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Topic: Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker (Read 6488 times) previous topic - next topic
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Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker

I've just run across this rather interesting New Yorker article on Auto-Tune, the digital processing software. The article, The Gerbil's Revenge is also accompanied by an audio file which demonstrates Auto-Tune in use.
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?  ;~)

Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker

Reply #1 –
I played around with software called Melodyne a while back, which is a de-automated autotune-like application. Quite nifty, and it doesn't necessarily clobber all the artist's nuance.

Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker

Reply #2 –
Quote
The first popular example of Auto-Tune’s distorting effect was Cher’s 1998 hit “Believe,” produced by Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling. During the first verse, Auto-Tune makes the phrase “I can’t break through” wobble so much that it’s hard to discern. More successful is the gentler variation in the following line, “so sad that you’re leaving,” which highlights the software’s strength.


That's a myth, the mangled vocals were done with a Digitech Talker vocoder.

Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker

Reply #3 –
Quote from: unfortunateson on
Quote
The first popular example of Auto-Tune’s distorting effect was Cher’s 1998 hit “Believe,” produced by Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling. During the first verse, Auto-Tune makes the phrase “I can’t break through” wobble so much that it’s hard to discern. More successful is the gentler variation in the following line, “so sad that you’re leaving,” which highlights the software’s strength.


That's a myth, the mangled vocals were done with a Digitech Talker vocoder.


This was debated at great length in the pro audio community shortly after the song came out.  The general consensus is that it is Auto-Tune (as the effect is very easy to produce with Auto-Tune and not really reproducible at all with a vocoder) and that the interview where the Digitech vocoder was mentioned was a cover story to try to hide the fact that Cher needs to use Auto-Tune.

Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker

Reply #4 –
Quote from: benski on
Quote from: unfortunateson on

Quote
The first popular example of Auto-Tune’s distorting effect was Cher’s 1998 hit “Believe,” produced by Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling. During the first verse, Auto-Tune makes the phrase “I can’t break through” wobble so much that it’s hard to discern. More successful is the gentler variation in the following line, “so sad that you’re leaving,” which highlights the software’s strength.


That's a myth, the mangled vocals were done with a Digitech Talker vocoder.


This was debated at great length in the pro audio community shortly after the song came out.  The general consensus is that it is Auto-Tune (as the effect is very easy to produce with Auto-Tune and not really reproducible at all with a vocoder) and that the interview where the Digitech vocoder was mentioned was a cover story to try to hide the fact that Cher needs to use Auto-Tune.


http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb99/articles/tracks661.htm

So the vocal explanation is a lie? 

This is interesting (Billy Joel + Autotune + Live = Bad Combo) -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYIMmi7JtHc
 

Auto-Tune and distorting Pop music - New Yorker

Reply #5 –
"...It's untouched, it's full of mistakes."  (Billy Gibbons, ZZTop)

"Sometimes when it's not as good, its better." (Waylon Jennings)