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August 23, 2007
MPC1000 Ring
So, I'm thinking you'd need to have some fairly extraordinary skills to wear this ring without looking like an absolute dick. Still, nice idea.
From artist Bill McMullen, Via the excellent news.com.au
Posted by funnelbc at 04:12 PM | Comments (0)
August 21, 2007
Wah wah boots = excellent.
This is absolutely fantastic. Don't want to spoil it, just watch!
Via Music-Thing
Posted by funnelbc at 07:42 PM | Comments (0)
August 19, 2007
Tenori-On = GO!
I kinda missed the launch announcement on this one, but I still think it's worth a link because you know that it's just plain beautiful. It looks like fun, and goddamn it, I still want one.
Coverage par excellence (as per usual) is available at CDM.
But just in-case you get lost in the link love, Sonic-State discusses the Tenori-on in a video called
Chris from Pixel-Sumo also has his thoughts on it.
I still wait in anticipation to get my hands on one to try.
Posted by funnelbc at 10:34 PM | Comments (0)
DSMidiWifi youtubery!
I am a bit of a fan of the work of tobw, and I'm happy to belatedly report that there's some groovy little videos of dsmidiwifi on youtube to demonstrate the potential of the very same. The potential for the DS as a musical input device is tremendous and I love seeing clips like this. The homebrew community for the DS is amazing.
Another video after the break.
Benji7905 writes:
I did a Kaoss pad for the DS, using PALib and DSMidiWifi libs. The DSMidiWifi team already did a Kaoss Pad demo for their lib but I wasn't happy with it, so I did one myself. Here are the features so far : When you touch the screen, it sends 3 CC : one for the X axis, one for the Y axis and a third CC corresponding to the status of the screen : 128 when it is pressed, 0 when it's released. A and B can send CCs too, just like the sreen press : 128 when it's pressed, 0 when it's releasedThat way you can do a nice effect with a Beat Repeat and an AutoFilter in Ableton Live, like on a real Kaoss Pad
Excellent work!
Posted by funnelbc at 10:30 PM | Comments (0)
City Riots - Self Titled EP
Adelaide based rockers City Riots caused a stir supporting Cobra Starship and The Academy Is… on their nation-wide tour 2 weeks ago. Ricky Kradolfer (Vocals, Guitars), Dan Kradolfer (Drums) John De Michele (Bass, Vocals) and Matt Stadler (Organ, Synth) have gone from being a small band who were lucky to play three shows a year to now supporting internationally recognised bands. This demonstrates not only that City Riots are not only in demand by other musos, but also increasingly, music fans too. With a sound that you would be hard pressed to accurately compare to anything else around these days, these four are bound to leave an impression long after they have left the stage.
Their 5 song self titled EP does not disappoint. Starting with the song My Favourite T-Shirt (which they commonly end their sets with) gives you a good idea of what this EP will be like. Strong bass lines and relentless drumbeats support the vocals, guitar and organ/synth without being obtrusive and overpowering. Here For The Weekend gives you a good taste of all the instruments used to make City Riots' sound without having obnoxious solos every minute, which is a definite relief. In Your Head and Signals Collide demonstrate a softer side of the rock taste that the two opening tracks didn’t have. Grace (Almost There) is a ballad in the truest sense of the word. In my opinion, these last three track show the dexterity of Ricky's vocals like the first two songs didn't. This EP as a whole reveals their ability to write perfect music to suit the vocal style, something that seems to be missing from so many bands these days.
When put together, these five songs make one of the most impressive local EP’s I have had the pleasure of listening to. And with a performance that’s so full of energy to back up the music (the only downside being that if you are an amateur photographer with and amateur photographers you'll be hard pressed to get a picture where a hand/head/instrument/whole person isn't blurred or totally unrecognisable), I’m sure that we will be seeing City Riots a lot more. To listen to their music on their myspace, click here.
Ed's note: This article might also appear on fasterlouder.com.au, and it is with the Author's permission.
Posted by verity at 01:35 PM | Comments (0)
August 17, 2007
...and welcome Aubrey!
Good golly! Thanks to Verity who has encouraged Aubrey to get involved and she has already submitted her first piece for onetonnemusic! Aubrey's first piece brings indy New York based band The Distraction to our collective attention and it's absolutely well worth a listen. (a bit reminiscent of The Infadels if you want a quick and dirty musical parelell)
So very excited to have some extra folks onboard!
If you're interested in getting involved, read this for more info. I'd love to host anyone's writing if they are keen for some exposure and want to be involved in the site!
Posted by funnelbc at 11:05 PM | Comments (0)
The Distraction
The Distraction happen to be one of my personal favorite bands. They're a little known unsigned band from the town of Poughkeepsie, New York (made famous by the band Strata, whom The Distraction have opened for). I have been privileged enough to see them twice.
The first time was when I saw them open for Kill Hannah and Strata, and the second time was the following weekend, at a little bar in the town of New Paltz, New York. Both shows were absolutely fantastic. They are full of energy on and off stage.
They have a very unique sound, and as well as a unique look. The singer, Will Tendy, has hair that reminds me of The Cure's Robert Smith. He has a wonderful alluring voice, and is one amazing guitarist. Sarah Goldstone is the band's keyboardist, and she is quite talented. The band's bassist, Mike Galipanni is very entertaining to watch, as well as a phenomenal bassist. The band's drummer, Joe Becker, is great at what he does. I hadn't heard the band prior to seeing them open for Kill Hannah, but I was hooked after the first song. They have a very dancey, energetic feel to them.
My favorite song has to be "Digital Clipping". It's a wonderful song to sing along and dance too. But coming in at a close second is their newest track, "Clean Sweep". They only have seven songs recorded as of now, but all of them are fantastic. "Catastrophe" has a great beat, and Will's voice sounds wonderful. I have said it many times to my friends, and I will say it again here, if they get noticed by the right people, The Distraction will be huge. Trust me.
To listen to The Distraction go to their myspace account here.
Posted by aubrey at 02:48 PM | Comments (0)
August 11, 2007
Welcome verity!
Just a short note to welcome Verity to Onetonnemusic! Verity is a music fan who is looking to share some of her writing experience with us and I'm really very excited about having more folks to help out! So thanks Verity, you're excellent!! You can read Verity's first post for onetonne below, which is a review of AFI's Decemberunderground.
If you're interested in getting involved, read this for more info. I'd love to host anyone's writing if they are keen for some exposure and want to be involved in the site!
Posted by funnelbc at 09:06 AM | Comments (0)
AFI - Decemberunderground
Decemberunderground is the latest album release from alternative rock band AFI. A fitting title considering they disappeared off the radar for three years to make it. From their East Bay Hardcore punk rock roots, the band has transformed from angry teens screaming “I wanna get a Mohawk but my mum wont let me get one” to wise-beyond-their-years 30-somethings singing about detachment and seclusion, gone through line-up changes and seem to have been mislabelled as everything from metal to goth to emo along the way. AFI returned, being pushed into a category that doesn’t fit them, into a scene that has tried to clone them, to a fan-base that worships them and they have taken it all in their stride, as they usually do. If any fans were concerned about them sounding watered-down and strung out like their prototypes, they definitely had nothing to worry about.
The opening track, “Prelude 12/21” establishes a serene feeling when it starts, followed soon by the soft vocals, finalising the scene. But AFI create no time for contentment, shocking you back to life with the next “Kill Caustic”. It revisits the AFI of the past, but with superior lyrics and extra care for the vocal chords by front man Davey Havok. This track is sure to be a favourite live by band and audience alike. Hunter Burgan then kicks off the first single, “Miss Murder”, with its distinctive bass line and they are now treading new territory by starting the song with a chorus. “Summer Shudder” starts the ballad train on this album, followed by “The Interview”, the first of the two true ballads on this release. “The Interview” is ended by a vocal harmony between Havok and guitarist Jade Puget that rivals any other the two have previously performed.
There are tracks like “The Killing Lights”, which do not actually seem to fit the album, and tracks such as “37mm”, which may be hinting toward a direction AFI could take in the future. This album demonstrates just how much these men have matured over the past three years, with more technically challenging drumming from Adam Carson than we have previously seen, Havok writing more elusive and somehow more meaningful lyrics than he has done so in the past; Hunter proving that a talented bassist knows when to hold back and when to give it his all and Jade providing more reasons for us all to believe that they will be around for a few more years.
All in all, this album is one that should be taken as a whole, seeing as there are a few tracks that would never survive when taken away from those that surround it. But I have found this to be the only downfall of Decemberunderground. AFI have produced yet another album that is set to amaze fans and confuse non-believers. You either love them or hate them; but once again they have proven that no matter how hard others may try, they can never do it like AFI.
Posted by funnelbc at 08:59 AM | Comments (0)
August 07, 2007
My internets let me show you them
(what was waiting for me once I reconnected to my email. If you have tried to get in contact recently and haven't had an return email, please resend to the usual addresses - my profound apologies.)
For the second time this year I have had an enforced purgatory from my website and my internet social life. This time it wasn't a lack of internet access, but the fairly unspectacular death of the motherboard in my computer. I'm insured for accidental - but apparently because my power company couldn't product a definitive letter stating that we actually did have a power issue (even though there was blackouts all over the state I live in).
I don't usually do this sort of thing, but I have had really good experiences with my insurer CGU in the past, however this time around I've had a shit of a muck around and it seems that they're content to annoy me into giving up. Which is effectively what I have done, which is to say, I paid for the repair of my pc even though I pay them a monthly stipend to take care of me when this kind of thing happens. Not happy janet. Consider a nasty backward link your moral come-uppance you penny pinching bastards.
Posted by funnelbc at 09:35 PM | Comments (0)