The First Gig: Anselmo Valencia Ampitheater Tucson, AZ 4/24/12 (SETLIST/REVIEWS)

[LostArt]

Wow, I gotta say I'm surprised that this is still being debated.

There's pitch correction on BW's vocals here. Period. A huge chunk of my profession is dealing with vocal editing (and a huge chunk of that is dealing with pitch correction) and I'm starting to take offense to people not only saying that there's no pitch correction, but that anyone who hears it is "making things up for the sake of making things up".

I'm 100% sure. I'd bet my (and your) family members on it. Low quality audience tape or not. It's very clear to these ears, which allow me to pay my rent.

There is no conspiracy here.  I just wish that everyone who "disagrees" because they can't hear it would chill out and stop attacking those of us who hear it. Personally, I'm not here to offend people, I just wanted to point out an obvious flaw so that hopefully someone in the Beach Boys camp might notice and fix this in the future.

And it looks like they did. They didn't use it on him last night, and that makes me feel good.

PS - Everyone who keeps referring to this as a "low quality audience recording" - I guess you've never heard Seattle 1970. The quality of this audience tape is fine.

Okay, okay.  You're right.  The people who were actually at the venue to hear it in person were wrong.  The band is lying.  My ears are for sh*t.  Will you stop now, please?

Stop what? I was responding to everyone who insists on putting us down for hearing what's there. Again, my intention was not to make anyone feel bad for hearing what they hear. I'm sure you're a great guitarist. And I am a great vocal editor and refuse to be put down in regards to a craft that I've dedicated so much time and passion to.

PS - I wasn't gonna say another word until people started with this whole "inventing things" stuff. I take that as a personal jab. Anyone who heard SMiLE AD knows I know my sh*t when it comes to vocal editing.

And it's insulting to me when people say that I must have a bad ear because I don't hear it, or that I'm lying when I say I can't hear it.  That's why this 'I'm right and you're wrong' crap has to stop.  I'm neck deep in that crap already here in Wisconsin with our Governor and what his policies have done to polarize the population of an entire state.  This is great time to be a Beach Boys fan.  Let's enjoy it.  Let's agree to disagree and move on.  If auto-tune was used on Brian, and the folks in the venue couldn't hear it, then it's all good.  I don't really care what this crappy audience recording sounds like.  I'll never listen to it again.

Signed,
A-Pain (in the ass)

[endofposts]

It's possible that the band members aren't lying when they say autotune isn't being used.  That doesn't mean another device with another name isn't being used though.  There are other brands of pitch correction and vocal effects.  There's a company called TC Helicon that produces live effects for vocal pitch correction, doubling, and other modifications.  They have sound samples, and some of them don't sound bad.  It's also not uncommon for live acts to use it.  Since they're playing bigger arenas with higher ticket prices and production values, it might be something they'd use to make it sound more professional and closer to what they'd get in a recording studio.  

http://www.tc-helicon.com/products/voicetone-correct-xt/

[absinthe_boy]

Whoever from within the band says there is no pitch correction on Brian not telling the truth. If they believe they are telling the truth then somebody has lied to them. Somewhere, somebody has lied.

And I would say so in any court of law.

And I would win.




That is, unless somebody has managed to take the recording that is circulating and somehow autotune Brian's voice only on a single-track recording (which cannot be done).

I categorically state here and now for posterity that Brian Douglas Wilson, as presented in the Vimeo recording doing the rounds, has been pitch-corrected.

I think it is folly to say something so categorically based on such scanty evidence.

On the evidence in that vimeo upload, autotune is obvious. I listened via a PC of course, but with a proper amp and speakers. YMMV with a laptop or a phone I suppose.

On that recording, it's there. The evidence is incontrovertable. Brian's voice does things no human voice can do, hopping between notes in a manner known to indicate putch correction and which no human voice can emulate.

It is entirely possible that Brian can also be heard hitting bum notes. The autotune may well have been set only to correct (for example) if he's within a quarter of a tone. If it can't figure out what note to tune to then it leaves it. It may also be set to allow him to glisando between notes.

Everything on that recording is consistent with autotune being used. It is inconsistent with entirely human efforts.

I stand by my statement. Some form of pitch correction was being used on Brian's voice, and on nobody else's. And I will defend that. When time allows, possibly next week, I shall load the recording into some software that will allow me to analyse it.

[Lowbacca]

Brian's voice does things no human voice can do [...].

That's what I thought when I first heard PLMW. 

[absinthe_boy]

I only heard the autotune once I started paying attention to it. before that I couldn't hear it.

I'm familiar with autotune. I'm 24 and I listen to pop music on the radio. Wouldn't be able to tell you the names of any of the artists I listen to, but I listen to it. Also, I've recorded in professional studios before and we always use way too much autotune as a gag. Doesn't make the final mix, of course, but it's funny to listen to.

but still, I didn't hear it at all the first few times I heard the concert. at all. and then all of the sudden it clicked. it's something your hears have to notice. there is autotune, but that doesn't mean everyone can hear it. I was happy when I was in the camp that couldn't hear it. but let's not get personal about any of this.

I accept that many people aren't as offended by autotune as I am....personally I really want to invent a time machine and make sure it was never invented. I feel it is the single worst development in music recording ever. To my ears it is actually painful and offensive.

But I accept many people listen to autotuned vocals and don't mind, possibly don't notice sometime.

But when you listen for it, and know what to listen for, I really challenge anyone to genuinely not hear autotune in that vimeo clip. As I said earlier, possibly on a laptop you won't hear it but with even desktop speakers or headphones you should hear it easily.

I was listening through a proper amp and floorstanding speakers (oh I am so lucky my employer indulges me since audio work is such a small part of my job)....and it stood out like a sore thumb.

[Manchini]

It's pretty bitchy to just say "whoever can't hear it has terrible hearing." I have a pretty good ear for tone. It just didn't cross my mind during the show that they would even use live pitch correction. I also am not familiar enough with pitch correction to have been able to spot it anyhow. Simply, I wasn't aware enough to listen for it and I wouldn't have known how to recognize it anyway.

Thankfully a couple people were cool enough to thoroughly explain what to listen for. Now I hear it. Oh well. I'm not heartbroken. You'll never work in Tucson again, Beach Boys!

And   at people saying it's a sh*tty recording. No sh*t, really? I'm sure whoever recorded it wasn't interested in currying favor with a legion of people he doesn't know!

EDIT:

I do have to say, I don't know how I didn't hear it at the show. This is the first time I've bothered to listen to the recording, and it's incredible on "Surfer Girl!" I thought the reason I wasn't hearing it was because it was somewhat subtle pitch correction!

I don't know what to say. I think of myself as pretty observant, but it was not evident to me during the performance.

[Heysaboda]

Also, for anyone to assert "somebody has lied" is just completely rude, if not asinine too and really drags the discussion down to the level of kindergarden, doesn't it?

I mean, why accuse band members of lying?

I realize America, today, is afflicted with "the culture of assertion" that is, mostpeople think that simply asserting something makes it true.  (Reference S. Palin, 2008.)

GEEZ people, this is 5 pages of a bunch of Codswallop.

[drbeachboy]

It's pretty bitchy to just say "whoever can't hear it has terrible hearing." I have a pretty good ear for tone. It just didn't cross my mind during the show that they would even use live pitch correction. I also am not familiar enough with pitch correction to have been able to spot it anyhow. Simply, I wasn't aware enough to listen for it and I wouldn't have known how to recognize it anyway.

Thankfully a couple people were cool enough to thoroughly explain what to listen for. Now I hear it. Oh well. I'm not heartbroken. You'll never work in Tucson again, Beach Boys!

And   at people saying it's a sh*tty recording. No sh*t, really? I'm sure whoever recorded it wasn't interested in currying favor with a legion of people he doesn't know!

EDIT:

I do have to say, I don't know how I didn't hear it at the show. This is the first time I've bothered to listen to the recording, and it's incredible on "Surfer Girl!" I thought the reason I wasn't hearing it was because it was somewhat subtle pitch correction!

I don't know what to say. I think of myself as pretty observant, but it was not evident to me during the performance.

In the environment of the venue and being in the audience, there is no way that you would have known or know what to listen for. I'm still not convinced it was used, but if it was, I'm sure it had something to do with the filming of the show. Didn't you say you saw signs regarding this when you went in the VIP area?

[Manchini]

There were video cameras everywhere, I even saw an ENG, so it was definitely to capture something professional looking. I didn't do a VIP pass, so that was somebody else who mentioned the signs. But yeah, maybe they were just covering their asses for the first gig. Kinda backfired on them, I think.

[drbeachboy]

There were video cameras everywhere, I even saw an ENG, so it was definitely to capture something professional looking. I didn't do a VIP pass, so that was somebody else who mentioned the signs. But yeah, maybe they were just covering their asses for the first gig. Kinda backfired on them, I think.

Guess they were not thinking "Bootleggers".

[Manchini]

There were video cameras everywhere, I even saw an ENG, so it was definitely to capture something professional looking. I didn't do a VIP pass, so that was somebody else who mentioned the signs. But yeah, maybe they were just covering their asses for the first gig. Kinda backfired on them, I think.

Guess they were not thinking "Bootleggers".

Good point!

[AndrewHickey]

And   at people saying it's a sh*tty recording. No sh*t, really? I'm sure whoever recorded it wasn't interested in currying favor with a legion of people he doesn't know!

I do hope that whoever recorded it knows how grateful at least some of those people he doesn't know are, though...

[drbeachboy]

I enjoyed it, supposed autotune and all. Nothing against the person or the equipment (iPhone?) used to record it.

[Pinder's Gone To Kokomo And Back Again]

It's possible that the band members aren't lying when they say autotune isn't being used.  That doesn't mean another device with another name isn't being used though.  There are other brands of pitch correction and vocal effects.  There's a company called TC Helicon that produces live effects for vocal pitch correction, doubling, and other modifications.  They have sound samples, and some of them don't sound bad.  It's also not uncommon for live acts to use it.  Since they're playing bigger arenas with higher ticket prices and production values, it might be something they'd use to make it sound more professional and closer to what they'd get in a recording studio.  

http://www.tc-helicon.com/products/voicetone-correct-xt/

Wouldn't all this amazing technology be able to make these guys sound simply amazing???

It's either being utilized and is simply making these guys sound weird or it's not there at all and they just sound like the 70year old version of The Beach Boys.

The only auto-tuning type shenanigans I can hear is F(Foskett)-Tuning!

[Wirestone]

We just need more evidence. And it's kind of silly to attack people for not hearing something when there's a single source.

My ultimate take on it is that I think it's more likely than not that some sort of pitch correction or vocal processing was used. But it's also quite easy to mistake some of the tinniness of the recording for a vocal effect, and they are two separate things.

Another thought: We could hear Brian sing both at the Grammys and the baseball kickoff. He wasn't tuned either time. Why would "his people" not tune him at these high-profile events and yet turn it on full blast for Tuscon, AZ? Something doesn't make sense there, either.

Finally, have we heard definitely that no processing was used the second night? I've seen the YT clip, but it's just a couple of songs. We just need to hear more.

It's possible that the band members aren't lying when they say autotune isn't being used.  That doesn't mean another device with another name isn't being used though.

This crossed my mind as well. Since Autotune is a specific product, you can pretty easily deny its use if you're not using that brand.

[orange22]

So, uh, yeah...any PMs that could be sent my way...regarding...you know, stuff.

[stack-o-tracks]

So, uh, yeah...any PMs that could be sent my way...regarding...you know, stuff.

We dont' do that kind of stuff around here.

[runnersdialzero]

Also, for anyone to assert "somebody has lied" is just completely rude, if not asinine too and really drags the discussion down to the level of kindergarden, doesn't it?

I mean, why accuse band members of lying?

I don't like to say such things, but it'd be as if Brian insisted that he never double-tracked his vocals, that's just how he sounded. What you hear on this recording is just not something the human voice does. Again, if you hear Brian this way normally, God help you.

Either the two people asked are completely clueless as to what was happening that night (which is fair, there are about 70 people on stage), are saying autotune wasn't used specifically while knowing full well that some equally atrocious form of pitch correction was used (which would not be the most admiral approach to saying, "Autotune was not used."), or are trying to save face in the whole matter by not telling the truth.

That said, I agree that I'd really like to see some more evidence come forth, and unfortunately, an "official" video from the show using an audio source from a multitrack won't be reliable given that they can tinker with it as they please - we need more audience recordings to confirm.

THAT said, if they've stopped using it completely, then I really couldn't care less about this. I just don't like being called hysterical or crazy in the matter.

[drbeachboy]

Nobody said that. Actually, just the opposite happened with us who don't hear it. Can we please let it die? The show is done and you can't change what happened whether it was used or not. Just start an Autotune thread and talk to your heart's content there. Thank you for your kind consideration to this request.

[runnersdialzero]

Nobody said that. Actually, just the opposite happened with us who don't hear it. Can we please let it die? The show is done and you can't change what happened whether it was used or not. Just start an Autotune thread and talk to your heart's content there. Thank you for your kind consideration to this request.

WHOA

[Justin]

The Beach Boys - Wouldn't It Be Nice? - Live @ AVA Amphitheater - HD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20tDLOkNP6g

Is it me or is Jeff dominating this vocal over Al--who I thought took lead here?

[endofposts]

The Beach Boys - Wouldn't It Be Nice? - Live @ AVA Amphitheater - HD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20tDLOkNP6g

Is it me or is Jeff dominating this vocal over Al--who I thought took lead here?

No, it's not just you.  Al sounds better than Jeff, so I'm not sure why Jeff is turned up louder than him.  I don't get the cult of Jeff in the Beach Boys camp, or at least the BW part of the Beach Boys camp.  Even if Jeff sounded better, why can't Al get the solo?  He's the original, senior Beach Boy.  His voice is still good enough that it doesn't need to be doubled.  The more I see of this tour, it looks like they totally rolled over to Brian and his people to make them happy.

[Wirestone]

The Beach Boys - Wouldn't It Be Nice? - Live @ AVA Amphitheater - HD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20tDLOkNP6g

Is it me or is Jeff dominating this vocal over Al--who I thought took lead here?

No, it's not just you.  Al sounds better than Jeff, so I'm not sure why Jeff is turned up louder than him.  I don't get the cult of Jeff in the Beach Boys camp, or at least the BW part of the Beach Boys camp.  Even if Jeff sounded better, why can't Al get the solo?  He's the original, senior Beach Boy.  His voice is still good enough that it doesn't need to be doubled.  The more I see of this tour, it looks like they totally rolled over to Brian and his people to make them happy.

Absolutely correct. No Brian, no big reunion shows. Wonder why BW is singing lead on the single? Wonder why it's all but one of his band members out there? Wonder why he's the first band member billed in advertising for the shows? Wonder why (I bet ) all but one or two songs on the reunion album will be his? BW and Co. are holding all the cards here.

[runnersdialzero]

The Beach Boys - Wouldn't It Be Nice? - Live @ AVA Amphitheater - HD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20tDLOkNP6g

Is it me or is Jeff dominating this vocal over Al--who I thought took lead here?

No, it's not just you.  Al sounds better than Jeff, so I'm not sure why Jeff is turned up louder than him.  I don't get the cult of Jeff in the Beach Boys camp, or at least the BW part of the Beach Boys camp.  Even if Jeff sounded better, why can't Al get the solo?  He's the original, senior Beach Boy.  His voice is still good enough that it doesn't need to be doubled.  The more I see of this tour, it looks like they totally rolled over to Brian and his people to make them happy.

in b4 some guy tells you "the original vocal is doubled, they're just trying to replicate it!" despite the fact that they never had two people singing the lead during concerts in the 60s and 70s at least and the fact that yes, Jeff absolutely overpowers Al, which is sad to hear. Jeff sounds especially bad (and really really loud, of course) during the tag. Like a dog barking or something.

Aside from just really disliking Jeff's voice in general, man - he's not even really able to do convincingly do the falsetto parts anymore.

Sorry to be so repetitive, but the problem persists and doesn't improve.

[MaxL]

There's a guy on setlist.fm who seems adamant that Wild Honey and Darlin' were performed and keeps changing the setlist to reflect that, they weren't performed right?