obo

There was a recent request on the monome forums for an application that does what the popular tonematrix does, which itself is inspired by the tenori-on. I took some parts out of my residue application for the monome (it's full of techno! DD103!) and added a simple four voice internal sine wave synth.

If you like tonematrix, but would prefer something standalone, with MIDI output, sync and tweakable note assignments, you can download this standalone application for MacOS X. It is free! Enjoy!

Then, maybe at some point I'll get around to adapting it to the monome.

seeyouinsleep

Judging from the over 1,000,000 myspace hits, seeyouinsleep is doing just fine, but even so, this music is worth a mention, especially with embeddable soundcloud goodness.

My attention was directed to this piece based on nanoloop overdubs

conversations by seeyouinsleep

But, a brief look around the very nice seeyouinsleep blog revealed this piece, which I enjoyed very much.

everything is illuminated by seeyouinsleep

Messe Superbooth Tour

I always enjoy the superbooth videos. I don't recall seeing this anywhere, and I just found it today, so, enjoy this video of pure analog geekery.

Open Letter to Trent Reznor

I have a lot of respect for Trent Reznor as a musician and professional. One chuckle I got from the recent Digg interview is how he mustered the precise level of discomfort required for discussion of the NIN 'brand'. It was simply perfect. This is a man who knows exactly what he is doing.

Trent is saying all the right things about the new recording industry model, and acknowledges the fact that, in addition to his own hard work and determination, grandfathered into the current system with the significant help of label financial support.

Trent can talk about how anti-recording industry he is, and the knowing public will laud his boldness and regard him as a paragon of the anti-industry model, but if he truly believes what he says, Trent (and Radiohead) should lend a hand to independent artists trapped on the other side of the industry in transition.

I'll give a simple example. They should leverage their online presence to include a dedicated, regularly-updated blog of free, creative commons music the band finds noteworthy and of interest to their fans - not just remixes of the band's songs, but new material by unknown artists. Or, maybe a link from the new NIN iPhone app?

I know Trent is busy, and he notes there is much to be done with the existing body of fan-remixed NIN material, such as the Ghosts festival, but I hope this is something simple he could spare the minimal resources for. There is a great deal of incredible music languishing in obscurity that could benefit GREATLY from a short mention. This isn't a zero-sum game.

Synthesists are composers who wish to control the whole sound

I walked past a mirror with the Westone 3 earphones in place and marveled at their low profile. They seem so... integrated into my head. I've simultaneously blocked out real world stimulus and injected, as directly as possible, pure recorded sound. How much longer until we can directly stimulate auditory nerves? I hope this happens in my lifetime. All this miniaturized transducer technology is just an elaborate version of a paper cup and string. Seems so archaic.

It isn't difficult to imagine the kind of idealized audio listening experience this would yield. Extended, ruler-flat frequency response. Unbelievable low end. Massive dynamic range. Zero noise. Perfect surround imaging. It makes me wonder how the music of today will sound like reproduced using the technology of tomorrow. 'Legacy' audio recordings will sound like wax cylinders. With no noise floor and expansive dynamic range, the 'loudness war' will seem comically flat and inexpressive.

There will be some recordings that translate better to the new reproduction technology. While important recordings will be remixed from source materials, surround mixes made by the artists themselves will be valued, and praised for being ahead of their time. Physicists predict the future. Often later, sometimes posthumously, theories are validated through observation enabled by new technology. Beethoven's encroaching deafness didn't keep him from creating masterpieces he himself couldn't hear.

I've often stated that recorded music is a separate art form from live music, but direct stimulation of auditory nerves will separate the art form further. While I value the entirety of studio and recording technique, and love the sound of acoustic waves propagating through the air, the idea of a composition of pure synthesis ending in direct nerve stimulation is intoxicating to me; to compose for a format using technology that doesn't yet exist.

Trent Reznor Digg Interview

Tiered iTunes Pricing Begins Today

As you may have heard already, the iTunes music store, under pressure from the recording industry, is abandoning its $0.99/track sales model. Popular hits will carry an additional $0.30 surcharge. We're also told a $0.69 price point for 'catalog music' is available, but as gizmodo reports, these can be difficult to find currently.

Major label owners like Vivendi's Universal Music Group, Sony Music, Warner Music Group and EMI Music say they can make money with more flexible prices and possibly help make music retail a profitable enterprise again.

So you're telling me you can make more money if you charge higher prices? No wai!

The really interesting part of the press release is the following quote

Industry estimates show that 10 to 15 percent of albums account for 90 percent of all sales, according to Digonex, a dynamic pricing software company which has worked with major music companies including Warner Music.

Older, catalog tracks get the lower price point, and current hits get the more expensive price point, presumably where 90 percent of all sales are. From this we can infer that nearly all music sales are driven almost entirely by whatever is popular at that moment, like hair styles, clothing, and what color and model iPod you're using. Whatever was popular last year, isn't desirable anymore. In other words, desirability (and, in turn, pricing) is based on fashion, not quality.

tintin update

Tetramorph sprouted the idea for tintinnabulome back on Dec 2008. The concept seemed well-suited to my modal harmony MIDI generating Max process, so I went ahead and made a pass at the application. Then occular and I revved the application a few times, turning the process into a true group effort. I'm still a Max 4 user, and it became clear that tintin really need the preset storage features of Max 5, so occular has been running with the ball now. I'm very proud to see what people are doing with the application.

tin five by dadek

Tintingerine by elektra

as it began to grow by occular

Onandon by elektra

Onadon has a post on the process here.

x3no - ttwftt by x3no

How to make a 7" single

An interesting short from the BBC detailing the mechanical process behind making a record.