Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler 80'S Music....only ONE real flaw.

In a recent thread....someone mentioned that 80's cd mixes, were the worst for source material. Well, that's a rather broad statement...but, it got me thinking.
To me, the 80's were all and all, a GOOD period for popular music in general.

I still like most 80's music, and actually miss it. The music was everywhere....movie soundtracks, (even all those 80's "B" movies) and just about everywhere you went..... (you almost didn't need to buy it).

THE MAIN THING I noticed back then, and ESPECIALLY NOW.....was not so much the mixes, or mastering of the music from back in those day's.....it was that AWFUL snare drum crash style that EVERY BAND, or GROUP...(no matter which music type) apparently thought HAD to be in EVERY 80's song.
You know, that.....1,2,3,4,...BAM...1,2,3,4,...BAM.

To me, it sounded like a garbage can lid being struck with a ball bat.....in a garage. THAT'S the one "mistake" I think was made back then...it's like that SNL comedy skit...."I need more cowbell"...only, I picture the producers saying..."you gotta have the snare...more snare!
I guess I feel the most sorry for the many drummers, who had to play that way on everything they did.
1,2,3,4,...BAM...1,2,3,4,...BAM.

Anyhow, that's my take on the 80's "sound".

Nah, the problem for me was the amount of Yamaha DX7s running around. Everyone had to use one of those sounds in the music...

I give you this as a repository of 80's sound. The first one is particularly insipid. God, I hate that noise...

I always thought the problem was "big hair" .

.....1,2,3,4,...BAM...1,2,3,4,...BAM.


I hadn't noticed that most 80s music was in 5/4 time...

Actually, I think the overabundance of thin guitar sounds coupled with the aforementioned DX7s were the bane of good music in the 80s. But at least everyone knew what gear you needed to have back then. So the only choices you had to make were fashion-centric.

>>Nah, the problem for me was the amount of Yamaha DX7s running around. Everyone had to use one of those sounds in the music...

I generally stopped listening to bands when they started getting FM synths. Didn't mind Prophets and Oberheims, and some groups even did decent things with Polymoogs (especially Cardboard Brains, but nobody outside Toronto would have heard of them).

Giving FM synthesizers to rock bands was like giving people Macintoshes -- the urge to use every single stinkin' font in a single document was too much to resist.

Even ELP went bad when the Yammie keyboards started to appear. Love Beach... thpthttt!!

It's funny, listening to those tones, I was reminded of horrifically sappy love songs (Rhodes), "alternative" rock, and Rush. Sigh... liking 1 out of 3 ain't bad, I suppose.

You don't like Rush? Suprises me..

No, no, Rush is the one I like...


Oh. That was a joke, wasn't it?

If you've looked in the mirror lately, and have seen what I have seen while looking in the mirror lately, you could go for some 'big hair'.

That's when I stopped listening to Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
They pretty much went into the dumpster with that album!
Funny thing with ELP, most of their albums sound like crap (too bass heavy) even though they are fantastic musicians. Too bad they won't remaster those old tapes with today's technology.
BTW, avoid the Royal Albert Hall DVD, the performance is good however it sound's like it was recorded from the basement!

KCarlile
Have you got the "Rush in Rio" DVD?
If not, buy it!
You won't regret it.

I've got it, but I haven't watched it yet. Picked it up at their last concert.

HA! DX7's. I'm not a musician but my college roommate had one he played with till the wee hours.

You mean you have had this for "x" amount of time and have not watched it?
A buddy of mine is a die hard Rush fan and I told him to purchase this DVD last year. His girlfriend just bought it for him and he can't believe how great this concert is.
All I can say is "open up the dvd player, insert, sit back and enjoy"!

You would not believe how many DVDs I've had for x amount of time and not watched them... I'm really bad.

How about this for a suggestion then....don't buy any more until you watch the ones you have.

No, no, must buy!

uuuuuuuuuuh yeah it was a joke, NOT, actually I didn't read your post clear enough, you said " one out of three ain't bad" must have been referring to Rush being the ONE.

I'm interested in that RUSH in Rio DVD, will it play on a regular DVD player, or do I have to have one for SACD and DVD-A?

RUSH was one of my favorite bands back in the 80's when I was in High School. "Moving Pictures" was my favorite album back then.

Dang kids. When I went to high school Alex and Geddy used to sit on the edge of the stage at lunch hour and play guitar. Sometimes people would throw food at them. I don't think they even imagined being famous back then.

I sure don't feel like a kid anymore, I have my 20th reunion this year, probably won't go again. I remember at work when I was considered one of the youngsters. I work for The Principal Financial Group, which has about 15,000 employees, 12,000 of them in my home town. The ratio of women to men is about 3 for every 1, and most of them are young hotties, fresh out of college or close to that....I'm losing my mind

Yes, I too am a huge fan of the 80's. Hmmm, no surprise there, but lately I have been having 70's nostalgia. Foreigner (4), Journey (Escape), REO Speedwagon (Hign In Fidelity), Styx (Paradise Theatre/Greatest Hits), Boston, Fog Hat, etc.... are currently making the rounds in the car changer. None of these bands could be considered "outstanding", but all had some pretty solid songs to highlight their careers.

If I am in a really sappy mood, I whip out the 70's "cheese" - and there were some doosies! Air Supply, Andy Gibb, Dr.Hook, Ediie Rabbit, Grease Soundtrack, Jimmy Buffet, Robert John (Sad Eyes), Neil Diamond, and of course anything disco. You could be guaranteed to hear any or all of these at the "Roller Rink" on Saturday night.

Sorry to hijack the thread back a decade.

In reply to:

---

The ratio of women to men is about 3 for every 1, and most of them are young hotties, fresh out of college or close to that

---

you hiring?

My error..... on the way home, I realized that...it should have been: 1,2,3,bam..or bam,2.3,4, etc. As a "foppish" guitarist I SHOULD have caught it.

I forgot to say that the drum machines...(especially bam! style).................... sounded even worse.

Randy,
Yes, the Rush in Rio DVD will play on a regular DVD player.
You can access the setup menu for stereo or 5.1 surround.
I just run it on stereo as I haven't made the big step to 5.1 (VP100, QS8's & Subwoofer). It sounds awesome on the M60's! Buy it and enjoy.
Cheers,
Shaun