Ask O’Brien – Analog Vs Digital

Today’s question is – "Do you consider yourself part of the 'digital world' or are you really an analog man?" Admittedly, my answer to this question makes me sound like an ‘old fogey.’  With technology comes advancement and progress, for the most part.  It can also be a double-edged sword sometimes.  

Take the way my radio job has changed over the last, say, fifteen or twenty years.  When I started in radio I was cue-ing up a record (for those under thirty, look it up), answering the phone, getting the news or weather off of the wire service, finding the right CD, organizing the commercials (which came on something like an 8-track tape called a ‘cart.’), and basically multi-tasking the whole thing.  It made the day go by a lot faster because I was busy. Now, with everything being digital, my job is basically pushing a couple of buttons (There are other aspects to my job that add to my day).

If we’re talking about music itself, in my opinion digital has opened up new avenues of creativity and economy but it has lost soul.  You can create music faster with a lot of different elements quite easily, but the sound is not as warm and the ease has allowed for some really good intentioned yet untalented people to make really bad music.  For a good discussion about analog versus digital I recommend Dave Grohl’s documentary Sound City. You won’t regret it.

I guess I’m like Joe Walsh, an ‘analog man in a digital world.’ Don’t forget to ask your question here, and like us on Facebook.