Jonathan Luce DOT net

iPhone 4, Kinect, and Mainstream Video Chat

Jonathan — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 03:26:10 +0000

With the future release of the iphone we are getting one step closer to a world of video chatting almost everywhere we go. This is a major step to bring a face to digital communication as the capabilities of the cellphone are continually enhanced.

Click here to view the embedded video.

But Apple isn’t the only one focused on bringing video chat into the mainstream. Microsoft recently announced Kinect (formerly known as Project Natal). Aside from the gaming features of Kinect, Microsoft takes control of your gaming media center and turns into a point of contact with the ability to video chat with not only your friends on xbox live, but those with live messenger on their pc as well.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Webcams have been readily available at your local electronic shop for almost a decade, although the recent adaptation of bringing the experience away from the computer and to the living room or even on the go greatly changes the way that friends and family can communicate.

Thanks to skype and setting a macbook up on the coffee table, last year my wife and I were able to enjoy the holidays with our families living several states away. This year can be even simpler with video calls straight from the TV or anywhere I go (where there is a wifi connection anyway).

I am not looking at video chat technology as a complete replacement for voice calls. Not entirely. But the practicality of video calls has so much potential to grow into a mainstream way of life. At least keep this in mind, next time you call in sick to work you can show your boss how sick you really are. Or maybe with a bit of camera work, fake it good enough to get a weekend off for that beach trip you have been planning for.

Independent Distribution and Jamendo

Jonathan — Sat, 22 May 2010 08:04:30 +0000

For music creators of all kinds, getting yourself heard is getting simpler every day. With so many social network and media distribution sites out there, connecting with people and building a fan-base can be done even when or if you’re not playing shows.

Now I’m not saying your going to get signed to a major recording label by having your mom post videos of you sitting on your couch playing guitar and singing cover songs. Although by posting your music online, people, other than your mom, can listen and critique your music. They will either join your mighty throng of fans or say your music sounds like crap. Either way it should fuel the fire in you to make good music no matter the genre!

As I write this I am uploading the Synapse/Dirty Work album to Jamendo. This is an album I worked on in collaboration with a friend of mine, Steve Ripley. Although it is fully posted and available for download on the music page of this website, this post is about using one of the many social media distribution sites to your benefit and is being uploaded to Jamendo as an example of using their services.

I first noticed Jamendo when they began using Bit Torrent to distribute independent artists music free and legally through creative commons licensing. Although for the most part they have pulled away from using torrents, Jamendo still holds strong to distributing music free of charge. For fans and music lovers this is a great thing! But why would an artist want to give away his or her music for free?

Lets face it, CD sales are down and have been dropping more and more each year. Although this doesn’t mean the general populous interest in music has gone down. Thanks to the growing hard drive space and use of the iPod and other mp3 players, listeners can now carry their entire music libraries with them wherever they go.

My point is if you have a great album and a large collection of fans, you would be crazy not to get your album on iTunes and CD Baby just to name a few. But if you are starting out and just working on getting heard, Jamendo is a great site to check out. And don’t think it all has to be for free. After a bit of paperwork you can begin licensing your sweet tunes and get a donation box placed on your page for loving fans to throw their money at you.

Think about it this way, if you only sold your CD, friends will be friends and let each other rip your album to their computers and acquire it for free. But if they love what they hear, you just got another fan who will probably buy your future albums as well as pay to see you play shows.

So enjoy the great ways that digital distribution can help you as an indie artist, and if nothing else take a listen to a few albums already posted on Jamendo. You might find yourself a big fan of someone else.

How to create a GLaDOS voice with Melodyne Uno

Jonathan — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:05:41 +0000

For anyone who has played the Valve game Portal, the unique voice of GlaDOS is a memorable one. Thanks to CosmicD‘s tutorial you can do it yourself with a copy of melodyne and a bit of tweaking!

Click here to view the embedded video.

I’d like to thanks CosmicD for posting this video on YouTube.

Breaking Benjamin: The Making of Dear Agony

Jonathan — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 07:49:05 +0000

Direct from The Shallow Bay, Breaking Benjamin’s home base on the Web, comes two great videos of the making of their fourth studio Album: Dear Agony. Being the studio geek that I am, this takes you into the House of Loud in New Jersey. Its your typical making of video with the band goofing off and thanking fans. Anyway, check it out and get your hands on the new album, Dear Agony.

Get the album on iTunes here

Episode 1

Click here to view the embedded video.

Episode 2

Click here to view the embedded video.

Blenders Blunder

Jonathan — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 19:43:26 +0000

For those of you who know the Blender magazine probably also know that it has officially been out of print now for a couple of months. I did have a subscription… until I got a notice in the mail a few days ago informing me that with it no longer in print, Maxim will fulfill the rest of the subscription.

But what happened to Blender anyway? Its been a long time since I have been itching to read the new issue. For the past year I can barely flip through the pages for more than five or ten minutes before I lose interest.

Anyway I found a great article by a former Blender employee, Jonah Weiner, who has his words on why the music mag as well as a few others are Spinning in the Grave. Consider it my recommended reading for the day!

[Edit] As a sidenote, Blender still has new articles in a much more minimalistic version online.

Sonifi: A Taste of Stutter Edit

Jonathan — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:47:44 +0000

Sonifi is the creation of BT and his company Sonik Architects. Featuring the new single “The Rose of Jericho” by BT himself, Sonifi gives you a taste of a brand new way to play with sound called Stutter Edit, soon to be released as a pro audio plugin.

I have already reviewed this app and you can check it out over at AppInReview.com so I won’t go into crazy detail. But what I will do is tell you that Sonifi was a great way to introduce Stutter Edit and I am looking forward to getting my hands on a copy as soon as possible! Here’s the demo remix video I put together yesterday, check it out.

Click here to view the embedded video.

RiP! A Remix Manifesto

Jonathan — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:03:08 +0000

Filmmaker Brett Gaylor explores issues of copyright in the information age, mashing up the media landscape of the 20th century and shattering the wall between users and producers. Featuring interviews with Gregg Gillis of Girl Talk. Check out www.opensourcecinema.org for more details on how you can play your part.

Travis Barker & DJ AM @ Coachella

Jonathan — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 22:02:35 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

As a big fan of the collaboration of Travis Barker and DJ AM, I had thier full show linked from therealslimfigge‘s Youtube page. When I revamped the site the page the article was removed. But seeing as it was one of the top ranked searches in youtube I figured I should bring it back. So without further adeu:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Steve Plays Drums

Jonathan — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 08:43:21 +0000

So a few weeks ago Steve, a drumming friend of mine, and I decided that there isn’t enough drum videos on youtube. About 176,000 videos isn’t going to cut it, especially when that doesn’t even narrow it down to the good ones! So in a moment to show off good ol’ Steve and his talent of laying a brilliant beat down, we have created the first of hopefully many videos to come that I would so daringly like to call: Steve Plays Drums.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Just as a post note, he is NOT playing lefty. We had video issues with our recording device and it was a mirrored image of the real thing.