That might have been true in the bygone era of "bands", rock music and guitar-heavy genres that Albini seemed immersed in, but in contemporary pop a producer (or team of producers) is literally all there is, plus maybe singers/songwriters.

And even if you look closer at rock, the most groundbreaking and successful acts have always been at the forefront of innovation in the sound / production department (from the Beatles to U2 or Radiohead)

It's mostly that you don't need to, software can make pretty much any noise you want.

Not harder, just different (modulo your definition of old school circuit design).