Interesting article about modern mastering

[Matcher]

Here's a nice article about mastering bt's new album, these hopeful machines. Mastering that complex blurs the line between mixing and mastering.

http://www.sonicscoop.com/?p=3290" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Shooshie]

Well, it made me want to hear the whole album, so I bought it on iTunes. Will report back later. If this is where the bar is set for DAW creativity, I'd like to know the mark! (and enjoy some good sides while I'm at it)

Shoosh

[Matcher]

very cool, I'm sure you'll find some of the music interesting, if not enjoyable. The focus on this album is pretty much on pop, but the programming, mixing, and last but not least, mastering, makes it unique.

[jlaudon]

Very interesting article - blurs the line between writing, arranging, mixing and mastering. I think the key thing about the mastering in the end is having different sets of ears involved (a dedicated mastering studio is nice too .

I checked out the itunes clips and wow, it is quite amazing - downloading the whole album now...

Thanks for the heads up, matcher

[buzzsmith]

I scanned the article and will read it in depth later, so I may have missed how many hours/days/weeks it took to master/ re-mix the album?

And (not insignificantly) how many $$?!

Buzzy

[Shooshie]

And (not insignificantly) how many $$?!

No kidding! Well, he's got my $14. May he break even, soon!

Shoosh

[newrigel]

BT... who is that?

[SixStringGeek]

God I forgot how glorious tape sounds. A plug-in will NEVER sound like that!

K, I stopped reading there. I'll check out his piece (when I'm in a place I can listen) but quotes like that are ALWAYS WRONG and the people who make them generally LOSE MY RESPECT INSTANTLY.

Similar quotes include "a computer will never beat a top ranked chess master" and "no electronic keyboard will ever produce an acoustic piano tone that can fool a trained listener". 640k ought to be enough for anybody? Really?

Eventually, some sharp engineer will manage to create a digital model of tape that will be indistinguishable from actually printing to tape, assuming there is a market for it.

[jlaudon]

Man, this BT sounds good (for what it is) - and so much music for 9.99 - two discs worth. This guy is really a genius at what he does.

[Shooshie]

God I forgot how glorious tape sounds. A plug-in will NEVER sound like that!

K, I stopped reading there. I'll check out his piece (when I'm in a place I can listen) but quotes like that are ALWAYS WRONG and the people who make them generally LOSE MY RESPECT INSTANTLY.

Similar quotes include "a computer will never beat a top ranked chess master" and "no electronic keyboard will ever produce an acoustic piano tone that can fool a trained listener". 640k ought to be enough for anybody? Really?

Eventually, some sharp engineer will manage to create a digital model of tape that will be indistinguishable from actually printing to tape, assuming there is a market for it.

Remember, the whole interview was a sales piece. Self-congratulatory and over-enthusiastic about stuff that's been around a long, long time, trying to make it sound like it's brand new.

It may be the primo case of engineering of the century, but content-wise it's pretty average, IMO. I haven't listened to the entire thing. Maybe "Side 2" picks things up a bit.

Shooshie

[jlaudon]

Funny thing, after being impressed with all the technical stuff, the song I like the most on the whole CD is the cover tune 'Ghost in you' - especially the mellow parts (first half). It almost feels like a relief, so it's well placed to be the last song.

Goes to show that good songwriting (and instruments like guitars) grabs the heart, where the electronic stuff grabs your head and your feet, if you're into dancing, that is .

[SixStringGeek]

Goes to show that good songwriting (and instruments like guitars) grabs the heart, where the electronic stuff grabs your head and your feet, if you're into dancing, that is .

Preach it, brother. Seriously I can't get into electronica because so much of it is algorithmically generated (arpeggiators and other pattern generators provide the illusion of movement) and I guess, being a programmer, it just seems dull and mechanical. I'd rather play than program and I guess programming comes so easily to me that I don't really respect algorithmic music as art.

[Phil O]

God I forgot how glorious tape sounds. A plug-in will NEVER sound like that!

...quotes like that are ALWAYS WRONG and the people who make them generally LOSE MY RESPECT INSTANTLY...

I tend to agree with SixString (in general). As far as tape specifically goes, although tape does sound wonderful, part of the reason for that is people have been using it for a very long time and have learned how to get the best sound out of it. If people would start approaching digital as an entirely DIFFERENT medium and stop trying to make it behave like tape and stop trying to apply the same techniques they used with tape, then they could get on with the business of making it sound "glorious." I'm old school. I was brought up on tape. Yes, I've spliced my share of tape, but when I made the switch to digial (as painful as it was) I quickly learned that some of the old techniques were still valid, and some were not. New techniques will be required and we've barely gotten our feet wet. I'm hopeful that as good as tape sounded, we will exceed "glorious" as the technology improves and more importantly as our skill with this new medium comes up to speed.

BTW, it sounds like that mastering house really milked this one.

Phil

[jgest]

I'll have to give this a listen. Coming from a guy like my self who leans more into the electronic realm, I never saw him as the "forward" thinking musician he is marketed as, but more of the guy fortunate to have the limelight. "forward thinking" brings names to mind like Simon Posford (shpongle), in the electronica realm. The "stutter" thing, is a "trance 101" production trick. Not to be a thread basher.....

[Shooshie]

Not bashing. I think the stutter has run its course. Who remembers Max Headroom from the Reagan era? That's like grampa old now. (hey, I'm not a grampa... yet!) All I can say about what I heard was that it sounded clean and well-mastered. But I've got recordings done on wax cylinders that move me more. Not saying the guy doesn't have talent. He's competent at what he does. Definitely. Just that it's odd to promote the heck out of an album for the mastering. I guess he figures he'll break even if all the engineers go out and buy it to see what this new wave of mastering/mixing is all about. Hey, I bought it.

Shooshie