如出一辙的现代歌曲：听起来都差不多！

It is a familiar complaint from those of a certain age: today’s pop music is louder and all the songs sound the same. It turns out they are right.
年龄稍长的人都抱怨说：现在的流行音乐声音大，而且所有歌曲听起来都一样。事实证实他们说的没错。

Research shows that modern recordings are louder than those of the 1950s and 60s. They are also blander, with less variety in terms of chords and melodies.
研究显示，现代唱片的确比五、六十年代发行的那些声音要大，在和弦与旋律上缺乏变化，听起来单调。

The finding, which will come as no surprise to all those over the age of 35 or so, comes from Spanish researchers who carried out a computer analysis of the key features of almost half a million pop, rock and hip hop songs from 1955 to 2010.
西班牙研究人员利用电脑对发行于1955到2010间50万首流行、摇滚和嘻哈歌曲的主要特点进行分析，分析结果并没有使年龄35岁左右的人群感到意外。

This revealed today’s tracks to be louder. The researchers say this is because sound engineers and producers are cranking up the volume at the recording stage.
这一研究揭示了现代唱片声音大的特点。研究人员解释说，录音师和制作人员在录音阶段加大了音量。

As a result, if two tracks are turned up to the same volume at home, the more recent will sound noisier.
如果在家播放两张不同的唱片，并调到同等音量，结果发现较新的唱片听起来声音更大。

This is thought to not simply due to better recording equipment but an attempt to make music that catches the attention and is suitable for playing in discos.
人们认为这样的结果并不单单取决于录音设备的质量，还与试图制作出听众喜欢并适于迪斯科伴奏的音乐密切相关。

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, also found evidence that songs are more similar than in the past.
这项研究在《科学报告》杂志上发表，它同时还发现，现代歌曲之间比以往更具相似性。

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.
现代歌曲中的和弦与和弦间的变化更简单，这样的音乐作品悦耳却又有些单调。

Researcher Martin Haro, of Barcelona’s Pompeu Fabra University, said: ‘I think this is related to the role of music.
巴塞罗纳法布拉大学的研究人员马丁-哈罗说：“我觉得，这与音乐所发挥的作用有关。”

‘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.
“如今人们倾听音乐以放松身心，并不在意音乐的内涵。五、六十代的音乐更具美感，而且，我们可以从中获取信息、了解政治形势或两者兼俱。”