Best use of vocoder.

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Would the world be a better place without this instrument?

― muffled voice asks, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

No, better place if world govt insisted that three out of every four vocal tracks recorded be made using it: also that pitch thing that makes yr voice all wibbly...

Urgent and Key! Urgent and Key! Urgent and Key!

― mark s, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Best use would be Bjork. Retroactive vocoders, if feasible.

But enough with music. All politicians should use vocoders. George Bush would be funnier. And Al Gore - he would have been unstoppable! Gore's style cries out for it. With vocal processing, Mr. Stiff Phony Technocrat becomes....Mr. 21st Century Machine Soul Messiah.

― Curt, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I see someone sent Gore a beard to cheer him up in his time of loss. Was it yours, Tom?

― mark s, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Gore! Gore! Gore!

People should first define what they mean by "vocoder", because 9 times out of 10 they mean "any vocal treatment".

― Greg, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

vocoder = kazoo with a plug

― mark s, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Serious answer: Cher's "Believe". Who'd have thought she had it in her?

(cue predictable half-funny responses: "*she* didn't" etc.)

― Robin Carmody, Sunday, 12 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

funnily enough, I was just watching an early 60s film called "Second Fiddle to a Steel Guitar" which is basically a showcase for a bunch of Nashville country artists of the era (Webb Pierce, Kitty Wells, etc). And there is a guy on there name of Pete Drake who plays a "talking steel guitar" = a vocorder plugged into a pedal steel. Now, I'm not going to say it's the best use of a vocorder, 'cause it's kinda crap easy-listening style country, but was this the first vocorder?

― pauls00, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Not a vocoder, I think, but certainly a choral vocal effect -- that club single "Better off Alone" I finde great.

― Sterling Clover, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

ODB Sussudio

― Otis Wheeler, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Wouldn't know a 'real' vocoder from a 'fake' one, but Robin is spot on abt 'Believe' . Also 'One More Time' and 'Digital Love' (and lots more on 'Discovery'), 'California Love' by 2Pac and Dr. Dre (via Roger Troutman) and 'Trans' by Neil Young. Not to mention 'Sparky's Magic Piano' which may or may not predate the vocoder but which epitomises the euphoric/melancholic tension that animates all the best vocoder tracks. So so sad...

― Andrew L, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Eiffel 65 Blue

― Otis Wheeler, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

vocoder invented in 1940s at Bell Labs by Homer Dudley. D'oh!

― mark s, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Anything by the mighty ELO, especially the Time LP which I've listened to a lot really (all thanx to ILM).
How come no ones mentioned Kraftwerk yet?

― Billy Dods, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

kw claim to build all their own instruments: so their voc ain't a boughten voc (cept they might be lying)

― mark s, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Prob build their own bicycles too, the smartarses.

― Billy Dods, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Stay Away From The Man With The Funny Eye", anyone?

― Michael Jones, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Z!NK3R-Z3Z: kw claim to build all their own instruments

kw are a bunch ov fibbers. I've seen a pic of them playing onstage w/ a minimoog clearly visible.

My fave use ov vocoder = Wendy Carlos "clox0rwork orange" s.track. I forget the title, but thee vocal articulations were by rachel ellkind, if that means anything to anyone out there.

xoxo

― Norman Fay, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

That last track on the first Tortoise album: "Monday ... Tuesday ... Wednesday ..."

― Nitsuh, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Thats a sample from the Who.

Best trk is Chris Morris impersonating Stephen Hawkins adverting shampoo on his radio show on BBC1

― tom, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Thats a sample from the Who.

Best trk is Chris Morris impersonating Stephen Hawkins adverting shampoo on his radio show on radio1

― tom, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Vocoders = classic! Loved em since Laurie Anderson + Kraftwerk put them to good use...

― Jason, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Actually, Cher DIDN'T have it in her! She merely said she wanted something a little different", so her producer actually engineered that pitch wobbling thing off his own cuff. She had nothing to do with it.

― Kodanshi, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Vocoder = voder + coder. Voder wuz invented sometime in 1910-1920s, a fancy machine to synthesize a human voice. It was operated by a team of four or so trained girls who pushed different pedals and suchforth to make it talk. Coder = invented a bit later, reduced a human voice to the key elements == i.e. not just frequencies, but broke those down to interpolate tongue position, openness of throat, et cet. Vocoder = put the two together, run a human voice through, manipulate it, and synthesize a voice at the other end. Thus covering a wide range of effects. Cher's single, I think, used a pitch quantizer which isn't necessarily a vocal effect at all. Although there were plenty of other f/x thrown about on her voice in that song too, including some choral, some echo, and god knows what else.

― Sterling Clover, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

PimpBot 5000 on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. "Gotsta carry lots of cash ta bail out the ho's."

― Curt, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Although it has already been established that the effect on "believe" isn't actually a vocoder, my favorite vocoder that's not a vocoder moment would be the cover of "believe" on the Bedhead Loved Macha album. Matt Kadane's quavering voice fucked up on electronics + melody played on a telephone keypad = horribly indie but at the same time horribly great.

― Miranda, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

pauls00: Yes, Pete Drake!!! It wasn't a vocoder but the thing that you run through a guitar/whatever to make your voice sound like whatever instrument it's plugged into (old highschool friend called it a "goldenthroat") - what is this thing? Anyway, "Forever" is Peter Drake's sublime statement nonpareil of future-pop country music.

My ans: the first track on the Unisex album.

― Tracer Hand, Monday, 13 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I actually don't think Kraftwerk have ever claimed to create all their own instruments (but it is certainly a cool story!). They have indeed built some from scratch, but a lot of their equipment is factory stuff that they have modified to some extent (probably the source of the rumor).

I love the vocoder on Labradford's first album - I think it's track 10 - very humorous, but not too kitschy. It really lightens up the record nicely, especially in preparation for the absolute mind- saturation of the final track.

― Clarke B., Tuesday, 14 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Widdershins by the Freed Unit.

― flowersdie, Tuesday, 14 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Anything by the very much underrated EMPORER PENGUIN.

― turner, Tuesday, 14 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

did someone actually say Eiffel 65 ??? >:P

― Scott, Tuesday, 14 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Some of my favorite Vocoder moments: Giorgio Moroder's "E=MC2", and the entire album "From Here To Eternity"(cheesy eurodisco fun); Klaus Nomi's "ICUROK", Yellow Magic Orchestra's "Behind The Mask", "Technopolis", and others from the classic "Solid State Survivor" album (sounds like early Anime soundtrack music with soaring epic ambitions). And what about the fantastic Belgian trio Telex? They made a whole career out of using Vocoders -- "Moscow Discow", "Pakmovast", "Dance To the Music", "Haven't We Met Somewhere Before?", "En Route De Le Nouvelles Adventures" (to name a representative few - fucking CLASSIC!!!) Telex's box set is fucking great - it compiles all 5 of their brilliant and self-consciously kitsch albums - essential.

― Thom Fischer, Tuesday, 14 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

When I said Eiffel 65 "Blue", what I meant was Eiffel 65 "Move Your Body".

― Otis Wheeler, Tuesday, 14 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

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