Prior to the release of Revolver, The Beatles were known as a 4-member pop/rock group from Britain that had recorded several catchy tunes. The Revolver album changed how the group was viewed by the world. The album was inspired by a combination of drugs, politics, and foreign cultural music styles and instruments. This album was truly an album of experimentation. The Beatles incorporated several unusual instruments, including the Indian Sitar, into their music. They also experimented with many technical aspects of the production. They used tape loops, ADT (Automatic Double Tracking), compressors, and guitar effects in unique or new ways. These experiments were mostly very successful and led to advancements in recording technology and revolutionized the recording industry for good. Double tracking was a complicated and laborious task prior to Abbey Roads’ invention of ADT. It was that way because it would quickly result in a limited number of tracks, which was not good. This new ADT was a newly developed method of doing it, making it easier, without limiting tracks. ADT is just one example of an innovative technology on Revolver. On the song “Tomorrow Never Knows”, the vocals are being put through a rotating Leslie Cabinet reinforced by a creative use of tape loops. The loops came from various clips of experiments that were edited together by the band mates themselves. The way the loops were used in this album are unique and original too.
The Revolver album is definitely full of experimentation and innovative uses of technology. The album revolutionized music and influenced listeners and other artists. The album is inspiring and meaningful, like the rest of the Beatles’ albums, but with a twist. This album is different. It uses unconventional instruments and technology to get a unique sound that works. The album is so revered because of that. I am a huge Beatles fan and love this album not only as a fan, but also as an industry professional, as I look at it from a technical angle.
Hi Isaac,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your article of The Beatles' Revolver album. I like the flow of your writing and how you keep it concise. A few things to point out which you may or may not know are that the Beatles were originally a 5-piece rock group. It was after the departure of the band members Stuart Sutcliffe and Pete Best in 1961 that Ringo Star joined the group. It was after that they were known as the "Fab Four".
I didn't know that it was the creative use of leslie cabinets and tape loops was what enabled them to create the sound of the vocals in the song "Tomorrow Never Knows". I am glad you pointed it out in your article as it got me, on a little research binge.
Also i noticed a little typo in your article. You noted ADT as ADR. ADR is automated dialog replacement. I am sure this was a typo and not intentional. Watch out in the Future.
Great post and i look forward to reading other to follow.
I really enjoyed the way the “Revolver” album was depicted in this blog. It contains much of the same information that I had previously researched; therefore I know it to be factual. In this blog, the writer discusses much of the album’s characteristics, and goes on to describe exactly what was distinctive and different about it, when compared to other albums of the time. I found the writer’s style of describing the album’s innovative and unique qualities to be very effective, and also, relatable. I appreciated the fact that the album’s description of experimentation was elaborated on to the fullest. This is one of the most unique and interesting qualities of the album and deserves much attention. I couldn’t agree more with the opinions expressed by the writer towards the album, and only wish that the description of The Beatles prior to recording this album were discussed a little more. I say this because the release of “Revolver” marked a triumphant, and also, changing time for The Beatles. Due to this, there were distinct changes that occurred to their music, as well as their image. Those changes were very unique and would be intriguing to the reader.
ReplyDeleteOverall, I really enjoyed this blog and found it to be quite appealing. I am looking forward to future posts from this writer.