Q:VDC... Boring? A: Yes!!

[shockingcandy]

On the subject of music production, I thought I'd share a few thoughts that occurred to me today.

This week Amazon finally decided to deliver a couple of CDs I ordered an age ago. One was Butch Walker's "Left Of Self Centred" and the other The Dresden Dolls. Two very different albums in both style and sound. Butch seems to layer track upon track to the point where individual parts can barely be distinguished from each other. Initially, I was impressed by the "big" production value but after a few listens I now feel it strangles the songs.

The Dresden Dolls record is much more sparsely arranged and in my opinion this allows the songs to breathe more. True, at first the sound doesn't hit you in quite the same way but the more I listen the more the sheer quality of the songs shines through.

Ok, so this isn't a like for like comparison but it does illustrate to me why I dislike much of the current music scene. Time to ditch Pro-Tools and get back to basics!

[nyanyany]

Mp3 player yada yada! Take the fucking tin foil off your head for a start. Indie album made under trying circumstances. Maybe you should credit the guy with having the mettle and inclination to make an album at all. Funny, the first thing I ever listen to is the songs, not the production values. Get back to your fucking Winger albums eh!

Knocking on Heavens door. Dylan with an acoustic or GnR being all pompous and over blown with chiors and gospel singers? Still a great song which ever way you take it.

Do you slow down for car crashes yabba yaba nanana , or whatever you fucking name is?

So.. fuck is the word du jour then? Nice vocabulary there miss!

What does indie album and trying circumstances have to do with anything?
Have you ever recorded anything in a studio?
Where do you get the idea that just because I think that this album doesn't sound as good as it could have done that I would favour overblown production?
More and more cds are mixed to sound better on computers, Ipod's etc nowadays which I think is really really sad.
So, just to make you understand.. I think the final mix sucks. Better?

Nate

[geordierussell]

This is my first post on this subject. I've held my tongue long enough so here are my thoughts.



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Really, can we move along now. There is nothing for you to see here.

[The Nine]

Indie Album = It was not a major finananced project. It was one man with bunch of songs pulling in every resouce he could muster in the time head had available. That is what it has to with it. You don't always have the luxury of time and finance to iron out the rough spots.

In answer to you second point. yes, Ive been in music all my adult life, both making album as a player and later in other areas. i'm no stranger to studios and am currently in the process of sourcing premises to build a commercial studio. I agree with you that stuff is now mixed with at least one ear on listening media other than your living room system but hey' ipod and PC are as much part of that now so why ignore it?

My point is this. if you listen to any ancient blues stuff like Leadbelly, Jellyroll Morton, Robert Johnson etc, Its recordings are often dire in there quality but they are evocative and for real becuase the songs are pricelss. You wouldnt put on Robert Johnson and say "Its shit, the recording quality is terrible' By the same measure, if someone offered you a 71 Les Paul for $300 you arent gonna turn it down because you don't like the colour. The value is in what it is and how it plays. This album might have sounded bigger and richer with more moeny and time availabe to work on it but it doesnt detract from an ensemble of great songs. Great songs will always shine though woolly production.

[Mountweazel]

I've yet to put my finger exactly on why VDC doesn't quite work for me, but I do think that it suffers from TOO LOUD DISEASE.

THE WHOLE ALBUM IS MASTERED TO BE AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE ALL THE TIME AND IT STARTS TO BECOME ANNOYING PRETTY QUICKLY. IT'S ALMOST AS BAD AS RUSH'S VAPOR TRAILS, WHICH IS HANDS DOWN THE WORST MASTERED ALBUM IN THE HISTORY OF MUSIC BECAUSE THERE'S NO DYNAMICS LEFT IN THE MUSIC, JUST ONE GREAT BIG WALL OF SOUND.



I do think there's far too much filler though. I've got two .mp3 playlists for the album - one that has all the tracks, and another which reduces it to 42 minutes of damn fine R'n'R.