Monthly Archives: March 2012

Young Musician Tanner Patrick Covers Katy Perry’s “Part Of Me” Using His iPad As A Drum Kit

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Texan musician Tanner Patrick has just recorded a viral version of Katy Perry's "Part Of Me" using his iPad as a drum kit, and apps like Easy Beats 2 and Pro Tools

I just love these videos that show us what can be done with an iPad and a little imagination. I’ve written about creating music with an iPad and GarageBand before, and I recall a post I wrote about a year to this date about the first music video that was actually shot using an iPad 2. And now, I’d like to share this new viral video with you. It shows Texan musician Tanner Patrick playing the drums on his iPad for a cover of Katy Perry’s latest hit, “Part Of Me”.

On the video (which had 100,000 views in six days) you can see Patrick using an app named EasyBeats on his iPad to set down a basic groove, while he mixes his vocals and other instruments using a digital audio platform known as Pro Tools.

What do you think? Do you ever see yourself doing something similar when it comes to recording your own covers, or even your own demos? Sound off in the comments below, please.

Sworly – Listen To The Latest Hits For Free

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Name: Sworly
URL: http://www.sworly.com

That you can listen to mostly any song you want online is common knowledge. And so is the number of fakes and dupes you’re forced to endure on sites like YouTube before you find what you’re looking for. Oh, and that’s not counting the number of live and rare versions of songs that are found there, and which are labeled as the real thing. And as if that wasn’t enough to drive you to the point where you turn into the smoke monster from “Lost” and go on a rampage, you also have to deal with songs which have been pitched, in order to keep YouTube from taking them down. Which would be great fun if what you wanted was to listen to Chip and Dale singing in unison. Which you’re not.

This new site is here to change that, once and for all. Sworly gives you nothing but real songs that you can listen to on your browser, and at no cost. Sworly scours the Internet for you, and it brings together all these songs you’d might be interested in. The site is really easy to navigate, with the coolest songs being highlighted on the homepage, and a search box for looking music up straightaway. In all cases, the songs you’re playing can be easily shared with all of your pals on Facebook. Continue reading →

Joel Oberstein (New Releases Now!) – Interview (Part 2)

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This is the last part of the conversation I had with Joel Oberstein from New Releases Now! You can read how it all started by checking yesterday’s post, and see what I had to say about the site when it was first reviewed on MusicKO here.

 

PART II

MUSIC & YOU

 

When did you become interested in music? What was the first album or single you ever purchased?

I’ve always loved music, and my parents turned me onto a lot of good stuff growing up.  I’d lock myself in my room, blast music and study every photo and word on an album.  It’s difficult to remember the first thing I ever bought, but I’ll go with the vinyl single of “The Night Chicago Died” by Paper Lace.

Are you in a band yourself, or have you been in a band in the past? Is there a clip on YouTube or elsewhere we could watch?

Yes, I was in a few local bands…one of them was called Soaked, which had a few songs featured on the TV show ‘Party Of Five’ several years ago.  Continue reading →

Joel Oberstein (New Releases Now!) – Interview (Part 1)

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A new interview fresh from the oven for you. The interviewee this time is Joel Oberstein from New Releases Now!, a site that was recently reviewed on MusicKO.

This is the first half of the interview. The second (“Music & You”) has just been posted. Give it a look.

Full Name: Joel Oberstein
Startup: New Releases Now!
Position:  Co-owner / President

 

 

PART I

THE STARTUP

 

Tell us a little about your startup. How was it conceived? What are its most distinctive features in your opinion?

We’ve been in the music marketing business since 1995 and despite the fact that we’re living in the information age we found that there wasn’t a comprehensive source for retailers, radio programmers and on-air personalities, music supervisors, clubs/concert promoters, and others in the entertainment industry, as well as music fans to sample what was being released each Tuesday across all genres of music.  Having grown up in the heyday of record stores, we like to think of it as a virtual new release end-cap.  We keep release info active in the system well past street date, so if you’re interested in seeing what came out in prior weeks you can do that.  Users can also search for titles by genre or even record label, so if you’re a fan of Prog Rock or Sub Pop Records for instance you can easily find those titles as well.  NRN Radio then allows a user to stream a track from those selections.  We also partner with several popular music related and pop culture sites such as Ranker, Popdose, The Music’s Over, and American Music Association (to name a few) to provide content for them.  In addition to being a high traffic site, we also deliver NRN electronically every week to a large industry/fan mailing list.  As a huge music fan, it’s the type of service I would sign up for if I didn’t work in the biz just so I could stay up to date on what’s going on release-wise.

What was the original launch date?

November 2009

What has been the response so far?

People seem to like that it’s easy to navigate and has what they’re looking for in one place.

In which countries has it been more successful?

Since we’re based in the U.S. that’s where most of our traffic comes from, but we do see a lot of activity in the Europe, South America, and Australia/New Zealand.     Continue reading →

“White Flag”, The New Video By Micky Cohen

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Micky Cohen

Micky Cohen is a young Uruguayan artist that’s produced by Miguel Campal, and this is the video for her newest single, “White Flag”. The song is included on Micky’s latest EP, and you can listen to her full discography on her MySpace profile.

You’d might also be interested in checking her Facebook fanpage.

Micky Cohen's Newest EP, "White Flag"

Brian O’Toole (Vibin.fm) – Interview (Part 2)

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Want to learn more about the music that brings the best out of entrepreneurs? Well, below you’ll find what inspires Brian O’Toole (founder of Vibin.fm) the most.

This is the second half of an interview we conducted earlier this week, right after I reviewed Vibin.fm on MusicKO. The first dealt with the startup itself, and you can read it here.

PART II

MUSIC & YOU

When did you become interested in music? What was the first album or single you ever purchased?

I’ve been intrigued with music since I was little. I remember my first CD I purchased was ‘Korn – Freak on a Leash.’ I took it to the counter and my mom saw the ‘Parental Advisory’ sticker and about lost her mind. Somehow, a bit of convincing did the job and I was the first in my 3rd grade class to have the CD.

Are you in a band yourself, or have you been in a band in the past? Is there a clip on YouTube or elsewhere we could watch?

I was not in a band. So, no, there is no clip on YouTube of me performing, but I do have lots of talented friends.

Musical likes and dislikes? Favorite artists?

I like all types of music genres. I really like Kanye West as an Artist. When I say the word ‘Artist,’ Kanye really does just that. He creates an experience in every song, every music video and every CD. No one does that better than Kanye. Continue reading →

Brian O’Toole (Vibin.fm) – Interview (Part 1)

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I’ve got a couple of cool interviews to share with you over the days to come. The first is this one with Brian O’Toole from Vibin.fm, the site that is aiming to become “the Pandora for electronica”. You’ll see from this interview how passionate Brian is, and how much he believes in what he’s doing. That’s reason enough for most people I know to check the service he’s created. I encourage you to give it a try – remember, you don’t even need to register for an account to begin listening to mixes and playing them to your friends as if you were David Guetta.

Well, if you’re aiming high why not aim for the top, I ask you?

 

Full Name: Brian O’Toole
Age: 23
Startup: Vibin.fm
Position: Founder & Creative Director

 

PART I

THE STARTUP

 

Tell us a little about your startup. How was it conceived? What are its most distinctive features in your opinion?

Vibin.fm was originally thought of inside a nightclub. I was out with a few friends and was completely overwhelmed to see just how much everyone loved electronic music. I’ve seen many different eras of music (90s rock, punk rock, 2000s rap, etc), but have never seen a generation of people so in awe with the club’s music – especially the DJ. I thought, why not create this experience for people to enjoy before the club, after the club… whenever! With that, Vibin was born.

To me, the most distinctive feature is the ability to press one button and stream unlimited, hand-crafted radio of your choice. Whether it is a favorite genre, favorite artist, DJ mix, or raving city, Vibin.fm allows you to party your night away in just one click. You can also filter each station by Tracks, DJ Mixes, or DJ sets. My favorite filter is DJ sets (40+ minute individual mixes), which bring the club experience to your computer. My other favorite feature is the ‘Discover’ mode. This feature helps you find new artist to enjoy, simply by entering an artist. Once you found one that you like, press ‘Listen’ and you’re all set to vibe!

What was the original launch date?

Friday, February 24th, 2012

What has been the response so far? In which countries has it been more successful?

The response has been awesome so far! We had over 2,000 page views in the first 4 days and have been featured in over 20 blog articles. Surprisingly, Spain has been the largest traffic source – especially in the city of Madrid. I’ve always wanted to visit Madrid, so I may have to plan a vacation in the near future. Continue reading →

The Uruguayan Version Of “Ai Se Eu Te Pego” Is Here: “Ay Que Me Quemo” By Mal Yo

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Mal Yo

They say that revenge is a dish best served cold, but sometimes you just have to strike while the iron’s hot… That’s what these nice folks from Mal Yo (remember them?) have done. All through the summer, we were subjected to Michel Telo’s “Ai Se Eu Te Pego”, a song that our charming Brazilian neighbors more or less force-fed the whole continent. Just for the record, I must say the song isn’t half bad. It’s just that listening to it even when you’re scuba diving is enough to make you sick. And so, it’s payback time…

Thanks to our three sonorous crusaders, “Ai Se Eu Te Pego” has now become “Ay Que Me Quemo” [This Is Bleeding Hot], and you can watch the full clip below.

Does the melody ring a bell? Well, it should. There’s an English language version of “Ai Se Eu Te Pego” that’s called “If I Catch You”. Chances are you have already listened to it. But just in case…

Billy Corgan To Anounce The Smashing Pumpkins’ “New Album Experience” At SXSW

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Billy Corgan Is Using This Year's SXSW Conference To Announce The Smashing Pumpkins' Most Ambitious Work To Date

The concept of music albums is changing for good. Offering fans a multimedia experience makes the job of pirates a lot harder, and that’s obviously appealing from a commercial point of view. Yet, there’s no denying that artists are naturally inclined to try new technologies out, and see in which ways new software and hardware can give fans a more vivid representation of these emotions and ideas that lie at the heart of the most transcendental artistic works. The Smashing Pumpkins’ latest album might as well do.

Named “Oceania”, it’s already been defined as a “full online experience” by Billy Corgan, the band’s charismatic leader. He’s not giving away a lot of details at this time, but he will break the silence soon enough – he’s going to make a big announcement at this year’s South By Southwest conference. From what he’s already said, it can be gathered that the album will take social interactions and fan engagement to the limit, and that it’s tracks might not be sold separately on iTunes. Corgan’s publicist has hinted at that when she said that “The key is that when we release the record, we’re not going to release a single viral video. You’re going to take the record and have a full online experience with it.”

Corgan is no stranger to experimentation. In 2009, he embarked on a project called “Teagarden by Kaledoiscope”, a 44-track album that was going to be made freely available on the Internet for everybody to download.

The Smashing Pumpkins’ latest project brings to mind Bjork’s “Biophilia”, which has gone down in history as the first “app album” ever. We’ll see how Corgan’s brainchild compares to that when he speaks at SXSW. His session is scheduled for the 12th of March.

Vibin.fm – The Pandora For Electronica

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Name: Vibin.fm
URL: http://www.vibin.fm

A visit to this website is mandatory for those who love electronica. Vibin.fm is brimming with nothing but quality mixes that you can listen to without even having to register for an account first. The site’s usable on the fly, and all of the music that you can listen to on Vibin.fm is available at zero cost.

And in addition to letting you play the latest mixes for free, the site makes for having music streamed to all of your rave-oriented friends. What better way to start curating a party list together? The minute you’ve found a mix that you think’s got potential for rocking the house till your neighbors either call the cops or ask you to join in the fun, then you can simply stream it to your most discerning friends. They’ll tell you right away whether that mix is a keeper or a dud.

The site comes with lots of categories such as trance, deep house, trip hop, dubstep, lovestep, dirty dub and psy-trance, and finding a song suiting your exact mood (or the mood of the party you’re about to host) is a piece of cake.

And what’s even cooler is that the site can recommend you new mixes based on these songs that you’ve been listening to. In that sense, it’s quite similar to Pandora.

I feel I must mention that accounts are also available, but you’ll only need one if you’re interested in saving your favorite mixes and playing them back again. But if all you want is to have some music quickly played in the background while you’re doing something else (such as working out), then Vibin.fm is a winner.