Rick Beato about gear

[grimtraveller]

I always find the "what makes X song" great videos really obnoxious since he doesn't really address what makes the song work. He just lists some of the theory of how the song is composed.

I've watched a few of those and I kind of disagree with you. His is quite an interesting premise because he doesn't go down the road of what makes the song work, or at least not in the ones I've seen. In a sense, that would be an almost illogical approach. His thing is to deconstruct the songs and show the listener the individual parts and how each contributes to the whole. I find it quite fascinating because by specifying the individual parts, one can see how certain sounds are made, how they relate to whatever else is happening in the song at that moment and how not every sound is necessarily a great or pristine one, or a particularly dominant, in your face part. It gives me the opportunity to assess for myself how everything works rather than him telling me because I never think in terms of a particular thing that makes a song work. There's a channel called "Deconstructing the Beatles" in which the guy will talk about how one chord "makes" the song because of its unusualnesss or whatever. That kind of thing really irritates me, even though I really like what he's saying in general {and even particularly}.

 

[VomitHatSteve]

I'd probably be more ok with the format if he didn't call the series "what makes X great"

I just wish he'd show some enthusiasm for the subject material if he's gonna claim it's great.

 

[miroslav]

I'd probably be more ok with the format if he didn't call the series "what makes X great"

I just wish he'd show some enthusiasm for the subject material if he's gonna claim it's great.

As much as I think a few of his videos ramble on...I always felt he was very enthusiastic about whatever topic he was covering.
He never came off like he was just there to sell his opinion and smarts about the topic...but more so to reveal the why and the reasons behind it, etc...and he always went deep into it, and not just kinda superficially dishing out his views and that's it.

Not to mention...the guy really knows his shit about most of what he discusses. He's not just some opinionated dabbler...he knows music and he knows audio technology. Granted, he does have some personal prefs that come out in his videos...but I never found them overbearing, and he usually provides some alternative perspectives. He has a great deal of that good teacher thing going on...where he leads you, but without directing you to only see it his way.

 

[witzendoz]

I just wish he'd show some enthusiasm for the subject material if he's gonna claim it's great.

He always seems pretty enthusiastic to me?

Alan.

 

[grimtraveller]

I must admit, I find him pretty enthusiastic. That's one thing I have to say in favour of most of the video presenters that I watch on whatever subject ~ they're enthusiastic. As with most things, I'll agree sometimes and disagree vehemently much of the time.
The irony for me about what makes "X" song great is that the very same thing that makes one song great is precisely what also makes another song not great !
Personal preference.
Also, if I didn't record my own stuff or have an interest in recording, I don't know how sure I am that these deconstruction/explanation programmes would be something I'd ever watch. Having said that, even as a teen, I was fascinated by stereo and the way one could isolate one channel from another on my Dad's Panasonic and I was also interested in instruments so maybe I would've watched these things anyway.
I do agree that Rick doesn't seem to specify what makes the songs great but by breaking them down the way he does, it's like he's showing separately all the bits that together make greatness. It almost goes without saying.

 

[witzendoz]

I must admit that I don't watch the what makes a song great as much as I watch the music theory lessons. I did enjoy the what makes a song great "Roundabout" by Yes.

Alan.

 

[grimtraveller]

I must admit that I don't watch the what makes a song great as much as I watch the music theory lessons

Every so often, I like to watch the music theory stuff, by him and others. Sometimes it just gets so complicated that it's like listening to someone from Venezuela talking to someone from Angola about sugar and compost. But when it's accessible, such shows can be really fascinating. I saw Rick do one {at least, I think it was Rick. It was in my early YouTube watching days ~ I was a late convert} about an orchestral part that John Williams did for one of the Star Wars films. It's a well known piece of music but he breaks down the part each instrument/section played and it was absolutely breathtaking. Or at least, it was to me. I'd become interested in that sort of thing a few years back when the orchestra my son played in at school got a chance to perform with one of the Philharmonic orchestras at the Royal Albert Hall. They were doing a set of Tchaikovsky stuff and I had a bit of a soft spot for old "Chike." I had never really thought about how the orchestral sounds were actually created until I saw the orchestra do the "Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy." Prior to that, I just listened and enjoyed but I remember being really surprised at how they got the bell~like sounds. It wasn't at all how I thought it would be. And that made me look at other group sounds. So years on when Rick broke it down, I was all ears.

I did enjoy the what makes a song great "Roundabout" by Yes.

That was the last one I saw a couple of days ago. That was brilliant. Again, over the years, the tune is so loved that although I obviously pick up on bits within it, there were lots of sounds that flashed by. They might only appear for 8 seconds or whatever. But by him breaking it down, it makes the process of writing and arranging much more conscious. The three things that really stood out were Jon Anderson's double tracking, some of Chris Squire's bass playing and Rick Wakeman double tracking a bit of Moog synthesizer. Such attention to detail, yet, within the song, so, well, ordinary {but in a great way}.

 

[VomitHatSteve]

I won't deny that he's knowledgeable about his selected topics. (And the fact that he usually has really good stems to demo the song breakdown is definitely a plus).
It's just that I get the impression that he doesn't really care about the song he reviews one way or another. He doesn't seem to offer much opinion, and that's what I find off-putting about it. Just the occasional "here they're doing X, which I particularly enjoy because Y" rather than just "here they're doing X" is all I want.

 

[sasquatch]

Gleaning tidbits is worth the watch of any video.
You become wiser at the end.

G

 

[miroslav]

It's just that I get the impression that he doesn't really care about the song he reviews one way or another. He doesn't seem to offer much opinion, and that's what I find off-putting about it. Just the occasional "here they're doing X, which I particularly enjoy because Y" rather than just "here they're doing X" is all I want.

TBH....I actually prefer that he doesn't get too much into personal, subjective opinions. It would then seem like that is the only reason he's even talking about a subject, because he likes it personally. Yes, he does approach things more clinically...but I have to say, I also see quite a bit of passion in his discussion, and you can often get a sense of what he personally prefers even if he doesn't state it.

 

[grimtraveller]

you can often get a sense of what he personally prefers even if he doesn't state it.

That's the impression I get. That the inclusion of the bits he includes does most of the talking for him. It's actually refreshing to have someone that gets out of the way a bit.