Did Spotify just confirm that ‘superfan clubs’ are coming to its platform?Spotify appears to have revealed this information in a blog post
Source

Why is Pioneer DJ rebranding its products with the AlphaTheta name?Pioneer DJ’s parent company, AlphaTheta corporation, has determined that its new DJ-focused products will come with the AlphaTheta stamp, retiring the Pioneer DJ name.
READ MORE: Best DJ plugins of 2024: Free software and apps for DJing
On Pioneer DJ’s 30th anniversary (its inaugural 1994 release being the CDJ-500), it has announced its “new beginnings” as AlphaTheta. In a press release, the company says, “With products launching as AlphaTheta, we’ve created a brand that will propel us into the future, while also maintaining the quality and innovation that you’ve come to expect from us.”
Although the AlphaTheta Corporation has been the name of Pioneer DJ’s parent company since 2020, DJs online are perplexed by the origin of AlphaTheta. Pioneer D— er, AlphaTheta — sets the record straight: “The name AlphaTheta directly refers to the brain wave frequencies achieved in optimal performance. Music often guides us into these extremely powerful states of mind. Our aim is to use our innovative technologies in sound and music creation to enable and enrich these peak moments.”

New beginnings – One Through Music. Since the introduction of the CDJ-500 in 1994, Pioneer DJ has built a strong legacy of state-of-the-art products for professional DJs and a pathway for those beginning their DJ journey.
— AlphaTheta/Pioneer DJ Global (@PioneerDJglobal) January 23, 2024

The statement goes on to assure that “AlphaTheta embraces diversity and inclusion, and celebrates the playfulness of DJing and producing music. We look forward to growing alongside you, the community who are connected by a passion for music and its culture.”
The question is: why the change? Journalists and DJs have speculated — and poked fun at — the reason for the new branding.

YOU DARE CHALLENGE ME TO THE ALPHATHETA FORBIDDEN 4 DUEL?! pic.twitter.com/X7v8NL9hXq
— CONCENTRATES | DPMO (@Concentratesdub) January 24, 2024

DJTechTools has put together eight theories about the new name, and we presume these two to be most likely:
“Name Licensing? 10 Years Since Pioneer split off Pioneer DJ” – The original Pioneer brand, which is renowned for its home hi-fi products (I remember my Pioneer car stereo fondly), has been separated from the Pioneer DJ brand for “exactly a decade,” says DJTechTools. It seems likely that AlphaTheta wants to be its own brand entirely, particularly with its new acquisitions. It could also be a legal issue — AlphaTheta’s permission to use the name “Pioneer” may have come to an end.
“Their New Owners, including Serato DJ, and the acquisition” — In 2020, the AlphaTheta Corporation was sold to Japanese holding company, Noritsu. DJTechTools speculates that Noritsu is interested in a fresh start for the DJ conglomerate. And, with the pending acquisition of reputable DJ software brand Serato, Serato staff may be “have an easier time integrating into a company that is not so explicitly ‘Pioneer DJ’”, says DJTechTools.

pic.twitter.com/guoBZHQwNz
— Pioneer DJ JPN (@PioneerDJJPN) January 23, 2024

But what will the next generation of Pioneer DJ/AlphaTheta products look like? Time will tell, but a quick look online will show you that customers are yet to latch onto the name.
Read the full press release at Pioneer DJ.
The post Why is Pioneer DJ rebranding its products with the AlphaTheta name? appeared first on MusicTech.

Cranborne Audio unveil Carnaby HE2 Cranborne Audio's new HE2 combines two channels of their innovative Harmonic EQ circuitry with mid-side processing and remote control/setting recall from a DAW plug-in.

Searching for Superfans: Forget the numbers; concentrate on communityAs we continue Superfan Week on Hypebot, Janelle Borg weighs in with a piece on how Superfans are particularly important in this era of algorithms and a stark reminder that. Continue reading
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The crumbling of music media is a disaster for the music industry [Tatiana Cirisano]Tatiana Cirisano of MIDiA Research looks at the gutting of Pitchfork, the state of music reviews and music journalism, and its effects on the future of the music industry. by. Continue reading
The post The crumbling of music media is a disaster for the music industry [Tatiana Cirisano] appeared first on Hypebot.

NAMM 2024: Supercritical announces first ever desktop synthesizer, Redshift 6NAMM 2024: Supercritical, a new synthesizer manufacturer based in Finland, has launched its first ever desktop synthesizer – Redshift 6.
The brand says it has a “lush and warm sweet spot” inspired by analogue polysynth tradition, but it can also provide a range of tones from “almost digitally sterile” cleans, to chaotic distortion and beyond.

READ MORE: NAMM 2024: The hottest rumours and latest announcements from this year’s show

The filter core in Redshift 6 is an analogue four-pole state variable filter, digitally controlled to act like almost any classic vintage synthesizer filter. Additionally, it further packs in all the typical features expected of a modern synth, including plenty of modulators, flexible voice routing, multitimbrality, MPE, and DSP effects.
“Redshift 6’s idea is something that is wrapped in the moniker ‘Variable Character Synthesizer’”, says the brand. “Each voice’s analogue path regarding tuning, gain staging, filter, and more is under strict digital control.”
Technology from Supercritical’s previous products have made their way into Redshift 6. For example, its oscillator has already been “road-tested” in its Demon Core Oscillator Eurorack module, and is now featured in each of the six voices within the synth.
Users can also choose from traditional twin oscillator engines, supersaw engines, flanging phase sync engines, and transistor organ engines, all of which are easily controllable and modulatable.
You can also choose between true six-voice polyphony, a classic vintage poly dual layer mode with 3+3 voices, six individual voices each with their own patch and physical output, or any combination of the above. Each of the six voices can operate as a paraphonic voice with up to 16 note paraphony, and multiple filters can also be chained by routing audio from one voice to another.
Check out more in the video below:

Redshift 6 will be available this Summer 2024 for an MSRP of 1259€. Find out more and pre-order now over at Supercritical.
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How to book your first music festival gig

Festivals are a great way to acquire new fans and open doors to opportunities. Even if just 5% of a crowd of 5,000 loves what they see on stage, that’s.

Masterchannel launch Wez Clarke AI Wez Clarke AI is said to allow users to learn and achieve professional sound quality by experiencing the unique skills of Grammy-winning engineer Wez Clarke.

NAMM 2024: The Korg Grandstage X stage piano offers “unparalleled sound quality” with seven sound enginesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. For more information on how this works, see our terms of use.
NAMM 2024: Korg continues its efforts to be the bell of the ball at NAMM 2024 with its announcement of the Korg Grandstage X stage piano.

READ MORE: The hottest rumours and latest announcements from NAMM 2024

Far more than just a digital grand piano, the Grandstage X acts as an elegantly modern-looking, sleek centrepiece for the stage with its aluminium-crafted white ivory-style body. This, says Korg, houses an intuitive piano offering “unparalleled sound quality”. It ships in June and you can pre-order it now on Thomann.
Credit: Korg
The Korg Grandstage X boasts seven specialised sound engines, each playing a distinct role. The SGX-2 engine delivers authentic acoustic piano sounds, while the EP-1 focuses on vintage electric piano tones. The AL-1 provides analogue modelling for a range of leads and brass sounds.
Dedicated to tonewheel organs, the CX-3 engine replicates classic organ characteristics while the Vox Organ and FC-1 engines recreate the unique sounds of transistor organs. Additionally, the HD-1 PCM Sound Engine enriches the sonic palette with a variety of keyboard sounds, from electric grands to harpsichords and pipe organs.

In terms of design, the Korg Grandstage X’s intuitive layering, splitting, and Real Weighted Hammer Action keyboard accurately capture all your nuances while playing like with an acoustic grand piano. Nutube technology provides analogue-like sound conditioning, and the Unison function adds depth.
As NAMM Show 2024 kicks off tomorrow, we expect Korg’s stall to receive some major attraction from those attending the event. That’s because the Japanese brand has announced not just the Grandstage X, but also the long-awaited MicroKORG 2, the Opsix MKII, the KR-11 mini rhythm box, new additions to its Nu:Tekt DIY kit range, a new portable turntable called the Handytraxx Play, and loads more.
Other big announcements that have arrived in time for NAMM include Yamaha’s new SEQTRACK, Audient’s new ORIA all-in-one controller for immersive mixing setups, and Sennheiser’s new flagship reference headphone pair, the HD 490 Pro.
The Grandstage X will start shipping in June 2024 and costs $2,961/£2,333.
Find out more at Korg.
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Leaked photos suggest an Akai MPC Key 37 is on the way just in time for NAMMIt looks like a new compact Akai product is on the way, as leaked photos of a small MPC with 37 keys have surfaced online.
Fans are speculating that these photos suggest an Akai MPC Key 37 is likely to land this weekend in time for The NAMM Show, and that it will arrive in a vibrant red finish.

READ MORE: NAMM 2024: The hottest rumours and latest announcements from this year’s show

Two photos of what looks to be the AKAI MPC Key 37 appeared on Reddit earlier this week (22 January). One photograph showed a collection of boxes on a cart with Akai MPC Key 27 written on them, whereas in the second was a blurry capture of the instrument itself, which is a vibrant red colour (via Gear News). This finish was introduced with the MPC One+ last year.
Just yesterday, another photo appeared in higher resolution. Information on exact specifications is of course not yet available as Akai remains tight lipped, but it’s likely to come at a lower price point due to its compact size. You can view the photos below:
Akai MPC Keys 37 spotted byu/ElVerdaderoGatoFiero inmpcusers

High resolution MPC Keys 37 leak byu/Makaveli4ever1 inmpcusers

 
The MPC One+ landed in May 2023, hosting AIR’s Juno-60-inspired plugin, wifi and Bluetooth capabilities and increased storage. It arrived just a week after the launch of Ableton’s standalone Push, and its glossy red finish was launched to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the MPC series.
The NAMM Show is taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center this weekend (25 and 28 January), and a multitude of new products have been announced as a result. These including the new microKorg – due to land this June – Audient’s new ORIA interface which prioritises immersive audio workflows, and even the new SEQTRACK from Yamaha.
MusicTech has reached out to Akai for comment. Head to the official Akai website to view its full product range, or find out more on the latest product announcements over at our NAMM 2024 hub.
The post Leaked photos suggest an Akai MPC Key 37 is on the way just in time for NAMM appeared first on MusicTech.

Spotify calls Apple’s new 27% fee hike for developers “outrageous”Apple recently announced it will be charging a steep 27% in transaction fees for developers steering customers away from the Apple Store. Spotify has since raised its concerns, calling the plan “outrageous”.
The fees were officially announced on Friday 19 January, in correspondence to Apple’s long-standing legal debate with Epic Games. While a huge success for Apple, this new law warrants a threat to competitive business. Right now, Apple’s system is costing some of the biggest developers up to 30% and small developers around 15%.

READ MORE: NAMM 2024: The hottest rumours and latest announcements from this year’s show

In response to these numbers, Spotify says: “Once again, Apple has demonstrated that they will stop at nothing to protect the profits they exact on the backs of developers and consumers under their app store monopoly.” 
It adds: “We strongly urge UK lawmakers to pass the bill swiftly to prevent Apple from implementing similar fees, which will help create a more competitive and innovative tech industry for UK consumers and businesses.”
Spotify isn’t the only developer to speak out, with the CEO of Epic Games, Tim Sweeney, writing to Twitter, that the changes were of “bad faith”. The Coalition for App Fairness Executive Director Rick VanMeter also expressed his feelings, stating that he felt, “these changes do nothing to enhance consumer choice”. 

Apple filed a bad-faith "compliance" plan for the District Court's injunction. It totally undermines the order allowing “buttons, external links, or other calls to action that direct customers to purchasing mechanisms, in addition to IAP”.https://t.co/ofbuMwe7SH
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) January 16, 2024

While Spotify has vented its frustrations against the fee spike, it doesn’t exactly have the most consumer-friendly track record either. The streaming platform was not long ago criticised for its streaming law that stated artists needed 1k streams to receive royalties for their music. Even with that said, when those royalties are earned, the maximum take-away unit was stated to be as low as $0.003 per stream.
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NUSofting Releases Free Glitch Pad Synth Beta For Windows
NUSofting’s new Glitch Pad experimental synthesizer plugin is now in free public beta for Windows until the end of March. Glitch Pad public beta is currently available in VST2 and VST3 formats for 64-bit Windows.  NUSofting’s full-release plugins typically feature a Windows and Mac release, so Mac users will probably be able to get in [...]
View post: NUSofting Releases Free Glitch Pad Synth Beta For Windows

How Cut Chemist builds the Tunnel Vision audiovisual showThe term ‘Tunnel Vision’ is historically associated with limitation — ignoring any and all possibilities other than what is right in front of you.

READ MORE: The indomitable Jonna Lee: Building the audiovisual dream of iamamiwhoami

However, to revered West-coast DJ, record producer, and turntablist, Cut Chemist, the term ‘Tunnel Vision’ means the opposite. It represents an endless foray into musical and technological exploration and serves as the title of his personally curated audiovisual show that unites artists of myriad specialities.
“[Tunnel Vision] is bridging people who haven’t played together, like Edan, Shortkut, and Boss Harmz. Those three have never been in the same room together, and I think that they all have something unique that I want to share with an audience,” says Cut Chemist, real name Lucas MacFadden. “The most incredible artists I know; get them in a room together and see what happens.”
On January 26, 2024, MacFadden will get fellow stalwart DJs Edan, Shortkut, and Boss Harmz in a room together for the first Tunnel Vision show in over 11 years. All three will perform their own sets alongside two sets from MacFadden.
DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist performing in 2014. Image: Rick Kern/WireImage via Getty Images
He will helm a standard DJ set as well as his Sound of the Police set, in which he uses a single turntable and a loop pedal to make sample-based music from classic African and Latin records. To close the night, the four of them (and possibly some special guests) will convene at the end for a joint session.
On top of all the music, visual maestro Tom Fitzgerald will be running live visuals for every set, making custom images out of his extensive collection of niche films.
The initial rendition of Tunnel Vision was a five-stop tour throughout the west coast of the United States. Like the upcoming show, various artists performed including the drummer and experimental musician Deantoni Parks, and rappers like Mr Lif and Myka 9 (all of whom worked on MacFadden’s second album, 2018’s Die Cut).
In 2012, MacFadden also hosted an edition of Tunnel Vision at the Bear Tooth Theaterpub in Anchorage, Alaska. This time he performed with his fellow member of the LA rap outfit, Jurassic 5, and MC extraordinaire, Chali 2na.
Cut Chemist performing live. Image: Cut Chemist
The only consistent aspect of Tunnel Vision — besides MacFadden on the decks — is Fitzgerald. He has provided visuals for every Tunnel Vision event, and his longstanding dynamic with MacFadden is the launchpad for the exploration happening among all the other artists at these unique shows.
In truth, the name Tunnel Vision stuck because of Fitzgerald. MacFadden had been using the vocal sample found in the trailer for Tunnel Vision events for years, and Fitzgerald just happened to have the 1976 movie, Tunnel Vision, where the sample originates.
“[Fitzgerald] is a film digger as I am a music and record digger,” MacFadden says.
According to an episode of Fuse’s Crate Diggers MacFadden had a collection of over 30,000 thousand records back in 2012 (probably adding thousands more since then), and he is assured that Fitzgerald’s collection of films and visual media is equally vast.
Cut Chemist performing with live visuals in the background. Image: Cut Chemist
Years ago, Fitzgerald sold obscure movies and bootleg DVDs under the name Pimpadelic Wonderland. There is no longer a central site under this name flaunting a catalogue (except for a user-compiled Letterboxd with almost 1,000 titles), but there are remnants of the idiosyncratic moniker all over the internet.
From a mention on IMDb found in a defunct IFC article detailing the rarely-seen fictional films by photographer William Klein, to a DVD available on eBay for almost $50 bearing the name on the sleeve, to a YouTube video of MacFadden performing alongside Fitzgerald in which they are referred to as ‘Cut Chemist and Pimpadelic Wonderland’, Fitzgerald’s professorial knowledge of film is widespread.
“[DJ Shadow] and I used to buy these radio spots which were movie commercials on 45, and they’re just like B-movies from the 70s. You’ve never heard of them. Complete obscurity, and 90 per cent of the time Tom would be like ‘I have that movie’,” MacFadden says. “He has the digger state of mind, only he uses it for film now. So, he was just talking in my language, but in his dialect. It was like I was talking to myself in a parallel universe.”
DJ Shadow (left) and Cut Chemist (right) performing in 2014. Image: Rick Kern/WireImage via Getty Images
MacFadden and Fitzgerald first connected in 2005 when MacFadden hired Fitzgerald to do visuals for the first show of the tour for his debut solo album, The Audience’s Listening.
MacFadden’s goal was to provide the audience with something they didn’t expect, both in terms of the visuals and the music. Something that stretched the idea of what an audiovisual set from a DJ could be, and he was more than impressed with Fitzgerald’s ability to deliver.
Not only did the material have the right kind of suggestive edge, but Fitzgerald’s performance matched MacFadden’s technologically as well.
Instead of using animation, graphics, and other modern visual media to create images from scratch, Fitzgerald cut together clips of his massive film library while MacFadden overlaid snippets from his massive collection of music.
Cut Chemist performing with live visuals in the background. Image: Cut Chemist
“It’s preexisting material reconceptualised and rearranged into something that creates an all-new narrative. It basically is exactly the same thing that I do,” MacFadden says.
From there, Fitzgerald became MacFadden’s resident visual artist whenever he toured. They travelled everywhere together — whether for a Tunnel Vision event, a solo show, or when they were the opening act for Shakira when she toured hockey rings around Europe in 2007.
As they played more shows, their relationship shifted towards technological innovation, and together they created an element to the live space that never existed before: scratching visual recordings of the crowd.
MacFadden had been experimenting with scratching audio from the crowd before this. He would run up to the audience, record them on the mic, burn that recording to a CD, and then put it in a CDJ to scratch with the same prowess he applied to vinyl. This was the finale of his show.
Cut Chemist onstage with a turntable. Image: Cut Chemist
But he had never done it with visuals before. Plus, in the mid-00s, the technology to do something like that was just starting to emerge. They initially tried an early version of the controller software Miss Pinky, but the latency was subpar. Then Pioneer DJ released the DVJ series, which allowed for the same function as a CDJ but with video files.
After Pioneer sent two DVJs to MacFadden, they would take Fitzgerald’s hefty over-the-shoulder video camera, film the audience, send that signal to a DVD burner, and use that DVD in the DVJ to scratch what they had just recorded.
At first, the mic on the camera wasn’t powerful enough to capture the sound as well, so they had to record the audience with the camera, which was connected directly to the DVD burner alongside a separate mic connected to the mixer. Then they rigged the signal from the mixer to enter the DVD burner and recorded that.
That process worked for them, but then they had to deal with imbalanced burning times on the DVD. When they recorded five minutes of footage and audio, it would take a half hour or longer to burn the DVD, which led to a few flops on stage. So from there, they would burn pre-existing blank space on the DVDs which allowed them to record however much they needed with a burn time of only a few minutes.
After numerous tries, they got the process to work.

“We took something that doesn’t exist by putting all these pieces together like Professor from Gilligan’s Island and making it happen,” MacFadden says.
They were recording the crowd at the Shakira shows in Europe and projecting the faces on the jumbotrons in the hockey arenas. The visual scratching was also the finale at every Tunnel Vision show as well.
Now for the first Tunnel Vision show in over a decade, MacFadden and Fitzgerald are figuring out how to bring this process into 2024. MacFadden mentions that everyone’s phone camera produces both video and audio that could work, and people in the audience could airdrop it to his computer. He also considers the idea of mirroring the images from a phone to the projector.
Cut Chemist performing live. Image: Cut Chemist
The truth is, MacFadden doesn’t want to replicate the same function he was implementing almost 20 years ago. He wants to use the same DIY spirit to engage with technology and, once again, create something completely new.
“If it exists we don’t want it. It’s boring,” MacFadden says.
“I’m excited to do a show with my friends who are creative geniuses, and I look forward to presenting something that will be a lovely trainwreck.”
The post How Cut Chemist builds the Tunnel Vision audiovisual show appeared first on MusicTech.

Roland present Bridge Cast X Dual Bus Streaming Mixer & Video Capture A dynamic addition to their expanding Bridge Cast line-up, designed for online gaming and livestreaming enthusiasts.

NAMM 2024: Arturia Pigments 5 is a free upgrade to an awesome synth pluginWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. For more information on how this works, see our terms of use.
NAMM 2024: Arturia’s back with Pigments 5, the free update to its revered wavetable software synth. What’s new? Alongside better CPU optimisation and a new interface comes some nifty features including a generative sequencer, the ability to run external audio through Pigments and, of course, a ton of new presets.
For existing Pigments users, the best part about Arturia’s update to its polychrome soft synth is that version 5 is completely free. And, if you’re not already a user, there’s still some good news: it’s available at 50 per cent off during its introductory offer.
READ MORE: NAMM 2024: The hottest rumours and latest announcements from this year’s show
But before you hit buy, let’s check out the details.

The new Utility engine seems pretty cool. This now allows you to process other sounds and instruments through Pigments’ synth engine and effects units. Maybe you’re happy with the effects plugins you’ve already got, but this is a nice touch to add some unique character to your sounds.
Meanwhile, Pigments’ new generative sequencer is primed for creativity, with a one-click approach to creating sequencing, saveable presents, and new play modes.
The most noticeable update is the Play view, which looks more modern compared to previous versions and boasts a spectral visualiser. You can also whittle this view down to show you only the macro controls, which will be a boon for live performances.
Arturia Pigments 5 Play view. Image: Arturia
Alongside a selection of new waveatables, which will help you create more intriguing sounds, Arturia has packed more presets into Pigments 5. How many more presets? 100. That’ll do, right? If not, you can pick up the three new expansion packs that Arturia is offering on release which “showcase a range of bold, colourful and expansive sounds”, says the French brand.
And, of course, this version of Pigments should be a little lighter on your computer — though, frankly, it was never that much of a burden on your processor. Now, though, it makes use of multi-core processing which will be much more efficient.
Arturia Pigments 5 main GUI. Image: Arturia
Our review of Pigments 5 will be coming through soon but, honestly, we’ve been massive fans of the synth in the past. Not only did it pick up a few 10/10  reviews in its previous versions, but it was even crowned at Soft Synth Of The Year in 2021 and 2020, with a nomination in 2019. 9098jnn
As mentioned, existing Pigments users can cop this for free. If you’re keen to get in on the action, now might actually be the best time. You can buy it for $99, which is a huge drop from the original asking price of $199. Check out the deal at Plugin Boutique and Arturia.
Stay up to date with more news from NAMM 2024. 
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