Italian Band Nu Genea Revives Neapolitan Funk and DiscoFrom Naples to the global stage, Neapolitan funk band Nu Genea is bringing Italy's disco-funk legacy out of the shadows.
The post Italian Band Nu Genea Revives Neapolitan Funk and Disco appeared first on Hypebot.

Music Tech Startup Finalists named in ASCAP Lab, Music Ally contestsTwo of the top startup contests focused on music have named their 2024 music tech startup finalists.
The post Music Tech Startup Finalists named in ASCAP Lab, Music Ally contests appeared first on Hypebot.

So, I decided to share a very interesting article, which in fact laid out what I have been saying for a very long time: not fans, but creators...and [#TikTok -owned pocket] music distributor to [their] own platform and to [other] DSPs as well... Now #MusicBusiness #MusicIndustry #majorlabels Warner starts a search to get its own #indie music distributor too

SPL announce P8 & Pre One preamps SPL's latest high-quality preamps both employ a discrete design that utilises individual transistors with no ICs. 

Native Instruments’ KOMPLETE Synthesizer Collection is $49 On Plugin Boutique
Plugin Boutique is currently running a great sale on a Native Instruments bundle. Until the end of October, you can grab the KOMPLETE Synthesizer Collection for only $49 and save 89%! The KOMPLETE Synthesizer Collection bundle includes 4 powerful synthesizer plugins that can be used in various music styles. Let’s take a closer look. Massive [...]
View post: Native Instruments’ KOMPLETE Synthesizer Collection is $49 On Plugin Boutique

“It’s like having a seasoned engineer in a classic analogue studio”: Universal Audio’s Topline Vocal Suite is a $399 vocal production plugin packed with pro presetsUniversal Audio has released Topline Vocal Suite, a one-stop-shop vocal production plugin that marries classic analogue effects with modern vocal tuning.
Released as part of the brand’s Constellations launch (featuring the new Apollo X Gen 2 audio interfaces), the plugin gives you all the tools necessary to record and mix professional vocals from a wide range of genres.

READ MORE: “Professors and mastering engineers were like, ‘What the fuck were you smokin’ man?’”: RZA on his Wu-Tang Clan production style

Topline Vocal Suite is like having a seasoned engineer in a classic analog studio, says UA. The interface is intuitive and modern, and you get more than 150 professional presets crafted by the engineers of Beyoncé, The Weeknd, U2, and more, letting you create radio-ready vocal mixes instantly.
The plugin boasts a powerful vocal tuner, which offers everything from “subtle, transparent correction” to bold robotic effects. With the integrated Topline Key Finder, users can quickly identify the key and scale of their tracks, streamlining the tuning process.
Universal Audio has also included a low-latency Live Mode which enables near-real-time processing, allowing artists to record pro-quality vocals on the fly or even use the plugin for live performances.
Image: Universal Audio
The suite doesn’t stop at pitch correction though; it also boasts a rich array of production tools and effects that give vocals an authentic, record-ready sound. Users can take advantage of vintage-style mic preamps, tape saturation, and a studio-grade compressor to add warmth and character to their recordings. The built-in EQ, meanwhile, includes an “Air” band for adding clarity without harshness. Classic reverb, delay, and modulation effects are also included in the multi-effects section.
At $399, the Topline Vocal Suite is most certainly not a budget option, though users who fancy UA’s latest “all-in-one vocal chain” can purchase it at a special introductory price of $199 from now till 31 December.

Learn more at Universal Audio.
The post “It’s like having a seasoned engineer in a classic analogue studio”: Universal Audio’s Topline Vocal Suite is a $399 vocal production plugin packed with pro presets appeared first on MusicTech.

“Everyone likes to hear the human voice – even if it’s a vocal chop or just a texture”: Why Ninajirachi loves experimenting with vocal elements in songsElectronic DJ and producer Ninajirachi has opened up about her production process and her love for including elements of the “human voice” in songs.
The 25-year-old musician speaks in the latest MusicTech digital cover, where she takes us through her new full-length release, girl EDM – disc 1, and the creative philosophies that underpin her work.

READ MORE: “In high school, I was making songs on my laptop that sounded fully professional”: Ninajirachi on the democratisation of music technology

Explaining her process, Nina says that she’s all about treating her vocals with a light touch: “It sounds really basic, but I love to use delay in interesting ways. Having the delay kind of pitch bend and then resampling that can often yield really interesting results,” she explains. “I also love to fully reverb out vocals and resample that.”
“I find having some element of vocal in every song makes it feel more familiar,” she adds. “Everyone likes to hear the human voice — even if it’s a vocal chop or just a texture.”
As a songwriter, Nina constantly draws inspiration from the world around her, capturing snippets of everyday life to infuse into her music.
“I’m voice memo-ing all the time,” she says. “I like to be surprised by stuff that I hear just going about my day. It’s so much fun.”
The musician also enjoys sampling her own tracks and breathing new life into familiar sounds. A prime example is Ninacamina, a collaboration with British-American producer Izzy Camina, which samples Tiankeng, an ambient cut from her 2022 release Second Nature. This track itself samples a snippet from a YouTube documentary about China’s Xiaozhai Tiankeng sinkhole.
“Sampling is so fun, because samples are so frequency rich,” she says. “You kind of put a whole song in one little bit of audio. And by doing that from my own discography, I also avoid any copyright problems.”
Also in the chat, Ninajirachi talks about her disappointing encounter with AI music generators in the studio, saying “we didn’t get anything good.”
The post “Everyone likes to hear the human voice – even if it’s a vocal chop or just a texture”: Why Ninajirachi loves experimenting with vocal elements in songs appeared first on MusicTech.

African nation of Eswatini releases design for tokenized retail CBDCThe tiny kingdom, formerly known as Swaziland, is looking at better domestic accessibility and cross-border trade with a proposed CBDC.

FTX’s Ryan Salame posts jokes on LinkedIn as he heads to prisonAfter the criminal implosion of the crypto exchange FTX, many of the company’s executives have been found guilty on various counts of fraud or conspiracy to commit such acts. Ryan Salame, the former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, is starting his seven-and-a-half-year fraud sentence today, but not before posting an all-time absurd LinkedIn post (and […]
© 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

Building A Sound Camera For Under $400[Benn Jordan] had an idea. He’d heard of motion amplification technology, where cameras are used to capture tiny vibrations in machinery and then visually amplify it for engineering analysis. This is typically the preserve of high-end industrial equipment, but [Benn] wondered if it really had to be this way. Armed with a modern 4K smartphone camera and the right analysis techniques, could he visually capture sound?
The video first explores commercially available “acoustic cameras” which are primarily sold business-to-business at incredibly high prices. However, [Benn] suspected he could build something similar on the cheap. He started out with a 16-channel microphone that streams over USB for just $275, sourced from MiniDSP, and paired it  with a Raspberry Pi 5 running the acoular framework for acoustic beamforming. Acoular analyses multichannel audio and visualizes them so you can locate sound sources. He added a 1080p camera, and soon enough, was able to overlay sound location data over the video stream. He was able to locate a hawk in a tree using this technique, which was pretty cool, and the total rig came in somewhere under $400.
The rest of the video covers other sound-camera techniques—vibration detection, the aforementioned motion amplification, and some neat biometric techniques. It turns out your webcam can probably detect your heart rate, for example.
It’s a great video that illuminates just what you can achieve with modern sound and video capture. Think SIGGRAPH-level stuff, but in a form you can digest over your lunchbreak. Video after the break.

[Thanks to ollie-p for the tip.]

Accentize unveil Chameleon Surround In response to significant user demand, Accentize have announced that Chameleon, their popular reverb-matching tool, is now available to those working in multi-channel surround and immersive formats. 

Africa-focused streaming service Mdundo hits 37.8m monthly active users, as paid subscription revenue jumps 112% in local currency termsThe company reported a revenue decline in fiscal 2023/24, amid weakness in African currencies
Source

Ticketmaster hit by ‘billions’ of bots in Oasis ticket sale, and 3 other things Michael Rapino said at Bloomberg’s Screentime eventThe Live Nation CEO criticized scalpers saying there shouldn't be "a middleman that has nothing invested in the business making any money from it."
Source

10 free sample packs for future house soundsAd feature with BandLab Sounds
As more and more boundary-pushing dance music enters the mainstream, artists like Ninajirachi are seeing success for their futuristic soundscapes, intricate rhythms, and shimmering textures. In this week’s free sample pack round-up, we’ve collected a selection of sounds perfect for those who want to channel that same energetic and experimental vibe.

READ MORE: Ninajirachi: “People love to ask artists how they’d describe their sound… I just want to surprise myself”

Whether you’re looking for glitchy percussion, glossy synths, or hyperpop-inspired vocal chops, these packs will help you freshen up classic noughties sounds and pave entirely new sonic pathways of your own.
Future Garage
Future Garage
Want to keep things strictly 130 BPM? This future garage pack features tons of dusty, foley-inspired loops to create off-kilter rhythms. You’ll also find deep and evolving bass sounds, ambient pads, and crunchy textures that strike a perfect balance between organic and synthetic.
Download Future Garage
Future Bass
Future Bass
Taking a cue from masterful sound designers such as Flume, these samples include ravey synth stabs, warped sonic texture, and attention-grabbing synths perfect for the festival stage. Alongside is a collection of hard-hitting drums and intense risers to get the energy flowing.
Download Future Bass
Future Glitch
Future Glitch
If you’re looking to get a bit weirder, the Future Glitch pack contains plenty of found sounds, synth phrases, and effects samples — all of which have been given a healthy dose of processing to turn them into something entirely new.
Download Future Glitch
Kawaii Future Bass
Kawaii Future Bass
From downsampled vocal chops to lush keys and whimsical lead lines, this future bass sample pack is heavily inspired by J-pop, video games, and anime. It’s perfect if you’re looking for a more upbeat and playful flavour.
Download Kawaii Future Bass
Kawaii Future Bass FX
Kawaii Future Bass FX
Building on the first Kawaii Future Bass sample pack, this collection provides all you need to transform your track into a detailed, release-ready production. Included are risers, foley-style percussion samples, and characterful ambience loops that deliver a nostalgic sound.
Download Kawaii Future Bass FX
Function Loops: Future Rave
Function Loops: Future Rave
It’s supersaw central with this Future Rave pack from Function Loops. Arpeggiated loops, dark textures, growling basslines, powerful 909 drum patterns — it’s all here, with a distinctly gritty, underground feel.
Download Function Loops: Future Rave
Cazzette
Cazzette
This high-energy sample pack from Swedish electronic producer Cazzette is brimming with aggressive sounds, featuring rumbling basslines, sharp metallic effects, and dynamic drum loops. Each sample is meticulously processed to bring out subtle details, ideal for crafting tracks to keep your listeners coming back for more.
Download Cazzette
Epic Stock Media: Fire Future Rave
Epic Stock Media: Fire Future Rave
Another pack that’s perfect for the main stage at an EDM festival, Fire Future Rave from Epic Stock Media offers up plenty of samples in the vein of tech and prog house. Want to get a bit heavier? There’s an abundance of low end here thanks to growling bass synths with a brostep flavour.
Download Epic Stock Media: Fire Future Rave
Tech House Vocals
Tech House Vocals
What floor-filling EDM anthem is complete without an earworm of a vocal hook? This pack features 105 samples, from spoken one-shots to longer melodic phrases — all of which have been run through distortion, autotune, and other characterful processing.
Download Tech House Vocals
Grimey Stutter House
Grimey Stutter House
This sample pack veers a little more leftfield, focusing mostly on synth loops that have been given a heavily percussive edge through liberal use of tremolo and rhythmic gating for a fluttering effect. You’ll also find minimal drums, analogue basslines, and eerie FX samples inside — perfect for that 3am warehouse set.
Download Grimey Stutter House
Driving Stutter House
Driving Stutter House
Serving up a more euphoric sound, this pack is inspired by the likes of Fred Again.. and Bunt, featuring highly rhythmic synths, pounding drums, and rolling basslines to keep the momentum going all night.
Download Driving Stutter House
[Editor’s note: MusicTech and BandLab are both part of the Caldecott Music Group.]
The post 10 free sample packs for future house sounds appeared first on MusicTech.

Musician’s Guide to LiveStreamingIn this Musician's Guide to LiveStreaming discover how to livestream with proven strategies used by successful musicians. Learn how to grow a fanbase, maximize revenue, increase visibility, and take full control of your virtual success.
The post Musician’s Guide to LiveStreaming appeared first on Hypebot.