Matthew on 23/10/2006 at 12:51
Votify'd
Scots Taffer on 23/10/2006 at 12:55
I gotta say, it seems to be an internet-specific thing that, practically out of nowhere, a debate arises and people really dig their heels into the dirt, standing their ground on seemingly inconsequential differences of opinion, agreeing on most things but not agreeing to differ, repeating their positions over and over, neither willing to capitulate or backpedal and everyone else getting bored.
PigLick on 23/10/2006 at 13:39
HAHA you only get bored if you have a short attention span
Scots Taffer on 23/10/2006 at 13:42
No, I pretty much got bored besides that. ;)
PigLick on 23/10/2006 at 14:10
thats cos you live in queensland now, the state of excitement
Paz on 23/10/2006 at 14:42
The intricacies of good production (and defining what "good" means) is one of the more interesting music discussions, really. Although I'm not entirely sure that's the one noid et Stitch are having.
Some of my favourite albums sound like they were recorded in a bin. Not even a very expensive bin.
This is almost certainly due to the limitations of time/money/technology at the time - and it's quite possible the band involved would have preferred to use fancier stuff. Had they done so, however, the album may ultimately have suffered. Or it might have been improved. Obviously, we can't know. What those records do demonstrate is that it's possible to churn out something amazing regardless of production limitations. That's pretty obvious, and I doubt anyone would ever deny it.
Equally, someone who relies heavily on particular production techniques or equipment to produce a specific sound is probably going to end up with some crappy tracks if they're not allowed access to their usual toys for whatever reason. Again though, that might not have anything to do with cost.
Does it matter if you think "hmm, I'd like an orchestral middle eight here" but exchange it for a cheapo keyboard effects section because you can't possibly afford the time or equipment for anything better? The alternative might turn out superior, in context. Or it could sound like shit.
Great ideas will always trump production limitations, suuuurely. Unless you can't even afford any instruments at all but I don't think that's the level we're talking about.
I mean, hypothetically, if you gave every band in the world an unlimited budget and access to whatever do-dahs they want, will they turn out better records? Some might do. I reckon plenty would sound like utter wank in comparison to earlier efforts developed on more modest means.
(I realise that's not precisely what either person was suggesting when this kicked-off, I'm just running with the concepts involved)
Also I hate that "remastering" now seemingly means COMPRESS IT TO FUCK AND MAKE IT SO LOUD IT CLIPS ITSELF TO DEATH instead of, say, picking out the details and spaces between instruments or whatever the hell a proper remastering job should do.
Stitch on 23/10/2006 at 16:29
Quote Posted by PigLick
neither of these guys is gonna be backing down anytime soon. My take on it is, if you have at least decent gear, bedroom bandit mixes can still sound really good, its just when you get to recording live drums that things start getting harder. Having said that, I have done some live recording with just a kick and snare mic, and an overhead to pick up cymbals and toms. And it turned out nice.
Actually, the apparent hardline nature of my stance was basically forced by Noid's dismissal of sophisticated gear. I actually couldn't agree more with what you just said.
Creativity, skill, and talent are far more crucial to any recording process than incredible gear, and I'm not trying to argue otherwise. There's no doubt that you can get a decent sound with a bedroom studio setup as long as your goals rest well within the limitations of your resources.
But expanding beyond low-fi recording or mostly electronic songs requires certain resources. For a standard rock band, getting a good drum sound is typically the manifestation of this divide. You can certainly make do with less, and sometimes trying to find alternate ways of achieving an idea can yield inspired results, but ultimately gear is a means to an end, and if you have limited gear you will also have limited options. You can still possibly make fantastic music, but a certain spectrum of sound and ideas will be forever cut off from you.
D'Arcy on 23/10/2006 at 16:41
I really enjoyed your music OnionBob :thumb:
It reminded me of Ulrich Schnauss, one of my favourite artists.
OnionBob on 23/10/2006 at 16:50
Quote Posted by JACKofTrades
Wow. I quite liked that. Maybe the drums should be a little more to the back and the vocals a little more to the front? The vocals are far from rubbish. What I could hear of them anyway. :thumb:
(
http://munchhouse.com/stuff/bigapple.mp3)
no vocals in this one yet and it's actually older but the drums do sound pretty fresh i think, no loops used here!!!!! :eek: :eek: :mad: :eek: :eek: :cool: :angel:
Stitch on 23/10/2006 at 16:58
I'm actually curious about the recording details, especially in regard to the drums. It's a killer song, though, I've probably listened to it a dozen times over the course of the weekend. It reminds me a bit of Random 1-8 era Muse, although it's got its own thing going on.
Which isn't to say the original song in this thread ain't quality, but this is much more my thing.