French regulators step in to remove roadblock for possible Warner Music Group bid for BelieveBelieve's board turned to the AMF to adjudicate whether a particular move by a consortium led by Believe founder/CEO, Denis Ladegaillerie, was lawful
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New Pens For Old PlottersFinding consumables is an ever-present problem facing anyone working with old computer hardware. Many of these devices ceased manufacture decades ago and what old stock remains is invariably degraded by time. [Retrohax] has encountered it with the pens for an Atari plotter, a machine that uses an ALPS mechanism that appears in more than one 1980s machine. The original pens had dried out beyond the ability to refill, so he takes us through the process of finding replacements.
Sadly there are no equivalent modern pens ripe for modification, so whatever replacement he used would have to involve a little lateral thinking. He thought salvation was at hand in the form of multicolor ballpoint refills of the type where the ink is in an easily cuttable plastic tube. [Retrohax] and was able to make a 3D-printed holder for a cut-down ballpoint refill. Sadly the pressure required for a good line from a ballpoint was much higher than the original pens, so he was back to square one. Then he happened upon gel pens and tried the same trick with a gel pen refill. This gave instant success and should provide a valid technique for more than just this ALPS mechanism.
If you haven’t got a classic plotter to hand, never fear. You can have a go at making your own.

Getting It Done – The Week in D.I.Y & Indie MusicThis week, our tips and advice for all the independent, do-it-yourselfers covered how to cure imposter syndrome, a quick Spotify profile refresh, how songwriters get paid, and much more......
The post Getting It Done – The Week in D.I.Y & Indie Music appeared first on Hypebot.

REWIND – New Music Industry’s Week In Review: TikTok ban, bot farms, Pandora royalties, Music Cities & more!t was another busy week by any definition, and the music industry was no exception, with more talk on the TikTok ban, the capabilities of bot farms, and more.....
The post REWIND – New Music Industry’s Week In Review: TikTok ban, bot farms, Pandora royalties, Music Cities & more! appeared first on Hypebot.

Nelson at the Canyon, MontclairHaving never attended a show at the Canyon, Montclair before, this writer wasn't quite prepared for how surreal an experience it would be. First of all, it's located inside of a mall. Not a strip mall, but a full-on mall with a Macy's, Victoria's Secret, etc. At least that means there's plenty of parking, but it still feels weird when you take an escalator by Macy's and make a turn into a music venue.

Once in the venue, you're faced with a choice between being seated at a table and ordering a compulsory, expensive meal or taking your chances with general access. It's all a bit "dinner theater," and isn't particularly conducive for rock & roll.

That said, Nelson's crowd isn't particularly rowdy. The twin sibling rockers, the children of Ricky Nelson and Kristin Nelson, put on a great show that weighed heavily on their 1990 smash debut After the Rain.

The entire band was in fine form as they blasted through gems like "Fill You Up," and "After the Rain." Guitarist Neil Zaza soloed himself into a frenzy and, despite the seated crowd offering little in the way of energy, Matthew and Gunnar Nelson overcame the odd surroundings and allowed us to recall the days when their flowing blonde locks were all over MTV.

They have a sense of humor about their image; they were selling t-shirts that parody a classic Nirvana shirt -- the iconic smiley face blessed with Nelson's hair. Between songs, they talk about their early days, performing new wave at Madam Wong's club and attracting the attention of punk bands such as the Germs.

But ultimately, we wanted to hear the classics and Nelson delivered. "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection" sounded immense, even on this stage. Nelson, it seems, can overcome just about anything.

Hit’n’Mix RipX DAW updated The latest version of RipX DAW introduces a range of new features along with some improvements and bug fixes.

Atomos Space’s first mission on orbit is a trial by fireThe company has faced two main issues related to communications and the spacecraft rotation rate — and it’s largely solved both those problems.
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Album Review: "Young Love & Saturday Nights" by Chris Young (9/10)A generous 18 track, straight-to-the-point Contemporary Country album with just the right amount of Pop and nostalgia to invoke personal memories. A “play-all-the-way-through” experience, as long as you can resist repeating party track 7 “Double Down.”

From movie-ready “All Dogs go to Heaven” to “Gettin Older”, a coming of age trip through familiar yet creative songwriting. Despite the heavy use of auto-tune and strict quantization, Chris Young is a singer/songwriter's singer with contagious hooks and rhythmic lyrics.

A solid 9 out of 10 for Young Love & Saturday Nights

From the ‘secret’ composer behind 650 fake artists to BandLab’s 100m users… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-UpThis week's biggest stories...
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4 versatile songwriting tips from L’FREAQ
In celebration of her new sample pack, L’FREAQ sat down with us to share five versatile tips around songwriting.

YouTuber Builds Onewheel With Tracks Instead And It’s Not GreatThe one-wheel is a triumph of modern sensor and control technology. That made it possible to sense the acceleration and position of a platform with a single wheel, and to control that single wheel to keep the platform stable and level, even in motion. [RCLifeOn] has now taken that same concept and made it more hilarious by swapping out the wheel for a track.
The original idea was to build an electric snowboard, which worked just okay. Then, it morphed into a tank-based one-wheel instead. It’s a bit silly on the face of it, because a track is more stable than a wheel. That’s because instead of balancing on a small flattened spot of a tire, it’s got a wider, flatter footprint. But that means there’s no real need for balancing control as the track is statically stable.
The 3D-printed track assembly is driven by a powerful brushless motor via a gear drive for additional torque. Riding it is difficult on 48-volt power as it easily throws [RCLifeOn] off the board with its raw torque. At 24 volts, however, it was just barely ridable with some practice. But it was ultimately pretty terrible. It was either not moving at all, or jerking so hard that it was impossible to stay on the thing.
We’d like to see this concept tried again, perhaps with a rubber track and a more refined controller. Video after the break.

BandLab hits “pivotal moment” as it surpasses 100 million users worldwideMusic creation platform BandLab has surpassed 100 million users worldwide, marking a “pivotal moment” for the brand and its future.
BandLab was founded in 2015 with the aim to break down the technical, geographic, and creative barriers for musicians and fans. The vast number of BandLab users “means more diversity, more creativity, and more voices” are being heard across the globe, according to the brand.

READ MORE: All the best free loops, music sample packs, breaks, one-shots and synth sounds

Speaking of the new milestone, BandLab CEO Meng Ru Kuok says to Bloomberg: “It’s funny when you get to these large milestones, especially something like 100 million, which is slightly hard to fathom in terms of the scale of the number. I think that’s just the result of how fast things have grown.
“Seeing artists go on to major labels and independent labels is a great, great joy and success for us,” Kuok adds. “Our relationship with an artist doesn’t end when they progress in the industry.”
BandLab adds in a press release: “This story is not just about a number; it’s about the next generation of music creators”. The platform is also set to continue its commitment to “free, innovative” tools to empower creators as it continues to grow year-over-year. Currently, people in the US account for around 30 per cent of BandLab’s users and represent its largest market.

The news follows from comments made by BandLab CEO Meng Ru Kuok in December 2023 when he shared his belief that there will eventually be “over one billion music creators by 2030, potentially even sooner”.
At the time, he told Music Business Worldwide: “I also believe the definition of a ‘music creator’ or ‘musician’ will change, just as the definition of a ‘photographer’ has changed with the advent of smartphones. That is to say, hopefully we can and will both be right.”
In January, the platform launched BandLab Licensing, a new programme to help users monetise their music, all while allowing them to retain full artistic control. It offers a comprehensive licensing solution, covering synchronisation for film, TV, games, and advertising, along with extending streaming licences for exclusive, rights-cleared content.
Find out more about BandLab.
[Editor’s note: BandLab and MusicTech are both part of Caldecott Music Group]
The post BandLab hits “pivotal moment” as it surpasses 100 million users worldwide appeared first on MusicTech.

Build Yourself a Vacuum Tube VU MeterVolume unit (VU) meters are cool — it’s an undeniable fact. For some reason, humans just dig lights that flash along with sounds. You can build a VU meter using LEDs, or bulbs if you’re trapped in 1972. Or, you could use special vacuum tubes. [mircemk] did just that in their latest VU meter project.
The 6E2 vacuum tube is the part for the job in this case. You might think a specialist tube like this is expensive, but they can be had for just a few dollars from online retailers. They were often used as tuning indicators, but here, they’re used as a responsive VU meter instead. However, instead of a single bar going up and down, you get a pair of bars that raise to meet in the middle.
[mircemk] explains all the circuitry required to drive the tubes, and how to hook them up to create a two-channel stereo VU meter. The final circuit largely relies on a transistor, a diode, some passive components, and a DC-DC boost supply to generate 250 V for the tubes.
The final result looks pretty neat, particularly as it’s built into an old-school blue project box. We’ve seen similar projects from [mircemk] before, too.

Aodyo Instruments launch Loom Kickstarter campaign Aodyo Instruments have launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of an MPE-capable MIDI ribbon controller.

ZL Audio Releases FREE ZL Equalizer Dynamic Equalizer Plugin
ZL Audio launched the ZL Equalizer, a freeware 16-band dynamic equalizer plugin for Linux, macOS, and Windows. You can install the open-source plugin by downloading the correct installer for your OS from the ZL Audio GitHub page. Until recently, it was easy to recommend TDR Nova as the best freeware dynamic EQ. Competition is always [...]
View post: ZL Audio Releases FREE ZL Equalizer Dynamic Equalizer Plugin