Alternative Music

Sounds: Future Loops – House Fragments

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:39:00 +0000

Future Loops has just released “House Fragments”, a comprehensive sample pack that will appeal to all house & funky house producers . For a limited period ( until 31st March ) you can get this collection for a reduced price ( 20% discount ).

This funky revival collection features the collaboration of Olivier Abbeloos, the prolific House producer behind a wide array of projects like Conga Squad, C-Mos, Cloud 9, Nu-Matic and the Holographic Music label.

“House Fragments ” captures Olivier’s talent and originality to bring you more than +4000 groovy samples. With over 2GB , “House Fragments” was developed with the user in mind: from Drum Loops , Percussion and Live & Electric Bass to Synth, Strings, Organs and even Vocals, this top notch collection brings you every element you’ll need to produce energetic funky house tracks.

DVD Price : $59.95 ( introductory offer at $47.96 )
Download Price : $49.95 ( introductory offer at $39.96 )

For more information, visit their website.

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Synthesizer: Synapse Audio – X-Poly

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:26:00 +0000

Synapse Audio launches X-Poly, a synthesizer for both Windows and Mac OS X that looks awesome!

Features:

Keyboard now responds when triggered via MIDI

Visual Glitches in the option menu fixed

Multiple instances on multiple cores now work properly

Amplitude responds to velocity

LFO Rate range extended

Additional presets added

Semi-transparent readouts for all knobs

Maximum polyphony upgraded to 20 voices

Chorus section now provides feedback and modulation depth controls

Zero CPU usage when idle

Release stages are now semi-log as opposed to linear

Stereo Noise generator, providing more spacious sounds

Enhanced interface

Dual Voice mode for thicker patches

Panorama knob for both oscillators

Full Stereo engine

Price: $49 USD

Find more synths!

“The X-Poly is a VST / AU synthesizer plug-in, which started out as an emulation of a vintage synth, but went beyond that by adding many improvements and new features over the original. ” Synapse Audio

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tuesday evening updates continued

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:54:46 +0000

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tuesday evening updates

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:49:39 +0000

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Extraordinary indeed

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:19:00 +0000

Sometimes it’s the obvious ones that really get you, isn’t it?

It’s been an aural battery recently, folks. Wedding songs (up, down aisles and around the dancefloor), songs on taxi radios on too early/too late/too fragile commutes, the BBC4 Friday 9 o’clocker – all in all, it’s been quite an assault.

Listen: John Denver – Annie’s Song (floods, people)

Listen: James Taylor – Shower The People

Listen: Leonard Cohen – Dance Me to the End of Love (live)

Buy Denver, Taylor and Cohen.

"The Hidden Fortress" (TCM, tonight, 1:30 a.m.)–the source for the Force

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:52:25 +0000

For George Lucas’ Star Wars, that is. How much of a source, I can’t say–I haven’t seen it. But I plan to tune it in tonight (which, technically, is tomorrow morning, but I’m going by TCM’s calendar). Both George Lucas and the media at large have been good about acknowledging Akira Kurosawa’s 1958 Hidden Fortress as the inspiration for George’s zip-zap-zowie-athon, but I can’t help sensing a certain reluctance in the admission. For instance, in its write-up for Fortress, TCM warns that “to define The Hidden Fortress by its connection to a legendary Hollywood blockbuster is to simplify its complex use of various storytelling conventions and its important place in Kurosawa’s career; it also reduces its stature.”

Ah, I see. They’re not concerned about any possible effect on the Wars franchise–no, they simply don’t want the reputation of Fortress to suffer and, by implication, its maker’s, too.

A couple of problems, though: 1) Viewers at home have zilch to say about the long-term critical reputation of a movie, regardless of the context in which they view it, and 2) if Kurosawa rates a 100th-Birthday bash at TCM, hasn’t it already been decided in the film community that he’s a pretty important guy? God help his critical standing if can be jinxed by too much association of Fortress with Star Wars.

Before my suspicions can blossom into conclusions, I’ll need to see just how much Lucas was inspired by Kurosawa. I suspect a lot. If you’re curious, too, sit up for (or record) The Hidden Fortress tonight at 1:30 on TCM. Here’s hoping I don’t forget, as I often do with TCM flicks.

Lee

PATTY SCALA: LIVE FROM JAIL

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 06:11:52 +0000

Patty Scala (aka Eettap) is a 55 year old jailbird, former stripper, drug addict, bulimic, and teen mother who has bounced around the Midwest and West since childhood. At age 30, she got a guitar and started writing country/folky songs, often with lyrics inspired by her tumultuous life. Her daughter Renee has encouraged this, even getting her a four-track recorder and making the tape I’m posting here. And, yes, her first recordings were made in jail.

Renee says: “My mom has always been different and I think that’s how she got into drugs…I could never see her fitting in in the straight world. She was arrested for smuggling heroin across the Mexican border. when she was seventeen my grandpa drove down and slept outside her cell until she was released. She’s had her throat slit by drug thugs that broke into our house (my brother and I both obsessively check the locks on our doors to this day), been beat up by cops, been beat to hell by boyfriends…To me these are the boring details. But the thing about my mom is that she isn’t your ordinary person. My mom used to tell me there were other dimensions, she has said that she feels like she is living in a dream.”

Video by Renee of Patty singing a song “about being picked on in prison.”

Patty writes that her childhood was unsettled by constant moving and her parent’s marital discord, and tho she wasn’t around all the time for her kids, she clearly adores them. Renee (who records her self as elevenbrains) says, “I guess I’m sending this [tape to Music For Maniacs] because I’m trying to save my mom in a way. she has lost her apartment and her car, she has no steady place to live, and she is on the verge of losing all her stuff in storage. Once things go downhill they usually keep going until she ends up incarcerated.

so, when I say “save” I’m not talking about money, I’m talking about self-worth, I’m talking about a sense of purpose. I’ve tried to explain to her that there is a whole world of people that don’t listen to the radio, that would appreciate her songwriting and maybe she will see that she is a special person.”

Video: “this one is about her boyfriend going to jail.”

I love music…..I think music is one of the things that makes life bearable.

Oh did I forget to say that I ended up in prison a couple of times because of my drug use. Second time I had a guitar sent in and spent a lot of time teaching myself guitar.

I wrote a few really good songs during my last stint and I doubt if I would of written them if I hadn’t been in prison. So I can say some good came out of that.

What I would really like to do is just write songs and have that be the way I make money…If Willie Nelson walked up to me and said ” I really like that song and I want to sing it, but we need to change this, this and that.” I would say “CHANGE IT”…Let’s do it . How much money you going to pay me? “

PATTY SCALA

I’ve eq-ed it and corrected the balance, but it’s still low-fi, appropriate for such from-the-gut acoustic performances. The last few tracks – the ones recorded in jail – are really low-fi. Not much I could do about those. The jail tape featured a number of covers, and I’m including a version of Neil Young’s “The Needle and The Damage Done” – a revealing choice, even if she doesn’t know the words. She’s quite positive and upbeat, tho, and the videos reveal that she’s a bit shy and embarrassed about performing and being recorded.

01 I Can’t Take It Anymore
02 Oh Mama (What About Me)
03 Girl In Blue
04 Replaceable Man
05 Pictures in The Clouds [one of a couple songs performed on electric keyboard, giving it an almost circus-like feel]
06 Fonly
07 You Don’t Even Know My Name [Renee's favorite]

08 Midnight Revelation [this is one of my fave's: a sweet Jonathan Richman-like love song]
…..from the jail tape:
09 Daddy Please
10 Feel It From Your Heart
11 Mr Right
12 monologue-The Needle and the Damage Done

Sounds: Prime Loops – NYC Piano Sessions

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:22:00 +0000

Prime Loops unveils NYC Piano Sessions Sample Library.

With over 600mb of mastered, 24-bit royalty-free audio content, NYC Piano Sessions delivers over 200 uplifting Piano Progressions for R&B, hip hop, pop, dance, rock, blues, jazz or classical music.

Flexible tempo’s range from 60 and 190Bpm, and this sample pack is available in all the most popular formats for your favorite production platform. For the creation of ‘NYC Piano Sessions’ Prime Loops recruited a highly skilled producer, engineer & multi-instrumentalist Richard “Wilx” Wilkinson. Wilx is also the author and engineer behind Prime Loops’ best selling sample pack releases “R&B Progressions” and “Guitar Anthology”, so there’s a high possibility that you have come across his work already!

This sample pack has a wide range of stylish Piano progressions ready for your Music Productions, TV & Film Soundtracks, Background Compositions, Game Themes, Animation Projects, Sync Music and a lot’s more.

Formats include:

Wav, Rex2 Loops, Apple Loops, MPC Format, Acid Loops, Ableton Live Pack, Stylus RMX Loops, and many more!

NYC Piano Sessions is available to download for £19.95 visit: Prime Loops

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From Making Music. Try Readle Gadgets, Clipotech or follow me on Svartling Network, Friendfeed, Twitter.

Sounds: Prime Loops – NYC Piano Sessions

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:22:00 +0000

Prime Loops unveils NYC Piano Sessions Sample Library.

With over 600mb of mastered, 24-bit royalty-free audio content, NYC Piano Sessions delivers over 200 uplifting Piano Progressions for R&B, hip hop, pop, dance, rock, blues, jazz or classical music.

Formats include:

Wav, Rex2 Loops, Apple Loops, MPC Format, Acid Loops, Ableton Live Pack, Stylus RMX Loops, and many more!

NYC Piano Sessions is available to download for £19.95 visit: Prime Loops

Find more Sounds!

From Making Music. Try Readle Gadgets, Clipotech or follow me on Svartling Network, Friendfeed, Twitter.

Sounds: Prime Loops – NYC Piano Sessions

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:22:00 +0000

Prime Loops unveils NYC Piano Sessions Sample Library.

With over 600mb of mastered, 24-bit royalty-free audio content, NYC Piano Sessions delivers over 200 uplifting Piano Progressions for R&B, hip hop, pop, dance, rock, blues, jazz or classical music.

Formats include:

Wav, Rex2 Loops, Apple Loops, MPC Format, Acid Loops, Ableton Live Pack, Stylus RMX Loops, and many more!

NYC Piano Sessions is available to download for £19.95 visit: Prime Loops

Find more Sounds!

From Making Music. Try Readle Gadgets, Clipotech or follow me on Svartling Network, Friendfeed, Twitter.