“Hide And Seek” By Imogen Heap And The Resurgence Of The Vocoder

Many are familiar with 2007 Grammy-nominated a cappella song “Hide and Seek” by English singer/songwriter, Imogen Heap. Its mid-song hook - “Mmmm Whatcha Say” - and its layered vocal effects makes the original piece highly recognizable. It didn’t hurt that the song had some massive exposure due to the television show, The O.C., and a popular parody on comedy sketch show, Saturday Night Live.

What makes “Hide and Seek” stand out even more than its poignant lyrics, (which have been most frequently interpreted as being either about the break up of a relationship and/or the emotion and events following 9/11), is the use of an effects “gadget” that saw more popularity in the 1970s and 1980s than it does in current music - the Vocoder.

Originally developed in the 1930s as a way to code speech for transmission, a vocoder can be defined as an audio processor in which an audio signal can be used to manipulate other audio signals as it is sent through a series of filters. Basically, the vocoder is a way to synthesize the voice and to create some unique harmonizing sounds, as heard on “Hide and Seek”.

You may not be familiar with Imogen Heap’s “Hide and Seek”, but chances are you have heard the vocoder being used on many a popular song.

Remember Electric Light Orchestra’s (ELO) “Mr. Blue Sky” or “Sweet Talkin’ Woman”? Or how about “Mr. Roboto” by Styx, “Let’s Groove” by Earth, Wind & Fire, and parts of Donna Summer’s “Love Is In Control”.

The unique thing about Imogen Heap’s usage is that she utilized full chords as opposed to single notes. It sounds like multiple singers instead of a solo voice.

Here are some excellent links with more information on this interesting musical technology.

http://www.wendycarlos.com/vocoders.html

http://www.paia.com/ProdArticles/vocodwrk.htm

http://120years.net/machines/vocoder/index.html

I remember being so impressed back in the 1970s and 1980s by the robotic-like sounds that musicians were able to create using the vocoder. Nowadays, not only are there actual vocoder units that you use with a microphone and whatever other instrument you are using (typically a keyboard to manipulate the voice signal into different sounds), but you can buy vocoder software to use with your computer as well.

The video clip here shows a brief demonstration of what it sounds like when you use a vocoder to manipulate a vocal signal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hqvvNcvenU

Every once in a while, someone comes along to remind us that a “blast from the past” like the vocoder can still be used in new, creative ways. Although I am unable to add a studio version of Imogen Heap’s, “Hide and Seek” here, her live version is almost identical. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPbRv8OtUpI

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