... stacking vocals:
Hi, George -
I wanted to comment on your article about compression, and how it's unchecked use is ruining dynamics on CD's.
"A Recording Engineer's Plea for Dynamic Range"
http://georgegraham.com/compress.html
I agree with you 100%.
You also noted you are not sure why there is a trend to do this (I am forced to do it when I master a CD out of my home studio.) Let me offer my observation.
I feel, this has become the standard by which other engineers, promoters, producers, even many radio stations and now the artist (indoctrinated by "experts" who advocate this artificial loudness) judge our mastered work by. So, to survive, we must hand over a finished product to an artist or his/her producer that meets this "Production Quality" or "Polished" standard. Unless the CD is super-compressed and very loud, your work is considered to be substandard and amateurish (unless it is for Classical Music, which is the only genre where I've noticed the quietest lows and the loudest highs are expected to be discerned).
I hate it!
Let me share with you another rampant, recording industry practice that I loathe with a passion, yet am forced to practice because of artist and industry expectations.
I would like your opinion on this: Vocal Stacking.
I grew up as a boy listening to a unique group (black gospel) called The Violinaires. They sang very high falsetto's and utilized a very wide dynamic range to their harmonies. The lead singer had a keen, squally, yet soulful lead that contrasted wonderfully with their sound (aurally picture a soulful David Lee Roth). That background was amazing! You could hear each singer, the 1st and 2nd tenor and the baritone, as if they were individual soloists themselves, blending their unique sound canvass.
Now, no matter how talented a vocal background is, they are buried by layer upon layer of their own voices, and with what is, to me, an unacceptable amount of effects