Music

Music

Aug5

Music: Rdio for iPad

Posted in: Music
I have been waiting for it a long time. I love Rdio as I don’t buy music anymore. I have been a paying subscriber to the service for the longest time, using it mainly on my iPhone and iMac. Now we have an awesome iPad version, which works now on iPad in a full screen mode. It is clean, well designed and simple to use… thank you Rdio!
Just in time for Rdio’s 1-year celebration, we have something new and extraordinary to share—at long last, the Rdio for iPad app is here.

Designed specifically for the iPad, the app takes advantage of the iPad’s big, beautiful display while including features familiar to Rdio for iPhone lovers. Tap album art to see track listings, turn from portrait to landscape and back again without worry. Take advantage of high resolution album art and playful controls to make music listening even more fun.

More Rdio for iPad features
- See your network’s activity
- Enjoy offline access to music
- View user profiles
- Check out top charts, heavy rotation and new releases
- Listen to Artist Radio and find Recommendations
- Collaborate on Playlists
- Find and follow friends
Use Rdio for iPad on the couch, during your commute, or on a plane—Rdio for iPad is a free download from the iTunes App Store. After a 7-day free trial, you can subscribe to Rdio Unlimited at rdio.com or through Apple’s in-app purchasing system.
(Via Rdio Blog.)
Jan19

Rdio music subscription service in Canada

Posted in: Music

Finally there is a cloud based, social, multi-platofrm music streaming service which is available also in Canada: It is called Rdio! I have signed up today for a free 7-day trial and I really like it so far. It allows you match up your iTunes song library to the service, where it is stored in your Collection. All of the songs which Rdio can match are available in your Collection for streaming, including your mobile devices. The Collection serves as a way to bookmark the songs you own or like the most. But there are other ways to find and organize songs, including search, album charts, recommendations, and playlists. You can create your own playlists or listen to other people’s playlists, as well as search other people’s playlists who are also your Twitter and Facebook friends. Rdio plays nice with Last.fm scrobbling too, which you means you can see what I am listening to on my web site.

Beyond the free trial it costs $5 a month for Web-only access and $10 a month to access the service on a mobile phone through Android, Blackberry, or iPad & iPhone Apps. It works out to about 10 to 12 albums if you were to purchase them via iTunes. The thing is that I hardly ever buy music anymore, I would much rather have a monthly subscription service in place like Rdio. I like the fact that I can use all my devices like iMac, MacBook Pro, iPad and iPhone to stream the music and with the use AirPlay I can direct the audio stream to my home theatre speakers and AppleTV through the Airport Express as well. I think the service is worth the cost per month for what they are offering, especially since in Canada we cannot access Pandora or Spotify unless you are using proxy servers and those are not available on mobile devices. But like with any streaming service in Canada, bandwidth may be an issue. I am going to take my one week trial for which I have signed up to test the impact of playing streaming music on my bandwidth. Hopefully Rdio will not eat too much of my precious bandwidth… If you want to check out Rdio, here is the link to their web site. And below is a video explaining a little more about it:
Nov16

The Beatles are now on iTunes

Posted in: Music

I looks like the rumours last night were true as Apple announced this morning that The Beatles are now on iTunes, in Canada you can get a complete set for $149.99CAD which has some extras in it. Otherwise individual albums range from $12.99 to $19.99CAD. I am not a huge fan of the group, sure they are classic now but I would not spend money to buy their music. However I am sure there are going to be a lot of people very happy to get these albums on their iPad, iPods or iPhones today.

“Apple Corps, EMI and Apple today announced that the Beatles, the most influential and beloved rock band in music history, are now available for the first time on the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com). Starting today, the group’s 13 legendary remastered studio albums with iTunes LPs, the two-volume ‘Past Masters’ compilation and the classic ‘Red’ and ‘Blue’ collections are available for purchase and download on iTunes worldwide as either albums or individual songs. Fans can also get a special digital ‘Beatles Box Set’ featuring the ‘Live at the Washington Coliseum, 1964’ concert film, a worldwide iTunes exclusive which captures the Beatles’ very first US concert.”

(Via Apple.)
Nov7

‘Barbra Streisand’ by Duck Sauce is huge in Europe

Posted in: Music

OUT NOW on iTunes: Spinnin’ Records is proud to bring you DUCK SAUCE – “Barbra Streisand”. Brilliant new record by Armand van Helden and A-Trak.
Oct12

Greatest song of all time of the day

Posted in: Music

And I must totally agree… I grew up listening to it and until today still love it, it simply never gets old.

Greatest Song of All Time of the Day: “Blue Monday,” New Order: “Happy Monday. There are plenty of terrific songs about Mondays: Fela Kuti’s ‘Monday Morning in Lagos,’ Marshall Crenshaw’s ‘Monday Morning Rock,’ T-Bone Walker’s ‘Stormy Monday,’ Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Monday Morning.’ And then there’s The Boomtown Rats’ ‘I Don’t Like Mondays,’ which captured a moment but hasn’t aged particularly well.

Indeed, most synthpop from the early ’80s has aged as well as the haircut from that guy in A Flock of Seagulls. It’s cold, distant, more about technology and production than any human emotions. New Order, at its best, was as precise as the best synth-pop but almost painfully warm, playing tension-and-release games that were exciting, welcoming, and irresistibly danceable. Their top songs (‘Temptation,’ ‘Age of Consent,’ ‘The Perfect Kiss,’ to name a few) didn’t merely express emotion; they were all about expressing emotion: how hard it is, how rewarding it is, how scary it is. You could hear it in the approach/avoidance lyrics and the skyscraper-high wall of colliding rhythms. Synthesizers and drum machines sped up, slowed down, spun out of control, emerged from chaos right on the beat, as a very human voice teetered between revenge and regret. As singer Bernard Sumner asks here, at once both deadpan and ready to explode, mirroring another singer who liked to work the same fields: How does it feel?

(Via Boing Boing.)
Oct5

Liza Minnelli: “Confessions”

Posted in: Music

Today Liza Minnelli was on ABC’s “The View” singing from her latest album called “Confessions” which was released on September 21st (The CD is on iTunes as well). I must say I admire this woman on so many levels, she is has gone through so much in her life yet still she is truly unstoppable… She looks and sounds fantastic, her latest album is simply excellent.

Her vocals are warm and intimate, the mood and atmosphere are deliberately restrained and downbeat with beautiful jazzy music – a perfect combination! I have always liked her and with this new album I am totally in love with her, she is one of the greatest and most talented people I had a pleasure to listen to.

Thank you Liza for this stunning gift.

In the video below, Liza Minnelli talks about her album “Confessions” and previews a few songs from it:

Read More | Comments
Sep16

Canada’s new copyright bill “a license to steal”?

Posted in: Music

I am all for the artists to get paid for their work! Stealing is bad on many levels and should be discourage, at the same time Canada is not USA. I think the proposed law with a maximum of $5,000 in statutory damages is reasonable. For an average consumer $5,000 is a lot of money and I think it will be very effective tool against piracy. The ridiculous amounts of money awarded to RIAA thanks to lawsuits south of the border in the recent years forced many people into bankruptcy and other financial hardship. Now if someone makes a business out piracy for (manufacture illegal copies of let’s say DVD and sells them) they should face much stricter punishment. The worst part of the story as BoingBoing is pointing out is the fact that from all those lawsuits in the US no artist have actually received any compensation! Read More | Comments
May16

Marillion – Assassing (Rare Live)

Posted in: Music

This is incredible… takes me back to the 80′s, I had so much better taste in music back in those days. Rare live performance of Marillion – Assassing
May14

Bootsy Collins – I’d Rather be with you

Posted in: Music

Just brilliant…
Mar12

Lady Gaga – Telephone

Posted in: Music

This might be the last great music video. Beyonce picks up Gaga from jail in the Pussy Wagon from Kill Bill! But Christ, the product placement. This thing has more brands in it than Logorama.

(Via kottke.org.)
Mar2

OK Go – This Too Shall Pass

Posted in: Music, Video

OK Go – This Too Shall Pass

Simply brilliant video!
Feb13

We Are the World 25 for Haiti

Posted in: Music, Video

I cannot believe it has already been 25 years since this song was released! Give yourself a gift of music today and help those who need the most! Hop over to iTunes and download “We Are the World 25 for Haiti” - I did it and I love the new version of this classic!
Feb13

Soldiers of Love – Sade

Posted in: Music

Sade is one of those rare artists who no matter how times may have changed over the years, she stays true to her own unique style. After ten years of silence, her latest album “Soldiers of Love” hit the virtual shelf of iTunes this week and in my personal opinion is a treat! With her own, very distinctive sound that hasn’t changed for the last twenty something years, she is bring us another soulful disk full of great vocals and music. When you watch her latest video (see it below) she seemed unchanged as well, it is like time is standing still for her. The same exotic and beautiful face and voice… For me she remains the mysterious creature of night, as I have always listened to her at night and the latest CD is no different! The title song “Soldiers of Love” is may be one of the most bold piece of music she has ever made with marching drums and beats in a very warrior-like fashion, which gets your attention. The rest of the disk stays true to her own style of the past and present, full class and sophistication, it smooth and poetic, perfect for the late night listener like me… Welcome back! You were missed!
Dec26

Alicia Keys – “The Element of Freedom”

Posted in: Music

I have always been a big fan of this talented, young woman who has proven over and over again that she not only sing but also is able to inspire us with her charitable work. Alicia Keys latest release called “The Element of Freedom” is spectacular. Normally I get album on iTunes, but since it is a Boxing Day in Canada I could not resist picking up the actual CD from HMV on the way home from the gym (for once it was actually cheaper than iTunes store but it is Boxing Day as I mention where retailers are slashing prices after Christmas Holidays). I got this album not only because of “Empire State of Mind” but also I like “Love Is Blind” and “Put It In A Love Song” with Beyonce. From a marketing point of view Alicia did a brilliant thing on the Facebook earlier this December, she actually released the entire album to all her fans on Facebook where you could listen to it song by song as you would play the CD. I have played it several times over right on Facebook and knew at the end I will end getting it when it was released. Today I finally got it…