(Credits: Stefan Bollmann)
Fri 16 August 2024 10:19, UK
Joy Division and New Order bassist Peter Hook is the latest artist to speak out about the use of artificial intelligence in the creative industries.
The use of artificial intelligence has increased across society over the last few years, including in the music industry. From production to recommendation algorithms, new technology is creeping into music creation and consumption, leading artists and audiences to speculate on the authenticity and ethics of AI-generated music.
Hook, who is most well-known for his contributions to post-punk outfits Joy Division and New Order, has now provided his thoughts on the topic. During a recent appearance on The XS Noize Podcast, the bassist suggested that AI-created songs will never match up to those penned by humans.
Hook used the talents of glam rocker David Bowie as an example. “When you look at someone as good as David Bowie at writing songs and marvel,” he commented, “‘Drive-in Saturday’, ‘The Prettiest Star’. The guy was a genius. Songwriting is an art you cannot teach.”
“AI is proof,” he continued, “Every AI song that has ever been written is shit. It’s full of them, but they’re crap because there’s something intangible that human beings have that a song captures.”
Musicians rally against AI
Hook isn’t the only artist who has recently expressed his frustrations with the increasing use of artificial intelligence in the music industry. Nick Cave spoke about the issue in a new interview with The Australian, sharing his concerns about the demoralising and humiliating effects of AI.
“Its intent is to completely sidestep the sort of inconvenience of the artistic struggle,” Cave stated, “going straight to the commodity, which reflects on us, what we are, as human beings, which is just things that consume stuff. We don’t make things anymore. We just consume stuff. It’s frightening.”
Cave stated that while he is “enormously optimistic” about the world, he worries that the increasing prevalence of AI will make humans “stop caring about something like the artistic struggle,” leading us to just “accept what is fed to us through these things.”
Hook and Cave aren’t alone in their worries about the effects of artificial intelligence in music. Over the last few months, a huge range of artists have spoken out about the topic, from industry stalwarts like The Who singer Roger Daltrey to newer artists like James Blake.
It’s not just artists who are uneasy about AI, either. Music companies also seem to have growing concerns about the technology. Earlier this year, Sony Music sent a letter to over 700 firms requiring them to share any use of their material to train AI.
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