When you think of "loud" albums, you probably don't think about Taylor Swift. However a new study from Ian Shepherd, audio engineer and founder of Dynamic Range Day, demonstrates that in fact the pop star's most recent release, 1989, is among the loudest albums of all time. Among the album it trumps are AC/DC's Back In Black, Metallica's "Black" album, and the Sex Pistols' Never Mind The Bollocks.
"How is that possible?" asks anyone familiar with the crushing nature of "Sad But True." "How can you suggest that 'Shake It Off' is louder than 'Anarchy In The UK?'"
The issues of loudness and heaviness are different. Heaviness is a good thing, but loudness has become a problem in the music industry. Producers and performers often think that "louder" is better, a decision that impacts how they record an album. The unfortunate result of creating albums so loud is that the recordings themselves become compressed, an effect where it becomes more and more difficult to tell the difference between the loudest and quietest moments on a record. This concept is often referred to as "The Loudness Wars" by audiophiles and has been a bone of contention for years, with producers such as Rick Rubin taking considerable criticism for their hand in it.
The way of tracking how "loud" an album is by checking out its dynamic range-the lower the dynamic range, the less difference between quiet and loud. Swift's 1989 was recorded at an absurd DR6, while Back In Black was recorded at a much more sensitive DR12. Metallica, although not guilty for the classic "Black" album, was guilty of perhaps the most "loud" album ever, as its Death Magnetic was a mind-boggling DR3. True, these albums will play louder but at great cost to the audio quality.
On the other side of the spectrum is Dire Straits' 1985 classic Brothers in Arms, which comes in at a beautiful DR16. Granted, a pop performer such as Swift won't suffer as much from a low dynamic range as more intricate rockers, but it's not a trend we want to see continue.
