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6 Fantastic Ways To Discover Cool Music You’ve Never Heard Before

Yaara Lancet — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:31:33 +0000

If you’re a music lover, you’re familiar with the constant need to discover new music. You already know lots of good music you like, but the thirst for more is unstoppable. There’s lots of good music out there most of us never even heard of – Indie artists and small bands that haven’t yet made their way to the big websites or labels. But this doesn’t mean they’re not worth listening to.

If you have access to Last.fm, Pandora or Spotify, you may find all your new music needs there. But these services don’t include everything, and more importantly, they’re geo-restricted. So without further ado, here are 6 great ways to discover cool music you’ve never heard before, no matter where you are in the world.

Earbits Radio

Earbits is a fantastic website in which you can discover new music, listen to it, learn about new artists, chat and comment about them, and much more. To start, all you have to do is pick a station. Stations are based on genres, but there are loads of them to choose from. Whether you’re interested in experimental rock, funk jazz or street hop, you’re going to find it in Earbits.

If you can’t even decide on a genre, you can choose a shuffle station, or go for editor’s picks or listener’s picks stations. After you choose a station, the music will immediately start playing, featuring a huge image of the artist and a short bio and buy links on the bottom.

You can log in using Facebook to rate songs and comment (unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a way to so this without Facebook). You can also download the Chrome app, and get the Earbits iOS or Android apps. This is an awesome way to listen to new music you’ve never heard of before.

Musicovery

Musicovery is another great service which helps you discover new music. It’s not as eye-catching as Earbits, but it does the job well. To start, you can either enter a name of an artist you like, or choose your mood.

Musicovery will create a radio station for you, much like Last.fm or Pandora, which should feature songs that suit your taste and/or mood. You can listen to all the music you want this way. If you create a free account, you can ban songs from appearing in your playlists and mark songs as favorites. A paid account will get you some extra features.

Musicovery also comes as an iPhone app, and there are other goodies such as the widget and lab you’re going to want to check out.

Shuffler.fm

Shuffler.fm is a music discovery engine that is entirely based on music blogs. You can listen to music by genre, by popular tracks, or by blog. Simply choose your “channel”, and off you go.

If you choose to listen by genre, each song in the playlist will come from a different blog. The page will change accordingly, and you will get to view the actual blog post relating to the song you’re listening to.

You can create an account with the site, or log in using Facebook, to follow specific blogs and more. Shuffler.fm also comes as an iPad app.

YouLicense Mood Finder

YouLicense is actually a site aimed at letting people license music, but it also provides a pretty good way to discover some new music. The website includes a tool which lets you browse for new music by mood; there aren’t a lot of moods to choose from, but all the really important ones are includes.

When you choose a mood, a new window will open with a set playlist for that mood. In that aspect, there’s a limit to the amount of music you can discover with YouLicense, but it does contain songs by artists you’ve probably never heard of, and you can use it as a stepping stone to discovering even more great music.

If you create an account on the site, you can rate songs and create playlists as well. The website is not meant to be a music discovery tool per se, but it’s definitely useful as one.

From The Basement

We now move on to a different kind of websites: These websites don’t provide a lot of music to listen to, but do provide information and names of new artists you may want to listen to. And after all, that’s half the problem with finding new music.

The first one of these is From The Basement – a sort of podcast/live performances website created by Radiohead’s producer Nigel Godrich. The site features live shows shot by the website, which aim to create a relaxed atmosphere for the artist and produce the best performances possible.

There is a limited number of artists to choose from, some of which you’ve probably never heard of, and each contains 1 or more live performances, a picture gallery, and useful links. The videos are very well made – not something you would find on MTV, that’s for sure – and the minimalistic site is a joy to browse for any music lover.

Gnoosic

Gnoosic is a music discovery service that doesn’t include any actual music. You give it up to three names of artists you like, and Gnoosic starts giving you suggestions for more artists you may enjoy.

For each suggestion, you can choose whether you like it, don’t like it, or don’t know it, and the suggestions continue. For each suggestion you can also access a discussion board, and even cooler, see it on a music map.

The band you were looking at will appear in the middle, with other, similar bands floating all around it. You can use this to find music that is similar to music you already know you like. After finding some names that look interesting, you can use other services to find the actual music.

Looking for more online music sources? Check out:

Do you know of more cool ways to discover new music? Share in the comments!

Image credit: Shutterstock

Music Lovers: Why Aren’t You Using SoundCloud?

Tim Brookes — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:31:57 +0000

Discovering a new artist, album or record label that corresponds with your tastes and expectations can be a rewarding experience. These golden discoveries can be few and far between and that’s where I turn to using a few extra tools to help hone in on the music I love.

We first featured SoundCloud on MakeUseOf initially back in 2008, and while the core service largely remains the same; much has changed. If you’ve been wondering what SoundCloud is, whether you can make use of it and what makes it so special then read on to find out why you should probably have been using this free service all along.

Follow The Music

The service operates much in the same way as Twitter whereby, once registered, you can follow other users and receive notification of new activity in your stream. The process really doesn’t get more complicated than this, and once you’ve followed a few users then your stream will begin to look fairly busy.

Along the top of the page is the main navigation, including your Dashboard (essentially a stream), You featuring all your activity, including comments made, favourites and so on, Tracks which is a quick way of exploring music on offer (now includes a Creative Commons option), People for finding other users and Groups. You can of course search for music, though you’re probably better going by tags for specific genres.

Listening to music via SoundCloud can provide an oddly visual experience. For starters, each track is represented by a waveform with comments layered on top. Comments are tied to specific points in the song, and will be displayed accordingly for future listeners. Much of the time whilst using the service I find myself transfixed by the waveform and fairly amused by the barrage of comments, especially near a drop.

Comments are not only somewhat amusing but also a great way of discovering other artists you may like. If you notice someone is frequently passing comment on music you’re fond of then why not see who else that user is following.

The player itself really has come a long way since our last profile of SoundCloud, and there are a wealth of options for each song. As well as sharing with a lot of social networks, clicking “Like” to favourite the song and of course adding a comment, it is also possible to buy or download the song (depending on what the artist has stipulated) and even embed the player within a website.

I’ve taken advantage of this here to bring you a few choice cuts from the service, and to demonstrate a great way of sharing your favourite tracks with those not currently using SoundCloud.

SoundCloud Mobile

By far one of the best ways of using the service is via one of the mobile apps. Both the Android version and SoundCloud for iOS received updates recently, and whilst I can’t really speak too much for Android, the updated app I’m running on my iPhone is better than ever.

The recent iOS update finally added the viewing of comments during playback and refreshed the UI. Your followers’ activity in both versions is now constricted to the Stream tab with any sounds you choose to record or share going in the Activity tab. As you’d expect, the iPhone version continues playback in the background without a hitch (some apps still don’t do this) and you can skip and pause from your homescreen.

The only thing that the mobile version really lacks is the ability to download tracks, though if you really like a track that much you can favourite it and download it the next time you’re near a PC. The mobile SoundCloud experience is generally a faster and more pleasant way of checking your stream, and I’d thoroughly recommend it.

Download: SoundCloud for iOS @ App Store
Download: SoundCloud for Android @ Android Market
View: SoundCloud Mobile (Web)

Other Ways To Get Your ‘Cloud On

SoundCloud really has been growing for a long time now, and as a result there are a lot of ways to use the service. Mac OS X users who are running 10.6 or later can jump right in and download SoundCloud Desktop, directly from the Mac App Store. The interface somewhat resembles iTunes and the software is ideal if you’re thinking of streaming SoundCloud for a party.

There are further add-ons and plugins for the PS3, Boxee and Roku. In addition to this there are a wealth of apps that take advantage of the SoundCloud service. If you’re fond of mobile music making apps like the recently featured iMaschine or KORG’s iMS-20 then you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find out you can share your creations straight to SoundCloud simply by logging in using your chosen app.

SoundCloud’s API has spawned literally hundreds of additional ways to use the service, be it creating an online presence using your taste in music, setting up a trigger to Tweet your uploads using If This Then That or simply sharing a rough loop or two with your followers.

View: The SoundCloud App Database

Finally…

Who exactly is SoundCloud good for? Well aside from being an awesome tool for you and me to quickly discover new music, SoundCloud is also great for artists and record labels, particularly smaller ones.

My SoundCloud favourites are populated mostly by tracks from obscure artists, some just starting out, who I would never have discovered were it not for the service. Similarly, many of these artists and producers would never have received the same level of exposure had it not been for SoundCloud.

So there’s your final reason to sign up, download and wallow in the SoundCloud service. If you’d like to share any tracks, your profile or artists in the comments then go ahead.

Do you like SoundCloud? Have you used it for a while? Noticed the mobile updates? Post your thoughts in the comment box below.

7 Websites For The Music Lover To Find, Discover & Learn About Music

Tina Sieber — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 16:31:00 +0000

Music is an essential ingredient of human culture. Everyone enjoys some kind of music or a related activity. Whether we enjoy passive listening, humming along, singing, playing an instrument, or dancing, music is always there. Even when there is no music, we sometimes seem to recognize a rhythm or musical sounds because the human brain, and thus its sensory extensions, such as the eyes and ears, are trained to recognize patterns, no matter how remote they are.

In this article I will show you music websites to find songs you like, discover new music, and gain a deeper understanding of music as a whole.

MTV Music Meter

The MTV Music Meter ranks over a million artists and allows you discover what is hot in the music scene right now. The ranking is not only based on album sales, but also on how many times they are mentioned on the social networks, in blog posts, news articles, and streams. Click on the little pull-down button to expand more information for the respective artist.

MTV Music Meter apps are available for the iPad, iPhone, and Google Android.

The MakeUseOf Directory has previously profiled MTV Music Meter.

TuneCrank

Maybe you’re totally not into mainstream and the radio stations generally just bore you. If you are always on the lookout for new talent and the latest independent trends, you should check out TuneCrank! It finds, ranks, and streams the best independent music, including touring bands, buskers, and anyone else who is frank enough to upload their music to the site. You can vote for songs and share your favorites with your friends.

We have previously profiled TuneCrank in the MakeUseOf Directory.

Jog.fm

Music can be a great motivator for your workout. Not only will it be more fun, chances are you will actually work out longer and do better. On Jog.fm you can get a fresh mix for your exercises, whether you’re running or lifting weights. You can either enter the time of your workout or browse for popular music

Jog.fm also is available for the iPhone.

We have previously profiled Jog.fm on the MakeUseOf Directory.

8bitcollective

8bitcollective is a repository and file sharing community for chiptune-related media. Chiptune is synthesized electronic music that is typically produced with sound chips of old computers and video game consoles. All media released on 8bitcollective is licensed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 2.5 license and can be downloaded, shared, and remixed legally for non-commercial purposes.

We have previously profiled 8bitCollective on the MakeUseOf Directory, and in the Sound Sunday edition of February 6th this year I featured a sampler album from them.

HeardOnTV

There are some great apps out there that let you find music by simply humming a bit of the melody. However, if you’re entirely unable to get the melody right, here is an alternative to find tunes played on popular TV shows. You can find songs that appeared on shows like Grey’s Anatomy, One Tree Hill, or Cold Case. The site can be browsed by show, artist, and some movies are included, too.

We have previously profiled HeardOnTV on the MakeUseOf Directory.

MapOfMetal

If you’re interested in finding out how different styles of Metal and associated genres, such as Hard Rock or Punk Rock are connected, check out MapOfMetal. The site provides an interactive tour through the sub-genres and their history, also exploring the musical characteristics of the genres. While you’re reading the little summaries, you can listen to sample tunes for each genre.

Also check out the MapOfMetal profile on the MakeUseOf Directory.

Theta Music Trainer

Do you have a good ear for music and/or would you like to improve it? When you go through the ‘training’ provided at the Theta Music Trainer, you will gain a better understanding of the music you hear every day. Through games you can sharpen your sense of pitch and tone, unlock hidden patterns in music, and strengthen your music theory skills.

Theta Music Trainer was profiled on the MakeUseOf Directory. The site was also mentioned in Saikat’s article 10 Interactive Learning Websites For Some Fun & Games With Music.

If you liked this article, you should also look into the following:

Where do you get your music kick online?

Image credits: Ladyann

Spoil The Digital Artist In You With Procreate For iPad [Giveaway]

Jeffry Thurana — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 15:30:45 +0000

While the tech world is still trying to constrain the iPad into a particular category, users have already found many cool uses for the gadget. Although the iPad is known for consuming media like news, books, music, and movies; it is also a great tool for creative individuals.

Digital graphic artists are one of the many groups of talents to see the iPad as a new medium to express their creativity. This enthusiasm resulted in the availability of many great drawing apps for iPad. One of the latest names to enter the game is Procreate.

We’re giving away 25 copies of Procreate for iPad this week. Find out more about it and how to join the giveaway below.

Between 16 and 100

If you think you will see “just another” drawing tool for iPad, you’ll be surprised. The first thing that you’ll notice just how fast it is. Procreate is a snap even on the first generation iPad. This is because the creator of this app spent over a year to create their own non-GPU reliant painting engine called Silica.

Other great features of this app are the number of layers and undo that users can utilize. Procreate supports up to 16 layers – with the ability to blend the layers – and 100 undos (which will definitely come in handy).

The app comes with more brushes than any inspiring new artist would ever need. But it doesn’t stop there, you can edit the existing brushes, import more brushes, and even create your own sets of brushes if you wanted to.

A Quick Encounter

The best way to know how a drawing app performs is by trying it out, so I tried to draw using Procreate. Since I’m not a professional artist, I don’t expect to produce a beautiful and realistic photo-like painting. Yet, I was able to do amazing things during my first 30 minutes.

To cut a long story short, I created several layers: for sketching, for line drawing, for coloring, for shading, and for background toning. I constantly switched between the layers to add different elements to my drawing. I start drawing the general sketch, then I “cheated” by zooming into drawing to add details.

As someone who always draws traditionally using a pencil and paper, I was amazed at how cool digital drawing is and how lucky we are to live in a time where you can create beautiful paintings easily on a multi-touch digital drawing board.

There are many more things that you can do with Procreate, and you can learn about them by reading the downloadable user guide or watching the introductory video. But the best way is to find out by yourself. If you want to try out Procreate, it’s available at iTunes App Store for $4.99. But you can get it for free because we are giving away the app to 25 lucky readers.

How do I win a copy?

It’s simple, just follow the instructions.

Step 1: Fill in the giveaway form

Please fill in the form with your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form.

The giveaway code required to activate the form is available from Friday’s newsletter or on our Facebook page.

Step 2: Share!

You’re almost done. Now, all that’s left to do is to share the post. There are 2 options to choose from or you can do both!

Like it on Facebook

Or share it on Twitter

This giveaway begins now and ends Friday, July 8th at 2100hrs PDT. The winners will be selected at random and informed via email.

Spread the word to your friends and have fun!

MakeUseOf would like to thank Savage Interactive for their generosity while participating in this giveaway. Interesting in sponsoring? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us via email.

Find, Listen To, Or Promote New Music With Amazing Tunes

Angela Alcorn — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 21:31:21 +0000

Here’s a little something for those of you who love to make or listen to new music. The Internet has given us yet another awesome way to discover and promote music: Amazing Tunes. The idea behind Amazing Tunes is so incredibly simple that you’ll probably jump on board instantly.

The Amazing Tunes Radio Station

Amazing Tunes have created a UK radio station for new music releases and have promoted the station enough to attract some big names and labels to their airwaves. They also offer this station online and certain shows as podcasts for the rest of the world to enjoy. Amazing Tunes are so good at attracting new talent that they are able to claim that they play 100% new music.

For the listeners, this is great news. You’ll get to hear all sorts of new music releases every day and you’ll never get bored of what you’re hearing. In fact, you”ll have to act quick to get hold of the tracks you love before you forget what they were and get interested in something else.

Browsing Music On Amazing Tunes

As you may have guessed, you can also browse the selection of music by searching for popular tags, for emerging or famous artists, browsing the charts, featured artists, track name or any other way that takes your fancy. You can then listen to tracks using the flash player or you can purchase the track.

Recommendations & Personalisation

If you’re logged in, you can also tag tracks as you wish or mark the songs you like using the heart and broken heart buttons. Logging in requires either a simple sign-up or use of a Facebook Connect login.

If you’ve rated enough tracks, Amazing Tunes can begin to recommend more tracks you might like. The more you rate, the better your recommendations will be.

Playlists can also be created by clicking the playlist button whenever you find or hear a song you like.

Buying Tracks From Amazing Tunes

Since any artist can upload music to be heard on the radio or sold via Amazing Tunes, there’s a decent collection of tracks you can purchase. At the moment, all tracks are 79p each or free. Not too onerous, huh? Once you’ve paid, you’re emailed a download link.

Getting Your Music On Amazing Tunes

Amazing Tunes have made it easy to give them your music as high quality MP3 files. All you do is upload it to their site and they’re able to play it on the radio. You’ll need to sign up, but that only involves a simple form or a Facebook Connect login. Make sure you own the copyright for all parts of your music and lyrics before you upload your tracks.

Your tracks will be available for people to listen to via the website and may eventually feature in the Amazing Tunes Audition. If it gets enough attention it will get played on Amazing Tunes radio.

If you choose to make your tracks available to sell, you’ll need to provide a Paypal account. Amazing Tunes passes 100% of the profits directly to the artist, although Paypal fees do apply. Amazing Tunes recommend that you sign up for PayPal’s micropayment system in order to keep as much of your income as possible. Not a bad way for a struggling musician to make a bit of spare cash at all – there’s nothing to lose!

You can also promote your gigs for free through Amazing Tunes too.

More Music Discovery Services

We know you love music, so check out these other music discovery services, too:

Have you signed up for Amazing Tunes? What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

Image Credit: ShutterStock

7 Websites You Should Visit If You Want To Be A Graffiti Artist

Saikat Basu — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 19:31:44 +0000

On one hand graffiti is seen as street art, on the other it is brought down as vandalism. Which side are you on? You might be dilly-dallying, so let me point you to the Wikipedia article on graffiti. A quick glance through Wikipedia tells us that graffiti has existed since the days of Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire (and probably earlier too).

Yes, it is seen as malicious mischief by some, but nobody is denying that it’s also a part of mainstream pop-culture as an art form. Graffiti or street art’s place in the sun as an art form may still be open to debate, but if done well, it is not only eye-catching but also a rousing social communication tool.

So, where does a wannabe graffiti artist go for inspiration? First take a look at this old Smashing Magazine article to see just why it deserves respect as an art form; then head on to these seven graffiti websites before you stock up with cans of spray paint.

Art Crimes ““ The Writing on The Wall

The site says it is the first and largest online aerosol art archive. It is definitely one of the oldest as it started in 1994. The site showcases graffiti art and style from around the world. The news link is something you might be interested in to know what’s happening around the world with this art form. Another page that’s a virtual shortcut into this world is the one which lists other interesting and useful sites in this genre.

Street Files

When you first land here, it will seem that this photo sharing site is the “Flickr” for graffiti artists. 33,445+ members and 462,369 photos makes up quite a huge collection. The site is an independent street art & graffiti photo community. The site traces the popularity of graffiti as a social art form through the photos that are contributed from across the world. The quickest way to reach the streets is via the little blue map on the right which pinpoints cities around the world. There’s also a photo filter for a more precise search.

The Graffiti Creator

This site is for those who still haven’t found a wall to “deface” or would like to practice without wasting paint. The online graffiti creator lets you experiment with varying preset styles. You can create customized text art work using the available styles & concepts. This online graffiti tool is useful because graffiti art can find expression on web banners, animation, and, logos too. One of our fellow authors has done a complete review on this online Flash application.

Learn Graffiti

If you want to learn the stylized lettering involved in graffiti art, then this is a nice place for some of the basics. The online tutorials on graffiti take you through alphabets, styles, block 3D, arrows, coloring etc. Some of the lessons are still incomplete, but you can still get a pretty good picture of what’s needed to start of with graffiti. The URL and the website’s name are different.

Graffiti Playdo

You have a palette, a can of spray paint, and a whole blank wall to work your magic. What else do you need as an aspiring graffiti artist? The advantage of doing graffiti online as this little Flash application shows is that you can undo it all with a press of a key and start again. Also, the Flash app lets you connect to Facebook and share your wild inspired ideas. Check out the little thumbnails at the foot, they should make you feel either inspired or inferior as a graffiti artist. As you can see, I feel the latter.

Also, you can deface a lot many more public properties at another cool street painting site – ZeWall Online Painting.

PureGraffiti

This is one of the more complete graffiti website and blog with a range of all round features that includes – graffiti news, graffiti pictures gallery, graffiti artists, interviews, street art, graffiti supplies, and a large forum. There doesn’t seem to be any contests held now, but the site also features graffiti battles between participating graffiti artists.

FatCap

This is a very nicely designed site to come to if you are searching for a well rounded graffiti and street-art resource and a social graffiti community rolled into one. You have entire sections on featured artists, graffiti pictures, videos, interviews, and news. Check out the nicely laid out navigational cues on the right sidebar which let you browse graffiti according to their type.

I used to think that graffiti was an anonymous form of art, where you really didn’t know the artist. But as these graffiti websites prove, graffiti and street art has moved into the mainstream and is getting its due. There is a lot of appeal in graffiti. Don’t you think so?

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Top 5 Free Linux Music Creation Tools For The Artist On A Budget

Tim Brookes — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 01:31:07 +0000

Mac and Windows users have it good when it comes to laying down a rough mix, some vocals or a tasty bassline. With apps like Garageband, FLStudio, Sonar and Reason, the ability to create professional recordings is limited only to expertise and creative flair.

Linux musicians have to compromise. The industry does not see Linux as a money-spinning venture, and thus the best tools for the job happen to be free. Whilst you won’t need to spend a penny; you may have to compromise on features, support and plugins.

That said, there’s plenty of quality freebies to help you on your way. Here’s six tools to get your Linux music career off to a flying start.

Linux Multimedia Studio

One of the most feature-packed and up to date application on the list, the Linux Multimedia Studio is a free and powerful suite for both Linux and Windows operating systems. Providing some features usually reserved for paid software, LMMS gives you a complete set of tools for the job.

The song editor can be used to compose, there’s a beat and bassline editor, a piano roll for creating melodies, effects (with 64 FX channels) and the studio is compatible with a large number of standards (including SoundFont2 and LADSPA).

LMMS is compatible with MIDI keyboards (of course) and there’s plenty of built-in sounds and synths at your disposal. If you’ve done any production in the past, the ability to import MIDI and FruityLoops (FLP) files will probably be of interest too. Everything’s tied together in a clean, modern interface. An incredible package for the (lack of) price.

Rosegarden

Another suite with plenty of punch that’s similar to LMMS, but aimed mainly at composing. The powerful notation editor will please those who enjoy making music using a score, with quick and easy ways to share and print (using LilyPond).

Rosegarden boasts some fairly intuitive MIDI management, with over 100 devices supported out of the box. If your device isn’t supported you can manually configure and export the settings to help the community.

There’s also a capable audio editor and sequencer, piano roll, built-in synths and multi-language support.

Jack Audio Connection Kit (JACK)

JACK is not a music creation tool, but a tool to facilitate the creation of music through the use of other software. It essentially acts like a big virtual mixer, allowing you to take audio from applications of your choice and re-route it into other applications.

If you intend to do any music creation and would like to use multiple applications in the production process, then you’ll want JACK. You might also just want it as a considerable amount of software supports it in some way or another.

Jackbeat

Primarily a tool for creating drum beats and loops, Jackbeat is a free audio sequencer for Linux, Windows and Mac. The application uses a drum machine interface that promises to cater to both composers and live performers.

Jackbeat functions best alongside other software and can be integrated using the JACK and OSC (OpenSoundControl) standards. The whole interface is intuitive and straight-forward, meaning you’ll be up and running in no time.

Be sure to check out the keyboard shortcuts on this page to speed up your Jackbeat workflow!

Muse

Another feature-packed offering, Muse is more than just a MIDI and audio sequencer combining recording and editing abilities into one package. The interface dictates that simplicity is key to this multi-track virtual studio which is only available for Linux.

There’s full MIDI import/export support, editing via piano roll, drum editor or list view, internal and external synth plugins and JACK support for integration with other programs.

Look out for the up and coming Muse 2 (pictured), which the development team have said will see a stable release in the near future.

The Rest

There were a couple of apps that didn’t quite make the top 5, and those were:

Hydrogen

A drum loop sequencer with a sleek interface and distinct lack of updates since 2009, which is why it didn’t make the list. Might be worth a look if none of the rest answers your drumming needs.

Audacity

A very simple audio editor and recorder which we’ve covered here. Perfect for small tasks such as sampling but lacks any of the major features that the other suites have.

Conclusion

The software on offer here hasn’t had thousands of dollars pumped into its production but has been crafted by volunteers in their spare time. Suites like LMMS give some of the paid virtual studio software available for other platforms a run for their money. If you’re interested in creating music on the Linux platform be sure to check a few of these out.

Have any readers created any music using these (or other) free tools? Will you try any out? What other software do you use for this task? Let us know in the comments.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Create Your Own Easy Painless Online Music With UJAM

Angela Alcorn — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 19:31:07 +0000

There are plenty of musically creative people in the world who aren’t absolutely certain of their talents “” or at least, not enough to go out and buy some great software. You might be one of these people. Maybe you’ve got an idea for a song or a mashup somewhere in your head, but don’t have the tools to turn it into something worth listening to. Well, now you do.

UJAM is a new tool to create your own music online. With it, you can mix up vocals with backing tracks, save it online and share it with your friends. There’s no software to download and it’s completely free. It’s a piece of cake to use.

Using UJAM

Sign-up takes less than a minute and then you’re ready to roll. UJAM kindly offers a walk-through on their site so you can see where all the tools are and get started with confidence.

To start your own creation, click on “Application” to begin using the web application.

Vocals

You can record your own vocals or upload vocals from elsewhere. Just make sure if you’re uploading vocals that you’ve got the rights to use it for a new creation. If you’re recording them with UJAM, you can record it to a click beat to keep your timing steady.

The vocal track should be one single line of voice without harmonies. If you know the BPM (Beats Per Minute) you can let the application know so it’s easier to beat-match the backing tracks.

UJAM lets you change the style of your vocal track, by turning it into an instrument. It’s all done with a simple click on the “instrument” button while you’re looking at the vocal track.

Backing Tracks

There’s a huge variety of backing-track styles in UJAM to use with your vocals. You’re likely to have trouble choosing what to stick with!

Rejam Works

If you’re not feeling vocally inspired and just want to play around, try out the rejamming feature. It lets you take UJAM’s songs and re-work the chords or melody into a new style. You can do this by changing the chord progressions or the instrument or the general style of the piece.

With a couple of clicks, I changed a reggae tune into an Oxygene-style synth track.

Saving and Sharing

All your UJAM creations are saved on the site and shown in a list when you log in. When you want to share these with friends, click “Create MP3” and it will create a file you can send to them. Or, there’s a simple button to share directly on Facebook or Soundcloud.

Thoughts & Threats

UJAM’s idea isn’t really new. There’s plenty of competition out there, including JamStudio & Myna. What it does have is simplicity. If you want to quickly make a parody song or a demo to give to another musician you want to work with, it’s really easy to get it rolling. This simplicity makes it really accessible to newcomers, too. Try letting kids play with it for a while “” or just play with it yourself until you decide whether you want to buy some professional software.

Meanwhile, here’s a few more articles that might be up your alley:

What will you make with UJAM? Share your ideas or creations in the comments!

Love Doodles? Here Are 8 Websites To Show Your Love For Doodling

Saikat Basu — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 22:31:45 +0000

Anyone who has sat through a dull talk knows what a doodle is. We may not be anywhere close to being artistic, but all of can scribble and doodle. But surprisingly, doodling is not a mere act of aimless childish drawing on paper. The significance of doodles and doodling goes beyond that as many studies of the human mind will tell you.

Doodling is an art form and companies like Google have given doodles a respectability through their Google Doodle pictures. Even Apple takes it seriously with a few apps for the iPad. Then if you browse around you will realize that creative doodles are very much part of some cool web designs. Just try it out by searching ‘doodles web design’.

The appeal of doodles lies in the fact that doodling is something all of us can do. Heck, if you have a sense of humor, you can churn out a web comic with just simple doodles.

If you are starting to discover your love for doodles, check out these eight websites.

DoodlerBlog

A blog that’s only about doodles shows just why doodling should be considered an art form right next to wall graffiti. I won’t talk much about it here because Karl covered it quite well in a previous post. Go check it out and let us know about your favorites. Oh, yes”¦you can even submit your own too.

Doodlers Anonymous

Quite similar to the above website, Doodlers Anonymous also has quite a few videos. There are contests like the one on illustrating your favorite headline news story from the week. The site is also trying to build up a community of fellow doodlers and already has 2,000+ members.

doodleBug

If the doodle bug does bite you, check out the oodles of stuff here. This is a stricter site in the sense that you need to register and earn yourself a few credit points by participating on the community based site. You can fast track your way to points by wining some of the competitions that doodleBug regularly runs. The site also has its own neat doodling tool and a few others. If you are serious about doodling, this site is a must visit.

Youlikes

This drawing and animation website has its origins in Ratemydoodles.com where you can still see a lot of doodle art as animated clips. Youlikes is more fully fledged with an improved drawing program. You can create frame by frame animations of your drawing and also edit someone else’s drawing to create your own versions. This collaborative site is fairly new, but its novelty is animated doodling.

Digital Doodle

Digital Doodle is a nice looking simple Flash site where you get a theme to base your doodles on. The themes are monthly and you get to draw and vote on each other’s entries.

DoodleWall

DoodleWall is similar to the earlier website but in this case you get a virtual wall to draw your doodle on. This is another website which uses Flash for some effects. If you add your friends to your list, they also can collaborate and draw on your virtual wall.

Doodle Art

Doodle Art is a Flickr public group with doodlers from all around the world. 1,643 members have contributed nearly 17,478 items. Looking at some of the submissions, you will scarcely believe that they are “˜casual’ doodles.

BoxDoodle

When you land on this website, don’t forget to scroll sideways. You will understand what the instructions say when they write that you have to rearrange a box and make any kind of figure or object. The drawing tool gives you options of pen size and color choice to create doodles on the cardboard cutout. BoxDoodle forces you to think ‘inside the box’.

When it comes to doodling, all you really need is pencil (or pen) and paper. Doodling works best when your mind starts to wander. Well, you know what I am talking about. We have all been there. Let these eight websites help you out with a bit of doodling. Who knows, the coming 11th February and the National Doodle Day (UK) could see you helping people whose lives are affected by epilepsy and neurofibromatosis. Just another way doodling is helping out.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

4 Awesome Blogs With User-Submitted Content That Will Bring Out The Artist In You

Steve Campbell — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 22:31:44 +0000

Have you ever just been in the mood to create something? It could be a drawing or painting, music or film, or even a blog or website. You know, art. If you’re like me then chances are you like to create things, especially when you were younger. I definitely drew a lot more pictures and painted a lot more paintings back then than I do now, which is the case for many of us.

But what do you do now when the creative mood strikes you? In this article, I’ll show you four awesome blogs that feature original content, so whether you’re feeling creative, seeking inspiration, or just looking for something cool to check out, I’ve got you covered.

1. Defaced

Since I’ve moved to New York City, I’ve seen a lot of art, and I don’t just mean paintings in museums. Some of the most creative things throughout the city are illegal works and defacements, like graffiti and writing on signs or walls. Properly placed mustaches seem to be a theme around here, too.

Anyway, Defaced is a blog “all about rejoicing in spotting things that have been drawn on, torn apart, covered in stickers, or just plain sullied.” It’s a photo blog of “people ruining other people’s stuff cuz it’s funny”.

Photo blogs are often entertaining, and this one is no different. You can view the creative – and often hilarious – things that people have made throughout the cities of the world, and even add things to the blog that you’ve seen yourself.

See a great defacement when you’re on the go? They have an address on the site where you can email a photo of the piece, as well as a submission page where you can upload it yourself.

On the Submit page, you can choose a file to upload and add an optional caption and tags if you like. There are only two terms you have to agree to – that the work is something you have permission to submit and that the site is free to distribute the content.

2. EatSleepDraw

To view more traditional art, check out EatSleepDraw. This blog is similar to Defaced in form and function but it differs in taste and subject matter. Essentially, it’s an online art community where content is submitted by contributors and fans of the site, and everything that’s posted is 100% original.

They don’t post photography, but just about everything else is fair game. Submissions can be of a drawing, illustration, painting, collage, mixed media, or doodle, and if you ever have any doubts about whether or not they’ll accept your piece, just submit it anyway. They seem to be pretty lenient.

EatSleepDraw has a very active community of people who ‘like’ photos and reblog them (Tumblr features), so if you are looking for a place to gauge the popularity of your artwork you can use it for that too.

3. Film Fights

Film Fights is another very interesting site with original creative content. The idea behind it was to create a site dedicated to short films, and form an online competition of sorts, that anyone could be a part of.

Whether you’re a professional who makes short movies in your off time, or someone who just makes films with your friends on the weekend, you can submit your video to Film Fights. They give out a title and a genre and filmmakers around the world create films based around them that go up for a public vote.

OK, so Film Fights isn’t a blog in itself, but they do have a Tumblr blog setup where you can see all of the most recent “fights”, as well as their official blog on WordPress.

While current fights are listed on the site’s homepage, you can also check out future fights here. If you’re a fan of Film Fights, you might also like Indy Mogul.

4. Calndrs

Calndrs is another creative community from the same guys behind EatSleepDraw and Film Fights. It’s for designers to rethink the typical calendar and create a better one for your desktop. If you’re looking for a specific way to get creative, this site’s for you.

Coincidentally, if you happen to be looking for a well-designed desktop calendar that’s visually pleasing, you’re in luck also!

Just head over to the Submit page to read the guidelines for submission and submit your design. If yours is good enough it will be posted on the site for all to see and download, along with a link attributing the work to you.

How would you like your work to be featured as somebody’s Christmas desktop wallpaper?

Conclusion

By now your creative juices should be flowing. Communities like those featured here are so interesting to me because they promote coordinated collaboration and engagement through user-submitted content. In this case, artists get to submit their designs and have them seen by visitors of the site and, in return, visitors get great content to keep them entertained. Everybody wins.

Do you know of a blog that strictly posts user-submitted/original content?