Newest Questions
2,285 questions
15
votes
3
answers
620
views
Permission for remixes?
Do artists (such as the Propellerheads or similar) need to gain permission to remix another artist’s song?
For example, Professional Widow by Tori Amos was not only remixed but appeared on the Boys ...
- 3,234
12
votes
1
answer
166
views
Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells - John Peel version [closed]
Originally, Vivian Stanshall of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band performed the 'narration' on part one of Tubular Bells.
I recall a remix version, created I think for the BBC on one of the Tubular Bells ...
- 3,234
13
votes
1
answer
8k
views
What were the specifics of Prince's "$100 million contract" with Warner Bros. Records in 1992?
In 1992, Prince signed a reported $100 million contract with Warner Bros. Records. What were the specifics of this contract?
- 2,904
13
votes
1
answer
222
views
How is song qualified for being categorized as Sufi?
In Indian/Pakistani music, there is a genre called Sufi. What is it about Sufi music that defines it as such?
- 521
14
votes
1
answer
5k
views
What was the first vinyl record ever pressed?
I am wondering about, what was the first vinyl record ever pressed.
I am not interested in the first record ever (for example shellac), only the first vinyl record.
- 549
10
votes
6
answers
47k
views
What's the difference between a record and an album?
The term record and album seemed to be used interchangeably, however, was/is there a difference between these two terms? For example, the Grammy Awards have awards for both, yet records and albums ...
- 201
13
votes
1
answer
651
views
Why do songs sometimes get left off a movie's soundtrack?
Sometimes I'll hear a song while watching a movie, and then later when I look at the movie's soundtrack, I find out the song isn't on the soundtrack. Why are songs in a movie sometimes left off the ...
- 1,713
25
votes
6
answers
51k
views
Who influenced The Beatles?
A lot of bands and musicians say one of their biggest influence musically was The Beatles and contribute the founding of rock and roll to them. Who musically influenced The Beatles though?
Dom♦
- 4,219
9
votes
1
answer
190
views
What were the first music awards given and when did music awards start to gain visibility?
I wonder what were the first music awards given, and around when music awards started to gain visibility?
19
votes
2
answers
194
views
How can I determine the lowest quality encoding a music file went through?
Is there any automated way to determine the lowest quality encoding a music file went through? I sometimes get tracks from random websites and I suspect some audio files have some re-encoding history. ...
24
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How does Billboard assign songs to its various charts?
Billboard has many different charts, including charts for overall popularity and broken down by various genres, like the Hot 100, the Billboard 200, Pop Songs, Adult Contemporary, Hot Country Songs, ...
- 1,095
9
votes
1
answer
217
views
Identify this genre and performance: DJ with live instruments [closed]
I am trying to identify the correct terminology for a particular performance type (or genre) that has a DJ + musician that makes the music live.
For example:
Darkside - Live on KEXP
Gramatik - Live ...
- 207
19
votes
1
answer
374
views
What was the first music recording reproduced for sale in any format?
What was the first music recording that people could go to the shop and buy a copy of? Was it even a gramophone record, or was it some kind of wax cylinder recording?
user16
52
votes
7
answers
91k
views
What is the difference between hip hop and rap?
What is the difference between 'hip hop' and 'rap' genres?
- 655
16
votes
1
answer
251
views
Most longevity on the pop charts
I had heard once that the Isley Brothers were the group that had hit the US Top 100 pop music charts in the most different decades.
Wikipedia confirms that they did chart each decade from the 50's ...
- 15.7k
23
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Does the type of music you listen to factor into determining which speakers to buy?
When I browsing Amazon for speakers I see in the description specifications like maximum input power, Frequency response curve, Audio Sensitivity etc. Does the type of music you listen to factor into ...
- 929
16
votes
4
answers
7k
views
Why do so many musicians use stage names instead of their real names?
It's pretty common for musicians to use nicknames or stage names instead of their real names; for example, Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bono from U2.
Is there a reason why so many musicians do ...
Dom♦
- 4,219
22
votes
1
answer
320
views
What is the name for a track hidden before the CD content?
If I rewind the track 1 of the debut album by The Music, I can get to track 0. To play this hidden track I need to rewind until I reach its beginning; I found no other way to access it.
Is there a ...
12
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Is there any *objective* genre-like categorization of musical works?
I’m looking for objective criteria for classifying musical works.
Formal metadata (like artist, title, length, publication date, language etc.) doesn’t help in saying something about the actual kind ...
- 3,448
19
votes
11
answers
3k
views
Have there been musicians who have been in more than one band with a Top-10 hit on different instruments?
I was just wondering this. First of all, it's rare that any musician has played more than one instrument in more than one band, but there are a few. So I was wondering how many musicians have been ...
- 7,139
40
votes
5
answers
137k
views
How to determine the genre of a song?
I listen to many songs and I always wonder how the genre of a song is determined. Is it by listening to the song, or by the song's info like the artist, year released and so on?
- 929
33
votes
6
answers
103k
views
What is the difference between a "cover" and a "remake" of a song?
Is there a difference between a cover and a remake of a song? Or do both terms mean the same thing?
- 1,713
20
votes
1
answer
2k
views
What is "The Seattle Sound"?
You often hear of early 90's Seattle music as having "Th Seattle Sound". What, exactly, are they talking about? Seattle has birthed Heart, Jimi Hendrix, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Nirvana and ...
- 7,139
12
votes
4
answers
345
views
Is it OK to distinguish "songs" from "tracks" based on presence of vocals?
I often correct my friends from calling tracks "songs" because it's a music piece that does not come with vocals or audible lyrics (for example, dubstep tracks with messed up audio). Is this correct? ...
- 313
19
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Is the music played in silent films considered to be a soundtrack? Why or why not?
A soundtrack, also written sound track, can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released ...
- 293
25
votes
2
answers
551
views
What is the quality threshold for recordings sounding better/truer?
I have a couple of "audiophile" friends who either obsess of vinyl or lossless FLAC files and invest a lot of money into special headphones and audio systems, and swear by the massive difference it ...
- 1,041
46
votes
4
answers
9k
views
How can I know if I'm damaging my hearing when listening to headphones?
I've been told that it's easy to damage my ears by listening too loud on headphones, but however loud I listen (within limits), I find my ears get used to it after a short time.
It was recommended to ...
user16
11
votes
1
answer
169
views
How to find "recommended" playlists in Spotify?
I'm a big Spotify fan. I use it almost constantly at work.
But one thing Spotify is not good at: music discovery. Despite all this newfangled tracking of my music listening habits, I still ...
- 357
53
votes
8
answers
3k
views
Why is the length of a song in much modern music between 3 and 4 minutes?
One of our definition questions. This intrigued me because there are a lot of possible answers and I don't know if it's been investigated.
Is it simply convention? Is there some sort of ...
- 1,041
20
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What defines a trap-beat?
I'm actually more the boom bap Hip-Hop, 90's style beat guy. But I find myself enjoying trap music more and more, since it's getting more and more popular and also because my friend is making more ...
- 883
30
votes
1
answer
4k
views
What was the first vinyl record to have a repeating loop in the run-out groove?
I have heard a few vinyl records that have a short snippet of sound in the innermost groove of the record, such that if your player doesn't auto-return the arm, you hear an endless loop. What was the ...
user16
23
votes
1
answer
583
views
How are backward messages created on tracks?
It is famously known that on Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" are hidden satanic messages if you play the track backwards.
Is this true? I've heard some backwards recordings on Youtube, but I don'...
- 3,005
44
votes
4
answers
284k
views
What is the difference between a LP and an EP?
Many bands/artists release EPs and LPs.
I have noticed that many artists that are still on the beginning of their career release EPs.
What does EP and LP mean?
- 3,005
13
votes
1
answer
312
views
How did Jaco Pastorius get nicknamed 'Jaco'?
The famous electric bassist was born as John Francis Anthony Pastorius III.
Is it known how he got nicknamed Jaco?
- 3,005
80
votes
3
answers
78k
views
What does it mean for an album to be remastered?
There are times when older albums get re-released as a remastered version. What is the difference between the original version and the remastered version?
Dom♦
- 4,219