| muttley15 29.08.2004 13:46 |
Personally I love all Queen music (except you don't fool me) but there may be a case that there musicianship was far greater when everything was acheived using REAL instruments. |
| Albyboy 29.08.2004 14:09 |
IMHO yes, absolutely true... Nothing is like listening to a complete orchestratiion made up of just guitars, bass, piano and drums without all those tricky synths... Anyway, it is to be said that a band, for keeping on being successful, has to be constantly up-to-date and so here the "modern" instruments turn out to be absolutely necessary... Albyboy |
| Gunpowder Gelatine 29.08.2004 14:12 |
I like the No Synths era better, mostly because my favorite albums are from then, but also because the music just seems more real. But they just needed to keep up with the times, and synths were popular. |
| brianburnsdavid 29.08.2004 14:29 |
I like the albums of the period before the synths the most, but de albums of the 70's are quite different from the 80's albums, I like both, but I like the albums without synths more (exept The Miracle and Innuendo) |
| Into La Ment 29.08.2004 19:58 |
I don't like '80s Queen much, so I obviously prefer their non-synth work. Not that I have any real 'issues' with the usage of synths in general, I just don't feel they augmented Queen's music in any real way. |
| Albyboy 29.08.2004 20:02 |
Into La Ment wrote: I don't like '80s Queen much, so I obviously prefer their non-synth work. Not that I have any real 'issues' with the usage of synths in general, I just don't feel they augmented Queen's music in any real way....Something tells me you are a Cure fan too, aren't you? Absolutely love Bob (as an artist, it's clear :)), but I can hardly find a British band I don't like... Albyboy |
| FriedChicken 29.08.2004 20:04 |
I think they got a bit lazy after The Game, just listen to the stories about The Millionaire Waltz, and Bohemian Rhapsody, the stories where the guys spend weeks and weeks in the studio's for just overdubbing vocal and guitar parts. There are so many songs in the later era which would've sounded great without those awful synths. I Want it All for example, and even Innuendo would've been great without those damn keyboards. So sad it ends.... |
| FriedChicken 29.08.2004 20:06 |
btw, somehow I do love the synth. But not when it's used to make a popsong like Invicible Man. Or when it's used in hard rock songs, when they easily could've done without (or being replaced by guitar/vocal harmonies) Like I want it all, or Hammer to Fall. In Hammer to Fall I have no idea why they put synths in it. It doesn't add anything at all. I like synths when it adds something nice to the song, or sets a mood. like in Mother Love, or even The Show Must Go On |
| SergeantPepperDG 29.08.2004 20:18 |
In general, I enjoy 60s and 70s music the most. So in my opinion, Queen definetely was at their peak in the 70s. Their 80s material was still (mostly) great. In fact, I didn't like ANY 80s music before I discovered Queen. |
| Into La Ment 29.08.2004 20:48 |
albyboy wrote: ...Something tells me you are a Cure fan too, aren't you? Absolutely love Bob (as an artist, it's clear :)), but I can hardly find a British band I don't like...Hahaha... what impressive powers of deduction :oD Indeed, I'm just a bit of a Cure nerd, to say the least. And, if I were ever to bother with a band list, the majority of the names on the list would be British. |
| Saint Jiub 29.08.2004 21:27 |
No synths of course ... but not just because of no synths. From the Game onward Queen decided to have coherent straightforward singles oriented albums. I believe Freddie had a quote concerning this. Of course, Queen were still very good in the Synth era, but several things were missing: The three layer vocal harmonies virtually disappeared in the Synth era. Freddie's piano generally appeared less, and was less prevalent. Brian's "Patented" layered guitar sound appeared less frequently. Brian's acoustic songs appeared less frequently. The use of different unusual string instruments (harp, ukulele, various Japanese instruments, electric piano, kazoo, banjo etc) disappeared in the Synth era. Freddie no longer wrote unusual music with drastic tempo, mood and intensity changes (like MotBQ, BoRhap, tMW and BiRace). Queen after the No Synth era, generally took fewer risks and were more of a singles oriented band. Finally, I need to plug my old survey of 30 zoners - which strongly suggests in one of the graphs that the No Synth era was clearly better. |
| Adam Baboolal 29.08.2004 21:36 |
FriedChicken wrote: I Want it All for example, and even Innuendo would've been great without those damn keyboards.Damn... Probably two of the best there, Fried. IMO I think Queen were one of the few bands that made good use of keyboards. Of course, a track like say, Coming Soon, is a different matter. Peace, Adam. |
| Adam Baboolal 29.08.2004 21:38 |
Very good points, B! |
| iGSM 29.08.2004 21:39 |
I have a question. In Get Down, Make Love what is the sound at the end? The sound which reminds me of Space Invaders for some reason. Anyway I would dare say so. Most of their successful albums came from the 70's (that's not to say they didn't have any outstanding performances in the 80's) but I guess it's a matter of choice and taste. |
| joeyjojo 29.08.2004 21:53 |
Yes. |
| twowaymirrormountain 29.08.2004 22:05 |
While the first four records are my favorites, I really like the Flash Gordon soundtrack. There are lots of synths on that. I think what I like about the earlier albums is the attention to the order of the songs as well as the non-cyclical nature of Freddie's songs. IT seems to me that later albums teneded toward a more normal, verse/chorus/verse/chorus/bridge/verse/chorus style of songwriting. I personally have nothing against synthesizers. I especially like them when they have their own identity, as opposed to sounding exactly like some other instrument. |
| syncursor 29.08.2004 22:21 |
I agree with twowaymirrormountainman. Brian would never have picked up the guitar again if he tried to make that soundtrack with multi-layered guitars. I don't think Queen abused synths, but I'm glad they used them or they would have definately continued in the same vein and just become another rock dinosaur. That's boring. I hate bands that don't change. Look at how much AC/DC sucks, for example. They've been re-recording the same song for 30 years. |
| joeyjojo 29.08.2004 22:48 |
"Look at how much AC/DC sucks, for example. They've been re-recording the same song for 30 years." They're forumlaic, but it's a good forumla, and there's enough talent in that band to keep it fresh. Not that Queen couldn't have done the same...however, Queen just wasn't forumalic. They liked diversity in their music and it was probably only natural that they veered off in the early 80's. By the late 80's I think they came to terms with their original 'roots' as a band. So, while I don't necessarily care for a lot of what they put out in the 80's, it certainly wasn't bad music, nor do I knock them for giving it a shot. Still, very little compares to their early stuff. |
| Penis - Vagina 29.08.2004 23:25 |
Makes no difference to me. There's good and not as good in most of the albums. Without syths, my beloved "I Want to Break Free" certainly wouldn't be the same. A real guitar solo wouldn't hurt, but the beautiful extended/single intro would be lost. And a song like 'Machines' really requires synths to get its point across.. Going back a bit, the beautiful, swirling keyboards of 'Las Palabras De Amor' are nice to have, and many later tracks are just perfect as they are. I pretty much agree that their use on 'The Game' wasn't very brilliant and sometimes quite annoying. But that was the first and they had to jump in somewhere and learn what worked best. I think they did eventually :) |
| iGSM 29.08.2004 23:40 |
True. Machines couldn't have been if there were still 'No synths' |
| Queenrocks4579 30.08.2004 00:17 |
Queen had always been good and so are all their albums but they were slightly better when it was human beacause they had great natural talent. |
| Sebastian 30.08.2004 06:03 |
I'm surely being a smart-ass today but I have to point out that...
Bullwinkle wrote: The three layer vocal harmonies virtually disappeared in the Synth era.Three-layers were so usual. What dissapeared almost completely was five or six layers (only in some cases like the intro of Breakthru). The use of different unusual string instruments (harp, ukulele, various Japanese instruments, electric piano, kazoo, banjo etc) disappeared in the Synth era.Various Japanese Instruments - Actually it was just one, not various. And it wasn't even an instrument in all sense of the word, it was a toy. Btw electric piano is not a string instrument (acoustic pianos are), kazzo isn't either. Queen after the No Synth era, generally took fewer risks and were more of a singles oriented band.I agree it was a stupid step. All songs in The Works were released as single either as A or B side. Only four songs in A Kind Of Magic aren't singles, only four in The Miracle... --- Anyway, what I think is that their quality didn't decrease, they just focused in different aspects. Queen II is like they're showing and demonstrating everywhere that they can write complex stuff and do weird noises and stuff. 'Staying Power' on the other hand does have a clever structure, but it's "hidden", so the song is catchy but it tends to be overlooked. Same happens with a lot of post-Races material. I love the Jazz album, it was the second I got from that band, and I like the way they mixed those styles together in an original and yet subtle way, so much that at some point (when I got to know II and Races) I did underrate Jazz and consider it "too easy". Innuendo has a good mixture of everything: the synth-orchestra in the title track is great as well as the guitars. Don't Try so Hard hardly has over two guitar tracks but Brian could "colourize" the song with only those. In a way it seems to me he did a different approach in the later albums: he showed he didn't need 10 or 12 tracks to put a good guitar part. With one or two he also could do it, he only depended on himself. Same for vocals: Days Of Our Lives has very few harmonies, it's mostly just the lead vocal, but what a lead vocal!. But all in all I do think their post Races stuff is almost as layered as their pre News era, only that this time they didn't "expose it", just left it as a "bijou" |
| Lord Blackadder 30.08.2004 08:33 |
I'm not sure really. Alot of my fav Queen songs were done after The Game and with synths. |
| Canadian May Fan 30.08.2004 13:08 |
I'm not sure I'd say I'm that picky about their use of synths, but I do think that the FLAVOUR of their albums changed as they got into synths more. I'm not crazy about most of the Hot Space songs I've heard, but that's more because of it being a funk/pop album than anything (though I have to admit the percussion solo in "Back Chat" would have impressed me if it was a real drum kit!). For instance, "Scandal" and "Breakthru" use synth to a large degree, as do Innuendo songs like "These Are the Days of Our Lives", but while they're not my favourite songs from either album I still like them because they're fun or dramatic songs that are either stirring or just plain fun to listen to. And as for the orchestra stuff -- I LOVE "The Show Must Go On", and I think it would sound better with a full orchestra accompanying Queen (but I just being in the background, not as upfront as "Who Wants to Live Forever?"). |
| BornToBeKings 30.08.2004 14:52 |
I'm not sure if I would use the word "better," but I would definitely use the words "more distinct." Queen were real musical chameleons throughout their entire run together, always wearing the hats of different musical styles. All of the multi-part, operatic, diverse sounding stuff during the no synths era really set Queen apart from the rest of the music scene, and it also explains their tremendous staying power among music listeners. However, if I'm going to chalk up the no synths era as brilliant experimentation, then I have to say that the use of synths was just as much about experimentation (not totally about commericalism) as well. Some say that Queen stopped taking risks during the synths era and became formulaic; I would say that their biggest musical risks arose from their use of synths. Think about the Flash Gordon soundtrack: it wasn't common for a rock band to compose an entire soundtrack then, and it's even more rare now. Think about Hot Space: it's maligned by rock purists, but showed Queen's willingness to branch out and try different musical styles (somewhat reminscient of the no synths era!). I agree that Queen became much more singles-oriented once they started using synths, but let's be honest: many of those are great, anthemic singles. To me, Queen were about great entertainment, with few high artistic pretentions. The progression into heavier use of synths and a more streamlined pop sound only further illustrated why I love Queen: incredible diversity and growth, even if we were left with bombs like Don't Lose Your Head. |