to explore their software more thoroughly instead of sticking to the same few presets. Pod Farm is a really old amp sim, but even it had 78 different guitar amps and 28 bass amps. It alone can be a source of infinite variety if people just used it properly.
You should try what Alive In Chains did and try different IRs, mics, and amps for the lows, mids, and highs. I have my own secret formula for my IR mix that's fucking killer.
Yea sure 78+28 eq curves... Another issue with coded plugins is they're the same very often just different GUIs it's called in-house code, especially when mixed a certain way by the same engineer it will sound the same. Also even if they were that different you're asking one guy to learn 100+ amp sims and what you can do with them... quite the learning curve assuming a guy of a certain age, it makes more sense to use a few that you know & like, plus if the band likes it the job is done!
Anyway typical thing with plugins , eg. u can easily match different uad eqs, or with soft synths emulations a new comes out and it sounds like the previous one , too much hype.
@@josephfigueroa3527 I haven't gone that crazy yet but I do intend to. Amp blending is such a deep rabbit hole you can get lost in. So far, I have used it more traditionally, in trying to blend amps that have different kinds of distortion. There is one amp in there that is just unusable. I have tried it on so many tracks and never found a good place for it. But I will keep trying till I find a place to use it 🙂
Love the way you explain every concept you introduce without taking it all for granted. This video is GOLD 💯 More like this, please 🙏 It's hard to believe this channel has only 17K subscribers.
Thanks! I only had a little over 9K subs a few weeks ago so 17K is a lot for me. Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
I just discovered your channel and this video is so refreshing! Thank you for sharing.
sound engineer here...i was born in the early 80's. i've been saying this kind of thing for years. spot on.
Enjoyed the waveform visuals and explanation. Awesome stuff. I'm hoping the brickwall clipping is a temporary fad 😢 Music needs dynamics!
yeah thats not gonna happen I think. Loudness has won, since it usually makes stuff sound better to the ear. Not as unique, but warmer, punchier, more qualitative. All the good stuff.
However the reals pros actually don't overdo it, or if they do it know how to still have everything sound dynamic.
1,342 Rick Beato videos in one! Amazing
Wow, I just have to say, you are a genius the way you explained how everything sounds the same today. Your expertise and experience shine through. You’ve done a great job in shedding light on these issues, and I’m sure it’s going to open the eyes of a lot of people. I started my music journey with Pink Floyd, and now I can really appreciate the difference between the old and new sounds. Hats off to you for sharing these important insights!
Please make more videos.
Great Video, Constant DAW usage and recognizing my songs were becoming robotic led me to go completely dawless in 2020. I've never looked back. Go Analogue!
i think theres a tendency today for artists to be scared to step outside of the tried and tested drum loops and plugins. also not listening to a diversity of music. thinking they have to like X,Y or Z otherwise they will passed over.
Its also the sources of information we share. Pre-internet days how did you find things out? Hopefully a magizine or a published book. If you're really lucky...knowing like minds that like passing the info. Even the forum days you still had to read, but you can completely interpret what you read differently. Now we have UA-cam. We're shown, we can hear, we can download the same files, influenced to grab the same gear, theres algorithms. There was a time where most people swore to keep lots of knowledge to themselves or amongst the crew they were working with.
This was sooo much fun to watch...and since we're pretty much of the same generation I have witnessed all that you spoke of. Unfortunately a good amount of today's music listeners don't know what they don't know (and are missing with the human elements being removed). The majority of my music equipment is analog, I listen to vinyl and shoot film in my camera.
Thanks! I guess you can still get pictures developed or do you do it yourself?
actually, i myself, who is a part of gen z, don't actually like the music on the radio right now. it's become quite stale. it was actually at least slightly better 4 years ago and before. now it's just taylor swift and country music and rap. it's too boring. ADD SOME STUFF or TAKE AWAY STUFF.
I subbed after what you said you had to cut from this video due to length. You, sir, are a gold mine of information.
Spot on! Billy is right in everything he states. The technology makes it all so easy but it takes the human out of the equation.
Very well done, subscribing!
Copy/Paste is awful. Songs must evolve.
I believe, musicians don't call it copy/paste, they call it "covers"
@@peterjanssen5901 That's not what this is referring to. This is about copy pasting internally, within the song.
I mean yeah but I love loop songs but I also listen to hiphop
Even if you're playing 4 on floor techno with zero real variation. PLAY IT! Even if it's the same motif over rand over, press record, play the entire tune. THE ENTIRE TUNE. PLAY IT!!!
Every bassist worth their salt will tell you that ever bar is different, even when it's the same.
@whatilearnttoday5295 the boomer echo chamber in here is great
There are many of us who are making music that does NOT sound the same. Many, many of us. I would suggest that some of you veterans of the industry--if you really care about the future of music--do some deep diving for that music, and then promote it, so that it has a fighting chance.
thissss. i swear sometimes older gens blame their isolation from good music (which 100% still exists - amyl and the sniffers, fontaines dc, big thief, mitski, courtney barnett, i could go onnn) on kids not having like a 'real artistic understanding' or something to make themselves feel better about not being young anymore. these kinda videos do nothing to promote good music, they just pander to people feeling out of the loop
also bland pop music has always existed. like grunge was never meant to be mainstream it was a response to corporate music in the 80s
Finally i found someone who i can relate too...i totally get it...and this is why the best music ever made was done in this raw form..like recording a live band all the way through the song and just living it like that.... thats the way i want to make my music!
thank you so much for sharing this!!!
I’m a producer/songwriter and the things you said about air got me hooked. Using voice/instrument/mic just leaves so much room for frequencies. I wanna add more choir now since I really like it! I also have the perfection disease. Tryna not to quantize my drums on 100% now, maybe 95%… and focusing on just recording more sounds instead of searching on splice…
Thanks a lot!
Well said! 🤘
This is the absolute best explanation I’ve heard on this. Nice work!
my 2 cent worth opinion: ONE major factor for the invention of all those gadgets & auto-tuners is due to the fact that we lack talent, sure we have a bunch of modern technology, but those techs aren't a substitute for real talent: Modern day vocalists don't have the talent as the previous generation had, so they rely on modern tech to help them along , because they don't want to invest 20 years of their life to hoeing their vocals & really learn to sing for real, so hence we have auto-tuners.. it's true music isn't supposed to be perfect it's supposed to have glitches & one other major factor why live bands & singers have to use backing tracks & auto-tuners live is because they can't duplicate live what was recorded in the studio , so I am 100% sure based on my opinion that auto-tune has to be used live.
because the live performance just can't be reproduced ... & this is what I think killed live music.. I bet most of our famous vocalists are using auto-tuners live or lip sinking ,because based on my opinion it's just too impossible to sing night after night on tour night after night because if they did their voice would go out.. nobody in my opinion can sing night after night & go on tour night after night.
Maybe perhaps back in the day before all this modern tech was invented the concert goers expected to hear mistakes during a live performance so it wasn't a big deal .
And also most people only have relative pitch having perfect pitch is very rare in humans, so the music during a live performance doesn't have to be perfect. Most people can't hear the glitches or the mistakes anyway, so why is modern music have to be perfect in pitch & time?
in summary all this modern tech & all those cool gadgets are designed to cover up for the lack of talent
we lack pure talent.
I've been inside the studios in the late 80's early 90's before all this modern apps, & tech stuff was invented.. Back in the day before all this modern tech was invented it took months even years to complete a whole record, or album, or a single LP/EP studio musicians would spend hours upon hours in the studio working on their sound & going over take after take.. just putting down vocals would take weeks
modern music in my opinion sucks, because it all sounds the same being produced on the same sound board & gadgets.
This was a dope informative video.Its crazy because UA-cam videos are starting to all seem the same too.Yours was different and eye opening!
Thank you… I had theories, but holy SH**! I didn't realize the death by a thousand cuts aspect of why everything sounds so homogenized even across genres. Wow.
Modern music today is trash
I mean, I was born in 2007, but I prefer 90s
And some modern music today are good but many are robots making music
The only reason anyone would think modern music all sounds the same is because they have stopped actively seeking out new music. This is like listening to a "best of the 80s" radio station and saying it all sounds the same because they all use the same synth patches and snare sound.
There’s truth to that, but it’s also true that modern engineers often use a cookie cutter approach to recording and mixing.
people have been trying to figure out “why new music sounds the same” for so long that the first stuff it was said about is now old music that sounds different
I think it mainly applies to pop music.
I've been trying to find new bands that don't sound like every other trash modern band out there. I've gone to underground shows and have dug into the depths of 4chan. Everybody sounds the same. Even in the 80s, you could tell who you were listening to regardless of the vibe of the era.
@ nobody sounds like Melt-Banana or Otoboke Beaver.
I totally agree with everything you have just said , and I am loving your video very informative supporting from 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
Enjoying. I got turned onto your channel by another studio friend. I feel like I'm listening to myself, lol. I've had these arguments and complaints for years.I was so pro tech back at the beginning, literally, working at West LA Music starting in 89, as the only Apple for music dealer in LA. Getting Digidesign proto types including Sound Tools. In fact Pro Tools partially existed due to feedback from Karl and myself and input we got from showing prototypes to Producers etc. Any way I started going anti tech because of musical problems going into the 2000s. Sure, digital media is so easy to mess with but all I think about is old consoles, tape and machines.
Sound tools.... I am old.
@FreakingOutWithBillyHume lol
Excellent video. Much love from New Zealand 🇳🇿
This video is an entire course!! Thanks Freaking, you changed my way to produce
I thought this was fascinating. It’s also really well shot and edited. Very professional piece of work. Thanks!
Ever since I started mixing about a year ago I was always so confused about the loudness concept. I never understood why I was supposed to make a verse with acoustic guitar sound as loud as a chorus with a full band. This demonstration is so helpful. Thank you.
Been talking about this for years! Couldn't agree more!
Expressiveness and dynamics are so underrated they should be the most important thing to look for when putting a song together.
As for the custom sounds I believe there's so much decision impairment that you are kinda stuck with presets, personally I choose to have limitations so I come up with my personal point of view.
Today I feel most artists and musician arrangements sound like they are entirely on grid and sound plasticky.
btw excellent content! :D
Super inspiring and On the spot Billy. Same sounds. Same plugins. Same output etc. But I really would have loved if this DAW stuff was around when I was fresh faced and a Youngee version. I had my 4 track 🎉
DAWs are just tools. The question is: are you running them or are they running you?
This is quite possibly the explanation I've ever seen about the differences between new and older music. Amazing job, thanks for posting this.
You nailed this , over compression and NOT sounding live is a music killer in my humble opinion
I agree whole heartedly! I am in this music production course, and everyone is saying, "your song's too dynamic." "You need to stop trying to be unique, cause if you do your mixes will be horrible." "don't reinvent the wheel." Shut up. I am going to make what I like and only what I like, and if I have to spend a long time learning how to mix and master it so be it. I'm not an NPC who likes everything everyone else likes.
And AI is a whole other issue that will probably add a huge layer to this problem. Anyone can give an AI a prompt and have it make something and take all the credit. What happened to actual skill, talent and commitment? Good stuff. Speak the truth boldly!
You are the absolute man! Thanks for pointing this out. Def looking forward to more of your videos
This was such a great video! I’m a new singer-songwriter finally working on recording my own songs. Don’t have much money or equipment just my guitar, a simple interface, one mic, and GarageBand but I’m prioritizing singing and playing songs full through as much as possible (no copy-paste sections except some of the GB drummer stuff). It’s slow and steady since I’m learning and developing my sound, but I think the resulting uniqueness and variation through each part of a song is what I’m after.