AI Bots Pick The Hits of Tomorrow

Wolverine Inspector writes "The Music Industry uses a product called HSS (Hit Song Science) made by Spain's Polyphonic HMI. According to The Guardian "while no one's talking about it, it seems that the whole record industry is already using AI to choose hits. From unsigned acts dreaming in their garage, to multinationals such as Sony and Universal, everyone is clandestinely using a new and controversial technology to gain an edge on their competitors." Even though it costs about $5,200 US/$6,500, many artists are starting to buy it to help them write succesfull songs."

Comments

More white bread, please!

[grub]

That's just great.

Remember how video card manufacturers were tweaking their drivers to perform well in benchmarks? "Musicians", and I use that term loosely, will be tweaking their songs to score a "hit" on this service.

FTA: Those "leftfield", illogical and grassroots-inspired departures from the norm, such as disco or drum and bass, could not have been predicted - but they shift the mainstream and provide the momentum any culture needs to remain fresh.

Right, but it will be harder than ever to produce something out of the mainstream when a record exec will look only at the score on HSS and potential effect on the bottom line.

FTA: As Smith says, "Art is the one area where people can, and should be able to, make radical statements. Anything that encourages safe, consensus-driven music should be used with caution."

Art for art's sake is virtually a thing of the past. Prepare for more of the same on the FM dial! (thank goodness for etunes.com)

Re:More white bread, please!

[CaptainZapp]

"Musicians", and I use that term loosely, will be tweaking their songs to score a "hit" on this service.

Sure, but so what? Same as you are not forced to eat crappy processed food you don't need to buy this homogenized shit.

Sure, something gets lost along the lines. Creativity? Kharma? Soul? I don't really know, but unfortunately this change happened after the last of the titans in the music business left the ship and where replaced by young, aggressive, MBA schooled and Excel knowledged executives, who don't really give a shit if they're moving laundry detergent, softdrinks or, well, culture [for lack of a better word].

The somewhat cheering thought is that we will always have good music around (currently Tom Waits: Blue Valentine, but I digress) and there will always be good new bands, song writers, arrangers and musicians.

The difference between them and the mainstream will be that while they don't necessarilly shun technology they sure as hell won't use "hit"-writer software, or those gizmos that "clean" mistakes in human vocals.

I totally agree with your assessment. Just wanted to add some perspective and maybe a more joyful outlook on what is to come.

Re:More white bread, please!

[grub]

I totally agree with your assessment. Just wanted to add some perspective and maybe a more joyful outlook on what is to come.

Yeah, if slashdot had a "+1, Cynical" rating my karma would be through the stratosphere. The only radio I listen to nowadays is AM news & weather. Most mainstream music isn't my cup of tea although there's a good university station here that plays some neat bands.

In my original post I mentioned etunes.com. I meant emusic.com, I've found a lot of really decent smaller bands there I would never have heard of had I gone to the standard CD mall-store or listened to the mainstream radio. Mind you, my favourite band is Motorhead so my observations on art and music should be taken with a grain of salt ;)

Re:More white bread, please!

[Seumas]

I really don't see any of this as a problem.

There are musical artists and then there are musicians. Musicians play instruments or sing and write music, etc. Artists produce a piece of work intended to convey emotion and inspire or in some way evoke a response from the listener. A musician custom-builds a film-score, jingle, muzak or top 40 hit.

There's no art in "rock-away" or "drop it like it's hot" or "thong thong thong thong thong". That garbage is just for bouncing around to. There's no more art to that than there is to a room full of old people after a burrito dinner.

So, if they want to use some AI software to find out what the next big hit on Total Request Live will be - great. Artists will never be found on TRL as it is, so what do we care what happens with that genre of music?

I find it unlikely that they'll be applying this to most other fields of music. *shrug*

Re:More white bread, please!

[Mr.Zong]

Uh, we did read both links right?

This thing picked Norah Jones. Frankly, shes damn talented, and is quite the opposite of this modern day radio crap fest. If anything, this app seems to be telling the brain dead execs that the crap your playing sells well initally, but if you put out quility (like jones) you don't need the marketing blitz (which she didn't get) and you don't need to reinvent the market every year.

You would think the /. crowd would know better then to guess the outcome of data mining and pattern recognition applications(Look at me! I know how the ANN got it's answer!).

Lets not forget, the program his to be smarter then those execs making the decisions. It's not possible for it be dumber. Its really not.

Re:More white bread, please!

[h0mer]

There's no art in "rock-away" or "drop it like it's hot" or "thong thong thong thong thong". That garbage is just for bouncing around to. There's no more art to that than there is to a room full of old people after a burrito dinner.

By "Rock-Away", I think you mean Lean Back by Terror Squad featuring Fat Joe, produced by Scott Storch. I find the instrumental part very well done, merging a orchestra sound with heavy drums. In fact, you could say it provoked an emotion from me. I feel "pumped up" when I hear it.

"Drop It Like It's Hot" is produced by the Neptunes, who are famous for *not* using synths and computers to make their tracks. I find the mouthpops interesting since I haven't heard them used in that way.

You don't like it, that's fine. You don't have a right to say it's not art, I don't like a lot of classical music but it's certainly art.

Sigh

[Nastard]

Remember the good old days when the listeners picked the hits?

Next up: bots that generate pop music.

Re:Sigh

[TJ_Phazerhacki]

They dont already?

Re:Sigh

[Nastard]

No, the record companies contract people to go and give monetary "incentives" to radio stations to get their picks put into heavier rotation (or into rotation at all). The station plays the song and calls it "hot", and the listeners, all eager to be hip and fresh and on the cutting edge of music, hear the word "hot" and jump all over it.

Or in some cases, people just hear the same song so many times that it becomes familiar and eventually enjoyable.

The point, though, is that you're given a multiple choice test when it comes to picking the music you like, and the record companies want to ensure as few choices as possible, and that whichever you pick belongs to them.

For various definitions of success

[kent_eh]

many artists are starting to buy it to help them write succesfull songs."

Comercially successful != good

Is there any escape from noise?!?

[sporktoast]

This announcement from the producers of this record contains important information for radio program directors, and is not for broadcast.

The first cut on this record has been cross-format-focused for airplay success. As you well know, a record must break on radio in order to actually provide a living for the artists involved. Up until now, you've had to make these record-breaking decisions on your own, relying only on perplexing intangibilities like taste and intuition. But now, there's a better way.
The cut that follows is the product of newly-developed compositional techniques, based on state-of-the-art marketing analysis technology. This cut has been analytically designed to break on radio. And it will, sooner or later.
For the station that breaks it first, the benefits are obvious. You lead the pack. Yes, no matter what share of this crazy market you do business in, no other release is going to satisfy your corporation's current idea of good radio like this one. On this cut, we're working together, on the same wavelength, in scientific harmony.
But remember, this cut is constructed for multi-market-breaking NOW. Don't waste valuable research with needless delay. We've done the hard work of insuring your success; the final step is up to you.

SPECIAL DESIGNER SONG FOLLOWS IN 5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1.

Re:This is not Artificial Intelligence

[Mechanik]

Once you have your characteristics you can build a three dimensional vector out of a song.

Don't you mean an n-dimensional vector? Wouldn't it be only three dimensional if they're only measuring three characteristics?


Mechanik

Re:It is not really art unless you feel something.

[Johnny Mnemonic]

Does this remind anyone of the Monty Python skit where they use mathematicians to create the world's funniest joke, and use it to get Nazis to die laughing?

Actually, it reminds me of some of Bradbury's more gloomy predictions of the sanitization of the culture that was happening then and is continuing to occur.

How long until books are written the same way, or at least evaluated by the same kind of tool? I suppose the news media will have it happen to them first: "Sorry, Dan, that story about political hanky-panky rated a 4.5 on our offensive-o-meter, way above the threshold of 3. Put some kittens in it and maybe we can get it to a 2.5."