Contemporary music is louder, blander: study

Spanish researchers have analysed nearly half-a-million songs recorded between 1955 and 2010 and found that they were louder and blander, with less variety in chords and melody, the 'Daily Mail' reported.

The study was published in journal Nature Scientific.

The findings undertaken was carried out by a computer analysis of the key features of several pop, rock and hip hop songs from 1955 to 2010.

"We have been able to show how the global loudness level of music recordings has consistently increased over the years," study author Joan Serra of the Spanish National Research Council said.

The study spanned a variety of genres, including rock, pop, hip hop, metal and electronic.

It mentioned no songs by name, but simply analysed the music in algorithms of numbers and symbols in search of patterns.

"Much of the gathered evidence points towards an important degree of conventionalism, in the sense of blockage or no-evolution, in the creation and production of contemporary Western popular music," the study said.

The chords used and the changes between chords are simpler, leading to the production of music that is easy on the ear but contains little variety. Today music is more for dancing than soothing and relaxing.

"I think this is related to the role of music," Researcher Martin Haro, of Barcelona's Pompeu Fabra University, said.

"Nowadays, it is more about relaxing, you don't want to think about what the music is telling you. In the 1950s and 60s, music was more artistic and for getting messages, things about politics, across," he was quoted by the paper as saying.