The Real Reason Why Music Is Getting Worse
This is one of Rick's most cutting videos ever. It's not a rant; it's an intelligent point-by-point breakdown that covers everything from quantization to AI to streaming services.
I encourage anyone who loves music to watch this, and then think about what they are consuming.
Some of the 'bad' music he talks about isn't necessarily bad.. but is created using the technology poorly. My drum software can be 'unquantized' for example. If used properly, the new tools can be both musical and creative, depending in the user and the goals.
@tgraph52
It may have been good going in...
"If used properly"
Well, there's the rub. Yes these tools are amazingly powerful, but more often than not they are being used to take the humanity out of performances, fix things that don't need fixing, or compensate for deficiencies in musical skills.
What would the Beatles have created if George Martin had the power of my home computer back then? 🎶 😜
@voltronic Interesting. Is music getting worse, or is it getting more abundant. If I can only afford one apple, it's gonna be perfect when I eat it. If I can have unlimited apples for the same price, chances are most of them are gonna be rotten. I don't think music is getting worse, I think that the industry has become dependent on a handful of artists to sustain it. Having spent countless thousands of dollars on music and gear, I fully embrace the current models of production and consumption.
@voltronic
If I like an album enough, I will either purchase a download or buy the vinyl (which has become outrageously overpriced due to bloated production costs) directly from the artist if possible, because the only to sustain good music is to support the people who make it and do an end run around the middlemen.
@voltronic
It's also kind of shitty for industry people like Rick Beato to make people feel bad about how they produce/consume music. We, as artists and/or consumers, have been given the tools, and now we're supposed to feel bad because we don't trudge to the record store with our lawn mowing money to purchase Zeppelin 2 on vinyl? I get it, I'm from that generation too. But I can't connect his dots. Bad music is made by bad musicians, who are using the same exact tools as everyone else.
@MPCavalier
I would counter that "bad" music in this context isn't made by bad musicians, as it is greedy record companies who found out they can maximize their profits by leveraging tech to make exactly the kind of homogenized crap that's become so popular. It sells. Furthermore, they've quantized and pitch corrected everything to Oblivion, that kids growing up today think that's what humans singing and playing instruments actually sound like. As a music teacher I find that damaging.
@MPCavalier
The fact that you and I are people who will purchase a download or physical copy of an album from artists we want to support isn't too relevant, because streaming is such an enormous part of the wider market. And it's been proven that the big streamers like Spotify have predatory relationships with artists. So yeah, I think Rick is absolutely right to tell people not to consume music that way if they care about the artists.
@MPCavalier
There is lots of amazing music being made today. But because of some of the points Rick rays in his video, it's easy to get lost in the noise of all of the mass marketed crap out there.
He didn't even get into how algorithmic feeds on TikTok and YouTube play into this machine.
@voltronic
I think I took his vid the wrong way. It felt like I was being scolded (“music is too easy to make/consume”) for taking advantage of the tools. I dont know. Im a weirdo because I still pay for music. My kids vinyl collection is bigger than mine. Your points are totally valid.
@voltronic
I think that music, like anything in the arts, is eternal. Yeah most folks just consume whatever and dont care how the sausage is made. We’ve always taught our kids that the artist is why the art exists and to not trust entertainment made by machines. Honestly I am kind of oblivious to pop music because it hurts my brain,
@voltronic This was excellent. Thanks.
@voltronic I’ve been a fan of Rick for years. Good guy, great musician.
@voltronic I love Rick, we have spent many happy evenings with his videos. His passion and technical brilliance are great to watch and learn from.
Yet another reason why music is getting worse - a court ruling that made it profitable to badly remaster everything recorded before 1980.
There is *amazing* music out there, but it's harder than ever for artists who make it to find an audience. So it's often relegated to a hobby (even if a passionate one) and people who aren't working musicians don't develop the same level of skill.
(And that's without touching on the technologies.)
@voltronic I watched it, and added: "too much lowpass on the vox and overuse of Antares Auto-tune. Let's hear people with chops! And for the love of God, stop using "snapitty-snap-snap", "clappity clap clap," and the one note wonders. Learn some scales, folks!"