Ever wondered why the music released in the 60s and 70s sounded different? The recording equipment used wasn’t high quality, but that doesn’t explain why the music was quieter. This practice originated in the 50s, where producers requested louder 7-inch singles (relative to other songs on the radio) so that these songs would stand out when auditioned by program directors for radio stations. Motown records were relatively loud, hence explaining their increased popularity in that period. Louder music provides the illusion of being more ‘punchy’, thus making it more ear-catching. In the 60s and 70s, if songs on compilation albums were quieter than others on the tracklist, the track would be remastered and made a little louder to remain ‘competitive’ in the market.
Loudness is an auditory sensation that depends upon the amplitude of a wave. Compression is reducing dynamic range, which is the span between the loudest and softest noises. This compression, when used well, can make music ‘louder’ and more ‘polished’ by maintaining a level of loudness that isn’t unpleasant or jarring. Higher dynamic range correlates to better sounding music. Music having a higher dynamic range can render a recording’s full frequency spectrum while reproducing sounds of all volumes.
Music having a high dynamic range can only get you so far, though. A good pair of headphones/speakers are needed too. Listening to music with a low dynamic range on good headphones would be like driving a sports car on a drag strip. Sure, you get to experience the speed and the sheer, visceral thrill, but you miss out on everything else. You miss out on the feeling you get while nailing a hairpin, the ease with which you can slow down and speed up again, which are essential parts of the experience.
In the 80s, there wasn’t much motivation to make loudness practices competitive because the market was in flux between Vinyl and Compact Discs. Hence, while most music of this era sounds different with its ‘in your face drums’ and is almost loud on Spotify, the original recordings were a lot more subdued, at least in how loud they were. But, as time went by and artists wanted to make more money, they started to make their music louder. The common belief was that consumers preferred louder music, although that would be unfounded in a couple of decades.
In the 90s, things got worse. Albums like ‘Californication’ had audible clipping (light distortion) on most tracks. The 2000s were worse, with most songs engineered to sound better on the radio, making them louder. Things reached their peak (literally) with Metallica’s 2008 album, Death Magnetic. Every song on this album was so loud it clipped and distorted, thus rendering the whole album almost unlistenable.
By the 2010s, things were simmering down. Most engineers and producers understood that loudness doesn’t correlate to sales, with research showing how people prefer more dynamic (or quieter) music. A real turning point came around with the release of Daft Punk’s 2013 magnum opus ‘Random Access Memories’, which is regarded as one of the best sounding albums ever, with its high dynamic range.
Streaming services are doing their best to make music more dynamic by introducing normalisation. It is the raising or lowering of the recording to reach a target level or ‘norm’. So while the ‘war against loudness’ was dealt with, a few albums released between the 90s to the mid-2000s have suffered. Some examples include Queens of the Stone Age’s ‘Songs For the Deaf’ (2002), Rush’s ‘Vapor Trails’ (2002), and Taylor Swift’s ‘1989’ (2014).
In conclusion, music is (and has been) a vital part of our lives. Only how we listen to it has changed over the years. From analog to digital, one thing has remained constant – the amount of joy it brings. No matter how our day is going, we all have that one song we fall back on, that one song whose intricacies we appreciate and love. Now imagine that song being borderline unlistenable. That’s what might have happened during the loudness wars. Music may not have a physical component (like CD cases or the Lyric Sheets provided with types of Vinyl/CDs), but we still feel the palpable excitement before our favourite artist releases their new album. Popping your headphones on for that first listen is still an experience and one that the quality of the music should not scupper.
Written by Pratham Shenoy
Image Credits : Peakpx
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