GEAR + TECH
How Madeon and a Team of Architects Designed the Hallucinatory “Good Faith” Experience—And Blew Everyone’s Mind
They say ideas grow better when transplanted into another mind—and Madeon has four of them. The French electronic music virtuoso, whose real name is Hugo Leclercq, is currently on his “Good Faith Forever” tour, where he’s been baffling ravers with a new, pupil-popping stage production. But just like any groundbreaking show, there’s more to it than meets the eye. Four visual artists, Shinichiro Fujita, OSEAN, Mollie Tarlow and Mike Kluge, function as the brainstem of “Good Faith Forever” as well as its illusory encore, which finds Madeon lifted atop a giant cylindrical structure as his silhouette morphs into the tour’s phantasmagoric imagery. Their cerebral work, Leclercq says, has shaped not only the tour, but also his own cre...
Absolut Vodka Teams Up With Swedish House Mafia to Create Album-Themed Cocktail
It’s time to pour it up for the return of Swedish House Mafia. In anticipation of the iconic dance music trio’s upcoming closing performance on Sunday night of Coachella 2022, Absolut Vodka is assisting fans with finding paradise. Absolut’s new “Paradise (Again) Paloma” blends the brand’s refreshing grapefruit vodka with a tangy dash of lime juice, soda water, and a sweet Swedish Fish garnish to top it all off. The summertime citrus beverage is being sold as a pre-packaged craft cocktail blend for easy mixing. Even better, with the release of Swedish House Mafia’s debut album Paradise Again looming just around the corner on April 15th, those not attending Coachella will still have the opportunity to join in the conversation. Absolut VodkaR...
A Sound Artist Translated Air Pollution Data Into Music
Researchers from the University of Birmingham are thinking creatively about how to highlight the often imperceptible impacts of air pollution. A subsection of the university’s “The Air We Breathe” exhibition, the project, titled “Sounding Out Pollution,” transforms air quality data into music. The offering includes three unique sonic interpretations of pollution, each leveraging air quality data from locations throughout the U.K. The pieces each explore a unique creative concept, including one that captures the subtle changes in pollution by the hour across the West Midlands and another which juxtaposes pollution data between the countryside and major cities throughout the country. Take a listen to the sonifications below. Scroll to Continue Recommended Articl...
New VR Experience Beams You Into an Illegal 1989 Acid House Rave
A new virtual reality experience allows you to go back to 1989 and rave to acid house music in Coventry. “In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats” opened to the public on March 29th and is directed by Darren Emerson. The VR experience transports users back in time to when thousands of people would attend illegal raves in warehouses, woodlands, and fields around England. Viewers are dropped into the shoes of the era’s rave culture progenitors, and will be able to explore music poster-filled bedrooms, pirate radio stations, police headquarters, and secret warehouses. Scroll to Continue Recommended Articles “With ‘In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats’ I want to take audiences back to the thrill of one night in 1989, to use this immersive experience to re-examine...
Dyson Wades Into Wearable Products With Air-Purifying Headphones
Purified air and pristine sound quality – both are now simultaneously achievable with Dyson‘s latest invention. Headquartered in Singapore, the multi-billion dollar manufacturer of household goods is wading into the audio technology space with a unique twist. Enter the Dyson Zone, the company’s new noise-cancelling, air-purifying headphones. The product marks Dyson’s first wearable device on the market and they’re already making a stand-out impression. Airflow and purification are two of Dyson’s foremost areas of expertise. The company’s existing product offering includes a robust lineup of vacuum cleaners, hair dryers, fans, and more. Scroll to Continue Recommended Articles Dyson applies their industry-leading technology throughout the Zone. ...
New Software Compensates Music Producers When DJs Play Their Songs In Clubs
Unclaimed and unpaid public performance royalties could soon be a demon of the past. DJ and music producer DVS1 recently launched Aslice to help alleviate the issues that come with public performances in clubs and venues around the globe. It operates on a donation-based system, so DJs can pledge a percentage of their gig fee to the songwriters and producers whose music they’re playing. The company recommends 5%, but more can be pledged and the figure won’t be disclosed. Aslice’s beta testing in November 2021 had 100 DJs upload 110 playlists and 5,291 tracks. Of those tracks, 4,339 were accurately identified and matched, a clip of 82%. This equated to 2,213 producers receiving payments averaging $1.40 per song. The money that wasn’t able to be tracked will be do...
New Blockchain-Based Platform, Independent, Lets Fans Invest In Their Favorite Artist’s Music
A new blockchain-based platform wants to empower independent artists—and the fans who support them. Based on the Solana blockchain, Independent is a decentralized marketplace that caters to the interests of independent musicians by letting them share a piece of the pie with their fans. The goal is for artists to release music as NFTs and monetize their creations while empowering their fans. Built on the Solana blockchain, Independent is powered by the creators of Monk Mafia, an NFT marketplace that made international headlines after receiving support from a number of high-profile backers in Asia. Those include Keiji of the chart-topping J-pop band EXILE and the award-winning Netflix documentarian Nirmal Purja. Artists releasing on Independent choose what percentage of t...
ROLI Releases Seaboard RISE 2, a Reimagined MIDI Keyboard for Limitless Artistic Expression
ROLI’s new Seaboard RISE 2 rids any creative limits a typical MIDI keyboard may possess. The Seaboard RISE was first launched by ROLI in 2015 and has received praise from producers, musicians, and composers alike. Its diverse feature set and expansive soundscapes have become paramount to the sounds of TV series like Stranger Things and featured on albums like Drake’s Views and Ed Sheeran’s ÷. The new capabilities in the RISE 2 include a new Keywave2 playing surface, more versatile suite of bundled software, a burnished platinum blue aluminum chassis, and expanded compatibility with other instruments via MIDI port and USB-C. The Equator2 synth, Ableton Live Lite, and ROLI Studio are also included. ROLI’s Seaboard RISE 2. ROLI Scroll to Continue Recomme...
ROLI Releases Seaboard RISE 2, a Reimagined MIDI Keyboard for Limitless Artistic Expression
ROLI’s new Seaboard RISE 2 rids any creative limits a typical MIDI keyboard may possess. The Seaboard RISE was first launched by ROLI in 2015 and has received praise from producers, musicians, and composers alike. Its diverse feature set and expansive soundscapes have become paramount to the sounds of TV series like Stranger Things and featured on albums like Drake’s Views and Ed Sheeran’s ÷. The new capabilities in the RISE 2 include a new Keywave2 playing surface, more versatile suite of bundled software, a burnished platinum blue aluminum chassis, and expanded compatibility with other instruments via MIDI port and USB-C. The Equator2 synth, Ableton Live Lite, and ROLI Studio are also included. ROLI’s Seaboard RISE 2. ROLI Scroll to Continue Recomme...
deadmau5, Richie Hawtin, More Raise $3 Million for Innovative Streaming Company, Volta
As the metaverse continues to expand, more and more electronic artists are investing their assets. Volta is the latest music tech and XR company to receive a cosign from some of the biggest players in the game. Richie Hawtin and deadmau5’s Pixelynx, Jillionaire, Post Malone, and Beatport CEO Robb McDaniels are just a few of the names that have contributed to the company’s latest funding round, which Music Business Worldwide estimates to be valued at $3 million. A handful of venture capital firms also took part. Volta is self-described as a “free, self-service XR creation platform” that will ultimately allow creators to build and broadcast their own experiences within the metaverse. Artists will be able to use their DAW of choice, midi controllers, or metadata to sync visual eff...
3LAU, A-Trak, Diplo Bet Big On HIFI as the Future of Financial Transparency for Music Creators
The music industry’s A-listers and executive class are betting on HIFI as the future of financial transparency and empowerment in the creator economy. HIFI, a platform branded as a “financial rights organization,” is committed to delivering a suite of data-driven financial products to creators on a membership basis. Thus far, the company has delivered on the development of a Royalty Dashboard solution that uniquely aggregates royalty earnings data from across platforms and accounts all in one location. Financial empowerment and transparency are two core principles for HIFI as it aims to shed light on an element of the industry that—in some ways—has remained opaque by design. Now, the company, which launched in 2020, has closed an eight-figure funding round to contin...
Yuri Suzuki Creates Functional Online Studio of Classic Roland Synthesizers
Legendary music hardware company Roland is celebrating its 50th anniversary in a big way: by collaborating with renowned electronic musician and experience designer Yuri Suzuki. In honor of Roland’s annual “303 Day,” Suzuki has collaborated with Counterpoint Studio to digitally recreate some of the brand’s most iconic synthesizers. The experience is an ode to Roland’s seminal TB-303 synthesizer, which was first introduced in 1981. Roland and Suzuki have collaborated in the past, like when they joined forces for in 2020 for the web-based music tool “808.303.studio.” They’ve now added the classic SH-101 to the TB-303 and TR-808 interfaces. Yuri Suzuki presents his “Color Chaser 2010” project at the 2010 Lift Conference in...
