I honestly believe that equal to the problems already mentioned (not so subtly) here is the current state of music as a whole, wherein in the past 5-7 years we have seen the proliferation of DAW's and thus loop based, perfectly tuned music. The necessity in having the ability to play (or sing) a beautiful track on any instrument has been absolutely, positively, completely eliminated with today's technology. All this great stuff we use everyday (which don't get me wrong, when used correctly and in the right environments is indispensable) has directly contributed to the dumbing down of musicianship. That last snare hit was a little late? No problem, I'll just move it. A little soft? No problem, I'll just replace it with another. That long note you ran out of breath on? No problem, I'll just grab a good spot, stretch it out with some crossfades, and Auto-tune it. While these things get us out of a jam in the studio, we need to serioualy think about the role that we directly play (as engineers/producers) in the current direction of music. Is it easier to fix the problem ourselves with our tools than to coax just one more take out of someone in an effort to get it right?
And I have rambled.
All I'm saying is that technology has made it incredibly easier for anyone to sound marginally talented, not talented, but marginally talented. In some ways, engineers are now able to wield incredible power over arrangements and performances without ever saying a word or playing a note, but simply by using our tools. With those capabilities in place, A&R can now focus on image and attitude in their search, not musicianship.
