just pure harmony.

HOLY AUTO-TUNE, BATMAN!

They should have recorded the vocals more like the 2004 version of SMiLE (or That Lucky Old Sun).

These men are in there 60s and 70s, and sound incredible..

Rather listen to Fleet Foxes if harmonies are the big deal.

As stated, not the best lyrics, but goddamn sounds exactly like the Beach Boys. Absolutely no complaint there, I'll take it.

I can`t complain

I actually like that they overdubbed Brian Wilson's voice - it sounds like he did in the 60's, it's reproduced, but I am fine with that for the nostalgia.

Originally Posted by Kurt Retenauer

...You don't want the album to have a similar sound to Pet Sounds?

obviously, I would have no problem with that, but there's this thing called reality that gets in the way. i think you're seriously undervaluing the sound of Pet Sounds. it was a very very calculated thing, and in many ways was "lightning in a bottle", strokes of unconscious creativity.

1. the complexity of the arrangements. if Brian Wilson attempted anything of that magnitude again, he would have an aneurysm moments later. the man is a paranoid skitzophrenic with tardive dyskinesia, and even if he wasn't hearing voices, he's done enough cocaine to severely hinder his creativity anyway.

2. the session players involved. the wrecking crew were some of the finest musicians to ever be assembled together and had a whole lot to do with the creation of Pet Sounds. Tony Asher also had a lot to do with Pet Sounds lyrically, and he hasn't been half that good since.

3. they're 70 years old. pet sounds was almost 50 years ago. 2 of the 3 Wilson brothers are dead.

it's a nice dream, but it's like hoping the next Paul McCartney sounds like Sgt. Peppers. it's just totally unreasonable.

let's just say what it really is, and that is, it's a miracle that Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Bruce Johnston are even able to still make any music at all together.

Originally Posted by Ravelle17

HOLY AUTO-TUNE, BATMAN!

They should have recorded the vocals more like the 2004 version of SMiLE (or That Lucky Old Sun).

That's called reverb dude. Not Auto-Tune. I seriously doubt that this song was even recorded digitally.

Originally Posted by SOLASTSUMMER558

That's called reverb dude. Not Auto-Tune. I seriously doubt that this song was even recorded digitally.

I am extremely certain that Auto-Tune was used in this recording, and that they used some form of digital recording. Everything is too clean, too precise, too polished.

It must be nice to not hear the effect, but those vocals are improbably perfect. Listen to the SMiLE Sessions, then this. When the singers harmonize on this, it's as if the chord was played by a synthesizer because everything is so perfect (i.e. Glee). You get less nuance in the voices.

I'm sure they did this because of the band members' age...I don't blame them, I just wish it was dialed down a bit.

Originally Posted by TomAce

...it's like hoping the next Paul McCartney sounds like Sgt. Peppers. it's just totally unreasonable.

Chaos and Creation in the Backyard and Electric Arguments were brilliant. Not at the level of Sgt. Peppers, but really, what is?

I really wish the term 'auto-tune' wasn't in the popular lexicon. What you hear on albums is not auto-tune, it's pitch correction. Literally EVERYONE uses it on their records, and have for a very long time. It's just standard fare when comping vocals takes. Granted these guys are in their 70's but they are the masters of pitch perfect harmony. Just go to youtube and search for the vocal only tracks from the Pet Sounds Sessions. They're flawless. They definitely used pitch correction on this album but don't think for a second that these guys didn't do 98% of the work on those vocals. That being said this song was surprisingly fantastic because I was not expecting much from them in this day and age, shame on me.

Love me some Beach Boys, but this sounds like something recorded for one of those Time-Life compilations. Harmonies are lovely, but production and lyrics seem half-hearted and made solely for nostalgic purposes.

Lyrics are a bit bland, but the music is good.

/thread

Originally Posted by Ravelle17

I am extremely certain that Auto-Tune was used in this recording, and that they used some form of digital recording. Everything is too clean, too precise, too polished.

It must be nice to not hear the effect, but those vocals are improbably perfect. Listen to the SMiLE Sessions, then this. When the singers harmonize on this, it's as if the chord was played by a synthesizer because everything is so perfect (i.e. Glee). You get less nuance in the voices.

I'm sure they did this because of the band members' age...I don't blame them, I just wish it was dialed down a bit.



Chaos and Creation in the Backyard and Electric Arguments were brilliant. Not at the level of Sgt. Peppers, but really, what is?

Their vocals are the opposite of Glee vocals. They are much more lush and "wet" with reverb and character.

Also, Smile Sessions is not a finished product. They never finished Smile technically, because Brian Wilson wet nuts. Also, technology has advanced since the mid-sixties, harmonies are obviously going to more pronounced and better sounding now compared to then.

There may be a bit of tuning on these vocals (99.9% of albums you hear today are going to have tuned vocals) but it is definitely not something that is on the forefront at all, if it's even there in the first place. The effect that you hear on the vocals is a lot of reverb and chorus effects, combined with the effect you can get by doubling lead vocals, which can lead to a bit of a "wetter" sound.

In fact, now that I listen to the song again, I am increasingly certain that there isn't any tuning at all on the song. But then again, sometimes things get past my ears, even with musical and production training.

But then again, who gives a shit. It's the Beach Boys. Brian Wilson is a genius. You can make the argument that he is the best American musician ever. He can do whatever the fuck he wants.

Originally Posted by TomAce

obviously, I would have no problem with that, but there's this thing called reality that gets in the way. i think you're seriously undervaluing the sound of Pet Sounds. it was a very very calculated thing, and in many ways was "lightning in a bottle", strokes of unconscious creativity.

1. the complexity of the arrangements. if Brian Wilson attempted anything of that magnitude again, he would have an aneurysm moments later. the man is a paranoid skitzophrenic with tardive dyskinesia, and even if he wasn't hearing voices, he's done enough cocaine to severely hinder his creativity anyway.

2. the session players involved. the wrecking crew were some of the finest musicians to ever be assembled together and had a whole lot to do with the creation of Pet Sounds. Tony Asher also had a lot to do with Pet Sounds lyrically, and he hasn't been half that good since.

3. they're 70 years old. pet sounds was almost 50 years ago. 2 of the 3 Wilson brothers are dead.

it's a nice dream, but it's like hoping the next Paul McCartney sounds like Sgt. Peppers. it's just totally unreasonable.

let's just say what it really is, and that is, it's a miracle that Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Bruce Johnston are even able to still make any music at all together.

Well aware of all of these circumstances. You must have missed the part where I said they were my favorite band. I guess it's also not okay to partake in wishful thinking anymore?

You seem to be a fan of TBB. I wrote a really long post in the Rolling Stone thread about a year back about why PS is the best album ever made, if you care to read it.