Sunday, 15 March 2009
Can poplar Music ever really be unplugged?
In the 21st century electric, digital and general all-round technology saturation of our culture, and world, has reached the level where nothing is truly unplugged. Albums can be recorded and produced on a single piece of affordable technology in a bedroom. Though music can still be unplugged. Church choirs use their voices to produce music; schools sing songs and nursery rhymes accompanied by a piano. Okay these performances can be recorded, cleaned, produced and replayed electronically but it’s important to note that not ALL performances are. This would reopen the debate as to what classifies as ‘popular music’. If we, for this blog, we take that to mean mainstream artists, groups and their work, I don’t believe they can ever be truly ‘unplugged’ because of recording equipment used, the amplification to their voices etc. But I think that in those situations where the artist is producing an ‘unplugged’ album or concert then the meaning of unplugged changes, in other words it means that electronic technology, and equipment, will not be used to alter or distort the product in a way that would create an inaccurate record of the artists’ skills/work.
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Much of this post is very good. However, I would take issue with the last section to some extent, as it is predicated on the idea that the microphone is a neutrally records what is played/sung into it when in fact every microphone colours and, however subtly, changes the sound.
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