Will the Amy Winehouse record change the public's taste?

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swelle
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Will the Amy Winehouse record change the public's taste?

Post by swelle » Wed Feb 20, 2008 12:42 pm

I'm wondering if the huge success of her "Back to Black" will alter the public's perception of what a "good" sounding record sounds like... the Ronson/Roth production is solid but quite fuzzy and obviously based on older sounds and techniques. Will more records that sound like this slip by, or is it a one-off and more overcompressed protools is still on the horizon? (I'm not talking about underground music but big mainstream records they sell in Walmart.)

I know Beck's "Loser" was done on 8 track analog, but that was an anomaly (or even a novelty record) for that time.

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Post by ;ivlunsdystf » Wed Feb 20, 2008 12:46 pm

Well, that Borah Jones Grammy rout a few years ago sure didn't do very much to dam the flood of compressed overstimulating crap that has continued ever since ... her music wasn't quite so 'retro' like the Winehouse, but it was more sparse and retro-sounding than most big selling new stuff ...

I do predict that within two years there will be another Amy Winehouse-type singer but she will be a country singer with retro country music in the background. I'm sure they're out looking for a good candidate for this job right now. That would be a gold mine. Country fans still actually buy CDs, right?

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Re: Will the Amy Winehouse record change the public's taste?

Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Wed Feb 20, 2008 12:51 pm

swelle wrote:Will more records that sound like this slip by, or is it a one-off and more overcompressed protools is still on the horizon?
do you not think the amy winehouse record is overcompressed? it sounded annoyingly painfully smashed when i heard it, but maybe i need to listen again.

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Post by swelle » Wed Feb 20, 2008 1:01 pm

There's loads of tape compression on the backing tracks, but I think it sounds pretty 'old timey' by and large.

The country idea is a good one - a hot tatooed brunette singing faux patsy cline with Jack white producing = $$$$.

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Post by ;ivlunsdystf » Wed Feb 20, 2008 1:15 pm

swelle wrote:There's loads of tape compression on the backing tracks, but I think it sounds pretty 'old timey' by and large.

The country idea is a good one - a hot tatooed brunette singing faux patsy cline with Jack white producing = $$$$.
Yeah, or even just ultra-skanky like Winehouse if they can't find somebody hot. Skanky is the new hot anyway, innit?

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Post by thieves » Wed Feb 20, 2008 1:20 pm

i think the industry is a lot more forgiving/sane than people on this board give it credit for... bands with great, interesting, not smooshed records are pretty prominent lately. just take the bands that have guested on SNL in the past year: the shins, spoon, bjork, arcade fire... all of these bands sound really great on record, and have all sold a lot of them. the industry is obviously passing the torch to a new generation of labels, but the old timers aren't going to change their tune anytime soon. labels like sub pop and merge will make good sounding records, sony won't let anything out the door without chopping off all the peaks on the way out.
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Post by kayagum » Thu Feb 21, 2008 5:30 am

After my recent rant on Feist, I think I need to reclaim my Midwestern roots and say nothing at all about Winehouse. ("If you have nothing nice to say,....")

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Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Thu Feb 21, 2008 10:25 am

naw, c'mon, what are the internets for if not talking shit? i'll start: does anyone else feel like the chorus vocals on 'rehab' are...how to put this....in a really weird pocket compared to the backing track? i found the tapping of the feet to be somewhat difficult.

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Post by ;ivlunsdystf » Thu Feb 21, 2008 10:46 am

MoreSpaceEcho wrote:naw, c'mon, what are the internets for if not talking shit? i'll start: does anyone else feel like the chorus vocals on 'rehab' are...how to put this....in a really weird pocket compared to the backing track? i found the tapping of the feet to be somewhat difficult.
Here in MN we don't talk shit (or type shit). We just get all passive-agressive, which is best done in person or, ideally, by telephone.

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Post by darjama » Thu Feb 21, 2008 11:29 am

Check out Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings for another great sounding retro soul record.

http://www.daptonerecords.com/sharonjon ... kings.html

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Post by Professor T » Thu Feb 21, 2008 12:06 pm

It will start a '60s craze like the brief swing revival of the '90s. There will be a resurgence of afros, which is always cool. A dramedy based on these neo-retro kids will come out and the soundtrack will do better than the movie itself. I, myself have a surf band ready to go.

This fad will jump the shark by 2:47 this afternoon.

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Post by chris harris » Thu Feb 21, 2008 1:03 pm

Professor T wrote:This fad will jump the shark by 2:47 this afternoon.
done.

at least in Central Standard Time Zone.

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Post by Young Winston » Thu Feb 21, 2008 1:11 pm

Professor T wrote:It will start a '60s craze like the brief swing revival of the '90s. There will be a resurgence of afros, which is always cool. A dramedy based on these neo-retro kids will come out and the soundtrack will do better than the movie itself. I, myself have a surf band ready to go.

This fad will jump the shark by 2:47 this afternoon.
1) Afros, not cool actually.

2) There were at least two brief swing revivals in the 90s and four ska fads. Ska is set to resurface again for twenty minutes a week from Tuesday.
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Post by cgarges » Thu Feb 21, 2008 1:15 pm

thieves wrote:just take the bands that have guested on SNL in the past year: the shins, spoon, bjork, arcade fire...
You think those record don't have much compression?

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Post by chris harris » Thu Feb 21, 2008 1:29 pm

cgarges wrote:
thieves wrote:just take the bands that have guested on SNL in the past year: the shins, spoon, bjork, arcade fire...
You think those record don't have much compression?

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC
No kidding. Those records sound better because they are made up of more tastefully written and arranged tunes. But, they still sound pretty compressed to me.

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