The Raveonettes Turn Seattle's Crocodile into a Sound BathThe Raveonettes (Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo)- who made waves in the early and mid-2000s with their matchless flair for melding melodic girl-group doo-wop with retro rock and modern bents of shimmering effects and glitzed-out guitar dissonance- have returned to the U.S. touring circuit after a decade-long absence. Inside Seattle’s ultra-cool The Crocodile, longtime devotees eagerly anticipated the return of the Stygian-tilting musical visionaries while gathered in the packed pit, all waiting patiently with Danish-like hygge. Their eyes focused with intent on an illuminated silver screen hoping the band’s signature strobe show would ignite and pull them into the duo’s world filled with hallucinatory dark delights.

Whether it might be through sheer will or simply the time of night, their wish to see the band again was fulfilled when a burst of bright light ushered in the Danish duo from stage right, dressed in their emblematic black and white. A hint of a synthesized hum thrummed in the air as Sune and Sharin grabbed their mics and sang the beautifully eerie acapella “When the Night is Almost Done” from 2014’s Pe’ahi. After the gorgeous prelude, the pair picked up their instruments and moved into the otherworldly "Aly, Walk with Me” from 2008’s Lust Lust Lust. Together, the selection showcased The Raveonettes’ skill in harmonizing scintillating, wraithlike voices alongside haunting stories and cinematic soundscapes that range from sparse to complex.

Burrowing deeper into the catacombs of their abstract reveries, the pair moved into a subset of tracks from Lust Lust Lust - the sparklingly dark-edged “Dead Sound” and scuzzy David Lynchian “Blush.” The addition of exploding strobe lights blitzing and dancing in time enhanced the performance and surreptitiously pulled the audience further into their songs filled with dark allure.

The Raveonettes followed with a few gothic Western serenades, including “Somewhere in Texas” from 2005’s Pretty in Black and “Love Can Destroy Everything” from 2003’s Chain Gang of Love. The band’s vintage vocals and retro-tremolo twang harkened to sounds made famous by artists such as Duane Eddy and Gram Parsons, just a few of the duo’s many favorite influences acknowledged on their recent release, a compilation of vamped out classics, Sing…

After a brief pause to switch guitars, the duo delved into a B-movie beat denouement filled with Nordic noire storylines, distorted feedback, and oneiric atmospherics featuring fan favorites “Attack of the Ghost Riders” from 2002’s Whip It On and “That Great Love Sound” from 2003’s Chain Gang of Love. Another frenzied explosion of timed strobes followed as Sune and Sharin closed the show with the emboldened “Recharge & Revolt” from 2011’s Raven in the Grave. Its last chords rang against the walls while the venue faded to black. Fans, not knowing when the band might return, stood their ground - with many not wanting to leave just yet, reveling in The Raveonettes’ mysteriously surreal sound bath.

SETLIST

When the Night is Almost Done

Aly, Walk with Me

Hallucinations

Lust

Dead Sound

Blush

Railroad Tracks

Somewhere in Texas

Love Can Destroy Everything

Attack of the Ghost Riders

Veronica Fever 

Do You Believe Her

My Tornado

The Enemy

Endless Sleeper

That Great Love Sound 

Encore

Remember

Love in a Trash Can

Recharge & Revolt
The post The Raveonettes Turn Seattle's Crocodile into a Sound Bath first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

2024 Business Card Challenge: BAUDI/O For the Audio Hacker[Simon B] enters our 2024 Business Card Challenge with BAUDI/O, a genuinely useful audio output device. The device is based around the PCM2706 DAC, which handles all the USB interfacing and audio stack for you, needing only a reference crystal and the usual sprinkling of passives. This isn’t just a DAC board, though; it’s more of an audio experimentation tool with two microcontrollers to play with.
The first ATTiny AT1614 is hooked up to a simple LED vu-meter, and the second is connected to the onboard AD5252 digipot, which together allows one to custom program the response to the digital inputs to suit the user. The power supply is taken from the USB connection. A pair of ganged LM2663 charge-pump inverters allow inversion of the 5V rail to provide the necessary -5 V for the output amplifiers.  This is then fed to the LM4562-based CMoy-type headphone amplifier.  This design has a few extra stages, so with a bit of soldering, you can adjust the output filtering to suit. An LM1117 derives 3.3 V from the USB input to provide another power rail,  mostly for the DAC.
There’s not much more to say other than this is a nice, clean audio design, with everything broken out so you can tinker with it and get exactly the audio experience you want.

Tempus soars 15% on the first day of trading, demonstrating investor appetite for a health tech with a promise of AITempus, a genomic testing and data analysis company started by Eric Lefkosky, who previously founded Groupon, debuted on Nasdaq on Friday, rose about 15% on the opening.  The company priced its IPO on Thursday at $37 apiece, at the top of its $35 to $37 price range, raising nearly $411 million at a fully-diluted valuation […]
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Latin music star Feid hit with copyright lawsuit over sample used in ‘Ferxxo 100’Artist Sebastien Graux alleges he was “taken advantage of" by Feid's creative team
Source

From Robert Kyncl’s NMPA keynote to music publishers’ FTC complaint against Spotify… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-UpThe five biggest stories to hit our headlines over the past seven days…
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RIP Lynn Conway, Whose Work Gave Us VLSI And Much MoreLynn Conway, American engineer and computer scientist, passed away at the age of 86 from a heart condition on June 9th, at her Michigan home. Her work in the 1970s led to the integrated circuit design and manufacturing methodology known as Very Large Scale Integration, or VLSI, something which touches almost all facets of the world we live in here in 2024.
It was her work at the legendary Xerox PARC that resulted in VLSI, and its subsequent publication had the effect through the 1980s of creating a revolution in the semiconductor industry. By rendering an IC into a library of modular units that could be positioned algorithmically, VLSI enabled much more efficient use of space on the die, and changed the design process from one of layout into one of design. In simple terms, by laying out pre-defined assemblies with a computer rather than individual components by hand, a far greater density of components could be achieved, and more powerful circuits could be produced.
You may have also heard of Lynne Conway, not because of her VLSI work, but because as a transgender woman she found herself pursuing a parallel career as an activist in her later decades. As an MIT student in the 1950s she had tried to transition but been beaten back by the attitudes of the time, before dropping out and only returning to Columbia University to finish her degree a few years later in the early 1960s. A job at IBM followed, but when she announced her intent to transition she was fired from IBM and lost access to her family.
Rebuilding a career as a woman after losing everything in this way is hard, and something at which many trans women have struggled, but she successfully ascended through Memorex in the early 1970s to her work at PARC by the middle of the decade. She went on to a position in academia at the University of Michigan, and when faced with being outed around the millennium, she chose instead to come out herself. Over the following decades she successfully advocated for the rights of transgender people, and particularly those in the engineering and technology industries.
All Hackaday readers owe her a debt for her contribution to the technologies we make our own, and those of us who are transgender owe her a special thanks for being our very public advocate. As for IBM, they apologised for their treatment of her in 2020, by our reckoning about five decades too late.

How to make jungle music for the first time (track breakdown)
Watch an expert hip hop producer make jungle music for the first time, and learn how you can get started with the genre yourself.

UnitedMasters & Musixmatch launch Lyric Competition, showcase AI video creationIndie music marketing and distribution platform UnitedMasters and lyrics aggregator Musixmatch have partnered for a lyric contest that showcases the latter’s new AI-powered lyric video creation tools. UnitedMasters artists will. Continue reading
The post UnitedMasters & Musixmatch launch Lyric Competition, showcase AI video creation appeared first on Hypebot.

Why independent musicians need a music publisherAs an independent artist, having a music publisher can make a major difference to your music career. If you are looking to increase your music revenue or want to have. Continue reading
The post Why independent musicians need a music publisher appeared first on Hypebot.

Mainstream is the new nicheFive years ago, we made the call that ‘niche is the new mainstream’. Today, this dynamic is so fundamental to music and culture that we are firmly in the stage of second order consequences. Superstars are getting smaller, the long tail is getting longer, and rightsholders are bringing in earnings thresholds to keep that growing long tail at bay. But it was a blog post by my colleague Tatiana – “Did Charli XCX go mainstream, or did the mainstream just go niche?” – that got me thinking whether, now five years in, the mainstreaming of niche has reached a tipping point.

The dynamics of Charli XCX’s career (e.g., 25,000 RSVPs in one hour for a 1,000-cap Boiler Room gig) feel very much like those of Taylor Swift. Of course, the sheer scale of the Swift fandom machine is the big difference – or is it? Is mainstream about actual numbers or reach, or perhaps both? In fact, it is best measured in three key ways:

Absolute scale: how big are the numbers?

Relative scale: how big are the numbers compared to others?

Active reach: what share of the total audience does an artist have?

Let’s use Taylor Swift, as today’s biggest mainstream music artist, to test each.

Absolute scale

There is no getting away from the fact that everything “big” has got smaller. Michael Jackson, arguably the equivalent of Taylor Swift for the peak-CD era, shifted half a billion units worldwide, when units actually meant units. By comparison, Taylor Swift has fewer than 200 million ‘album equivalent sales’ – which of course means this figure is increasingly made up of streams being converted into ‘sales’. Given that so much of streaming behaviour today is radio-like, we would really need to add an estimate of total individual radio listens to Jackson, which would result in a figure that would comfortably end up in the tens of billions in ‘equivalent sales’.Yes, Jackson’s career happened in a different era, when fewer artists were competing and linear broadcast platforms dominated. But that is the entire point of fragmenting fandom.

Relative scale

It is abundantly clear that Taylor Swift has more streams and ticket sales than pretty much everyone else. She is the biggest artist on the planet right now. She has mainstream awareness, but does that make her actual listenership mainstream? 

She certainly has more mainstream cultural clout than her peers, managing to become part of the mainstream media narrative – look no further than the Financial Times running pieces on ‘Swiftonomics’. This is thanks, in large part, to the fact she first built her fandom pre-fragmentation, when music was still much more a part of mainstream culture. It is an advantage enjoyed by other artists, such as Beyoncé, that came up pre-streaming’s peak, and therefore pre-fragmentation. But an FT subscriber reading a Swiftonomics story does not necessarily make them a listener (I’ll hazard a guess that particular conversion rate is not one to sing about). Having mainstream media reach is not the same as being a mainstream artist in terms of listenership, even though the two things did largely go hand-in-hand once upon a time.So, simply being bigger than the rest does not inherently equate to being mainstream. In the same way that the fastest kid at school could leave her classmates for dust but not even qualify for national heats, let alone compete with the fastest runners in the world.

Reach

Active reach is where the picture really comes into focus. The best-selling albums in US history (when sales were sales) were the Eagles ‘Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975’, with 38 million sales, and Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’, with 34 million. Based on the respective populations of the year of release of those albums, the Eagles was bought by 17.4% of the US population, while Michael Jackson was bought by 15.9%. 

Taylor Swift’s best-selling US album was ‘1989’ (6.5 million) while ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ sold 2.9 million. As a share of the total US population, they represent 2.0% and 0.7%. 

Taylor Swift’s biggest selling release has 12 times less reach than the Eagles, while her latest release had less than 1% reach.NOTE: with modern ‘sales’ figures including streams, Swift’s total audience may have been bigger (as many different people’s streams could add up to one sale). But equally, it could be lower, as one person’s streams could add up to multiple units.

Of course, judging Swift’s reach only by album sales – an aging format, and an essentially extinct one for much of her listener base – is unfair. Yet interestingly, the c1% figure doesn’t just apply to Swift’s album sales. The record-breaking ‘Eras’ tour sold 4.5 million US tickets, which is just over 1% of the US population (and Swifties being Swifties, there was probably a decent number who saw the show more than once, meaning that percentage is likely a bit smaller). Meanwhile, Swift’s 26.1 billion Spotify streams in 2023 made her the most streamed artist of the year, yet that was just 1.4% of all global Spotify streams. Now, 1.4% of global streams for one artist is a massive achievement But in the analogue era so many more people would have listened to the biggest artist of the day because radio was the main consumption format, and on radio everyone listens to the same song, whether they like it or not.

None of this is a critique of Taylor Swift, but instead a reflection of the modern music world which she is part of. She is clearly a hugely successful artist at the top of her game. But the game is not the same as it once was. It is not that Taylor Swift is not huge — she is. But she is not mainstream, because mainstream itself is now niche. Charli XCX shows how successful you can be when you understand the power of niche. Niche does not inherently mean small, and its potential is huge. The simple, hard truth is that now everything is niche, even mainstream.

Z&H Designs: New pro-audio brand Z&H are a new pro-audio brand who have launched with a collection of four analogue EQ and compressor designs. 

Redline rave train event in Chicago has been cancelled last minute, organisers announceThe Redline Express event in Chicago set for tomorrow (15 June) has been cancelled, Redline has announced.
In a statement on Instagram, the events company explains that the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) cancelled the ‘rave train’ event, “despite months of planning and coordination.”

READ MORE: Take a look inside Peggy Gou’s secret gig in London

It continues, “Since November 2023, we have worked closely with CTA management to bring this unique experience to Chicago. The CTA was fully briefed on our plans, including ticket sales, sound logistics, and security (January 2024), event sponsorships, dates, and security deposits (March 2024), final details, sponsorships, and logistics (April 2024).
“In May 2024, CTA personnel invited us to conduct a venue walkthrough, negotiated and drafted a written contract and all final payment info was submitted. At no point did the CTA express any actual concerns with our event.”

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A post shared by REDLINE (@redlinechicago)

Redline makes the point that the CTA has hosted similar events previously, including one a “multi-train charter event” in 2001, and describes the cancellation as both shocking and disappointing.
“To our ticket holders and supporters,” it adds, “We hear you and we share your frustration. We are exploring all options to address this situation. We are committed to bringing you the innovative experiences we promised, and are working to secure an alternate venue for June 15th.
“Chicago is a city that embraces creativity and community. While the CTA may have tried to ‘put the brakes’ on the Redline Express, they will never stop our determination to bring unforgettable experiences to our city. We’re shifting gears and charting a new course.”
It finishes, “Our message remains the same: All aboard – the Redline spirit will keep moving forward, with or without the CTA. We appreciate your support and will share more updates soon. Stay tuned – because we’re full steam ahead.”
The event was set to take over a six-car Brown Line train from 7pm to 11pm. DJ duo Sock & Buskin were going to play a set in collaboration with battery-powered sound system company SOUNBOKS.
The post Redline rave train event in Chicago has been cancelled last minute, organisers announce appeared first on MusicTech.

“A little bit of clipping is where people hear drums and go, ‘Wow, this really hits’”: Kenny Beats on why clipping can be useful when producingProducer and DJ Kenny Beats has opened up about his go-to studio gear and the importance of “a little bit of clipping” in creating his signature drum sounds.
Appearing on a recent episode of the Tape Notes Podcast along with IDLES’ Mark Bowen, Beats dives into his creative process and the secret to getting snares that are “bright” yet have “so much weight”.

READ MORE: Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin album released as $1 NFTs – here’s how you can buy one

“I’m always fighting against people in hip hop who are clipping their drums, whether they know it or not sometimes,” the producer says. “Now, obviously, people are doing it on purpose. But the way FL [Studio] sounded for years, it has a certain ceiling to it. So drums in FL have this kind of clipped thing to it.”
“It became a really big sound in hip hop because of Metro Boomin and other huge producers. And for me, even when I go to a kit recorded with 10 mics or whatever, a bit of clipping or a bit of stock Ableton saturation and things like that, give it a different… snappiness and the punch that you feel like you don’t get sometimes from when you listen to a close mic on a drum kit and you’re like, this sounds nothing like a sick trap snare or whatever.”
He continues: “A little bit of clipping for me really is the thing where I think people hear drums that I do that are live instruments or live recorded drums, and they go ‘wow this really hits’ like on a rap song – it’s clipping.”
Beats adds that he really likes Venn Audio’s V-Clip plugin and that “I’m an Ableton guy so I really like the Ableton stock saturator and just engage soft clip.”
“Put that on your drums right now and tell me it doesn’t make a difference — it’s unreal.”
Elsewhere, the producer also shares his love for using vintage Altec EQs in his music, saying: “My drums are punching way better in this one song than anywhere else and it was this EQ”.

The post “A little bit of clipping is where people hear drums and go, ‘Wow, this really hits’”: Kenny Beats on why clipping can be useful when producing appeared first on MusicTech.

Win a Neve 1073SPX-D channel strip! This month we're giving away Neve's latest all-in-one channel strip and USB audio interface.

Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin album released as $1 NFTs – here’s how you can buy oneWant to own a piece of rap history for just $1? Digital art collective PleasrDAO have announced they are selling Wu-Tang Clan‘s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin album as $1 NFTs.

READ MORE: Deadmau5 says he “doesn’t enjoy” dance music, but loves “the process of making it”

The album, which has been “digitised and encrypted” can be purchased at www.thealbum.com, and features new artwork designed by artist Hassan Rahim.
Buyers who purchase the NFT will gain access to a five-minute album sampler created by the record’s co-producer, Cilvaringz. Each sale will also bump up the album’s original 2103 release date by 88 seconds — from its original decryption date of 8 October 2103.
Users will not need cryptocurrency to purchase the NFTs. According to PleasrDAO, proceeds from the sale “will go in part to the original Wu-Tang Clan, the album producer, and performing artists.”

The world's most expensive album is available for $1.
Enter the chamber and secure a copy – 2103 will come faster than you think.https://t.co/QRmGdIrwOy pic.twitter.com/rTCkuH0It3
— Pleasr (@PleasrDAO) June 13, 2024

Once Upon a Time in Shaolin producers RZA and Cilvaringz said of the project [via Pitchfork]. “Mass replication has fundamentally changed the way we view a piece of recorded music, while digital universality and vanishing physicality have broken our emotional bond with a piece of music as an artwork and a deeply personal treasure.”
“This album sale is more than just about the music,” PleasrDAO representative Matt Matkov added. “It’s about redefining how we think about ownership of music and fan collaboration in the digital age.”

pic.twitter.com/N9SAggIA8Q
— Pleasr (@PleasrDAO) June 12, 2024

Once Upon a Time In Shaolin was recorded in secret over six years before it was completed in 2015. Only one copy of the album was made, and it was sold at auction for $2 million to pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli. After Shkreli was convicted of securities fraud in 2018, the US government seized the album as part of a £5.3 million forfeiture order.
In 2021, PleasrDAO bought the album for $4 million and has been working to find ways to share it with the public. To complicate matters, the company recently filed a lawsuit against Shkreli for allegedly copying and distributing the album online without the group’s permission. Pleasr argued that Shkreli had live streamed parts of Once Upon a Time In Shaolin multiple times in violation of the initial sale contract, which stipulated that the album could not be commercially exploited until 2103.
Responding to the news on X, Shkreli blasted: “PleasrFed releasing the album tomorrow supposedly, but I think they’re going to make you pay? Even though I paid them once, they paid them twice, and the album sucks.”
He also urged the public to “wait for the pirated version”, claiming that he’s played Once Upon a Time In Shaolin “500 times publicly” since he got it prior to Pleasr’s purchase.

PleasrFed releasing the album tomorrow supposedly, but I think they’re going to make you pay? Even though I paid them once, they paid them twice, and album sucks. I’ve played it 500 times publicly since I got it (before they bought it) & sent a million copies to friends (again…
— Martin Shkreli (e/acc) (@MartinShkreli) June 13, 2024

The post Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin album released as $1 NFTs – here’s how you can buy one appeared first on MusicTech.