The SoundCloud social music sharing site recently teamed up with Pop/R&B singer Beyonce to host a remix competition for SoundCloud members(http://endoftime.beyonceonline.com/). The contest involves remixing Beyonce's song 'End Of Time' from her most recent CD entitled '4'. Individual stems from the track are being furnished to those who enter the contest. Each user is then given the liberty to cut, paste, rearrange and reinvent the song however they see fit(minus uncleared samples of course).
Yours truly has entered this contest and I just uploaded my entry yesterday. You can check out my 'Driven Remix' of Beyonce's 'End Of Time' here:
http://endoftime.beyonceonline.com/tracks/1538
If you're a SoundCloud user I would really appreciate a 'Yes' vote to help me along in the standings! :-)
I would also encourage others who are into remixing to give this a shot. There is one Grand Prize of $4000 USD plus an opportunity at getting your remix placed on an upcoming Beyonce release.
I hope you will give the remix a listen and vote me up.
NOTE: I was pretty dissatisfied with my mix after uploading so I made a few adjustments. A much improved version will be up on my SoundCloud page in the next couple of days.
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Thursday, February 23, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
Ibanez RG3250MZ - 80s Rock Goodness Returns
Guitar makers Ibanez and the legendary Steve Vai were without a doubt two of the biggest influences on aspiring rock guitarists throughout the era of 80s 'big hair' hard rock music. Ibanez had long been the makers of great guitars suited well to rock music, but in 1987 they teamed up with Vai to develop the signature JEM series guitar, with its instantly recognizable 'monkey grip' handle cut into the top portion of the body. This quickly became a much sought after instrument, so Ibanez responded to demand by releasing the RG550 series which featured similar specs to the JEM series.
These guitars featured the very slim Wizard neck which was very popular at the time. Ibanez also offered the instrument in some "oh so 80s" color options like Desert Yellow and Fire Alarm Red. Flash forward to 2012, and Ibanez has reintroduced this instrument in the form of the RG3250MZ.
This incarnation brings with it a host of improvements to the original, chief among them being a much improved neck. The original neck was highly subject to warping due to its narrow design. The new necks are built from a five piece laminate consisting of three strips of hard rock maple and two pieces of walnut. Two titanium rods also bolster the strength of the truss rod, so these necks will be free of the flaw that saddled the originals.
The awesome tremelo system is the new version of the Edge system of old which offered ease of use and facilitated the extreme string bending that was all the rage back in the 80s. Also on board is the ZPS3 string system which allows the user to alter the stiffness of the vibrato system with a set of removable springs. The pickup configuration is the tried and true humbucker/single/humbucker setup by Dimarzio.
For more information and purchasing from American Musical Supply, click on the link below.
Ibanez RG3250MZ Prestige Electric Guitar with Case
These guitars featured the very slim Wizard neck which was very popular at the time. Ibanez also offered the instrument in some "oh so 80s" color options like Desert Yellow and Fire Alarm Red. Flash forward to 2012, and Ibanez has reintroduced this instrument in the form of the RG3250MZ.
This incarnation brings with it a host of improvements to the original, chief among them being a much improved neck. The original neck was highly subject to warping due to its narrow design. The new necks are built from a five piece laminate consisting of three strips of hard rock maple and two pieces of walnut. Two titanium rods also bolster the strength of the truss rod, so these necks will be free of the flaw that saddled the originals.
The awesome tremelo system is the new version of the Edge system of old which offered ease of use and facilitated the extreme string bending that was all the rage back in the 80s. Also on board is the ZPS3 string system which allows the user to alter the stiffness of the vibrato system with a set of removable springs. The pickup configuration is the tried and true humbucker/single/humbucker setup by Dimarzio.
For more information and purchasing from American Musical Supply, click on the link below.
Ibanez RG3250MZ Prestige Electric Guitar with Case
Monday, February 13, 2012
R.I.P. Whitney Houston
So as you may have noticed I've been away from the blog for a while due to a pretty busy schedule, but I just felt compelled to write about the tragedy that unfolded this weekend.
While enjoying a restful Saturday afternoon, I decided to check my Facebook feed as I routinely do throughout the day. What I would see populate a large percentage of that feed I would have never expected in a million years. "R.I.P. Whitney Houston" - these words were echoed by several people on my friends list. My first thought was "please let this be a hoax". I then checked Yahoo which is always on top of all things newsworthy. There was nothing there. I immediately thought to myself people should really stop with the fake celebrity hoaxes. Somewhat relieved, I returned to Facebook and considered posting my disdain. Then I read a post that announced that her death was confirmed by CNN. This was when I tuned in and the truth set in. We had indeed lost another treasure of the music industry.
Although most of her fans did not know her personally, we all felt some sort of connection to her; this as a result of the more than two decades that she spent sharing her voice, her experiences and even her life with us through her music. She was such a major influence on so many singers and musicians that it was heart wrenching to say the least to see the various images of her displayed repeatedly as the anchors and industry personalities weighed in on her career and immense talent.
As the news reports speculating on the cause of her death begin to swirl, I for one will choose not to focus on the negative, but to remember this great person for the music and joy that she brought to my life and the lives of countless others. I can only ask that you would do the same and keep the family she has left behind in your prayers. These are real people with real feelings.
R.I.P Whitney. Thanks for sharing your gift with us.
While enjoying a restful Saturday afternoon, I decided to check my Facebook feed as I routinely do throughout the day. What I would see populate a large percentage of that feed I would have never expected in a million years. "R.I.P. Whitney Houston" - these words were echoed by several people on my friends list. My first thought was "please let this be a hoax". I then checked Yahoo which is always on top of all things newsworthy. There was nothing there. I immediately thought to myself people should really stop with the fake celebrity hoaxes. Somewhat relieved, I returned to Facebook and considered posting my disdain. Then I read a post that announced that her death was confirmed by CNN. This was when I tuned in and the truth set in. We had indeed lost another treasure of the music industry.
Although most of her fans did not know her personally, we all felt some sort of connection to her; this as a result of the more than two decades that she spent sharing her voice, her experiences and even her life with us through her music. She was such a major influence on so many singers and musicians that it was heart wrenching to say the least to see the various images of her displayed repeatedly as the anchors and industry personalities weighed in on her career and immense talent.
As the news reports speculating on the cause of her death begin to swirl, I for one will choose not to focus on the negative, but to remember this great person for the music and joy that she brought to my life and the lives of countless others. I can only ask that you would do the same and keep the family she has left behind in your prayers. These are real people with real feelings.
R.I.P Whitney. Thanks for sharing your gift with us.
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