Yea I'm around again
Monday, June 11, 2007
I'm back again for a couple of days in the city again. My internet sucks (what's new) or I haven't had access to some at all so the postings have been slimmer than I expected. However I have called Time Warner and am expecting some service from them soon.
So what does that mean in the mean time? You just get less rants (I mean news and opinions) from me.
However, tonight I do have a nice article for you guys. Any fan of Linkin Park will know who Chester Bennington is, and there's a really good article on Identity Theft on him. It was posted by Wired maybe a week ago, and I read it and I have to recommend it. It's pretty interesting to read about Identity Theft, especially of a star, and someone that people love like Chester.
Alright more later, hopefully soon but you never know, lol
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 9:01 PM 0 comments
Labels: Internet, Music, Random, Tech
You have to love The Police
Friday, June 01, 2007
Ah The police, what a great classic band, now who hasn't listened to a song from the police cd or something on the radio. I grew up listening to Sting and the police's songs, from Roxanne to Every Breath You Take, which is my favorite police song btw, it's really classic and nostalgic whenever you play a song from the police cd at home. My parents, you see, where really big Sting and by association The Police fans, in fact they went to go see them in 1980, which is before I was even born during one of their first world tours in Montreal. Of course I don't have a ticket stub but my parents have told me about it and it was easily of their most memorable concerts. I mean who wasn't in love with Roxanne at the time?
Well since they're reunited again and come out with a new compilation CD I guess their new world tour isn't out of place. I think it's great because I think it's the first time in years that The Police is coming to Montreal as the whole band. Sting made some appearances but never with the group after they broke up. They're going to be there at the end of July, so hopefully I'll be able to get my parents some tickets, since I'll be slaving away in NYC.
Do you absolutely love the band The Police? Are you ecstatic that The Police are going on a new worldwide tour? Have you ever seen The Police on a past tour? You should take this opportunity if you have either seen them on this worldwide tour or on a past tour. We want you to discuss the concert including all the details, how much fun you had and why you love the band so much! If you have seen a concert from this tour, you can discuss the differences in the performances (positive tone only please.) You also need to discuss the new compilation CD of their greatest hits and which song on the cd is your favorite.
Gotta love this picture, it's like it's still the 80's again,
Anyone else got any stories about the police? What's your favorite songs from them? Post your thoughts,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 5:08 PM 0 comments
Labels: Cool Stuff, Montreal, Music
Lazy, so here's a video
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Kinda lazy tonight, lots of stuff going on with school, paperwork, etc, so instead of a full length post I'll embed the video of the new Linkin Park song. Strange sound to them, but interesting. I wonder what the rest of the album will be like.
Here's the video, hope you guys like it,
Thoughts?
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 10:55 PM 0 comments
Sticking to Music - Find publicity on Unsigned.com
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Was just browsing through my MySpace while at the hotel, and noticed some more bands trying to get my attention. Sure it may be nice trying to grab my attention there, but I'm really not going to listen to you on MySpace nor are you going to stand out on MySpace compared to the multitude of other bands. I say be out there, try new or different sites or methods, and for me a site like Unsigned.com looks like another bands should try. You can be in any musical group, solo, duo, where it be from Rap, Hip-Hop, Electronica all the way to Grunge Artists Unsigned.com could be the launching point of your career. All it takes is one music executive to like you to get noticed and then you're off.
Alright there's my rant on music for the night,
Enjoy,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 10:46 PM 2 comments
Help get discovered at Music.com
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
I may not be the greatest audiophile, but I know that a lot of musicians here in Brooklyn are always trying to get discovered or get signed by record labels. Instead of doing what every band does and try to only promote through MySpace maybe they should try the new tools at Music.com. The whole Musicians Wanted at Music.com - Get Discovered program is really enticing, where you can sign up for free, upload the music you've already made, and make some money off it. You can have a full website on Music for your band, a blog, an artist profile with band member profiles if you wish, photos, event calender or show listings and more. Music.com will even select some bands for more promotions as well, so it seems like a get venue to get your bands name out that. The more people who know about your music the better right?
Check out the whole Musicians Wanted at Music.com - Get Discovered program at Music.com and let me know what you think? Or maybe just stay on MySpace and try to add me as a friend (which doesn't work)
Enjoy,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 2:51 PM 0 comments
Wow - Steve Jobs convienced EMI to drop DRM
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
I guess peer pressure does work, since everyone has been clamoring for labels to drop the Digital Rights Management (DRM) for a long time I guess they just only finally now start listening to everyone someone has done it, EMI has dropped DRM. I don't buy much music myself, since I'm not the biggest audiophile, but this is a step in the right direction. I've only read clips in the free newspapers (AM Newyork and Metro) but there's a really good article on one of the Ars Technica Blogs. It's from the Infinite Loop blog, and it speaks about how Ditching DRM was EMI's idea.
Very interesting read, and something to think about, since it goes onto more than just DRM but the whole Apple iPod/iTunes experience. Check it out and post your thoughts.
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 5:23 PM 0 comments
Orb works now for Wii, PS3 and Xbox360
Friday, March 23, 2007
I love Engadget, since I can't get enough of gadgets, and today I've found out that a favorite program of mine, Orb, is now compatible with all the major next-gen consoles. For those who don't know what Orb is, it's a streaming application that allows you to stream or access pictures, music, videos from your home computer on your cell phone or another computer through a stream.
Now since it's been updated you can use Orb with the next gen consoles, that's right, your Wii, Xbox360 or PS3. Sure that may be trivial for most users but imagine just plugging in your xbox, and playing your videos at your friends house? Imagine the possibilities with that?
Alright more news tomrrow!
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 1:41 AM 0 comments
Labels: Movies, Music, Tech, Video Games
I'm really liking the Cowon D2
Monday, March 19, 2007
I just saw on Engadget that the Cowon D2 has been released in the US. It's actually some nice Korean technology that if they could market it right can compete with the Zune or iPod for marketshare. Look at the pic below,
Isn't it beautiful? It's got really great features too
-2.5" Wide Touchscreen
-2gb/4gb flash with SD slots
-52 hours battery on MP3, 10 hours on Movie mode
-Support for all the major formats including Ogg, FLAC
Now I'm actually impressed by the specs and the price. It's only 40$ more than the 2gb iPod Nano, or 20$ more than the 4gb Nano, so it's really worth it for price/features compared to Apple. Here's the full Product Page, so take a look and tell me what you think,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 8:15 PM 1 comments
Labels: Digital Players, Music, Tech
Rant about online music
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Tonight I'm going to take it on a different course as I sit here listening to music on my computer and all this talk about digitally purchased music vs traditional store bought material vs illegally downloaded songs. I'm listening to the tracks on my computer, and I realize that nearly 90% I've never purchased, probably even more, yet there's a song that I have and that I own, which made me think.
Am I wrong for all this music? Back in the day everyone had tapes and recordings, and now it's digital so everyone has CD's and MP3's. But for one it's a) Way too easy to get all this music and b) I wouldn't be listening to most of this stuff anyways if it weren't free. So that leaves the RIAA in a problem about revenue, since there are millions like me right now. People like me won't buy music, so how are they going to get revenue from all the people with collections like me? Are they going to tax or charge the digital players such as iPods and etc? Or are they going to get money from advertising or other means? Any other way they can monetize this where someone like me would feel like I'm getting my money's worth?
Discuss your thoughts.
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 11:20 PM 0 comments
Interesting news about MP3 licensing, potential headaches for consumers
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Was just reading Wired earlier tonight while cleaning up the room, and they had a pretty lengthy piece on MP3 licensing and the verdict against Microsoft that occurred this week. It wasn't in the mainstream press because it wasn't directly against Microsoft, but it was Alcatel-Lucent asserting that they hold the patent for MP3's along with the original patent holder. What does that mean for us? A couple of things
1) If Microsoft loses the appeals, it's going to have to pay a lot of cash for continued MP3 use and will likely abandon the format.
2) Another codec is going to take it's place, and right now the 3 front-runners are AAC, WMA and Ogg-Vorbis
3) Many audio players and companies dealing with MP3's are going to have to pay another license to Alcatel-Lucent, and they're going to be in trouble judging by Microsoft's amount.
This is good for the opponents of MP3, but I feel it's generally bad for us. Dam patents, oh well it seems everything's in the air for now but don't say I didn't warn you when we're forced to move off MP3 to another format. You guys can read the full article at Wired.com.
Enjoy,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 11:28 PM 0 comments
Labels: Digital Players, Microsoft, Music, Tech
Fight the power! New York Teen sues the RIAA!
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Keeping with the music news (well Zunes play music) I read a story earlier before I left for practice and came back to see it being the most popular story on it. It's about a Kid in New York suing the RIAA. I don't link to the comments or digg article since I like having the source but the discussion on Digg brings a lot of good points.
For instance, many of the times that the RIAA has met any opposition in courts, they've either backed off or offered to settle. As well they pick on small, inidvidiuals or families, they never pick on rich people, businesses or corporations. They also have little evidence, can't prove you're sharing if you're on a Wireless network, etc. Very nice comments (which is impressive for Digg).
I'll let you guys read, but as usual, post your thoughts and comments.
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 8:00 PM 0 comments
Who's into music?
Friday, January 26, 2007
I may talk about it here, but I'm avid music fan who's got a wide variety of tastes, from rap, hip-hop, to metal, to trance, to rock, even to classical. I believe in the right type of music for the right setting, and being in New York I've gotten to experience a lot of live local bands, from rock, to jazz, to impromptu rap battles on campus. I've pretty much seen it all here. That's why I Unsigned Bands a chance because I've seen a lot of them, and it's always great to see some change. The site Unsigned.com is a new site catering to all the unsigned bands out there trying to make it. They're still new so they're always looking for members, bands, and listeners, so why not give them a shot, maybe you'll find a new band to fall in love it!
Check it out at http://www.unsigned.com and as per usual post your thoughts, what's your favorite indie band, or group in general.
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 12:39 AM 0 comments
Orb, anyone use it?
Thursday, January 25, 2007
I just remembered that I had Orb on my computer, a program that streams media from my computer onto portable media such as my cellphone or laptop and was wondering, how many people know or use the program. I heard about it a year ago, but my cell phone wasn't good enough to stream much. Now I got a SonyEricsson W810i, so I can pretty much do what I want with it yet I haven't since I have my own media library.
I'm going to give more info about it after I get to truly test it out but for now goto www.orb.com and give it a shot, they even released version 2.0 so I'm downloading that now.
More news later,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 11:49 AM 0 comments
Labels: Cell Phones, Music
Say no to DRM
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Interesting article at The NY Times via my friends blog at The Daily Hook speaking on the perils of DRM and being tied to one format. It's a nice read against DRM, most consumers with ipods have no idea what it is so it's nice seeing large publications come out against it. The full article is HERE so take a look and post your thoughts.
Btw I know an editor at the NY Times, he's a client at the PT clinic where I work, pretty small world isn't it.
Alright more later,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 1:21 PM 0 comments
Labels: Digital Players, Music, Tech
Goldmic.com - Social Networking for the Hip Hop scene
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Since I live in Brooklyn hip-hop is universal, I mean I see it and hear it every day. Well it's about time that the internet caught up with the scene thanks to Goldmic.com. It is the first Hip Hop Social Networks out, and to celebrate it there's having a battle tournament (a battle is two rappers squaring off to see who's got the best lyrics, I'm being general for the non-hip hop crowd) and the celebrity judge is Damon Dash of Roc-A-Fella Records, along with a $500 first place prize.
Here's some rules for the battle:
Battle Tournament: This is an audio battle tournament. The winner will become the Goldmic Audio Champion.
Judging: First 3 rounds decided by Goldmic.com community voting. Semifinal and final rounds decided by celebrity judge Damon Dash.
Prize: 1st Place: $500 and a pair of Pro Keds sneakers
2nd Place: Goldmic prize pack ($200 value)
Dates: First round audios will be posted on January 19, 2007.
Tournament Rules: www.goldmic.com/r/tournamentDD
I'm not a rapper or anything like myself but I enjoy hip-hop and go to shows and have friends that rhyme or battle. I'd check out the site if you like hip-hop/rap and if you can battle then it's worth it for the money and the fame, who knows maybe even Damon Dash might be impressed enough to sign you, like Jin.
Anyways check it out and lemme know what you think,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 2:44 AM 2 comments
Jack Black and Hellacious D Interview
Saturday, December 09, 2006
I think Jack Black is a hilarious comedian, not a stand up comic kind of funny but and overall funny guy that makes you laugh by his demeanor and what he does all day. Well that guys at Maxim Online, yes that's right Maxim, have an online video with Jack Black and Tenacious D availible for you guys.
The interview is funny in the typical Jack Black way, and while your there you can view all the other nice features of Maxim, such as girls, games, entertainment, cheerleaders and all that other great stuff. Check it out!
Enjoy
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 1:38 PM 0 comments
Labels: Internet, Movies, Music
Moby in New York
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
I listen to trance/electronica so I've definetly heard of Moby. Most of you have heard him for that Porcelain song he's released a few years back. I've listened to his other stuff and it's pretty decent, I'm more of the trance guy myself. Since I'm from New York I have to promote the Moby in New York special that's on CNN's The Scene. He talks about Chinatown (he's true when you can still easily get lost there if you're a New Yorker, lol) and other places like Central Park inside New York. It's pretty intresting so check it out if you're doing nothing waiting for that turkey to cook or have never been to New York (who hasn't), lol. If you haven't, read this link about New York Etiquette unless you want to get run over or piss off the locals, lol. Trust me tourists stick out like sore thumbs on the streets/sidewalk, you'll see, lol.
Anyways off to bed, nice long sleep for once today.
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 11:49 PM 0 comments
Zune's being released tomorrow, you getting one?
Monday, November 13, 2006
If I wasn't so lazy I'd put a poll up here asking you guys if you'd get a Zune or not. Since it's coming out tomorrow there's been a lot of press/reviews. I saw a really good link yesterday but never got around to posting it so here it is, sorry if it's old news.
This one is from IHT.com, stating that most iPod users are considering buying an iPod, here's the quote:
"That is why Steve Wilson, a consumer electronics analyst, was so surprised this month when he read the results of a survey by ABI Research of 1,725 randomly chosen owners of digital media players. To Wilson's shock, 58 percent of iPod owners told ABI they were likely to buy a Zune, the new player Microsoft plans to start selling in the U.S. market on Tuesday, and in 2007 in Europe."
Pretty interesting thing here, staying that iPod users aren't loyal. Here's the rest of the article HERE
Me, I'd look into a Zune maybe later for its video capabilities. I have my phone (SE W810i) for music since I don't want to carry 2 seperate devices on the go but if their movie support takes off then it might be work looking into. Anyone have any further thoughts? Post away,
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 8:34 PM 0 comments
Labels: Electronics, Microsoft, Music
Problems for people who bought MSN Music
Monday, November 06, 2006
Just thought I should put that out there, since a lot of people bought music from MSN Music and other online music stores that aren't iTunes. Well since the Zune has a completely new interface and a whole new DRM scheme all the PlayForSure tracks aren't going to work. That's not good for all the people who bought individual tracks, but for those who bought subscriptions it shouldn't hurt so bad, since you can just buy a Zune subscription and replace all your tracks.
The BBC News has a more complete article on this, you should read it HERE and post your thoughts
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 10:50 PM 0 comments
Free Stuff Part 23 - 5 Songs on Emusic free with a review of your doctor
I guess everyone's trying to get in on the free stuff lately. The folks at Vimo have a comparison shopping website for doctors so in order to promote their site and get more reviews of doctors they are giving away 5 Free songs to EMusic for each doctor reviewed. Sounds pretty good if you've had a lot of doctors you can rack up the songs. Btw these songs are MP3's so if you need to transfer them to your iPod or Zune then you'll be set since all you have to do is send them over, no nasty DRM. Vimo doesn't require any credit card numbers or anything crazy like that, so don't worry about getting scammed. I think I'm going to review my doctors, I need some new songs, lol.
Enjoy!
-Steve
Posted bySteve at 9:20 PM 0 comments
Labels: Music, Saving Money
