Aug 12
If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today…
Cats: Loudness Wars, Music Culture, Music Production|
Due to the modern Loudness Wars, this is what Nirvana’s breakthrough track, Smells Like Teen Spirit, would sound like if released today.
Print This Post
17 Responses to “If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today…”
Leave a Comment
Additional comments powered by BackType
August 12th, 2009 at 5:40 am
Judging by his spelling, he must have went to the same public school that I did
But that does not take away from the fact that he is absolutely correct.
August 12th, 2009 at 5:54 am
RT @JamesPew: If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today… http://bit.ly/178TAY #loudnesswars
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 12th, 2009 at 6:13 am
You can’t be serious.. studios don’t actually chop and flatten sound like in the first example, do they? I don’t see how the engineers could sleep at night if they did.
August 12th, 2009 at 6:14 am
RT @JamesPew: If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today… http://bit.ly/178TAY #loudnesswars
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 12th, 2009 at 6:14 am
RT @JamesPew: If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today… http://bit.ly/178TAY #loudnesswars
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 12th, 2009 at 6:34 am
If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today http://bit.ly/178TAY #loudnesswars thanks to @JamesPew Awesome post!
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 12th, 2009 at 6:36 am
Awesome post! People need to be more aware of how overcompressed todays music is. Too bad they are brainwashed but it’s good to get the word out there anyways.
August 12th, 2009 at 6:45 am
Thanks for the comments and tweets everyone. Its videos like these that effectively demonstrate the sonic desecration that occurs with abuse of digital audio compression. More on the loudness wars in yesterdays post Online Outlets Dedicated to Fighting the Loudness Wars – http://studiomanifesto.ca/2009/08/11/online-outlets-dedicated-to-fighting-the-loudness-wars/
August 12th, 2009 at 7:21 am
If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today … http://bit.ly/178TAY
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 13th, 2009 at 6:44 am
If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today… http://ff.im/-6yrKf
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 13th, 2009 at 6:49 am
RT @AtmosTrio If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today… http://ff.im/-6yrKf
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 13th, 2009 at 12:52 pm
[...] Outlets Dedicated To Fighting The Loudness Wars If Smells Like Teen Spirit Was Released Today The Sound Between The [...]
August 14th, 2009 at 4:49 am
While I agree with the sentiment behind the video, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out a certain problem with it.
- The first song isn’t just clipped and suffering in terms of dynamics, frequency and stereo image but also currently set to max at a lower dbFS value, at least on my anecdotal playback system (and vague recollection of the video images). This could unintentionally perpetuate the loudness war by coming off as seeming like part of the reason that the second example “sounds better” is because “it’s louder”. This important to mention because it runs completely contrary to the thesis of the video.
- Even if both tracks were set to peak at the same place (so that the RMS level of the first one were higher than the second one in part due to the narrower dynamic range) the original mastering would still sound MUCH better. This is VERY important, and is how I wish the video had been to start with, because it would more effectively demonstrate both the reasons why the poor mastering is used in the first place and the true advantages of mastering with a greater nuance than the prevailing trend.
Just my two cents. I’m of course glad to see the issue being addressed and just want it to be done in the most effective way possible. I would hate to hear people saying “the music is so much quieter than if it were properly mastered because people are clipping too much: it needs to be louder!”
August 15th, 2009 at 9:25 am
RT @JamesPew: If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today http://bit.ly/178TAY
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 15th, 2009 at 9:25 am
RT @JamesPew: If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today http://bit.ly/178TAY
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
August 15th, 2009 at 9:40 am
RT @JamesPew: If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Was Released Today http://bit.ly/178TAY
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
October 14th, 2009 at 8:44 am
[...] 10. If Smells Like Teen Spirit Were Released Today… [...]