Sampling and remix culture is the future, right? Not if you ask a lot of music lovers at the moment. The guest for the CDM Random Rant of the Week is our friend Liz. It’s an issue I suspect has troubled some readers here, especially as music technology is equated to the sample/remix culture (especially if you believe Wired Magazine and we’re in the age of mash-ups.) Sure, tracks sampling other tracks is nothing new, but the legal battles over hip-hop aside, is there a backlash brewing? Do people want to hear something original, after all? And can Kanye, erm, speak truth to power with both the President of the United States and mysterious French electro duos? -PK

…Do[es] anybody make real shit anymore?
Bow in the presence of greatness
Cause right now thou has forsaken us
You should be honored by my lateness
That I would even show up to this fake shit
So go ahead, go nuts, go ape-shit
Especially on my best stand, on my Bape shit
Act like you can’t tell who made this…

“Stronger,” ft. substantial elements of Daft Punk’s “Harder Better Faster Stronger”

Before I clicked on the link I’m about to share with you, I was a hardcore, devil-fist-throwing Daft Punk mega-fan. After the link jump at the end, I had to reluctantly join the melancholy ranks of jaded music fans who’ve seen through the hype to the source, eventually admitting that what I had admired was blatant plagiarism.

Okay, calling anything “Web 2.0″ is about as cool as casually slipping in the word “synergy.” Generally meaningless; definitely faux pas. But splicemusic.com was already tending that direction, with a website that allowed users to remix each other’s music live on the Web, and share and network with other community members in that process. Now, Splice itself has reached its own 2.0 release, and things are heating up fast. It’s not so much the typical Web community features that set it apart (blogging, becoming “fans” or friends of other users, bright, Web 2.0-y colors, and community-based ranking). Instead, it’s the fact that Splice can do things previously only possible in dedicated, offline software:

• Online arrangements: as before, remix and arrange tracks without leaving your Web browser
• Real-time effects — yep, you read that right. You can actually apply common effects like flanger, delay, and distortion via the Web interface.
• Online virtual instruments in the Web interface
• Store drafts online privately, until a track is finished
• Collect samples from around the site to use in your song

Splice

Real-time effects and instruments in a Web browser? That’s a surprise. Java has made that possible for some time, but it’s new to Flash, and even in Java actual implementations have been few — let alone integrated in a full-blown community site open to the public and ready to use.

Best of all, we hear that Bram de Jong, famed as the gifted plug-in developer in the Smartelectronix collective, engineered the new plug-in system. There’s even a Web version of his SupaTrigger plug-in. If you don’t know Bram’s work already, check out his cross-platform, donationware plugs:

Bram @ Smartelectronix

We’ll be talking to Splice more about what’s new, where it’s going, how it was developed, and what this means for music making on the Web; stay tuned.

In the meantime, I’ll say it again — don’t assume you’ll be throwing away your non-Web music software anytime soon.

From the forums, corporation has been kind enough to give us a glimpse at his fantastically cool studio, complete with a nicely-decorated DM2 USB control surface. The Mixman DM2 was intended as a toy for computer DJ newbies, but the hardware feels surprisingly nice and, thanks to apparent overstocks of the DM2, often shows up for as little as US$30. Click through the forum link for another shot and full details of his setup, which is a great example of how to put together an affordable computer setup (and save your money for a nice turntable like the classic Technics 1200mk2).

How do you DJ? [CDM Forums]

Eugene, aka corporation, sends along these additional links:

I dont really have a page for my for my current set up, but i do run the DM2MIDI forum @ http://www.dmtwo.tk

I also have a place for my mashups @ http://www.corporation.tk

I have rare motown acapellas for d/l @ http://www.motownpellas.tk

also a future place for my live dm2 mixes @ http://www.waxdj.com/corporation

The mash-ups alone are worth checking out. And if you’re interested in hooking up the DM2 hardware, especially if you’ve got a PC, the DM2MIDI forum is an absolutely essential visit. (As we’ve covered here before, Mixman doesn’t look kindly on DIYers efforts to make their hardware useful. Why? I think Douglas Adams would say they’re “a bunch of mindless jerks who were first up against the wall when the revolution came.” But maybe they’ll come around eventually, and they have made very clever hardware. In other news, CDM should start a Sirius Cybernetics Prize.)

Here’s CDM’s resident game composer with the perfect opportunity for lovers of remixing and gaming. Why do I have a feeling that you’ll get disqualified if you mash Halo 2’s music with Animal Crossing or, for you long-time Mac/Bungie geeks out there, Marathon? (Maybe an odd quote from Myth . . . “Casualties.”) -PK

Tired of waiting for Halo 3, Gears of War, or Prey? Or is your music gear gathering dust since you setup that new Xbox 360? In either case, Sumthing Else Music Works (notable video game soundtrack record label), has a treat in store for you!

In conjunction with the recent release of the Halo 2: Volume Two soundtrack, a mash-up/remix contest has been launched. Once you register on the site, you can download stems from the original Halo 2 soundtrack, along with a Mashup Mixer application (if you so desire). You remix and mashup the stems to your heart’s content - using the provided Mashup Mixer or your preferred software tools - then upload the finished mixes for a chance to win some great prizes including Xbox 360 consoles, DJ equipment, and even a “high-end” Fender guitar signed by Nile Rodgers.

For those looking for some game-related fun, or those hoping to get a jumpstart in the game industry, this could be a fun and interesting way to get the ball rolling. Samples of the soundtrack are available on the site, and there are some great sounds in there, just waiting to be taken to the NEXT LEVEL by our CDM readership.

If you decide to submit an entry - or if your entry is chosen among the winners - let us know so we can showcase your work!

Imagine Bush as Lennon . . . you’ve entered the world of the mash-up, a world where songs collide and U.S. Presidents’ words get mixed around into whatever you want. (Well, I hope — I wouldn’t entirely put it past our President to spontaneously break into Lennon lyrics way out of context.) Take a walk on the Wild Side, indeed, courtesy our friends at one of the zaniest radio stations on the planet, New Jersey’s WFMU:

Walk on the Wild Side Mashup (Bush vs. Lennon)

Oh, and Word to Jersey City. Represent. And for taking us on truly a strange trip, this track is CDM Track of the Week. Thanks, Emory!

Artists letting you rethink or destroy their work? You bet — Trent is at it again.

When Nine Inch Nails released their single The Hand That Feeds in GarageBand 2.0 format, it was a huge hit. Hundreds of fans posted remixes in the first week after the release. But Windows users — and even GarageBand 1.x Mac users — were left in the dark.

Now, Trent Reznor is back with another NIN single, ready to remix / mash-up with raw tracks, but this time he’s got the multi-format thing down. The new single, Only, is available for users of several Windows/Mac DAWs:

Mac: Apple GarageBand 2.x or later (also compatible with Logic Express and Pro 7.x)

Mac/Windows: Ableton Live (hurrah!)

Mac/Windows: Pro Tools (HD, LE, M-Powered)

Windows: Sony ACID (Xpress/Pro)

I’m not going to pull any punches: I’m psyched about the Live version more than any of these. Sure, Pro Tools is the software NIN used to make the track, but Live’s remix tools are without par among these options, so if you’re ready to really radically remix and mash this one, Live is the way to go. That said, I’m equally excited this isn’t an exclusive of any one app: if experimentation is the aim, having choices is great. More on this story and artists letting listeners remake their music:

The Hand that Feeds - analysis of previous single, and why this track wasn’t produced in Logic as some had speculated

Beatmixed on the previous single (and why it was a pain for Windows users

Remix-friendly songs in the near future?

Audiohead goes inside NIN’s studio

Digidesign.com on the new single

Here’s the idea: a remix/mash-up artist collects a bunch of MP3s. (Hopefully Creative Commons for legal reasons, but I digress.) An app instantly locates all those files. She types the first few letters to find a file, drops the file into a program, and it instantly beat-matches the song. Only one app really fits that description: Ableton Live 5. (see my quick take on features, or go direct to the source) Three reasons this matters for mash-ups:

1. MP3 support: Mash-up artists want to be able to easily pull compressed audio from their hard drive, which was one of the reasons previous versions of Live didn’t catch on. (now, if only other formats worked, too . . .)

2. Files without hunting: One of the major problems with almost every DAW on the market has been how hard it is to navigate the tons of audio files we all have on our hard drive. By implementing a global search feature, Live 5 does away with that.

3. Real tempo matching: Oh, sure, Live 1-4 (and many other programs) worked seamlessly for regular audio — but any complexity required manual placement of warp markers and lots of tweaking. Other software works fine with prepped loops, but requires extra work for raw audio. You’ll still want to drive manual in some cases, but it looks like Live 5 could finally deliver on the ability to just drag and drop audio and manipulate beat and tempo “magically.”

And this isn’t just of interest if you’re making a mash-up — the raw audio could be your band, or another of your tunes, or whateer you want. But these are predictions, not a review. The real proof comes when we all get our hands on the public beta. (See CDM’s look at Live 5’s new features; the announcement is minutes old so expect more soon!)

Chris O’Shea points us to Ben Hanbury’s project Recycle TV, which combines an old TV set (well, actually, he substituted a picture of one for ease), a Max/MSP patch, and Eric Singer’s real world-to-MIDI interface, the MidiTron. Via copyrighted and open source clips, you can mix together musical phrases constructed from miliseconds-long clips. The beats created are even cooler, perhaps, than the VJ effect of the clips; check out the video. (I especially like those Wookie moments. You’ll see what I mean.)

Best of all, Ben has shared his Max/MSP code; see the project blog. I always like to see how people patch in Max; it’s like a window into different personalities.

As for Ben’s underlying statement about copyright, I’m not entirely sure — he claims the copyrighted text would be public domain because of their age, though I don’t know of any copyright law under which Top Gun would be public domain. On the other hand, Star Wars creator George Lucas (remember him?) was originally inspired by avant-garde filmmakers who raided old film stock. Copyright violations have long been part of the creative process, that’s for sure.

I’ve been playing with the Nine Inch Nails track (reported by many, many sites in the last few days: NIN made their new single available in GarageBand 2.0 format). I have to say, this is a lot of fun. To me, the song sounds better with more tracks muted: the lesson here is, all of us are loading way too much into a mix. (I know, I know, it’s NIN: but listen to just the vocals alone and tell me it’s not a lot more interesting bare?)

Trent Reznor suggests he wanted us to be able “to create remixes, experiment, embellish or destroy what’s there.” And what did Trent’s posse do with it? From the readme: “All work effectively stopped for a while - it’s fun to mess around with. I’ve now heard a country version of the track as well as an abstract Latin interpretation (thanks, Leo).”

So it wasn’t just me adding banjo. Do I think more songs should be released this way? Yes, I do. Being able just to turn off certain tracks makes the CD more live, lets you hear things you wouldn’t have heard.

For the record, I’m guessing NIN did not use Apple Logic Pro as some have speculated on the Web. Trent, for his part, says in the readme they used Pro Tools. It’s no surprise Logic showed up in the creator codes: Logic supports OMF import and GarageBand export, so they went that route to get the file from PT to GB. Too bad: Trent, give Logic a try the next time you fire it up. (I can see it now — Trent’s Dub remix!)

The normal release of the NIN single The Hand That Feeds
is, of course, on iTunes — in audio, not GarageBand format. (Missed opportunity, Apple?)

Nine Inch Nails aren’t the first band to release their tracks in a remix-friendly digital format. If Umixit had their way, you’d see all kinds of music released this way. Umixit ships song with individual isolated tracks; you get 8 tracks by default but can upgrade to 16. Then you can mix and mash using the Umixit Media Mixer, powered by Cakewalk. (Meaning you need Windows 2000/XP. But why do I have a feeling the Media Mixer doesn’t look a whole lot like SONAR?) According to Umixit, this “allows the average person to share the studio recording experience with an actual recording artist.” (So I can charge $600 an hour?)

Watch this get a whole lot more lame. Sounds like you’re limited in what you can add (what, no banjo?), and so far, the artists involved number only 5. One of them is Aerosmith.

Remix-friendly albums sound terrific, but the mainstream hasn’t quite caught on yet. So, independent artists, it’s up to us to lead the way.