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GarageBand on iOS is now a more capable music production suite
Apple's GarageBand is a good place to get started with recording, but it's useful for more advanced skill levels as well. The company just revealed an update to the iOS version of the app that gives the software a few more tools for tracking on the go. First, the powerful Alchemy synthesizer from Apple's pro-grade Logic software is now available as an instrument in the mobile version of GarageBand. It includes over 150 patches capable of producing sounds for a range of genres.
Take Logic Pro X projects from desktop to mobile with GarageBand
Despite it's highly capable tool set, GarageBand is widely thought of as Apple's beginner audio recording software. Logic Pro X is the company's option for more advanced users. While the latter app has been around since 2013, Apple regularly adds new features and it's doing just that today. With version 10.3, Logic Pro X gains a host of new tool to lend a hand with recording and music production. First, the app has a refreshed UI to make it easier to see in well-lit environments. After all, not everyone likes to work in the dark or a dimly lit room.
Run the Jewels include AR extras with 'RTJ3' physical editions
Killer Mike and El-P may have dropped the digital version of their highly-anticipated Run the Jewels 3 on Christmas Eve, but the duo is releasing the physical versions of the album today in the US (globally next week). As part of this second wave release, Run the Jewels revealed an augmented reality project: "ARTJ." In addition to the artwork for the vinyl and CD versions of RTJ3, all of the digital images, posters, stickers and shirts have been properly equipped for AR.
Would you pay to get a new song texted to you every day?
On the surface, every streaming music service offers the same thing: access to tens of millions of songs. That's more music than any human being can ever consume, so the big battle now centers around helping users find songs and albums they care about. Apple Music bet big on human-curated playlists, Spotify has Discover Weekly and Release Radar, and Google Play Music has stations for every mood and activity, to name a few examples. These options help, but getting through your recommendations and actually finding things you love can still take some work. A small startup called Noon Pacific has been helping to cut through the clutter for several years now. Every Monday, the company publishes a curated 10-song playlist in its apps and on its website for visitors to stream, ad-free. If you'd prefer an even quicker way to find new music, the company recently launched its first subscription product: Noon Pacific Daily. After signing up, you'll get a text message every day at noon Pacific (naturally) with a link to a new song.
YouTube wants you to make a music video for Elton John
Like many legendary musicians, Elton John didn't get music videos for some of his best-known songs -- they simply came too soon for the likes of MTV. Thanks to the internet, however, he's getting a second chance. YouTube is backing a competition, Elton John: The Cut, that challenges you to brainstorm an official music video treatment for "Bennie and the Jets," "Rocket Man," or "Tiny Dancer." There will definitely be some tall hurdles to clear. A trio of YouTube creators will screen the initial entries, and the resulting finalists will face scrutiny by John as well as long-time collaborator Bernie Taupin, DreamWorks' Jeffrey Katzenberg, music video director Melina Matsoukas and Moonlight director Barry Jenkins.
Apple Music's 'Carpool Karaoke' features Alicia Keys and Metallica
We still don't know exactly when Apple Music's version of a popular Late Late Show segment will debut, but we do know some of the singers who will appear on it. During the first batch of 16 half-hour episodes of "Carpool Karaoke," Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, Blake Shelton, John Legend, Metallica and Will Smith will all take a ride with rotating hosts. That's right, different people will be behind the wheel during the course of the first "season."
RZA's advice for starting out in music production
After a performance with electronic music duo Parisi here at CES, we sat down with RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan to chat about Roli Blocks. The modular touch-sensitive pieces of tech snap together to create a user-friendly way to start making music in minutes. They're a fun option for beginners and pros alike, and the hip hop producer offered advice for people looking to dive into music for the first time, what makes Blocks unique and the types of sounds you can expect from the gear.
Streaming topped all forms of US music consumption in 2016
Remember in early 2013 when Apple hit 25 billion iTune song downloads? And Tim Cook said it took Sony 30 years to sell 220,000 Walkmans? Well, fast-forward just under four years, and Nielsen has revealed that Americans streamed 431 billion songs in 2016 alone, surpassing total digital sales of songs and albums for the first time in history. "The landscape is evolving even more quickly than we have seen with other format shifts," said Nielsen SVP David Bakula.
Tidal now offers studio-quality 'Master' audio
It's easy to forget in the Jay Z era, but Tidal's original marquee feature was its above-average audio quality, not its many exclusives -- this was your service if your headphones were too good to be sullied with low-bitrate streaming. Tidal hasn't forgotten, however. It's stepping things up with Masters, which use MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) technology to promise studio-grade sound. If you're the sort who wants to get as close to the sound booth as possible, this may be your best choice right now.
UK vinyl sales hit a 25-year high in 2016
We hardly need more convincing of vinyl's resurgence over the past few years, but a report from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) today details that more records were sold in the UK in 2016 than have been for the past 25 years. Based on Official Charts Company data, over 3.2 million vinyls were purchased in 2016 -- a volume the BPI predicted early last year -- representing a 53 percent increase over 2015 and the highest total since 1991. The death of several music icons no doubt helped (for lack of a better word), with David Bowie's Blackstar being the best-selling vinyl of the year.
Recommended Reading: Some suggestions for Twitter in 2017
A Billion Dollar Gift for Twitter Anil Dash, Medium Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey asked the masses this week what the company should focus on in 2017. After a year filled with harassment issues and the failure to court a buyer, the next few months will be very important for Twitter's future. Tech entrepreneur and blogger Anil Dash penned some suggestions for the company and the list would be a great place for Dorsey to start in January.
Facebook is building a tool to hunt copyright infringing videos
YouTube isn't the only site record labels are taking issue with when it comes to copyright infringement. Financial Times reports that music publishers want Facebook to license music that gets posted on its site and take down any user-submitted videos that contain copyrighted content. The first step is said to be handling all the copyrighted material that's posted to the site's News Feed in the form of cover songs and other footage. As part of the effort, Facebook is said to be working on a copyright identification system, similar to YouTube's Content ID, to help police what's published.
Amazon plans a big digital-only sale for December 30th
You can call Amazon's Prime Day an excuse to clear out slow-moving products, but there's no question that it was a success -- and now, the internet retailer is hoping to replicate that success for online-only sales. It's launching a Digital Day sale on December 30th at 3AM Eastern that will offer discounts of up to 50 percent on apps, e-books, games, movies and music. The extent of the bargains isn't clear, but it's already teasing a few of the items on sale. You'll get breaks on games like Destiny: Rise of Iron, Rocket League and Titanfall 2, multiple Amazon music and video titles, comic books at Comixology, numerous productivity apps and some mobile titles.
LG wants a levitating Bluetooth speaker in every home
They may seem a bit magical, but levitating Bluetooth speakers have been around for years, often looking as outlandish as the idea sounds. However, LG is the first major electronics brand to throw a product in the ring, and is doing so with its classy-looking, albeit blandly named, "Levitating Portable Speaker," which will be unveiled to the public at CES in January.
Google Home's new actions include food, news and more
Amazon's Echo line already has a truckload of skills that tap into Alexa's ability to lend a hand with tasks, and the company adds new ones on a what seems like a weekly basis. This week, Google announced Netflix support for its connected Home speaker through Chromecast alongside the ability to display images from Google Photos. It turns out that was just the beginning as Google revealed over 30 more actions for Home from third-party developers.
Apple will replace a lost AirPod for $69
Following a slightly delay, Apple's wireless AirPods are ready to order. They're small and sleek, but the lack of cords has put a nagging thought in the back of my mind: I am guaranteed to lose one, if not both within a few weeks. If you're equally forgetful, or happen to commute in jam-packed subway carriages, you'll be happy to hear that Apple will replace a single AirPod for $69 (£65). Given a fresh pair costs $159 (£159), that seems like a reasonable fee. Similarly, a new AirPod charging case will set you back $69 (£65), for the inevitable "I threw it out thinking it was floss" stories.
Recording industry writes Trump on the eve of tech CEO visit
According to multiple reports, on Wednesday a number of high-profile tech execs will visit President-elect Donald Trump. The list includes Larry Page and Eric Schmidt, Tim Cook, Sheryl Sandberg, Jeff Bezos, Brian Krzanich and a number of others. Before that meeting goes down, however, the "music community" consisting of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and friends decided this was the time to speak up. In a letter (PDF) to Trump, the industry made its case for how valuable music is, and how that value (for their member companies) is being siphoned away by tech companies that don't do enough to make sure every note is paid for.
Neil Young's Pono will launch an adaptive bitrate streaming service
Neil Young could be about to launch the most interesting streaming service to come along in a long while. No, really. Young recently spoke at length with Rolling Stone's Music Now podcast. While mostly discussing music, he also divulged his future plans for Pono. Launched in 2014 on Kickstarter as a high-resolution music player and download service, Pono captured the imagination of select audiophiles and not many others. Its total sales were in the tens of thousands as of last year, and its download service is in hiatus after the company running it was acquired. Now, Young's company is planning a streaming service. What's interesting about it is not the fact that it's promising to stream 192kHz, 24-bit resolution audio. Although it totally is. No, what's interesting is that it's promising high-quality adaptive bitrate streaming, which would be a first for a streaming service. See, when you load up your music app of choice, you typically pick a bitrate for downloads, and a bitrate for streaming. In Spotify, for example, you can choose from anywhere between 96kbps and 320kbps bitrates for streaming and downloads. What Pono is proposing is to do away with those designations.
SoundCloud won't take down DJ mixes
SoundCloud made its name partly on the back of DJ mixes (both official and otherwise), but you could never take their presence for granted. All it would take is an overeager copyright lawyer and your favorite set would disappear in a puff of digital smoke. That shouldn't be a problem going forward, though. Company co-founder Eric Wahlforss tells Germany's Groove that it's now possible to upload mixes "problem-free." The rights negotiations for SoundCloud Go made all the difference, Wahlforss says -- agreements with copyright holders mean that there won't be any rude legal surprises, whether or not you're a Go subscriber.