I agree 100% that mic-ing live drums is by far the hardest and most expensive element in rock recording But in the 1970s-2000s it was complete black magic and

I agree 100% that mic-ing live drums is by far the hardest and most expensive element in rock recording But in the 1970s-2000s it was complete black magic and without dedicating years to the craft - you were up to the whims of studios for how much you pay Compare that today, for instance have a look at the Jazz-Rock Fusion band Vulfpeck’s first album. If you exclude the cost of instruments - they often only need three (rather cheap) mics. Everything else DI. Recorded in a basement for less than a couple grand - with effectively infinite recording time Live drums are expensive compared to samples, but they’re not the reason an entire genre disappeared