Digital reverb

snav

Well-known member
some of you guys are old so maybe you can tell me what happened in 1985 and why everything sounds like it was produced underwater, in a fashion that never really stopped. was it exciting at the time? to feel like that, listening to The Smiths or something?
 

snav

Well-known member
here's some case studies i expertly arranged from japanese material -- what the fuck is up

1985:


1987:


1989:


1991:
 

Leo

Well-known member
the Japanese stuff is nostalgia, homage to 60s pop.

it's not that weird, maybe your ears are just damaged by all of today's hyper pop/auto-tune.
 

luka

Well-known member
What does underwater mean? Can you stack up the adjectives to give me a clearer picture?
 

snav

Well-known member
It's not that weird, to us now, because everything is covered in reverb. But listen to 70s and early 80s recordings and they're dry and clean. wtf happened?
 

WashYourHands

Cat Malogen
It's not that weird, to us now, because everything is covered in reverb. But listen to 70s and early 80s recordings and they're dry and clean. wtf happened?

Dry vs Wet, although I associate the 80’s with the latter, cd marketing exploding n all that
 

snav

Well-known member
What does underwater mean? Can you stack up the adjectives to give me a clearer picture?
and what of the voice from the ocean
that rises with grandest emotion?
those musician fools
got ahold of new tools
and slathered the reverb like lotion.
 

luka

Well-known member
and what of the voice from the ocean
that rises with grandest emotion?
those musician fools
got ahold of new tools
and slathered the reverb like lotion.
 

snav

Well-known member
too meta for me before noon, give it to me straight
 

DLaurent

Well-known member
I love this era. It's down to the digital units that were used at the time. Gated reverb snares sound like a gunshot down a NY street.
 

william_kent

Well-known member
@Woebot once made a thread "echo and reverb" which covers some of the history of reverb - in which @woops made some pretty pertinent points - plus plenty of examples of historical uses of reverb, echo, and delay in pre-80s recordings - it wasn't always "dry" before the 80s
 

DLaurent

Well-known member
I've thought about this some more and it could be down to Crack Cocaine as the drug of choice. Just a theory as I'm not good at 'socialising' music criticism.
 
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