Music

Spotify snaps up music intelligence provider The Echo Nest

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

The popular Swedish music-streaming startup, Spotify, has just purchased The Echo Nest, a music intelligence company in the business of synthesizing billions of data points and transforming them "into musical understanding to power smarter music applications for our customers".

And just who those customers might be? Well, the startup powers a myriad of music services, among them Spotify rivals like Rdio, iHeartRadio, Nokia MixRadio, Twitter Music and others so this is clearly a well played move on Spotify's part.

While The Echo Nest will meet all contractual obligations to all customers, Spotify's Graham James made it clear his company will scrutinize these relationships and "determine the next business steps"...

Apple’s new CarPlay feature will not support Pandora at launch

Cody Lee ∙ March 4, 2014

When Apple officially announced CarPlay, its highly anticipated vehicle integration project, yesterday, it noted the feature would support third-party music apps. The list it provided, however, was rather short including just iTunes Radio, Beats, Spotify, Stitcher Radio and iHeartRadio.

So what about all of the others? It's not looking good. Pandora confirmed with MacRumors last night that CarPlay will not include integration with its popular streaming music service, at least at launch. Despite this, the company says that Apple "continues to be a valued partner."

Amazon said to be working on ‘Prime’ music streaming service

Cody Lee ∙ February 28, 2014

According to Recode, Amazon is in talks with record labels regarding a potential music streaming service. The site says the company plans to bundle the service with its Prime delivery option, where it already offers free movies and TV shows.

Sources familiar with the negotiations say Amazon has been having serious discussions with labels for the past few months, but it's no where close to a deal. Apparently the e-commerce giant is asking for too much of a discount on licensing fees...

Kendrick Lamar to perform at iTunes Festival SXSW

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated December 2, 2016

As first noted by Jim Dalrymple of The Loop, Apple has added Kendrick Lamar to its star list of performers at the upcoming iTunes Festival SXSW next month in Austin, Texas.

Support acts ScHoolboy Q, Isaiah Rashad, Band of Skulls and Capital Cities have also been added to the list of performers.

Lamar, 26, is a popular American hip-hop artist who first gained major attention in 2010, after the release of his fourth mixtape, 'Overly Dedicated'.

The Los Angeles based lyricist also delivered a flawless set during last year's iTunes Festival at London’s historic Roundhouse venue, where more than 400 artists performed in front of more than 430,000 fans, according to MTV...

Djay 2 picks up new features, Traktor DJ and Cross DJ go half price

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2019

The App Store and Mac App Store are home to plenty of apps for novice and pro DJs alike. Algoriddim's djay 2 (read our review) and Native Instruments' Traktor DJ are among the finest examples of how a tablet can be used to double as a virtual turntable for mixing tracks in real-time.

I've seen a number of DJs hook up their iPad to pro equipment and mix tracks from their iTunes library as if it were second nature. To be perfectly clear, I suck at DJing and have no interest in it.

Those who dig DJing, however, are advised to take a look at the just-updated djay 2 for the iPhone and iPad or take advantage of a time-limited discount on Traktor DJ for the iPhone and iPad. I also mention another notable discount on a similar app, Cross DJ for Mac. Jump past the break for the full reveal...

Soundgarden will perform at iTunes Festival SXSW in Austin, Apple confirms

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Earlier in the month, Apple said it will be bringing the iTunes Festival to the United States, marking the show's first appearance on U.S. soil as iTunes Festival used to be a UK-only affair. But as Apple's influence grows and its brand gets more powerful, the company reckoned the time has come to bring iTunes Festival to the United States.

In addition to the previously announced acts, Apple on Wednesday added Soundgarden, the popular Seattle, Washington rock band, to its star-ladden list of performers. Soundgarden performing at the show will also mark the 20th anniversary of one of the band's best albums, Superunknown ($9.99 in the iTunes Store)...

Spin: add a twist to your Lock screen’s music interface

Jeff Benjamin ∙ February 25, 2014

Spin is a just-released jailbreak tweak that adds a new look and feel to the Lock screen music controls and interface. Once you install the tweak, you'll need to head over to the stock Settings app to enable it and respring.

Whenever you play music and go to the Lock screen, you should notice a new remixed music interface. Check out our video walkthrough inside for a deeper look at Spin.

musx app makes for a truly social music experience

Lory Gil ∙ Updated February 14, 2018

When Beats launched its Music service, the company executives called their streaming music different because it added a human touch to the playlist element. Nothing is more human than having your friends tell you about new music. Even if your friends aren’t around, music recommendations shouldn’t be based on algorithms. They should be from real people.

musx is a streaming music app that is completely social. Find curated playlists from people just like you. Connect with your social networks to find out what your friends are listening to. Be the deejay and recommend music to others…

AutoPause: pause the current song when volume is decreased to zero

Jeff Benjamin ∙ February 20, 2014

One of the great things about /r/jailbreak on Reddit is that users can submit tweak requests and many times they are fulfilled by generous developers. AutoPause is a new jailbreak tweak resulting from one of those requests, and it forces music to automatically pause when the volume on your iPhone is decreased to zero.

AutoPause only works with the physical volume buttons, so using the software volume controls doesn't cause the tweak to pause the music. Have a look inside at our video walkthrough to see AutoPause in action.

Shazam and Warner Music Group form crowd-sourced record label

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

The media discovery service Shazam and Warner Music Group (WMG) have struck an interesting partnership that will see the former not only discover new acts by analyzing what new songs people tag most, but also sign them to a new Shazam branded label.

Yup, you read that right: the development marks the arrival of the first crowd-sourced record label. Shazam is the world's top music-tagging and discovery engine and WMG is the largest American-owned music conglomerate worldwide, the third largest label in the global music industry and one of the big three recording companies...

Apple announces the very first iTunes Festival to be held in the US

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

Apple this morning announced via a press release iTunes Festival SXSW, the very first iTunes Festival to be held in the United States. The music event will be held March 11-15, 2014 at ACL Live at the Moody Theater, which is the home of Austin City Limits.

The lineup of stars includes Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, Pitbull, Keith Urban, ZEDD "and more to come". It gets even better as all five nights of the event will be available as a free live and on-demand stream via the iTunes Store on the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac or PC devices.

Additionally, music lovers will be able to stream the event in high-definition through the iTunes Festival app on iOS devices and the Apple TV set-top box...

Sector sequencer comes with its own probability drive

Lory Gil ∙ Updated May 16, 2018

Step sequencers allow musicians to create loops using notes that are played in intervals with customized timing and duration parameters. Depending on what you are going for, they can be either complex or simple. Sequencer machines are usually somewhat heavy and take up a lot of space on a desk or tabletop.

Sector is a stochastic sample slice sequencer that offers the same variety in looping as a physical sequencer, but only takes up the amount of room your iPad does. Plus, this probability-based loop maker turns your notes into crazy mixed up sounds…