iPhone music software update: Soundgrid (App Store link), an $1.99 iPhone/iPod touch virtual matrix synthesizer, has been updated to export directly to SoundCloud, for your mobile beat blogging pleasure.

Details below.

SoundGrid Features:

• Support for unlimited number of Sound Banks with high-quality stereo sounds of any length (currently 7 SBs included)
• Download and install additional Sound Banks right from the app
• Up to 8 layers each playing from any Sound Bank with up to 8 patterns per layer which you can quickly switch between
• Song mode to automatically play one pattern after another
• Select one of 8 colors for each layer to create visual performance synchronized with notes played
• Real-time sound effects: delay and resonant lowpass/highpass/bandpass/notch filter
• Adjustable project tempo, adjustable looping range for each pattern, grid randomization feature, switchable musical scales
• Save and load multiple projects; it’s easy to find the one you want thanks to graphical previews
• Share your compositions with other users, browse, download and rate their projects
• Recording to audio file, direct upload to SoundCloud or export via email. As ringtons, too.

Video review via TapCritic

CloudPost is a new App for Mac OS X that’s designed to make it easier to upload a set of tracks to SoundCloud.

CloudPost was built in close collaboration with the wonderful SoundCloud team and is maintained by Christian Stropp.

The uploader grew out of Music Hackday Berlin.

Just click the Listen To Music link at the top of the page:

This should open up a new music player window that looks something like this:

Here’s some of the things you can do with the player:

• Click the play button if you just want to listen to the latest tracks.
• Select any track from the list and play it.
• Jump to any point in a track by clicking on the sound wave.
• Get info on the track
• Download over 100 free tracks! If the artist has enabled the free music downloads option, the player will show the Download options.
• Share the track to social networks like Facebook & Twitter, get an embed code or email it.

If you want to add your own electronic music tracks to the mix, check out this post: sharing music with Synthtopia readers.

Let me know how the new feature works for you and if you have any feedback on it!

We’ve published multiple posts highlighting the music of Synthtopia readers in the past – but now SoundCloud has added a new “Group” feature that should make this even easier.

We’ve created a SoundCloud group for Synthtopia that lets anyone add tracks to share and lets anyone download them. Here are the most recently added tracks:

Synthtopia

Thanks to everybody that’s added a track so far!

Got tracks to share? Here’s a music dropbox link so that you can add your tracks to the Synthtopia group list:

Send us your track

Give this a try and let us know what you think. If you and other readers like this approach, we’ll find a permanent place for this on Synthtopia.

And let us know if you’ve got other suggestions on how we can help electronic music fans connect with electronic music artists!

DJ Dog image: jmatthew3

Music sharing site SoundCloud reports that Richie Hawtin is now using a SoundCloud DropBox to receive DJ promos for himself and artist demos for his label Minus.

“If you’re a DJ, label or journalist, make things easy for yourself and the people sending you tracks… start using your DropBox today,” adds SoundCloud’s David Trattnig.

Are you using SoundCloud or another music sharing site?

Image: Caesar Sebastian

SoundCloud has announced a new remix contest – for Yalla Yalla by Sheharzad:

Having been remixed by panOptikum and Henrik Schwarz this is a great opportunity to give the original your own edge. Prizes include a release on Fine Art and a SoundCloud PRO account.

Deadline is 1st of May, submissions will need to be made via the dropbox and there are no genre restrictions whatsoever, so let’s get crackin’.

You can preview the stems above, which sound pretty cool.

SoundCloud

We’re really excited about the release of our brand new Cocoa/iPhone development kit, built by Ullrich and Gernot! This means you can really easily integrate SoundCloud in any Cocoa-based (iPhone 2.0+, Mac OS X 10.5+) application, complete with oAuth-based authentication, asynchronous requests and uploads with a progressbar. We have only begun to imagine what kind of cool audio sharing apps could be built using this little toolbox…

So if you’re an iPhone-hacker, don’t hesitate to download the source and start hacking!

We’ve also taken the opportunity to upgrade pretty much all of our API pages. We’ve moved all code and documentation over to Github, so it’s easier than ever to browse and fork it. Since long time there’s already a complete Python wrapper for our API, and now it’s been better documented as well.

This could lead to some interesting new iPhone apps!

I was amazed at the fact that there were that many digital music startups, and almost as amazed that so many of them were so forgettable. 

The most forgettable may be Total Pop Star - an online talent contest where users uploaded their performance videos then got rated by judges, including – wait for it – Joey Lawrence and Debbie Gibson.

The least accurately named may be SimplifyMedia - a site that promises to simplify your media by letting you stream your music to up to 30 friends over a Wi-Fi or 3G connection from your iPhone. Or your computer. If you can get that **** set up.

From the land of what the hell were they thinking comes Guitarati - a site that’s all about music discovery through colors.

The most interesting startups on the list are SoundCloud, which lets you easily share audio files, and SongBird, the music-focused web browser.

Check out the full list here.

Did you get excited about any of the new music sites this year?

The SoundCloud people are moving quickly and developing some interesting stuff. 

The Cloud Player is a browser-based music player. It lets you:

• Find and play all tracks from SoundCloud
• Save playlists to your Google Account
• Make smart playlists based on genre, BPM, etc
• Share your ready-made playlists with your friends
• Collaborate in making the best playlists ever

It’s a 1.0 app and a bit limited – but it’s an open source and could very well be the start of something much bigger.

I’d love to be able to provide a link on Synthtopia that would open up Cloud Player, with Playlists that I’ve selected of music by Synthtopia readers. Let the SoundCloud team know hat you think about it at their blog.

Check it out here.

Synth blogger Mono-Poly posted this analog industrial synth jam.

Features:

• KLee Sequencer + Rythm Ace through WaveX
• Waveform City through middle WaveX + PlanB lpg
• Black socks, black pants and a black t-shirt
• Delay + Reverb over the synthsound
• Both tracks limiter + EQ

Recently, I mentioned that I’m checking out SoundCloud – a new music sharing site specifically for musicians.

I wanted to learn a bit more about how it works and see if it could be a useful tool for Synthtopia readers. So I embedded a SoundCloud drop box on the right sidebar of the site and asked for readers to send in some tracks.

Here are some of the latest submissions (and I’ve got about ten more coming soon!):

From the Top of the Mountain to the Bottom of the Sea is the second track off Meanders, Streams of Europe’s first album.

Los Angeles born Vic Stapf, (aka Synthetrix) submitted Talega, from his album Operation Happiness. This track is also featured on the ONE ON TWOISM VOL. 2 compilation.

This track, Ambient 01, is a 2 hour ambient mix by Material Object of Jamaica, Aruba.

Bob Smith is a multimedia artist and electronic music producer based in Brighton England. His track Skimming Stones at Moonlight is off the forthcoming album Dawn Light.

This track, Violet, by thorn, is the final track from Chakra Pop.

The Leon Trotsky Ice Pick Experience is “the story of 1 man and his bedroom,” Graham Brown, of Halifax, Canada.

Check out the tracks and check out the links for more music from each of the artists.

Image: Merlijn Hoek

We’re really excited to tell you that Jazzanova are doing a remix contest for their new single ‘I Can See’ on SoundCloud. We just had a listen through the parts and it really sounds like a fun remix project to work on. Ben Westbeech does a great job on the vocals and it seems one could do fun stuff with the piano backing track. The original tune is really good as well! 

To start working, just head over to the Jazzanova remix site, register with your email, download the parts and drop your mix in the DropBox. The Jazzanovas will then listen through and comment directly on your track!

A bunch of nice prizes (including Ableton Live licenses and SoundCloud PRO accounts…) are waiting for the lucky winners- and on top the chance of a digital release on Berlin-based label Sonar Kollektiv. The remixes will be presented on the Jazzanova website and Soundcloud. And the winner of the competition will be picked by the Jazzanovas themselves.

This is a cool contest and it shows off how great SoundCloud can work for sharing groups of files. You can check out the remix parts below:

See the Jazzanova site for remix contest details.

Jochem Paap, aka Speedy J, wants to make an album that represents not just him, but the global techno community.

He’s using SoundCloud to create a new global techno project, and he wants you to contribute. He’s ask you to sen him a cool loop, sample, bassline, sound effect to him via his SoundCloud dropbox. I’ve embedded examples of what he is looking for above.

Speedy J will use the input as the raw material for his next album. The project will be released on his label Electric Deluxe and the collectivisation approach will also trickle down through the album’s profits, which will be split 50/50 with all the artists that appear on the album.

It’s a cool concept for an album, and an interesting use of SoundCloud.

via beatportal

I asked readers to share some tracks via the service. The tracks been coming in ever since, from Synthtopia readers around the world.

One of the options that you can set within SoundCloud is whether or not you want your music to be downloadable. Many of these readers set their tracks to be downloadable. If they did, there will be a download link in the upper right-hand corner of the player.

So, check out some great music from Synthtopia readers from around the world. I’ve included links to each musicians’ SoundCloud page – check out the rest of their music and give them some feedback, too!

From Canada, Craig Pearson, aka Monospark, shared Agoba Can’t Dance. Pearson describes it as a “Quick and whimsical track I created with the synth lead meant to sound as if it was talking.”

OrbicA is an experimental/synthetic composer from Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Here’s OrbicA’s OxA:

From Boston, Brian Roche shared Ne Plus Ultra (Serial Strings Mix):

Bugged Bunny began his career by going to underground parties at the age of 15. From there he moved on to promoting for legendary nyc clubs Limelight and Tunnel as well as many one-off parties. Soon after that he began spinning, and has held down residencies at Moomia(nyc) and the Warehouse (Baltimore). He currently has a residency at Dub Stories, one of New York’s premiere showcases for DJ talent. You can find out more about him at his label, StoopidPlayground.

He shared his track Bat Country:

Finally, bingo1 shared this track, Rock IT Man- Bingo, described as a laid-back hip-hop song that defines the celebrity lifestyle:

Got some music of your own to share with Synthtopia readers? Click on the drop box on the right side of this page. If you share your track to everyone, then I’ll embed it in a post like the tracks above.

A couple of days ago, I mentioned that I’m checking out SoundCloud - a new music sharing site specifically for musicians. I wanted to learn a bit more about how it works and see if it could be a useful tool for Synthtopia readers. So I embedded a SoundCloud drop box on the right sidebar of the site and asked for readers to send in some tracks.

They’ve been coming in ever since from Synthtopia readers around the world.

Here are few examples:

From London, Britain (UK), Dave Haynes sent in this unreleased remix of Andy Caldwell – Pushin (West Of Centre):

You can find out more about Dave Haynes at his MySpace page or site.

Injohnson sent this track, Sky Turns Red, directly to me, so I’m embedding with Synthtopia’s standard player, instead of the SoundCloud one:

The track is a collaboration between Andrea Stankevitch and Lukas Johnson of Brite Lite Brite with additional production by MRU. Grand prize winner of the 2007 John Lennon Songwriting Contest in the electronica category.

Next up is an ambient track, Farewell Robort – 03 – He Is Not Your Friend from sonic and visual artist, composer of music, player of instrument, programmer of synths and producer of many things, Kerko:

Bob Deveau, of Fredericton, Canada, is drummer who also creates electronic music, influenced by a variety of genres.

Here a 45-minute mix from Deveau, Supermix:

Finally, here’s Atomic Skunk’s gorgeous ambient track Chronoswamp:

It was created with Ableton Live and Spectrasonics OmniSphere.

I’m impressed and humbled by the range of music that Synthtopia readers are creating. Don’t miss the first batch of music from Synthtopia readers, too. 

Image: Caesar Sebastian

A couple of days ago, I mentioned that I’m checking out SoundCloud – a new music sharing site specifically for musicians. It’s a site that lets you upload your tracks and then share them via websites, blogs, email, Digg, Twitter, MySpace and Facebook. 

I wanted to learn a bit more about how it works and see if it could be a useful tool for Synthtopia readers. So I embedded a SoundCloud drop box on the right sidebar of the site and asked for readers to send in some tracks. They’ve been pouring in since. 

I promised to share readers’ tracks on Synthtopia, so here are some of the first ones I received:

Stephen Drake’s oha noha:

Drake says “Trying out my klee sequencer – this is the first thing I did with it – very minimal setup – all analog modular stuff – no midi, all control voltages – only minimal reverb added, no other editing.”

The SoundCloud player looks great and is easy to use.

Parker’s Root Beer is a track by Eric Carl. “An experiment in trying out the Reaper DAW and its automation options, which I’m a fan of so far. I drank Parker’s Root Beer during its production,” Carl explains.

You’ll notice a difference in the way these two tracks are displayed. The Stephen Drake track is embedded with SoundCloud’s player. If a track is shared publicly on SoundCloud, then anyone can click on the track’s “share” link and email the track or get a player embed code for MySpace or other sites.

The Eric Carl track was sent to me via SoundCloud, but it isn’t a publicly shared track on the site, so SoundCloud doesn’t provide an embed code. I could preview Carl’s track on SoundCloud, but the track was not publicly shared. Because of that, I downloaded the track from SoundCloud, uploaded it to Synthtopia and embedded it using our usual player. 

Because SoundCloud provides both options, you can use the site to share your work in a fairly elegant way or you can use the site to send tracks to specific users, without sharing the tracks publicly.

Kurt Lorenz is a graphic designer and electronic musician based in Seattle, WA. USA. Here’s his experimental track, I need you to say something profound, which features samples of Lorenz and his son:

Gothick is a British industrial/experimental/rock band founded in 1999 by Sean Woodward. Aleister’s Amazing Bookcase is a track from the Gothick album INVOKATION OV NUIT, the first part of a free trilogy inspired by Aleister Crowley’s Book of the Law.

This instrumental and atmospheric piece is inspired by the portable collection of books that would travel with Crowley, even on his expeditions in the Himalayas.

From Utrecht, Netherlands, Ate Matthijs Hes submitted the track for sale:

Finally, from Athens, Greece, les.paradis.artificiels submitted the wonderfully titled, The Phantom of the Oprah, described as a “psychedelic landscape formed by a cacophony of distorted sounds and voices.” This track was featured as reader’s music “Hot Pick” in Future Music magazine #193 (UK edition)

I’ll have more examples of Synthtopia readers’ music in the next few days. If you’ve given SoundCloud a try, let me know what you think of it in the comments.

Image: Merlijn Hoek

If you haven’t tried out SoundCloud, it’s a site that lets you upload your tracks and then share them via websites, blogs, email, Digg, Twitter, MySpace and Facebook. 

Here’s an example of what tracks look like embedded:

It’s a pretty slick player, and the player itself could prove to be very useful for sharing your music.

But the site also gives you a “Drop Box”, so that other people can send you music.

Here’s my drop box:

If you click on my drop box, it takes you to a page on SoundCloud where you can upload a song that goes to me.

I’d like to try this out – so here’s the deal:

1. Click on the drop box above, or the one in the right sidebar, and go to my drop box.
2. Follow the instructions on the drop box page and upload one of your tracks. The track should be an original work of electronic music that you created. It should not be an awesome track by The Chemical Brothers, a recording of banjo music or your sex podcast.
3. I’ll check out your track and I’ll post it on Synthtopia.

You don’t have to sign up for an account at SoundCloud to try this out, but you do have to have a valid email address. 

I’m looking forward to hearing your music and sharing it on Synthtopia!

Note: If you’re a SoundCloud member and have uploaded your track to the site, I should be able to embed it using the SoundCloud player. Otherwise, I’ll embed it using the standard player we use on Synthtopia.

When you tweet them, your tracks are posted straight to Twitter, a microblogging site.

Tracks are tweeted from the share-box above each track:

Click here to see how it looks on Twitter.

The CC license support on SoundCloud is pretty straight-forward. You can pick a license when you upload a track, and you can set a default license in your settings.

There are three main modes; All Rights Reserved, Some Rights Reserved, and No Rights Reserved. The default is All Rights Reserved, which means you own all rights to the works you upload.

Berlin is the undisputed center of electronic music. A few times a month friends and blog readers come to visit. I’ve decided to make a Google Map with the locations of many of the great record stores, labels, synthesizer manufacturers, audio software companies and nightclubs you can check out upon arrival.

Ableton, Tresor, Hard Wax, Native Intruments, Schneider’s Buero, Neumann, MFB, Gigolo Records, Berghain, JoMoX, Sugar Bytes, BPitch Control, SoundCloud… what more do you want?

Here a list of the places mapped:
Ableton Headquarters
Schönhauser Allee 6-7 10119 Berlin, Germany 030 288763-0 more info »
Schönhauser Allee 6-7
10119 Berlin, Germany
030 288763-0

Adam Professional Audio – Speakers
Ederstraße 16 12059 Berlin, Germany
Ederstraße 16
12059 Berlin, Germany

Berghain – Nightclub
Am Wriezener Bahnhof 10243 Berlin, Germany
Am Wriezener Bahnhof
10243 Berlin, Germany

BPitch Control GmbH
Oranienburger Str. 91 10178 Berlin, Germany more info »
Oranienburger Str. 91
10178 Berlin, Germany

Cab Clonk Artist Booking gmbh
Gaudystraße 26 10437 Berlin, Germany
Gaudystraße 26
10437 Berlin, Germany

Calyx Mastering
im Viktoriaquartier Sixtusgarten 6, 10965 Berlin, Germany 030 6933170 more info »
im Viktoriaquartier
Sixtusgarten 6, 10965 Berlin, Germany
030 6933170

City Sound Pro – Pro Audio Shop
Oranienstr. 6 10997 Berlin, Germany 030 6124077 more info »
Oranienstr. 6
10997 Berlin, Germany
030 6124077

Das Drehmoment – Label & Shop
Schliemannstraße 21 10437 Berlin, Germany
Schliemannstraße 21
10437 Berlin, Germany

Delicious Doughnuts Research – Club/Bar
Rosenthaler Str. 9 10119 Berlin, Germany 030 2833021 more info »
Rosenthaler Str. 9
10119 Berlin, Germany
030 2833021

Dubplates & Mastering
2. Hinterhof / Aufgang B Paul-Lincke-Ufer 44a, 10999 Berlin, Germany 030 61130555 more info »
2. Hinterhof / Aufgang B
Paul-Lincke-Ufer 44a, 10999 Berlin, Germany
030 61130555

Get Physical Music GmbH
Milastr. 2 10437 Berlin, Germany +49 30 4403328-0 more info »
Milastr. 2
10437 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 4403328-0

Gostimirovi? Music Management – Booking Agency
Brunnenstraße 7 10119 Berlin, Germany
Brunnenstraße 7
10119 Berlin, Germany

Gravis – Apple Store
Ernst-Reuter-Platz 9 / 10 10587 Berlin, Germany 030 39022333 more info »
Ernst-Reuter-Platz 9 / 10
10587 Berlin, Germany
030 39022333

Handle with Care – Vinyl Manufacturer
Greifswalder Straße 29 10405 Berlin, Germany
Greifswalder Straße 29
10405 Berlin, Germany

Hard Wax eK – Record Shop
Paul-Lincke-Ufer 44A 10999 Berlin, Germany 030 61130111 more info »
Paul-Lincke-Ufer 44A
10999 Berlin, Germany
030 61130111

International Dee Jay Gigolo Records and Publishing GmbH & Co. KG
Rolandufer 13 10179 Berlin, Germany more info »
Rolandufer 13
10179 Berlin, Germany

JoMoX Headquarters
Körtestr. 10 10967 Berlin, Germany 030 61702573 more info »
Körtestr. 10
10967 Berlin, Germany
030 61702573

K17 – Goth/EBM Club
Pettenkoferstraße 17 10247 Berlin, Germany
Pettenkoferstraße 17
10247 Berlin, Germany

Kit Kat Club – S&M Afterhours Club
Köpenicker Straße 76 10179 Berlin, Germany
Köpenicker Straße 76
10179 Berlin, Germany

Magnet Music – Booking Agency
Anklamer Straße 38 10115 Berlin, Germany
Anklamer Straße 38
10115 Berlin, Germany

Man Made Mastering
Lobeckstraße 30 10969 Berlin, Germany
Lobeckstraße 30
10969 Berlin, Germany

Maria am Ostbahnhof – Nightclub
Stralauer Allee 34 10245 Friedrichshain, Berlin, Germany 030 21238190 more info »
Stralauer Allee 34
10245 Friedrichshain, Berlin, Germany
030 21238190

MDM Mutualism -Distribution & More GmbH
Heckmannufer 6a 10997 Berlin, Germany more info »
Heckmannufer 6a
10997 Berlin, Germany

Meltingpoint Record Store
Kastanienallee 55 10119 Berlin, Germany
Kastanienallee 55
10119 Berlin, Germany

MFB Fricke – Synthesizer Manufacturer
Neue Str. 13 14163 Berlin, Germany 030 8015652 more info »
Neue Str. 13
14163 Berlin, Germany
030 8015652

Musikinstrumente & Design – Vintage Gear Shop
Schönhauser Allee 28 10435 Berlin, Germany 030 44033623 more info »
Schönhauser Allee 28
10435 Berlin, Germany
030 44033623

Native Instruments Headquarters
Schlesische Str. 28 10997 Berlin, Germany 030 6110350 more info »
Schlesische Str. 28
10997 Berlin, Germany
030 6110350

Neumann Microphones
Ollenhauerstr. 98 13403 Berlin, Germany 030 417724-0 more info »
Ollenhauerstr. 98
13403 Berlin, Germany
030 417724-0

Out of Line – EBM Record Shop
Lychener Straße 18 10437 Berlin, Germany
Lychener Straße 18
10437 Berlin, Germany

Rotation Records – Record Store
Weinbergsweg 3 10119 Mitte, Berlin, Germany 030 25329116 more info »
Weinbergsweg 3
10119 Mitte, Berlin, Germany
030 25329116

Sage Club
Brückenstr. 1 10179 Berlin, Germany +49 30 27591080 more info »
Brückenstr. 1
10179 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 27591080

Schneiders Büro – Synthesizer Shop
Alexanderplatz 5 10178 Berlin, Germany 030 97894131 more info »
Alexanderplatz 5
10178 Berlin, Germany
030 97894131

SO 36 – Club
Oranienstr. 190 10999 Berlin, Germany 030 61401306 more info »
Oranienstr. 190
10999 Berlin, Germany
030 61401306

Sound & Drumland – Pro Audio Shop
Knaackstr. 97 10435 Berlin, Germany 030 88775500 more info »
Knaackstr. 97
10435 Berlin, Germany
030 88775500

SoundCloud
Auguststraße 5 10117 Berlin, Germany
Auguststraße 5
10117 Berlin, Germany

Spacehall Recordstore
Zossener Straße 33 10961 Berlin, Germany http://www.space-hall.de/
Zossener Straße 33
10961 Berlin, Germany

http://www.space-hall.de/

Sugar Bytes
Greifswalder Straße 220 10405 Berlin, Germany Makers of Effectrix
Greifswalder Straße 220
10405 Berlin, Germany

Makers of Effectrix

Tresor Berlin GmbH
Wrangelstr. 20 10997 Berlin, Germany +49 30 695377-0 more info »
Wrangelstr. 20
10997 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 695377-0

Trixx Studios – Recording Studios
Prinzessinnenstraße 10969 Berlin, Germany http://www.trixx-studio.de/
Prinzessinnenstraße
10969 Berlin, Germany

http://www.trixx-studio.de/

Watergate – Nightclub
Reichenberger Straße 84 10999 Berlin, Germany
Reichenberger Straße 84
10999 Berlin, Germany

Weekend Club – Nightclub
Alexanderplatz 5 10178 Berlin, Germany