10 Great Rock Albums That Were Completely Ignored When They Came Out

Main St Audio Labs Vintage Tuner StompboxVintage Tuner Stompbox is a studio-grade, photorealistic analog needle chromatic tuner engineered specifically for electric guitars, acoustic instruments, drop tunings, and 4/5-string electric basses. Developed by Main St Audio Labs using modern C++ / JUCE, the plugin bridges vintage visual aesthetics with cutting-edge, open-source DSP algorithms (MIT License) to deliver smooth, jitter-free needle ballistics without false octave jumps, screen flickering, or processing overhead. Key Features: • Dual Pitch Detection Engine (MPM & YIN): - MPM Mode (McLeod Pitch Method): Ultra-fast transient tracking tailored for electric and acoustic guitar chords, arpeggios, and solo runs. - YIN Mode: Specifically optimized for low-frequency instruments (4- and 5-string basses, 7/8-string extended-range guitars, and drop tunings), tracking fundamental frequencies down to B0 (Low B at 25 Hz / 30.87 Hz). • True Zero-CPU Passthrough (0.0% Load): - Suspends mathematical DSP analysis threads whenever the plugin GUI is closed or bypassed. - Safe to leave instantiated across every single guitar and bass channel in your DAW project without wasting CPU cycles. • Studio-Grade Ballistics & Anti-Jitter Smoothing: - Physics-based analog needle movement with an exponential smoothing filter. - Central deadzone (+/- 0.6 cents) prevents distracting flutter around the in-tune position. - 18-frame (~0.6s) decay hold window allows seamless tuning on decaying, vibrating strings. • Stage/Studio Mute with Safety Auto-Unmute: - Silent tuning footswitch for live performances and studio sessions. - Automatic unmuting safety trigger when the plugin editor is closed, preventing accidental muted tracks in mixing sessions. • Signal Conditioner & Adaptive AGC: - Automatic Gain Control with up to +41.58 dB of dynamic boost amplifies weak vintage single-coils and quiet notes without digital clipping. - 18 Hz High-Pass and 1000 Hz Low-Pass filtering eliminates sub-bass rumbles and high-frequency pick noise. • Smart Mono-to-Stereo Routing: - Automatically mirrors single-channel interface inputs across stereo monitor buses. Read More

Anthropic continues compute-gobbling streak in $45 billion deal with NscaleThe new deal with the infrastructure provider is the latest example of Anthropic's white-hot compute-gobbling streak.

Kyle Fishman Signs with ERN’s Cadillac MusicDate Signed: June 2026Publisher: ERN’s Cadillac MusicType of Music: Country, Pop, RockManagement: Lauren LieuPublicity: Corey Brewer, Rachel Heatherly, Big Loud - corey@bigloud.comA&R: Mike Giangreco, Dane Schmidt

Born and raised in California, Kyle Fishman has been making music most of his life. He started out playing in death metal bands and touring throughout his teens, but he always liked other genres, including pop and country. 

Fishman began making a name for himself as a songwriter, collaborating with rock bands such as Underoath, The Used, and Story Of The Year. He eventually formed a friendship with fellow writer Dallas Davidson, who offered him a deal with his company, Play It Again Music Publishing, on the condition that he would move to Nashville. “I’ll be there tomorrow,” Fishman responded. “I just packed a backpack and my computer and left.”

At the time, Davidson was renting the top floor of Big Loud from the renowned label’s owner and founder, Craig Wiseman. Fishman moved in and started collaborating with others, including Morgan Wallen and a rapper named SNO (Ernest Keith Smith). Smith and Fishman continued creating together at each other’s studios during the seven or eight years Fishman was signed with Play It Again Music.

Fishman then took a break from publishing, remaining a free agent for over a year. Meanwhile, Smith reinvented himself as a country artist under the stage name ERNEST. In 2023, he founded his own publishing house, ERN’s Cadillac Music, through Big Loud Publishing and located on that third floor where Fishman had once lived. One day, Smith casually dropped that, if Fishman ever wanted another publishing deal, he’d be happy to sign him. 

Being friends for so long meant negotiating the agreement was simple. “I told them what I wanted and expected, and he told me what he wanted and expected,” explains Fishman. “It kind of lined up perfectly.” Fishman has penned hits for artists such as Luke Bryan, Kane Brown, and Dustin Lynch. With that kind of talent, it’s no surprise many other publishers made overtures, but going with ERNEST was the only decision he seriously considered. 

Besides bringing his Music City journey full circle, signing with ERN’s Cadillac Music feels like a homecoming. “It’s a friends and family vibe,” states Fishman, whose country-oriented production and writing credits now include Kenny Chesney, Florida Georgia Line, and Blake Shelton. “It’s a really comfortable and creative place to be. It’s just like hanging with your friends and songs happen in between.”The post Kyle Fishman Signs with ERN’s Cadillac Music first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Better launches Bitcoin-backed mortgages powered by CoinbaseBetter and Coinbase have launched a crypto-backed mortgage product that lets US homebuyers pledge Bitcoin as collateral for a down payment without having to sell it.

Emulating the iPodThese days there are emulators for all the great consoles of yesteryear, as well as old retrocomputers and arcade machines and so much else to boot. Now, though, a particularly popular MP3 player has an emulator of its own—by the name of clicky!
The name is a reference to the click wheel of the venerable Apple iPod, and as you might imagine, that’s precisely what clicky is built to emulate. [daniel5151] started the project as a neat technical challenge, following on from earlier work he’s done in the NES emulation space. The iPod is a bit of a difficult prospect to emulate, being very much a closed-source device that is very poorly documented in the public space. There are few projects to look to for help, since a complete open-source iPod emulator doesn’t already exist; however, various alternative firmware projects have offered a guiding light.
For now, clicky can boot into RetailOS, which is what you would have used on an iPod you bought from the factory. It can also run Rockbox and iPodLinux, though for now, running the Apple Diagnostics program is not yet achievable. Plenty of functionality still isn’t implemented, either, like USB communication or even audio, which was the iPod’s whole raison d’être. Still, you can play some Brick Breaker like it’s 2006 if you’ve been missing it badly.
We see all kinds of emulators around these parts; this 60 FPS NES emulator running on a microcontroller was a particularly impressive recent effort. If you’re cooking up your own emulators for unique platforms, or unique emulators for non-unique platforms, let us know on the tipsline!

Luminate launches AI music identification framework, with ‘AI Generated’ labels reaching CONNECT later this yearLuminate says its CONNECT platform "can now flag AI-generated songs and artists worldwide."
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Dreamtonics unveil Instrument X Instrument X sees Dreamtonics step away from vocal synthesis and put their modelling expertise to work on creating an alternative approach to traditional orchestral sample libraries. 

PUNCHDUST is a FREE transient shaper with lo-fi dust and upward compression
MFKNE has released PUNCHDUST, a free character dynamics plugin that combines transient shaping, a reactive lo-fi texture effect, and upward compression. Honestly, this is a slightly weird combination of effects to put in one plugin. I wouldn’t typically pair grainy lo-fi texture with a transient shaper and an upward compressor, but that’s basically why I [...]
View post: PUNCHDUST is a FREE transient shaper with lo-fi dust and upward compression

Samplesonics releases OpenWav Media Browser, a FREE sample management system
From Samplesonics comes OpenWav Media Browser, a free sample management system for macOS, Windows, and Linux. I’ve always planned to use sample library organisers or managers more, but despite trying them over the years, I still end up with samples scattered all over my computer. Popular organising solutions include the ADSR Sample Manager and Waves [...]
View post: Samplesonics releases OpenWav Media Browser, a FREE sample management system

SOMA Laboratory launch the Enigma The latest instrument from SOMA Laboratory is said to be the first synthesizer in the world that is entirely controlled by the positioning and movement of metallic objects. 

Noise Trip Drive Collection brings 16 overdrive pedals to your DAW (30% OFF + extra BPB discount)
Noise Trip has released Drive Collection, a new plugin that brings 16 classic, modern, and rare guitar overdrive circuits to macOS and Windows. This is the debut release from Noise Trip, a solo independent plugin developer from England. Drive Collection is available at a 30% launch discount until September 9th, and BPB readers get an [...]
View post: Noise Trip Drive Collection brings 16 overdrive pedals to your DAW (30% OFF + extra BPB discount)

Jeesonic releases Metering Cockpit, a FREE loudness meter for macOS and Windows
Developer Jeesonic has released a free loudness meter for macOS and Windows, called Metering Cockpit. Loudness meters or analysers are rarely the first thing on our minds when we have some spare cash for plugins, but they are often the unsung hero of any music-maker’s workflow. Luckily for us, we don’t need to spend a [...]
View post: Jeesonic releases Metering Cockpit, a FREE loudness meter for macOS and Windows

The First Albums That Started It All for AllMusic’s Editors

Dummy Signs with Polyvinyl Record Co.Date Signed: March 2026Label: Polyvinyl Record Co.Band Members: Alex Ewell, drums, synths; Emma Maatman, vocals, synths, organ; Nathan O’Dell, vocals, guitar, organ; Joe Trainor, guitar, synths; Lance Umble, bassType of Music: Ambient RockManagement: Eric Mayers, Red Light Management - eric.mayers@redlightmanagement.comBooking: Geoff McGovern - Ground Control Touring, geoff@groundcontroltouring.com Legal: Paul SommersteinPublicity: Patrick Tilley / Pitch Perfect PR, patrick@pitchperfectpr.comA&R: Seth HubbardWeb: notdummy.com

For ambient rockers Dummy, making music a full-time endeavor wasn’t part of the original equation. “Our ambition was solely artistic,” asserts guitarist Joe Trainor. “The goal was just to make music we thought was cool, play some shows, and maybe put out a cassette.” 

And yet, through focusing on their craft, they earned the attention of Trouble In Mind Records. The husband-and-wife duo that founded the Chicago-based indie had discovered Dummy during the pandemic and decided to reach out. A conversation about likeminded artists ensued. “They were dweebs about music in the same way we were,” explains Trainor.

Two albums later, the couple shut down the label, leaving Dummy in the lurch. The band soldiered on and recorded a demo for their third LP, with Trainor assuming the duty of sending the tune to friends on labels they liked. One was Fred Thomas whose group, Saturday Looks Good To Me, is signed to Polyvinyl Record Co., home to artists such as Laura Jane Grace, Deerhoof, and The Get Up Kids. Thomas subsequently passed a note to the label’s cofounders, Darcie Knight and Matt Lunsford, informing them the band was a free agent.

As luck would have it, the label’s heads were already fans. For their part, Dummy’s members had been lovers of all things Polyvinyl for a long time. Trainor recalls discovering one of their leading artists, Rainer Maria, while he was still in high school. “In college, I was obsessed with all those records,” chimes in drummer Alex Ewell. “It was a dream label for us.”

Polyvinyl is much larger than Trouble In Mind, thus allowing the band greater financial resources for everything from longer studio sessions to lusher album packaging. “For the first time, we have a budget for music videos and stuff like that,” rambles Trainor with glee. 

The label is also putting out Dummy’s first two albums, Mandatory Enjoyment and Free Energy. Neither has been commercially available for approximately a year. Notes Trainor with gratitude, “We’re stoked that those records will be back in stores.”The post Dummy Signs with Polyvinyl Record Co. first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.