KineticSound
The VOICE
As I was driving home this afternoon, I was listening to a classic rock station and a through crept into my mind about a Tony Maserati interview I read recently. In the interview, Maserati mentions something to the degree of "I mix the music to support the vocal"; essentially that the vocal track or tracks are the front-and-center stars of the show, and everything else is managed around that. Listen to anything he mixes - Jason Mraz, for instance - and it's immediately evident.
The same can be said, to one degree or another, about most modern popular music. I certainly don't see this as a bad thing; it's a modern way of showcasing vocal talents.
It seems to stand in stark contrast - stylistically speaking - to popular mixing practices of the 70's, 80's, and 90's, and yet not unlike many practices of the 50's and 60's.
Due in part, I imagine, to technical limitations of the era, most popular vocals in the 50's were prominently in the front of the mix. Perhaps it was more a reflection on the style of the time, with doo-wop and eventually the Motown sound being predominantly vocal-driven.
As I listen more intentionally to many popular rock songs from the 70's - 90's, it seems as though there was a distinct shift - attempting to balance the voice as an instrument of the song. Listen to Toto's "Walk the Line" and the vocal, harmonies, guitar, and bass play off one another in equal importance - and volume. In the 80's, Quincy Jones mixed drums, guitar, and synthesizers prominently on Michael Jackson's "Thriller"... The grooves and iconic synth on the single "Thriller" were just as important as MJ's vocals. Huey Lewis and the News made hit after hit with synth/bass/guitar/drum-driven sounds. In the 90's, listen to any track on the Spin Doctor's multi-platinum "Pocket Full of Kryptonite" and you will find rhythmic and guitar-laden tracks mixed in equal with its witty vocals.
And then, into the 2000's, perhaps driven by the desire for something different, perhaps by the evolution of the hip-hop movement of the 80's and 90's (which featured increasingly bland sample-based backing tracks), or whatever, the vocal talent returned to center-stage - mix-wise - and today we have music that, as Maserati correctly identifies, primarily serves to support the vocal.
What do you think about this? What do you see in the evolution of music mixing? What do you think drives the changes? Where do you think we'll go next? Have I had too much Bourbon tonight and am just spouting off?
The same can be said, to one degree or another, about most modern popular music. I certainly don't see this as a bad thing; it's a modern way of showcasing vocal talents.
It seems to stand in stark contrast - stylistically speaking - to popular mixing practices of the 70's, 80's, and 90's, and yet not unlike many practices of the 50's and 60's.
Due in part, I imagine, to technical limitations of the era, most popular vocals in the 50's were prominently in the front of the mix. Perhaps it was more a reflection on the style of the time, with doo-wop and eventually the Motown sound being predominantly vocal-driven.
As I listen more intentionally to many popular rock songs from the 70's - 90's, it seems as though there was a distinct shift - attempting to balance the voice as an instrument of the song. Listen to Toto's "Walk the Line" and the vocal, harmonies, guitar, and bass play off one another in equal importance - and volume. In the 80's, Quincy Jones mixed drums, guitar, and synthesizers prominently on Michael Jackson's "Thriller"... The grooves and iconic synth on the single "Thriller" were just as important as MJ's vocals. Huey Lewis and the News made hit after hit with synth/bass/guitar/drum-driven sounds. In the 90's, listen to any track on the Spin Doctor's multi-platinum "Pocket Full of Kryptonite" and you will find rhythmic and guitar-laden tracks mixed in equal with its witty vocals.
And then, into the 2000's, perhaps driven by the desire for something different, perhaps by the evolution of the hip-hop movement of the 80's and 90's (which featured increasingly bland sample-based backing tracks), or whatever, the vocal talent returned to center-stage - mix-wise - and today we have music that, as Maserati correctly identifies, primarily serves to support the vocal.
What do you think about this? What do you see in the evolution of music mixing? What do you think drives the changes? Where do you think we'll go next? Have I had too much Bourbon tonight and am just spouting off?