Bob Dylan Says Modern Music Is Worthless

[Leopold]

Found this on the internets on Reuters.

LOS ANGELES (Aug. 22) - Bob Dylan says modern recordings sound "atrocious," and even the songs on his new album sounded much better in the studio than on disc."
"I don't know anybody who's made a record that sounds decent in the past twenty years, really," the 65-year-old rocker said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine.

Dylan, who released eight studio albums in that time, returns with his first recording in five years, "Modern Times," next Tuesday.

Noting the music industry's complaints that illegal downloading means people are getting their music for free, he said, "Well, why not? It ain't worth nothing anyway."

"You listen to these modern records, they're atrocious, they have sound all over them," he added. "There's no definition of nothing, no vocal, no nothing, just like ... static."

Dylan said he does his best to fight technology, but it's a losing battle.

"Even these songs probably sounded ten times better in the studio when we recorded 'em. CDs are small. There's no stature to it."

[mingus2112]

Glad he's fighting that damn technology. Can't let those young bastards get up on stage with "advancing technology" and electricity at a folk show now can you?

Who the hell is he kidding?

[puls]

I think mr. dylan is lamenting the fact that with each musical reproduction "advancement" comes an accompaying lowering of fidelity. People here have been lamenting the fact that commercial CD format is a compromise at best, & now w/ mp3's & ipods it's gone lower still. You'd think musical reproduction should be getting higher fidelity with each new technical "improvement", but it really seems like a race to decide the crappiest fidelity that the consumer will accept. I tend to agree. There was just a thread on gearsluts about how happy folks were that they were getting "almost cd quality" w/ their ipods. What's really the point in spending great gobbs of money for top end gear if the fidelity's just gonna get gutted so it can be put into a consumer format?

jwp[/i]

[Leopold]

Well, the other interesting this is that it says" .....modern music is worhtless" but he's not commenting on the music but rather the media it's presented on.

Eddie

[brainfreezebob]

It seems like he's mostly talking, in that Dylan nonsense way, about the state of music's importance in relation to technology (his comment re: the "stature" of CD's. People love their iPod's more than they love the music on them. Also sounds like he has issues with the medium, not tech in the recording studio.

[The Real MC]

Interesting coming from the same person who was booed when he embraced modern technology back in the 60s - an electric guitar.

[BeepBeep]

Interesting coming from the same person who was booed when he embraced modern technology back in the 60s - an electric guitar.

Not really. He's not a luddite, he just does not like what he hears.

[YOUR KONG]

Well, on the one hand he's right.

I mean, I don't know what records he's listening to, but it's very true that every track on pop songs, every song gets maximized and "square waved," as discussed ad nauseum here and everywhere.

Also, popular music is now aimed at 13-year olds, not pretentious college students.

Also, he's old and cantankerous so it's pretty much his job to say this stuff now.

[darjama]

I dunno, I thought it was a very tape-op friendly stance. He doesn't explicitly say it, but it seems like he's talking about overuse of limiting in mastering:

"You listen to these modern records, they're atrocious, they have sound all over them," he added. "There's no definition of nothing, no vocal, no nothing, just like ... static."

...

"Even these songs probably sounded ten times better in the studio when we recorded 'em. CDs are small. There's no stature to it."

[chris harris]

that old coot knows plenty of people who've made records that sound decent in the last 20 years.

"it all sounds like static"..

exactly what my grandpa used to say.... in the 70's when everything supposedly sounded fantastic!

[The Real MC]

Maybe his beef is that CDs don't play on both sides like vinyl records do.

[MoreSpaceEcho]

I dunno, I thought it was a very tape-op friendly stance. He doesn't explicitly say it, but it seems like he's talking about overuse of limiting in mastering

it seemed to me like that was exactly what he was saying. he's totally right too. all the super squashed -6RMS cds coming out now will, as steve albini would say, be laughable to the future. i will bet my professional reputation on it. ok thats not worth anything. fine. my professional reputation AND $35.

[joelpatterson]

All I'll say is: YOU DON'T NEED A WEATHERMAN TO KNOW WHICH WAY THE WIND BLOWS.

[kweis7]

I was sitting at a club I like in town having a bite and a beer recently half paying attention to the music when I noticed how crappy the cymbals sounded. Then I noticed the IPOD that played 90% of the music in the place (they do have a juke box that plays cds on occasion). I forget the tune, I think it was some rockabilly stuff I don't even like much, but it was clear the mp3 was translating the mix really badly. I use mp3s for my website and I own an i-river for the gym etc. but many folks listen to mp3s nearly exclusively. Between producers limiting stuff out the wazoo and folks listening to mp3s of those tracks there is a real degradation of folks sensibilities for fidelity, imho.

[???????]

i did not read a single word of this thread but i know that

YOU WILL SAY SHIT LIKE THAT WHEN YOU ARE OLD, TOO!

good day