[kats]

Of all the arts, I think that music has progressed the least - and that the producer has become the least innovative relative to other art forms. Ergo the collapse of the "big studio" and the rise of the "project studio". Furthermore, this has also lead to "cookie cutter" pop music, and a general waining of the improtance of music as part of what makes our culture.

The main argument has been that the masses are dumb, and don't appreciate good music and production, and that "Big Business" is very responsible for this.

I think this is an excuse, and a flawed argument. Lets look at the movie business. It's bigger than the music industry, very limited access to distribution compared to the music industry, and simply a much higher price of admittion to play the game. YET, the audience is more sophisticated, and the "lowest common denominator" bar is raised higher year after year and the industry continues to flourish. "Art House" theatres are growing succesfully in markets all over the world, and independant films are garnering great respect & appreciation. Of course there's still alot of bubblegum being produced, but more and more it's becoming the least lucrative of the genres. Even childrens movies are more sophisticated and artistic, so much so that the parents actually can enjoy the feature along with their children. Foreign Flims are winning "BEST MOVIE" awards outside of the token "Foreign Film Catagories" (With box office sales to match) and low budget independant films are doing likewise such as "Sideways" & on the other end of the spectrum "Napoleon Dynamite".

So what gives? The industry has all the ingredients for disaster (Big business, stupid audience, limited access) that we blame the state of the music industry on, yet the movie indsutry is moving in a positive direction. I believe if you answer this question, you can see where the music industry is failing.

My observations:

Firstly, the movie industry recognizes the importance of great scripts, great acting, and great direction. And puts their money where their mouth is - but this is the obvious and there is no point dwelling here.

The big thing I see is how the movie industry has embraced technology and have used it for the benefit of the audience, and not just as a resource for cost savings. They continually strive to make the audience feel they are part of the movie using surround sound techniques and visual techniques as well as special effects to enhance the experience. So successfull this has become that people build home entertainment systems to take full advantage and bring this experience to their living rooms - HD, 5.1, bigger and bigger screens etc. Inspite of sattelite TV and the net, we still go to blockbuster for our favorite new release so we can enjoy it in it's full glory, rather than sub par visual and audio.

What have we done in the music industry? The last big thing was stereo 40 years ago. Big deal, it's not that great anymore. You want to blame Sony or Apple for 44.1/16 or Mp3? What else were they supposed to do, we've done nothing to enhance the listeners experience in 40 years - so they concentrated on convenience. What about studios? Most of the technological advances have been used for cost savings (DAW) and are looked upon with disdain and propogated the myth that good sound comes from expensive desks, tape, and gizmo's and that technology is a compromise between financial concerns and fidelity.

The movie industry reconized early that the medium used to produce films is not a question of good or bad, but rather a form that has an emotional attachment to the audience that can be used to tastefully enhance a good script and performance. What's better, black and white film or color? Neither, black & white still finds its way in films because it imparts an emotional impact, or feel. Scratchy super 8 is still used for effect. The movie "Sideways" tipped it's hat to a mid '70s style of filming, direction, and editing. BUT it didn't make the movie. The script and the performance made the movie, and the mentioned techniques used added flavor to enhance the emotional impact.

So whay are the big studio's failing? IMO they did nothing to take music production and the experience of listening to music to a new level. A Neve desk, U47, and a Studer 16 track is just one tone. And a familiar tone. Deciding somewhere down the line that this is "Good Tone" by which all others should be judged by is fatal. Apparently that's just not good enough to make the difference anymore and the project studio is catching up pretty quickly to this 30 year old technology and competing for the listeners ear.

I don't know what the answer is, but for gawds sake, with the advent of 5.1 technology we should have been all over that like a dirty shirt. Mp3's???? Have fun, I'm sitting in the living room listening to Led Zepplin from John Bonhams seat. After that I'm gonna push a button and listen to it from Jimmy Page's spot...then the audience, then..... man next month they're coming out with the live DVD version where you actually get to watch and hear the show from all the different positions! Napster..mp3s...stereo... BORING!!!!! I get to be Jimmy Page for an hour woohooo@!!!!!!!

Look, it's up to the artists to create great music, it's up to the producer/director/big studio to create the experience. We have to compete against against some really great entertainment experiences. Tube mics, tape machines, and analog boards - while familiar sounding isn't going to cut it. Mono is to silent flims, as stereo is to black and white. All have their place in the color palatte, but do nothing to raise the bar for the audience experience. Re-invigorate the culture of music and the demand for quality will follow suit.