June, 2008 archive

Fixed Noise has announced the release of Kreate, a new sound library designed and produced by techno, dance, minimal artist Speedy J, aka Jochem Paap.
Description:
This personal collection of Speedy J’s sounds includes the dance and minimal electronic rhythms for which he is notorious as well as fluid pads that offer an atmospheric sensibility. The library [...]

Alpha Juno Control is a free, open source Mac OS X patch editor for the Alpha Juno.
It will let owners of Roland’s Alpha Juno keyboard control patch parameters via MIDI from their Mac.
via Moogulator

Dr. Earth has launched a plan to use hedonism, sex and dance music to save the world.
To forward this goal, Dr. Earth’s first step has been to launch a sustainable clubbing initiative:
Working on the basis that a club should be self sufficient and not a drain on the environment, Club4Climate has come up with the [...]

DSK has released another free Windows virtual instrument, DSK Virtuoso.
With DSK Virtuoso you can play combinations of 6 instruments, or play a composition up to 6 different parts, through the MIDI channels selectors.
Features:

6 Instrument layers
Midi channel assignable to each one
ADSR, level and Pan control for each layer
40 instruments in 6 categories
2 [...]

Wax Museum is a documentary view of the art of collecting vinyl.
Featuring DJ Capsize as he interviews friends and strangers on a search for the answer to “what is the future of records?”
via CrateKings

Yuri Suzuki is an artist and musician interested in “revamping and giving new forms and meanings to the turntable, a device which very few of us still have in their house.
Music is become more and more digital and abstract, and Suzuki is interested in exploring the physical, tangible representation of sound.
The Prepared Turntable, above, is [...]

Remain Calm has put together a list of its top 24 music apps for the Nintendo DS:

bliptracker - a drum machine & sequencer
dsmcu - MCU-compatible mix controller
Protein[DS] - sample looper, scratcher, glitcher
nitrotracker
kaosDS - converts touchscreen data into midi over wifi
sampling keyboard
dstep v2 - a visual sequencer
glitchDS - a cellular automation sequencer
repeaterDS - stuttering sample player
midipad [...]

The Chemical Brothers have announced a new best-of album, Brotherhood, that will be released Sept 2.
Brotherhood comprises 2 discs, the first is a collection of 13 undeniable benchmark singles from the band’s immense back catalogue and new track Keep My Composure which features the shimmering flow of Baltimore’s Spank Rock.
The 2nd disc will feature exclusively [...]

Weepr is a new free music application that is sort of like a software Tenori-On.
Not much information is available yet, and the site is in Italian, but you can download and try Weepr out here. Adobe’s Air is required.
It’s limited in terms of what sounds are available, and timing is a little shaky, but it’s [...]

Post-punk pioneers Devo are suing McDonald’s over a Happy Meal doll that sports the band’s signature red flower pot hat.
In April, McDonald’s introduced a series of American Idol Happy Meal toys based on a range of music styles, including Disco Dave, Country Clay, Rockin’ Riley and Soulful Selma.
Devo’s complaint is that the toy “New Wave [...]