Space, The Final Frontier: Madonna, Stephen Puth and Street Studios

Switched on Pop

Vox Media Podcast Network

Music Interviews, Music History, Music, Music Commentary

4.6 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 9 July 2019

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Find out how music creates a feeling of space in this three part episode. First, we may not realize it when we listen to Madonna's new record, but the location of her music is essential. In exploring her catalogue we hear the sound of different eras by just the space evoked in a song. Second, the same is true for Stephen Puth who uses spacial effects for brilliant creative purposes on his song "Look Away." When music is recorded in a studio with perfect acoustics, engineers manipulate that audio to place it in a 3D virtual space using reverb, delay, volume, panning and filters. Each of those effects changes our relationship to the music, and in Steven's case, the lyric. Finally, when we get outside the studio, like with Found Sound Nation and Make Music Day's “Street Studios”, music can echo the geography it is made in. Take this wild journey with us and truly expand your listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	When you drive a Chevy electric vehicle, you're getting more than a way to get from point A to point B.
0:06.0	You're saying goodbye to gas stations and hello to open roads.
0:09.0	With the growing network of public charging stations, you'll be able to charge your EV while you shop, work, or do whatever you want to be doing with your time.
0:17.0	Chevy is making EVs for everyone, everywhere.
0:20.0	Go to chevrelay.com slash electric to learn more.
0:30.0	Welcome to Switched on Pop, I'm songwriter Charlie Harding.
0:43.0	And I'm a musicologist Nate Sloan.
0:46.0	Nate Madonna's 14th album, Madam X, recently came out and it was inspired by her move to Portugal.
0:54.0	And it made me think that we've been neglecting an essential piece in all of our musical analysis.
1:01.0	Okay, I'm on the edge of my seat. What would that be?
1:05.0	Space, we don't talk about space enough.
1:08.0	The final frontier.
1:12.0	The space and place a song is recorded in affects the way it sounds and how we perceive it.
1:19.0	So when a song is recorded in studio, producers use production effects to create a sense of place.
1:26.0	Today we're talking about the way space, whether it's an actual space or production effects, shapes, a song's mood and sound.
1:35.0	And to get us right into it, let's listen to Madonna's new track, Medellin with Maluma.
1:42.0	One, two, two, one, two, one, cha cha cha cha.
1:47.0	I took a pill and had a dream.
1:51.0	Yeah, it's a man.
1:53.0	I went back to my 17th.
1:56.0	Hmm, dig it.
1:59.0	So does anything stand out to you about this track immediately?
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Vox Media Podcast Network, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Vox Media Podcast Network and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.