Universal Audio’s FREE Luna DAW is now on Windows, too!
Universal Audio announced its analogue-inspired Luna digital audio workstation is now finally available for Windows as a free beta.  Luna was previously only available for macOS users with Universal Audio Apollo interfaces, but now the developer has made it available for all Windows and Mac users.  As development progresses and Luna becomes compatible with both [...]
View post: Universal Audio’s FREE Luna DAW is now on Windows, too!

Steve Albini’s four-hour Mix with the Masters lesson is now available to watch for freeEarlier this month, the music world mourned the loss of legendary recording engineer Steve Albini, who passed away due to a heart attack at his Chicago studio, Electrical Audio.
In a tribute to Albini’s extraordinary life and career, online recording school Mix with the Masters (MWTM) has released the whole four hours of the engineer’s masterclass for free on their YouTube channel.

READ MORE: “A listening experience unlike any other”: Sonos’s eagerly awaited launch into the headphone market is here – meet Sonos Ace

Filmed at Studios La Fabrique, the video offers an in-depth walkthrough of Albini’s work with the English rock band, Rat The Magnificent. In the demonstration session, Albini shares his complete recording process, best practices, as well as his philosophies on music and creativity.
“I’m going to show you my normal working methods and procedures for recording mixing and finally producing a finished stereo master for an analogue recording session,” the engineer opens the session.
Whether you’re a fan, musician, or studio professional, the tutorial offers amazing insights into Albini’s recording techniques, covering everything from guitars and bass to vocals and his distinctive drum sound. You get tips on microphone selection and placement, along with valuable advice on tuning and dampening drums “in a reversible manner”. The producer also reveals some of the secrets to achieving the coveted ‘Albini sound’.
In particular, the session should prove highly useful for anyone looking to capture traditional rock band instrumentation using Albini’s ‘sound-in-the-room’ methodology. The video also includes a new Q&A segment featuring Electrical Audio engineer Greg Norman and longtime collaborator Tim Midyett.
Watch the full lesson below.

The post Steve Albini’s four-hour Mix with the Masters lesson is now available to watch for free appeared first on MusicTech.

US House approves FIT21 crypto bill with bipartisan supportDemocratic and Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act.

Meta’s new AI council is comprised entirely of white menMeanwhile, women and people of color are disproportionately impacted by irresponsible AI.
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Passive Diplexer Makes One Antenna Act Like TwoStay in the amateur radio hobby long enough and you might end up with quite a collection of antennas. With privileges that almost extend from DC to daylight, one antenna will rarely do everything, and pretty soon your roof starts to get hard to see through the forest of antennas. It may be hell on curb appeal, but what’s a ham to do?
One answer could be making one antenna do the work of two, as [Guido] did with this diplexer for dual APRS setups. Automatic Packet Reporting System is a packet radio system used by hams to transmit telemetry and other low-bandwidth digital data. It’s most closely associated with the 2-meter ham band, but [Guido] has both 2-meter (144.8-MHz) and 70-cm LoRa (433.775-MHz) APRS IGates, or Internet gateway receivers. His goal was to use a single broadband discone antenna for both APRS receivers, and this would require sorting the proper signals from the antenna to the proper receiver with a diplexer.
Note that [Guido] refers to his design as a “duplexer,” which is a device to isolate and protect a receiver from a transmitter when they share the same antenna — very similar to a diplexer but different. His diplexer is basically a pair of filters in parallel — a high-pass filter tuned to just below the 70-cm band, and a low-pass filter tuned just above the top of the 2-m band. The filters were designed using a handy online tool and simulated in LTSpice, and then constructed in classic “ugly” style. The diplexer is all-passive and uses air-core inductors, all hand-wound and tweaked by adjusting the spacing of the turns.
[Guido]’s diplexer performs quite well — only a fraction of a dB of insertion loss, but 45 to 50 dB attenuation of unwanted frequencies — pretty impressive for a box full of caps and coils. We love these quick and dirty tactical builds, and it’s always a treat to see RF wizardry in action.

Key Songs In The Life Of… Max LousadaMBW hands our turntable over to Max Lousada, Global CEO of Recorded Music at Warner Music Group
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Cruel World 2024Cruel World 2024 celebrated its third birthday at Brookside Park at Pasadena’s Rose Bowl.

Mother Nature hit last year’s festival as a lightning storm forced the show mid-way though Iggy Pop’s main-stage performance.  This year there were no natural disasters jeopardizing the event – just new wave massiveness and some big “firsts” that many didn’t think would ever happen. The lightning was all on stage – Duran Duran, Blondie, Simple Minds, Adam Ant, and two dozen other acts lit up Pasadena with their timeless musical energy.  With 3 stages and 30 or so bands spread across them, some hard decisions had to be made in order for even the most hardcore new wave fan to see all their faves on stage. 

Attendees are still talking about the “firsts” that they witnessed on the Cruel World stages.  Gary Numan was the initial act to deliver as he treated the fans to a rare performance of his 1979 debut album “The Pleasure Principle.” Numan strategically executed a very different and unique set compared to his Cruel World performance last year.  In typical Gary Numan fashion, he exploded on stage and poured out the energy and brilliance that you come to expect at his shows.

Cure and Siousxie fans clawed their way to the Sad Girls stage to witness a one-of-a-kind performance by Lol Tolhurst x Budgie – former drummers from The Cure and Siouxsie & The Banshees / The Creatures.  The dynamic drumming duo cunningly performed their distinctive and quirky set with pre-recorded vocals and a handful of guest vocalists.  It was a truly standout and innovative production that may never happen again.

Ministry - in what seemed to be the surprise festival highlight - took over the Outsiders stage.  This time, the Chicago wax-trackers did not deliver the expected guitar onslaught; instead the band assaulted fans with synth-pop.  Yes, it really happened! In a daring move, Al Jourgensen, along with a 13 piece band, performed music from the first two Ministry albums, 1983’s With Sympathy and 1986’s Twitch, which Jourgensen had vowed to never perform again in his lifetime. 

Tones On Tail ended the firsts with the only proper and stand alone Tones On Tail show since 1984.  Even with original bass player Glen Campling not taking part for reasons unknown, this was a big deal to fans of Bauhaus and its universe. With Daniel Ash, drummer Kevin Haskins and his daughter Diva Dompe on bass, the trio delivered the dark and gloomy goods - Go, Twist, Performance, Ok This Is The Pops, Lions and There’s Only One.

Goldenvoice has done an incredible job evolving and maturing the Cruel World Festival year after year.  Not only do they know their target audience, but the promoter has figured out how to open this niche up to a new generation of music fans by keeping the spirit alive with a modern touch.  The diverse lineups on the three stages now include a handful of contemporary artists that would please even the most critical Gen Xer. The pride of Nebraska - The Faint, and California Super-Group - Dream Car dazzled attendees at the Outsiders stage while New York Innovators - Interpol headlined the Sad Girls stage later that evening.

In classic Pasadena style, the weather was perfect for an all-day music festival.  The music started early and continued without a glitch – nearly 12 hours of non-stop performances.

The Motels kicked off my day.  Martha Davis took over the stage and proved she still has the voice and the heart that catapulted her to the top of the early 80’s L.A. music scene. The band delivered a powerful set with all the hits you would hope for - Where Do We Go From Here, Suddenly Last Summer, Take The L, andof course Only The Lonely.

Currently on their 50th anniversary tour, The Stranglers, who are down to just one original member, brought the audience to its feet early in the afternoon.  Original bassist Jean-Jacques Burnel is still going strong and continues to offer fans sweet pop songs with an early punk attitude like Golden Brown and Always The Sun. 

Dave Wakeling returned to Cruel World, this time with General Public.  Wakeling’s first visit was with The English Beat at the very first Cruel World Fest in 2022.  These days, it seems that the band names and the songs are interchangeable, but the hits are consistent - Never You Done That, Tenderness, Mirror In The Bathroom, and Save It For Later.

Following the secret Viper Room warm up show as “Blood Brothers UK” that kicked off their recent leg of their 2024 tour, The Mission UK reminded fans of their power to mix the dark moods of early ‘80s goth with colorful melodies, proving they are just as good today as they were 30 years ago.  The post-punk innovators retuned to Southern California and delivered a high-energy set featuring crowd pleasers such Tower of Strength, Severina, Wasteland and Deliverance.

In a rare daylight performance, The Jesus And Mary Chain dazzled the fans with their unique blend of pop hooks and shattering feedback.  Despite equipment problems that brought on some strong sibling stares, the Scottish bothers Reid poured out their hearts and the hits - Happy When It Rains, Head On, Some Candy Talking, In A Hole and Just Like Honey.

Simple Minds took the stage in their first US show in 6 years.  Vocalist Jim Kerr’s performance and energy just got bigger and better as the show went on.  At one point Kerr yelled out, “We don’t want to go home.”  Waterfront, Promised You A Miracle, Sanctify Yourself, and Alive & Kicking were some of the highlights in their set.

Adam Ant, who was originally scheduled to play at last year’s festival but cancelled shortly before the event, was one of the day’s most anticipated performers.  Ant looked ageless and delivered a blistering set that covered his time with both Adam and the Ants and his illustrious solo career - Ant Music, Stand And Deliver, Vive Le Rock, Friend Or Foe, Goody Two Shoes, and Prince Charming.

In a rare West Coast appearance, Soft Cell, consisting of Marc Almond and sadly – due to health reasons - without fellow bandmate and fellow founding member Dave Ball dazzled the Cruel World crowd just as the sun was dropping.  Soft Cell was the first act to take advantage of extravagant stage lighting and strong pre-filmed elements, taking the festival to a new level of visual excitement.  Bringing their dirty and dingy New York ‘80s feel to the stage, the band delivered some of Soft Cell’s most iconic songs, including Memorabilia, Seedy Films, and Sex Dwarf.

Hailing from Manhattan, NY, Interpol closed out the Sad Girls stage.  Some consider the band to be a bit too contemporary for the annual gloom fest, but the band’s set proved the influence and staying power of the ‘80s post-punk era.  The band delivered a flawless set both musically and visually that included Narc, My Desire, Obstacle 1, Evil, PDA and Slow Hands.  Thanks to the genius of Goldenvoice, Interpol finally gained their rightful place in the allegiance of dark and gothic music legends by playing The Cruel World Festival.

Blondie also made their triumphant return to Cruel World.  Debbie Harry looked stunning in her shimmering outfit and classic dark sunglasses, wowing the crowd as only she can do.

Harry exploded on stage with her super solid bandmates and solid gold hits.  Drummer Clem Burke and bass player Glenn Matlock drove the beat through classics like One Way Or Another, Rapture, Heart Of Glass, and Hanging On The Telephone. 

Pasadena lit up as Duran Duran took to the stage.  Many considered the band to be a bit of a risky headliner for the massive dark wavers in attendance.  But in classic Duran Duran foresight, the Birmingham boys opened their set with The Chaffeur – arguably the band’s darkest and gloomiest of their hits – a genius move.  The band delivered a brilliant set including just about every song a hard core “Duranie” would have on their wish list - Wild Boys, Hungry Like The Wolf, Save A Prayer, Notorious, Careless Memories, A View To A Kill, New Moon On Monday, The Reflex, Girls On Film and Rio.

If anything, the Cruel World Festival proves that new wave and post-punk was not just a fad…the music that was created in the 1980’s has impacted the lives of so many and continues to influence bands of today.  Cruel World 2025?  Absolutely!  Vegas is probably already taking bets. 

The post Cruel World 2024 first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Amber Compiles to BashIt certainly isn’t a new idea to compile a language into an intermediate language. The original C++ compiler outputs C code, for example. Enhanced versions of Fortran were often just conversions of new syntax to old syntax. Of course, it makes sense to output to some language that can run on lots of different platforms. So, using that logic, Amber makes perfect sense. It targets — no kidding — bash. You write with nice modern syntax and compile-time checks. The output is a bash script. Admittedly, sometimes a hard-to-read bash script, but still.
If you want to see the source code, it is available on GitHub. Since Windows doesn’t really support bash — if you don’t count things like Cygwin and WSL — Amber only officially supports Linux and MacOS. In addition to compiling files, Amber can also execute scripts directly which can be useful for a quick one-liner. If you use Visual Studio Code, you can find a syntax highlighter extension for Amber.

To get a flavor of how it works, here’s a simple Amber file to rename some files:

let files = ["config.json", "file.txt", "audio.mp3"]

loop index, file in files {
$mv {file} {index}{file}$ failed {
echo "Failed to rename {file}"
}
}

Here’s the output shell script:

__AMBER_ARRAY_0=("config.json" "file.txt" "audio.mp3");
__0_files=("${__AMBER_ARRAY_0[@]}");
index=0;
for file in "${__0_files[@]}"
do
mv ${file} ${index}${file}
__AMBER_STATUS=$?;
if [ $__AMBER_STATUS != 0 ]; then
echo "Failed to rename ${file}"
fi
let index=${index}+1
done

Looks much easier. Still, bash isn’t that hard. If you must have bash scripts for some reason, this might be worth a look. As a general-purpose programming language, you should probably stick with something more traditional.
Catching errors early is a good thing, but there are other ways to do that. While you could probably use a debugger on the output bash code, it looks a bit hard to follow, so an Amber debugger would be welcome.

Warner Music to expand into Lagos with its first fully-owned office in NigeriaCompany met with government officials in Nigeria's capital, Abuja last week and outlined plans to establish a creative hub in Lagos
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SUPERBOOTH24: Korg Berlin phase8 At Superbooth 2024 we caught up with Tats from Korg Berlin to check out the phase8, the latest prototype instrument which employs their innovative new acoustic synthesis method.

SUPERBOOTH24: Melbourne Instruments Delia The Delia from Melbourne Instruments takes many of the key features of their Nina synth module and places them in a keyboard.

MLC is up for re-designation, and you have until May 29th to be heardThe Music Modernization Act (MMA) requires that the US Office of Copyright review the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) designation as the sole conduit of digital music royalties to songwriters and. Continue reading
The post MLC is up for re-designation, and you have until May 29th to be heard appeared first on Hypebot.

Scaper is a plugin that turns anything into an ambient soundscape — even a sneezeIndependent plugin developer Sampleson has released the Scaper plugin, promising it will turn absolutely any audio signal into a droning cinematic atmosphere. To convince you, Sampleson’s loaded everything from an acoustic guitar to a sneeze into Scaper, with impressive results.
Scaper might be able to create deep, intricate soundscapes, but the interface and workflow seem far from complex. It’s neatly laid out with just a handful of dials and parameters.
Simply load in your audio (WAV, OGG or AIFF) file into the plugin and hit the Generate button, which should give you a decent starting point. Then, you can tweak the six parameters — three for Pitch, another three for Speed — and dictate how many particles you want the audio split into (from ‘A few particles’ to ‘Too much particles’). There’s a four-pole low-pass filter to further shape the sound, as well.
The main visual display lets you see the audio signal being affected in real-time, with nodes for each parameter moving around as you turn the dials. You can browse and select presets from the top bar, too. It all looks pretty slick and modern.
According to Sampleson, Scraper works “by extracting essential attributes from dropped audio files and incorporating them into the creation of atmospheric soundscapes.” It’s capable of generating “hours” of soundscapes, with a generative algorithm creating slightly different compositions each time.
And, yes, Sampleson does demonstrate Scaper’s capabilities by loading a sneeze into it. But the developer has also published an entire hour of cinematic soundscapes made solely with the plugin. Check both demos out below.

Scaper is also reasonably affordable, coming in at $29 on the introductory sale. It’s available as a standalone piece of software, or as a plugin for your DAW in VST3 and AU formats for macOS and Windows. You can grab it at sampleson.com.
Sampleson has a bunch of other plugins, all focusing on specific production techniques and quirks. They’re all pretty affordable, too. You can check them out at Plugin Boutique and Thomann.

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The post Scaper is a plugin that turns anything into an ambient soundscape — even a sneeze appeared first on MusicTech.

SUPERBOOTH24: Tiptop Audio Art Modules Tiptop Audio show off the latest modules to join their Art line-up, a series of modules which make it possible to build a polyphonic Eurorack rig.

Just 2 days left to pre-register a .MUSIC domain freeTime is running out before the May 24th deadline to pre-register a .MUSIC domain when up to one million domains can be registered for free.....
The post Just 2 days left to pre-register a .MUSIC domain free appeared first on Hypebot.