TOO clean.

[drfacehead]

I just wanted to kinda go out on a limb in this type of a forum and suggest that sometimes things get TOO clean. I know I know, this is a science, not really an art, that's the producer/artist's job. But what about people who record themselves or their friends? What about people that are not involved in top 40 records? Why are we supposed to believe that the only technical approach is supposed to be "clean". I have seen some polished solid gold turds in my day, and sometimes a shit should be left a shit. Ya dig? There's a lot of room for art in the process, and you know what? There's a lot of respect given to those who think for themselves and use the gear of choice to really get where they want to be. Not because of hype of making it clean being the number one priority.

Now I'm not saying stuff should be crappy sounding at all, it should be good sounding THROUGH the proper production techniques channels (or entire lack there-of!!)....which may happen to be the more colored and dirty ones.

In a nutshell, I think recording a band is really kind of easy to **** up these days for HUGE technically talented engineers these days. The reason is because if a band doesn't best benefit from SUPER anal tight-wad cleanliness, well, then forcing that on them is as bad or worse than any kind of distortion you would induce on a band that deserves cleanliness. By way of gear selection, production, or whatever. I don't know. I just think a lot of great writers and engineers in the new school, including myself (though I'm not great by any means), are led down this stupid sheep mentality path of "make it like this with this clean ****ing gear man....AVOID color and lo-fi technciques...art pre-amps are ALWAYS bad". I know art pre-amps technically suck. They sound like shit a lot. I also know that might be just the right brush to paint a track with if some of these ****ers would open up their heads and let an idea in once in a while! Sorry to rant.

So what do you guys all think huh? And there's no "i gotta take a huge shit now" icon, so "I gotta take a huge shit now".

[Makinithappen]

Its all about what fits with the music.

If you would've recorded the Misfits records where you could hear every little detail, it just wouldn't have the same "band in a basement rocking out" feel that seemed to work out for them pretty well.

On the other hand, you probably wouldn't want the guy who recorded them recording the Boston Pops.

On a lot of the blues projects that come through, I don't waste my time trying to get it all to a click and trying to keep the stand up bass out of the overheads because it takes away from the feel. If the musicians are good, it will come through.

I think a lot of rock records I hear on the radio nowadays are way too clean.

It's rock and roll. It needs to be a little dirty. If AC/DC would have had the production that Creed had....it just wouldn't be the same.

//just my $0.02

[Acoustic Cloud]

A similar note:

I have a pair of KSM 141's. They are SUPER clean. Almost too clean for some things. But they have a place at times, so they are good for the locker.

This brings to mind the whole conversion controversy also. ACDC would probably sound bad thru super pristine high dollar ADDA?

If everyone loves the 30+ tracks on tape from vintage gear, and classic rock, why the converter obsessions? It almost would seem the lesser quaility ones would be revered.??

Classic rock didnt have that clarity or precision, by far.

I wonder these things. I am probably wrong to a good degree....

[thenoiseflower]

It has been my experience than an overall mix that has a bit of grimey or grainy & jumpy sonics holding it together will almost always "translate" better than a super clean and beautful, say , pop-country type of mix(though, even some recent HUGE songs in this style are . but it does depent on the material.
a great pop vocal may not need to ****in slam like a live band on every system, it should accentuate the propper elements. though allot of those artist have great engineers, and the translation is a non-issue, cause it always sounds great.

I have a soft sort of working "theory" the the nonlinaeralities of distortion (hopefuly it is that kind of distortion....seriously my who point is not based on modelers or digital anything . ) , are very helpful in making things awesome , paralell compression/distortion is part of this method of awesome IMO.
which also lends to OTB being more better for certain types of music, and a cleaner ITB mix being more appropriate for others, even though I think we can all agree that a great OTB mix, by a mixer, while most certainly different from the same songs ITB mix, sounds to the romantic, human ear, to be "better".

dont most of us also like certain color for this reason too.
so, no, its not that much of a limb.

BTW I am acctualy trying to document my own and other peoples observations and examples of mixes that are for lack of a better word, dirty or clean, my own exeriments and specifics in these examples others mixes, to back up a future "theory", but its less of a theory and more just plain research that I feel may acctualy be useful at some point. maybee, as always, I just think way too much about this stuff.

[Lay in Wait]

The reason is because if a band doesn't best benefit from SUPER anal tight-wad cleanliness, well, then forcing that on them is as bad or worse than any kind of distortion you would induce on a band that deserves cleanliness.

Ive tracked bands that are super tight and Ive tracked bands that are not. The finished product is the same. If yer tight yer tight, if yer not tight it shows, plain and simple.

Craig

[uncle duncan]

If the only paint brush you have is a Art piece o' crap, you're going to end up with a pretty murky painting. But if the art piece o' crap is just one brush in a well stocked collection, it could be the one accent color that makes the painting beautiful - in a tawdry sort of way.

[theblue1]

It's great to have the chops to record really pristine, hi fi tracks. It takes skill and hard work to consistently get good results.

But, for me, the music has to come first. And I think the pop audience clearly feels the same way. They seem to like gloss in many circumstances but they also demonstrate an extraordinary ability to embrace really off the wall, lo fi sounds when the music or vocals are catchy/hooky enough. Extraordinary, considering how bland and unimaginitve most hits are.

I can get the lo fi part okay. It's the catchy/hooky thing that so often eludes...