Recent Posts
AUTO-TUNE OVERLOAD!!
Ok, so first off, I'd like to state that I used to really like auto-tune. Back before Lil' Weezy and T-Pain got their hands on auto-tune, it was a commodity, a rarely heard voice but very well-liked. throughout the late 90's and early 21st century their are songs that incorporate some little bits and pieces of auto-tune that make the song that much better. This, however, was way back when singers actually sang with their natural voices! Imagine that! Shocking to think that once artists actually had no machine to rely on to "fix" their voices. There still remains a decent amount of talent out there that don't have to rely on auto-tune for their songs or live performances, of which most notably, to me, is the under-appreciated Craig David. Listening to his stuff, it is very clear that he may just have one of the best, if not the best, voice in music today. As Elton John once said, "If there is a better singer in the world than Craig David, then I am Margaret Thatcher".
However, in this day and age, almost all of your beloved artists use auto-tune or a phase vocoder to keep their voices on point for them; country stars such as Tim McGraw and Faith Hill have admitted to using auto-tune during live performances in order to give their fans "what they paid to see", which is apparently a fake live show.
Now I assure you that I am in no way criticizing artists that use auto-tune to fix their voices as I'm sure there are valid excuses, such as dry throats, bad/off days, and etc. BUT, and that's a BIG but, when an artist takes too far and relies so heavily on auto-tune, that without it they would have no career, that is where I draw the lines. In order to recognize when an artist uses auto-tune you just have to listen to what sounds natural and what doesn't. For instance the young female artist JoJo has used auto-tune on one of her recent hits, "Too Little Too Late". When she hits the high note in the song, you can tell it's an obvious use of auto-tune due to how it sounds and the fact that I've never heard her hit that note.
The first use of auto-tune in the way that it has been popularized today, can be attributed to Cher, when she used it on her massive 1998 hit "Believe". Thereafter, the auto-tune electronic effect became known as the Cher-effect for awhile. This vocoder-similar effect was pretty cool sounding and some artists used it off and on to decent success, as some of these songs which included auto-tune became hits.
Lately, since T-Pain's heavy use of a different version to create it as his "signature sound", the use of auto-tune has become a commodity, the how-to of which is known to virtually everyone on the planet with a computer and a limited knowledge of FL Studios. Hearing song after song by T-Pain, made get sick of auto-tune after awhile, but then Lil' Wayne just made it sickening to hear auto-tune. While I must admit I admired his use of auto-tune on Prostitute Flange, and while his new song Lollipop is a commercial success, I am really really getting tired of hearing this effect being over-used, and underground artists using it simply because they think it will garner them the success they need.
I say stop the auto-tune, use your real voices. We are tired of hearing this effect, it's over-used, over-played, we need real sounds, we need real singers.
What do you think? What do you say? No more or limited use of auto-tune sound good?
To me, there's nothing better in the world than the sound of an artists real voice if they can sing. I'm tired of artists using auto-tune and getting success. We need to stop this, it's getting too much out of hand now. Sing for real. If you have a voice, success will come if you just work hard at perfecting it.
Singers that can sing we need you!
Show how auto-tune isn't needed! 
Shared on
New Kids On The Block::Long-Awaited Comeback
Ever since the New Kids On The Block dissolved in 1994, fans have been eager to see the true "first boy band" reunite. However, due to multiple unsuccessful attempts, including a failed attempt in 1999 by MTV and yet another failed attempt in 2004 by VH1's "Bands Reunited", the future looked bleak for the multi-platinum artists.
The band member's all went their separate ways after the 1994 split. Members Jordan Knight, Joe McIntyre, and Danny Wood all went onto achieve low-key commercial solo success, while member Jonathan Knight left the entertainment business entirely to pursue a successful real estate career and member/front-man Donnie Wahlberg followed in younger brother and early New Kid Mark's footsteps and went on to create a successful acting career including roles in "Band of Brothers" and the horror giant "Saw" series.
Fans, eager to see the band back together, waited and waited for news of a reunion tour or a comeback, but by the end of 2004, it looked as though New Kids On The Block would fade into another group doomed to live in their fans memories.
However, in April of 2008, fans of NKOTB got HUGE news from member Donnie Wahlberg via CNN. The statement made by Donnie told fans that a comeback was in the works and a new album and tour to follow would start in the early summer.
After this statement, various new tracks were leaked onto the internet, including the massively bootlegged and former first single, "Click Click Click" which can be heard through a link at the bottom of this article.
More songs followed and eventually the first single was replaced by the newer track "Summertime" which would eventually be announced as the new album title.
The group as been around to many tv and radio stations promoting the new single and performed for the first time together in over a decade on NBC's "Today" singing "Summertime".
Can the group make a comeback?
Are the new songs good enough for the group to outdo their former success?
We will just have to watch and see as this legendary group who has sold over 70 MILLION albums worldwide, can once again rise to the top as one of the most successful and talented groups to ever exist.
To hear "Click Click Click" and "Summertime":
IMEEM Login details:
email: Dragonpeera@yahoo.com
password: ilovezen
"Click": Click Here To Listen
"Summertime": Click Here To Listen
Shared on
Mariah Carey - E=MC2
Mariah Carey - E=MC2
01. Migrate (featuring T-Pain)
4/5 very nice start to the album, mariah starts off by showing off her voice with those famous high notes...amazing...
02. Touch My Body
3/5 first single, i kno ya'll heard it, it's not a bad song, kinda seems lazy tho...video makes it so much better, but it's jus nice...not great or anything
03. Cruise Control (featuring Damian Marley)
2.5/5 again, seems lazy, she could do better with that voice...but it's not bad, typical dupri beat, could be better, damian isn't all that but adds a different touch
04. I Stay in Love
2.5/5 slow love song, doesn't come close to measuring up to her old love songs, but it's still not that bad, again seems lazily sung, she can do better, show off the voice a little more, beat is sterotypical
05. Side Effects (featuring Young Jeezy)
3.5/5 beat is nice, jeezy holds his own, mariah seems to lazily sing it again, but it's a nice beat and that really makes the song, could be better though
06. I'm That Chick
3/5 nothing special, has reminents of old skool mariah but still could be better, doesn't seem so lazily sung, but still, jus a bit above the average CD song
07. Love Story
3/5 nice lyrics, i like story telling songs, but this one ain't all that much of a story, but still it's nice to listen to, better sung, could do without dupri's constant, "yeah" "uh huh" "holla at em MC" "uh" "i like this" "JD ya'll" "hey" throughout the entire song
08. I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time
3.5/5 pretty good song actually, nice beat, mariah sings it well enough, could do with a few more high notes...then again wat MC song couldn't? lol, but she does her thing on this one, just lacks that overall "umphness" that makes a good song a great one ya kno?
09. Last Kiss (featuring Jermaine Dupri)
3.5/5 nice song, JD's not so annoying, mariah sings it very well, could always be better, but it's a pretty good song, could do with a lil tune up to make it better, but it's good
10. Thanx 4 Nothin'
4/5 emotion comes thru in this one, nice song to like sit and think too, it's a good chill song, sung beautifully, i like it, could really do without dupri...he's really gettin annoying
11. O.O.C.
2.5/5 eh could be a better beat especially with swizz beatz production, guess he's runnin out of ideas and sounds. Average song, singing is average
12. For the Record
4/5 different kind of beat, nice flow, good song gets great towards the end as she shows off those high notes a bit more
13. Bye Bye
3.5/5 beat makes the song, mariah sings it well enough though, standard tribute to those lost, not bad, but not great
14. I Wish You Well
5/5 stripped down beat, basically just piano and mariah's voice, real nice to just listen to her harmonize to herself...love it, great ending to an average CD, really shows off her vocals, very nice stripped down harmony ballad, ends with a Bible verse i think, very nice touch
Overall: 3/5 decent average CD but still not all that, could be wayy better...then again with CD sales how they are, i'm not in the least bit surprised, if this were a sandwich the best part would be the bread lol the filling is average, starts and ends great, but needs better meat Shared on
Welcome to my new blog, where links to new songs, CD reviews, and other various music blogging will be available to all those lovers of true muzak out there!
First Album Review
[ Click here to read more ]
Shared on
|
|
Recent Comments
I've not commented on anything yet :(
|
Add Comments
Comments (2)
Read More