0

-5

-10

-15

-20
RMS levels In negative decibles

-25

-30

-35

-40

-45

-50

-55

-60

0
peak levels In negative decibles

-5

-10
1979 • 1982 • 1985 • 1988 • 1991 • 1994 • 1997 • 2000 • 2003 • 2006 • 2009

Too Much Heaven – Bee Gees █

Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? – Rod Stewart █
Babe – Styx █
Rock With You Michael Jackson – Off The Wall █
Call Me (Theme From American Gigolo) – Blondie █
Lady – Kenny Rogers █
(Just Like) Starting Over – John Lennon & Yoko Ono █
Bettie Davis Eyes – Kim Carnes █
Physical – Olivia Newton-John █
Centerfold – The J. Geils Band █
Jack & Diane – John Cougar █
Eye Of The Tiger – Survivor █
Billie Jean – Michael Jackson █
Every Breath You Take – The Police █
All Night Long (All Night) – Lionel Richie █
Jump – Van Halen █
When Doves Cry – Prince █
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go – Wham! █
Like A Virgin – Madonna █
GRAPH KEY SONG KEY
Shout – Tears For Fears █
RMS Levels █ High Frequency Peaks █ Pop █ Country/Ballad
Money █ – Dire Straits █ Hip Hop █
For Nothing sounds in the middle frequencies of the song, from the primary chorus, or most definitive
R&BMe which are the frequencies that most everyday moment of each song. Three songs were
Low Frequency Peaks █ Mid Frequency Peaks █ Absolute Peak Level █ Rock █ Rock █ Amadeus – Falco █
sounds are involved with, including the selected from each year over the last three
Greatest Love of All – Whitney Houston █ human voice (1000hz). The high frequency decades, one from each trimester, with prece-
peaks are the loudest sounds in the higher, dence given to songs with the most weeks at
The absolute loudness of a song is called it's peak peak at zero, or the maximum volume alloted by decreasing the space betweenTrue Colors –
the softest Cyndi Lauper
and █ beyond the threshold of zero. Low
estimated less audible sections. The human ear is very number one, as well as musical diversity by
level. In a song, this is the loudest part of the the medium. Producers and engineers found a loudest point. The RMS value Livin'
determines how – Bon
On A Prayer frequency
Jovi █ peaks are the average volume of the sensitive to these frequencies so volumes genre and artist. For help understanding what
loudest instrument. By the mid nineties, the prolif- way to increase volume beyond this by increas- loud a song is by combining it's peak levels with loudest sounds in the bass region of the song tend to remain lower as other frequencies this data means, see the understanding RMS,
eration of CD audio made it possible for sounds to ing the volume of everything in the song, and Withcan
it's softer levels, so that loudness Or be
Without You –(100hz).
U2 █ Mid frequency peaks are the loudest
rise (10000hz). The data presented is pulled dynamic, and frequency section.
Faith – George Michael █
Never Gonna Give You Up – Rick Astley █

A Visual History
Sweet Child O'Mine – Guns N' Roses █
Love On The Rocks – Poison █
Straight Up – Paula Abdul █
Right Here Waiting – Richard Marx █
Miss You Much – Janet Jackson █
Nothing Compares 2 U – Sinéad O'Connor █
Vision Of Love – Mariah Carey █
Because I Love You (The Postman Song) – Stevie B █
Justify My Love – Madonna █
Rush Rush – Paula Abdul █

of Loudness
Black Or White – Michael Jackson █
Save The Best For Last – Vanessa Williams █
Jump – Kris Kross █
End Of The Road – Boyz II Men █
I Will Always Love You – Whitney Houston █
That's The Way Love Goes – Janet Jackson █
Dreamlover – Mariah Carey █
I swear – All - 4 - one █
This Is How We Do It – Montell Jordan █
Waterfalls – TLC █
Bump N' Grind – R. Kelly █
The Sign – Ace Of Base █
Fantasy – Mariah Carey █
Because You Loved Me – Celine Dion █

Why your music is getting louder, and why it’s a problem Tha Crossroads – Bone Thugs-N-Harmony █
La Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix) – Los Del Rio █
Un-Break My Heart (Album Version) – Toni Braxton █
I'll Be Missing You (Feat. Faith Evans & 112) – Puff Daddy & The Family █
Candle In The Wind 1997 – Elton John █
Gettin' Jiggy Wit It – Will Smith █
Over the last thirty years, and even before, the music decades. This could be chalked up The to harmless capi- are loud and so are all the soft ones. The dynamic of
Boy Is Mine (feat. Monica) – Brandy █
thirty years: the biggest hits from each trimester of
we listen to has been getting louder. And I don't just talism, but the problem is that audioI'mcan only get so sound, or the part of music that makes it funky or
Your Angel – Celine Dion(Duet With R. Kelly) █
every year from 1979-2009. Follow the numbers and
mean more aggressive and angry. It's physically getting loud before it begins to lose all the stuff
...Babythat makes
One More Timeit– Britney
groovy
Spears or
█
smooth or mellow or punchy or whatever you may find, like so many record producers and
louder. Because louder music creates a more immediately so good. Once you compress the peaks and
If You Had My valleys
Love – Jennifer you
Lopezlike,
█ is suddenly being pushed to what is more or mastering engineers already have, that the situation
pleasing effect on the listener, record execs have been of rhythm and sound too far, it becomesSmooththe(feat.visual less white
Rob Thomas) – Santana █ noise, merely for a chance at that #1 spot. is far more dire than it seems.
ordering the volume knob cranked up for the last three equivalent of typing in all caps: All the
Maríaloud
Maríasounds
– Santana █ Compiled here are 93 chart toppers from the last
Come On Over (All I Want Is you) – Christina Aguilera █
Independent Women Part I – Destiny's Child █
Stutter – Joe █

Understanding RMS, Dynamic, and Frequency All For You – Janet Jackson █
Family Affair – Mary J. Blige █
Who’s Who in the Loudness Wars
Foolish – Ashanti █
Hot in Herre – Nelly █
Genre popularity
Lose Yourself – Eminem █
RMS is an average of the high and low peaks in a time based sound wave, such as Dynamic is the amount of space between the loudest point and the softest point in
the figure below. a song. In Da Club – 50 Cent █ Average Loudness by Genre
Crazy In Love (Featuring Jay-Z) – Beyonce █
Time
Hey Ya! – OutKast █
Peak Yeah! (feat. Lil Jon & Ludacris) – Usher █
Here is what a visual diagram Slow Motion
of what ft. Soulja
a song might Slim – Juvenile █
RMS
look like around 1979. Notice that the highest points in
Goodies (Feat. Petey Pablo) – Ciara █
Valley the sound still only peak at about -4 or -5 decibels. This
Let aMe
is like a beautiful painting with Love You
generous (part 2) Feat. Jadakiss & T.i. – Mario █
matte
Amplitude

around it. We Belong Together – Mariah Carey █

Gold Digger – Kanye West Feat. Jamie Foxx █
Bad day – Daniel Powter █ Total Loudness by Genre
Here is what a popular song might look like(ft.
Promiscuous in Timbaland)
the early – Nelly Furtado █
nineties. Notice how the peak is regularly hitting zero?
SexyBack – Justin Timberlake
This would be like if i took my painting and expanded it █
all the way to the edges. Umbrella – Rihanna █
Beautiful Girls – Sean Kingston █
Crank That (Soulja Boy) – Soulja Boy █
Frequency is a portion in the audio spectrum. A frequency chart, such as the one Low – Flo Rida Feat. T-Pain █
picutred, shows all amplitudes for all relevent frequencies at a single moment in I Kissed A Girl allowed
– Katy Perry █
By the early 00's, new digital technologies
time.
producers to push the lowerWhatever
levels of the
You Likeup–even
song T.I. █
louder without distorting the peaks. This would be like
Right Round – Flo Rida █
Frequency me blowing up my painting outside of the frame.
Poker Face – Lady GaGa █
Loudness by Decade
Boom Boom Pow – The Black Eyed Peas █
79 89 99 09

It is not uncommon, in more extreme situations, to see

Amplitude songs today that look like this. it would be the equiva-
lent of blowing up our image so that only a small
portion is visible.
Data based off genre by wikipedia and a mean average of songs over thirty years. Loudness by decade
Low Mid High calculated as inverse of negative decibals from zero. Loudness statistics found using Destroy FX’s RMS
buddy, Blue Cat’s Freqanalyst, and Sonalksis’ Free G stereo.