Warner Music Group boss Robert Kyncl backs US Senate bill to crack down on AI deepfakesKyncl to give testimony to a subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Commitee on Tuesday (April 30)
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‘There are so many people who make beats but don’t know how to produce.’T-Minus talks about his work with J Cole, Drake, Lil Wayne and more, as well as what makes a great producer in 2024 and what he would change about the modern music industry
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Instagram updates algorithm to favor small creators, original contentMeta-owned Instagram is making changes in the coming weeks designed to give creators of all popularities more equal reach.....
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Swifties drive 1M streams with Sationhead listening party as more Artists take noteLast week, Taylor Nation, the official Taylor Swift fan account, hosted a listening party for her new album "The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology" on Sationhead, which drove over 1 million streams on Apple Music and Spotify in under 24 hours.....
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Berklee College of Music’s Online Class of 2024: A Testament to TenacityHere are six different 2024 Berklee College Of Music's Online graduates that have had notable and inspirational journeys leading them to commencement day.....
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Swans at the Lodge RoomThe Swans live experience is unlike most other concerts you might ever attend. Swans create something almost indescribable, but it is our job so we'll give it a go.

When Michael Gira and his band first arrive on stage, and after making a few final adjustments, Gira says "Good evening" to the Lodge Room crowd and then they launch into the set. That subtle greeting is really the only nod to a conventional performance that we get. From there, we're launched into a world of aural insanity.

Gira waves his arms around from his seated position like a madcap orchestral conductor, which is somewhat appropriate because the soundscape that Swans creates is like a hellish, teeth-gratingly experimental version of classical music. It's heavy and intense; it's clear why fans of industrial music, post-punk and yes, metal, like Swans. But the songs aren't structured in the standard "rock" manner. There are no choruses. Attempt to sing along at your peril.

It's always been that way, from the debut Filth album introduced Swans to the world in '83. The band has split and come back, members have come and gone, but Swans have never compromised.

The set at the Lodge Room on Sunday evening featured just six songs, all fairly lengthy. Opener "The Beggar" is the title track from the most recent album, while second song "The Hanging Man" is from 2019's Leaving Meaning. The rest are newly recorded and evolving pieces.

Not that it matters; when Swans perform live, it all blends together into an oddly hypnotic, exhausting, beautiful, dynamic-yet-singular experience. It's like being caught in the tornado of somebody else's nightmare. Trauma smashes you in the senses, and really never lets up.

It's relentless, and you'll feel drained at the conclusion. Like all great art, a Swans show will make you ask questions, of yourself and of the artist. But ultimately, it's fantastically rewarding.

Earlier, Swans' lap steel man Kristof Hahn played a solo opening set that was as gorgeous as it was devastating. His voice is rich, somewhere between Nick Cave and Leonard Cohen, and his take on "Heartbreak Hotel," which he credits as the John Cale version, was stunning.

All told, it was a night that won't leave us for a long time.

Photos by Nicole Oike Berlin

A shaman, a management coup, a tearful press conference and a $770m market cap dip: What the heck is going on at HYBE?Disputes between record companies and their executives have happened before, but this one takes the cake for weirdness
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Deezer’s revenues grew 14.2% YoY to $144m in Q1; subscriber base reached 10.5mParis-headquartered music streaming service Deezer has published its financial results and subscriber numbers for Q1 2024
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How Top Artists are marketing music in 2024This guide teaches how to nurture and build a loyal fanbase using the same techniques and tools as rising stars Donald Glover, Sara Evans, and Conan Gray.....
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Music Biz Roadshow targets artists and their teamsMusic Biz Roadshow will launch this year’s Music Biz 2024 industry conference in Nashville on May 13 with a full-day program for artists and their teams.....
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TikTok’s clock is ticking…TikTok's countdown to sell has been set, leaving everyone wondering... what now? Chris Castle has thoughts.....
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New Toys: Eventide H3000 Factory Mk II and Band Delays Mk II SoftwareYou would be hard-pressed to find many companies with a more accomplished history of making superior audio products than Eventide. Founded in 1971, Eventide is a true pioneer in the audio field and the inventor of the Harmonizer, which was first released commercially as the model 910 in 1975. The H910 was the world’s first commercially available digital audio effects device; it combined pitch change with delay and feedback. The Harmonizer is a staple of most producers, engineers and artists to this day. Eventide has never stopped making increasingly powerful versions. Although it was released in 1987, the H3000 is still hailed as an indispensable tool for modern mixing. New this month, Eventide releases updates to two plug-in versions of H3000 algorithms for you DAW.

Billed as "The Holy Grail of Multi-FX," the H3000 Factory II plug-in is meticulously modeled after the original hardware. Distinct pitch-shifting, delay, filtering, and modulation are the core of the sounds available. I find there is a depth, size, clarity and openness to the H3000 plug-in that surpasses other products that attempt to do the same effects. With over 500 carefully crafted presets tailored for both music production and sound design, the H3000 Factory Mk II offers an endless suite of effects to infuse your next record with unparalleled creativity.

Ported from the legendary H3000 Harmonizer® studio processor, the H3000 Band Delays Mk II plug-in is a creative powerhouse for delays, filtering, stereo-widening, and dynamic rhythmic effects. With eight delay bands each featuring unique controls for level, panning, filter type, frequency, and Q, the H3000 Band Delays Mk II brings the flexibility and iconic sound of the original hardware algorithm to your DAW with a click of a button.

What's new in the latest string of updates in the H3000 plug-ins include: a resizable user interface, blending the classic look of the original H3000 Harmonizer® hardware; improved usability, with an expandable expert view and a smooth patching workflow; brand new modelling of the analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converter sections from the original H3000, capturing the original sound of the hardware unit; a brand-new preset library, with recreations of presets from the original H3000; and filter recreations, modeling the resonance and self-oscillation behavior of the hardware.

The H3000 Factory Mk II sells for $199 ($99 crossgrade); H3000 Band Delays Mk II is $149 ($69 crossgrade); and together bundled, costs $248.

eventideaudio.com

Expert Advice: The Sound of A.I. in HollywoodActors and writers reached their agreement with A.I. What about sound designers?

After some long and painful fights, the issue of A.I.—at least for actors and writers—has been resolved. For the rest of us in Hollywood, however, the unpacking of A.I. has only just begun. Navigating the future of the sound design industry will depend on engineers and editors understanding how to maximize the capability and productivity of A.I. tools. 

While filmmaking and production were shut down for most of the year by the long and painful strike, the industry of Hollywood has continued to churn. Though the “Barbenheimer” craze over the summer cushioned the economic blow for some studios, the last six months have seen major Hollywood studios bend over backward to improve profitability. 

Studios direct-to-consumer offerings—streamers—have borne the brunt of these efforts; in this grand experimentation, everything from storytelling structure to pricing models have been on the table. Streamers have merged, shifted, and cut entire projects in an attempt to impress investors with their bottom line. 

It’s a reasonable concern, then, that having failed with the actors and writers, other, less powerful and more technical groups—such as sound engineering—may be on the line for A.I. replacement and the presumed associated cost savings. And it’s not necessarily a wild leap: it’s inevitable that A.I. will, as with other industries, dramatically shift what the workflow for sound engineers will look like.

Sound engineers looking to forge their future not only during these tumultuous times in Hollywood, but also in the “civilian” sector, need to be smart about how they deploy A.I. There are already tools available that can help us speed up our processes and projects. Two good examples:

• Sound cataloging and library management: Finding a specific sound in a sound library can be an incredibly time intensive process. I know that my own library is made up of over two terabytes of various sounds, and digging through it to find a specific one can take hours. There are A.I. tools on the market that can not only uncover a sound, but also generate timestamps inside each audio clip.

• Audio description mixing: Mixing for audio description can be a rote process. Clients have specifications they want met, and save for a bit of artistry, the process is fairly straightforward. A program’s audio needs to drop at a certain point before the narratives begin, and resume shortly after it ends. A.I. can automate the process, doing an effective first draft of the work, creating time for the engineer to check and fix any mixing issues after the first rendering. 

As in other industries, these tools offer methods of speeding up delivery and service, and will eventually become the standard practice. As cost savings continue to be a major priority for studios, expect to see A.I. technologies implemented to a greater and greater extent. 

But will sound engineers face an existential crisis as a result of A.I.? 

Yes—and no. 

As the more basic tasks of sound design— such as sound effects cataloging and audio description mixing—are outsourced to A.I. tools, other novice positions, like interns and PA roles, will likely dry up. If companies can find cost savings by using technology, they will, and the impact will likely be fewer roles for individuals just getting started and learning the business. 

At the same time, sound design—like many other post-production positions—is both an art and a science. The best among us have the technical skills needed to create a cohesive soundscape, while also having the artful ear that can create a character out of the audio. Part of being a sound designer is having the ability to translate a director’s vision into a rich and immersive sound experience. 

In an industry that runs on connections and creativity, removing the position of sound engineer likely won’t happen, especially at the highest levels. Certainly, the lower tier and newer streaming services—those who are just creating content for content’s sake—may turn to some emerging A.I. tools to churn out fast, good enough sound designs that simply gets the job done. As TikTok and TikTok-like mini productions grow in popularity, rapid turnaround will be prioritized over quality. 

But there will continue to be a happy medium for sound design and engineering. Work in this industry long enough, and you know that relationships are everything. Directors are on the lookout for partners who have the emotional sensibility and creativity to translate their vision, add to it, and produce something even better. 

The Oscar-winning directors of the world aren’t likely to give up that relationship soon, attached as they are to the individuals who help to drive the creative process alongside them. Similarly, independent artists and filmmakers, who are driven by creativity and passion, aren’t likely to pursue ease over art. 

Soft skills will still win the day for sound designers, but smart studios can, and will, start bracing themselves for an A.I.-driven future.

Smart move by #majors in #MusicBusiness.
Posted Reaction by PublMe bot in PublMe. “Major label reach on your terms”: ReverbNation and Warner Music partnership aims to empower emerging artists. ReverbNation, the artist opportunities platform of BandLab Technologies, has teamed up with Warner..."

Last Week in DIY & Indie Music: TikTok • Bandcamp • Playlist pitches • Threads • MoreThis week, our news, tips, and advice for independent and DIY artists covered TikTok, playlist pitching, Bandcamp updates, how to optimize your email marketing, what's changed with the Latin Grammys, and more.....
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