Yes, MySpace. If you haven't heard, they are going to launch a new interface and they have recently been acquired by Mr. Timberlake and Co. I've used MySpace in the past to hear music from artists I've found elsewhere and to befriend new bands and share photos I've taken of their concerts.
I visited MySpace today and jumped into a feature called OneTwoWatch. I really like this interface, but really had trouble finding it again - luckily I found the link thru my browser history. So bookmark this.
Anyway, on OneTwoWatch I was really impressed the the quality and freshness of the featured artists. I quickly downloaded tracks from Alex Clare, Selah Sue, Daughter and Gary Clark Jr.
Great finds, thanks MySpace. Looking forward to a sexy new interface sometime soon to make me want to come back for more.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Where I find new music: Part 11 - musicians
I have a few musicians that are friends and I usually trust their recommendations, but I've also had the opportunity to meet a few musicians at other concerts. The most famous story my wife and I have is meeting Matthew from Young Empires a long time ago after the We Are Augustines concert at Wrongbar. We didn't know Young Empires at the time, but have seen them since on numerous occasions and we're so happy for their success and the nomination for a 2012 CASBY.
After seeing Young Empires during NXNE, we were hopping on the streetcar home when we struck up a conversation with fan who turned out to be another musician - Shawn is the drummer for Fade Chromatic who we've also now seen play live.
You never know you're going to meet at a concert and the chance to discover some new music.
After seeing Young Empires during NXNE, we were hopping on the streetcar home when we struck up a conversation with fan who turned out to be another musician - Shawn is the drummer for Fade Chromatic who we've also now seen play live.
You never know you're going to meet at a concert and the chance to discover some new music.
Where I find new music: Part 10 - internet radio
I'm not certain how many people listen to internet radio, but please comment if you have a station to recommend or a track you've found thru internet radio. I don't listen to internet radio very often, but on occasion, when I'm working I need some background music to work by. Needless to say, the type of music in this situation needs to be more melodic, perhaps instrumental, but definitely not distracting or anything I have to concentrate on. I use iTunes to "bookmark" or "favourite" stations I find and then browse / channel surf until the mix blends with my mood.
It's been a long time since I started writing this blog, so...unfortunately I can't remember all of the stations I've enjoyed (old bookmarks on an old work laptop I think), but the one that I can always remember is Groove Salad. You can find it under the Ambient genre in iTunes radio and it's from SomaFM who have lots of other interesting genre and mood based stations.
I'm still struggling a little with what stations publish via a format that I can stream via iTunes rather then using their own web site or player, e.g. the progressive Radio Paradise and CBC radio 3 (now CBC music) stations.
It's been a long time since I started writing this blog, so...unfortunately I can't remember all of the stations I've enjoyed (old bookmarks on an old work laptop I think), but the one that I can always remember is Groove Salad. You can find it under the Ambient genre in iTunes radio and it's from SomaFM who have lots of other interesting genre and mood based stations.
I'm still struggling a little with what stations publish via a format that I can stream via iTunes rather then using their own web site or player, e.g. the progressive Radio Paradise and CBC radio 3 (now CBC music) stations.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Summer 2012 concert listings
Hot Chip July 15th Sound Academy
Cowboy Junkies July 14th The Great Hall (benefit in support of mental health)
Bloc Party Sept 10th Danforth Music Hall
Justice, M83 Aug 4th Fort York
My Morning Jacket Aug 15th Echo Beach
Grace Potter Aug 17th The Phoenix
The Temper Trap Aug 7th Kool Haus
The Cult Aug 31st The Phoenix
Cowboy Junkies July 14th The Great Hall (benefit in support of mental health)
Bloc Party Sept 10th Danforth Music Hall
Justice, M83 Aug 4th Fort York
My Morning Jacket Aug 15th Echo Beach
Grace Potter Aug 17th The Phoenix
The Temper Trap Aug 7th Kool Haus
The Cult Aug 31st The Phoenix
Friday, May 18, 2012
New Music Fridays #x1
Some late night new music sampling - sorry to say the new track from one of my all time favourties, The Cult is rather unforgettable. However, new track from Saint Etienne re-conjures that light spring-time sound I loved from '91. Other finds include popster Emeli Sande and moody School of Sevens Bells. I guess my mood tonight is for female vocals.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Connecting the dots - sampling the past
One of the things I like about hip-hop is the samples that are taken from older music. I'm not sure where it all started, perhaps at the beginning of hip-hop, but I'm certain it's used often. One early stand-out track for me is Kanye West's Gold Digger. That being said, it was Jamie Foxx that sung Ray Charles' lines from "I got a woman" rather than using a true sample.
From the local seen, Torontonian Shad had a lot of airplay success from "Rose Garden"- I love the sample of the original 1967 version by The Three Degrees.
A go-to album for me that does a wonderful job of sampling older classics with fresher electronic sound is Nina Simone's Remixed and Reimagined. Her voice has such a beautiful range and mood.
For hip-hop and electronica, the samples seem to come mostly from old soul, jazz and R&B. Quite different to the Chris Sheppard's dance mega-mixes of The Cult in the 80's.
But what set this off was the recent Drake Rihanna single "Take Care". I knew I knew the simple piano sample, but thought it was from a Nina Simone track. But a few Google searches later took me to the original source: Gil Scott-Heron. I'd downloaded the wonderful Jamie XX remix of Scott-Heron's "I'll Take Care of You" about a year ago.
I love connecting the dots.
From the local seen, Torontonian Shad had a lot of airplay success from "Rose Garden"- I love the sample of the original 1967 version by The Three Degrees.
A go-to album for me that does a wonderful job of sampling older classics with fresher electronic sound is Nina Simone's Remixed and Reimagined. Her voice has such a beautiful range and mood.
For hip-hop and electronica, the samples seem to come mostly from old soul, jazz and R&B. Quite different to the Chris Sheppard's dance mega-mixes of The Cult in the 80's.
But what set this off was the recent Drake Rihanna single "Take Care". I knew I knew the simple piano sample, but thought it was from a Nina Simone track. But a few Google searches later took me to the original source: Gil Scott-Heron. I'd downloaded the wonderful Jamie XX remix of Scott-Heron's "I'll Take Care of You" about a year ago.
I love connecting the dots.
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