lotusCast – Lotuspike Podcast #12 -June, 2007 – [podcast]
Finally, after nearly a year, we are back with episode 12 of lotusCast and an interview feature with Markus Reuter! Our host, Daniel Pipitone, got a chance to ask Markus about his latest release, Trepanation, on lotuspike. Listen to Markus discuss his influences, production techniques and other thoughtful insights from his creative process on Trepanation. Also, be sure to tune in till the end for a special giveaway offer.
iTunes Plus
Yesterday, Apple rolled out **[iTunes Plus][itp]** in the iTunes US Store,
which offers higher-quality DRM-free downloads for $1.29 (a $0.30 premium over
the “standard” $0.99 download). The “Plus” downloads are DRM-free 256kbps AAC
files, playable by any device or software that supports AAC (not just iTunes
or iPods).
Lotuspike applauds this move, and agrees with Steve Jobs’
“[Thoughts On Music][tom]” post in which he indicated Apple’s position
that DRM-free music is better for consumers.
We are working with our iTunes affiliate to attempt to get our music into
the “iTunes Plus” store; at the moment, it’s not clear how independent labels
like ourselves can participate.
Meanwhile, Lotuspike music is available from other sites like
[eMusic][em] in DRM-free formats, and of course remains available
from the [iTunes Store][itms] in the standard Protected AAC format.
[itp]: http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/iTunesPlusPage
[tom]: http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughtsonmusic/
[em]: http://www.emusic.com
[itms]: http://www.apple.com/itunes/store
Shipping Rates
As those of you in the USA may be aware, US Postal Service postage rates
recently changed (at the beginning of May). Unfortunately the rates for
lighter First Class packages rose dramatically, and most of our CD orders fall
into this category. Domestic postage on a single-CD order rose from $1.35 to
$1.81, an increase of 34%.
In case you were wondering: Lotuspike shipping rates in the web shop are
calculated to be our exact shipping cost plus 65 cents. The 65 cents covers
the cost of the mailer boxes that we use to ship discs; it does not include
any handling fee (my time to pack the boxes and ship them out is free!). (So
the total shipping charge for a domestic single-CD order is $1.81 + $0.65, or
$2.46.)
Trees from Kerri
Just a beautiful image from Jeff’s wife on the road in New Mexico.
Simply worth sharing.
- Daniel
Listen to my CD!
A funny thing happens when you go into business as a record label: suddenly
you get a lot of people sending you email asking where they can send their CD
for you to release.
There are a couple of important presumptions there.
The first, and more easily dismissed presumption, is that if they send you a
CD, you will be interested in releasing it. By [Sturgeon's Law][slaw], that’s
sort of a stretch right there. But let’s not dwell on that too much.
[slaw]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon%27s_law
The second presumption is much more interesting. Even if we posit that they
have recorded the *finest music ever heard by the ears of humankind*, they are
presuming that you will want them to send it.
Hell, why *wouldn’t* you want to hear it?
› Continue reading
Studio Project – update
Here is a bad video of the very bad room as I found it after moving into our house in December. As you can see, the previous owner thought that regular drywall was a good idea in a damp Pittsburgh basement…
I have made a lot of progress since this was taken and all of the walls are now bare, and I am in the process of removing all of the Liquid Nails adhesive left behind from how the wallboard was being held up.
More soon.
Finally-An Entry!
Well, I was thinking today, and I decided to try and become active again in semi-every-so-often blogging on this thing. It is our blog, after all…
I have actually started construction (destruction) in my basement this week on what I hope will quickly become my project studio (equipped for both music and freelance design purposes). I have had to “undo” some nasties that the previous owners left for me. Most notably are moldy sheet rock and literally NO electrical run for the room.
So why not post a preliminary plan on the blog and let some others comment on what my set-up should be? I could actually use the help. Here are my initial thoughts / factors / constraints / plans:
The initial set-up should accommodate the actual project I want to work on, but with flexibility in mind, since I may decide to change up or perhaps explore other directions along the way. What I want to accommodate right off is:
DAW:
– 2 G4 Mac Titanium Laptops (already have)
– Audio interface / MIDI IO (please help)
*Mixer / Monitoring:
– Mixer? (please help)
– Phones for monitoring (for now)
MIDI:
– M-Audio MK-449C MIDI Controller Keys (already have)
– Secondary control (TBD)
Instruments:
– ESP LTD MH50 Electric Guitar (already have)
– Udu (TBD)
– Frame drums (TBD)
– Various hand percussion (TBD)
– Flute / didge (TBD)
– Various VST / AU
*External Effects? (have not yet decided on this – comments welcome):
I have tossed this idea around a bit, looking to offload some of the CPU load from effects to external units. Comments welcome on external DSP (powercore) vs. Hardware…
– Small Rack (please help)
– Reverb (please help)
– Multi FX unit (please help)
Mics:
(please help)
So I obviously need suggestions for Mics as well as the best way to tie it all together, vis a vis audio/MIDI IO interface. I am aiming to sync the midi clocks on both laptops. The items with * are kind of “what ifs?” In other words, if I go the way of external effects, etc, I would need to more carefully consider these. So I am hoping to generate some discussion here as I move towards an initial set up. Also, keeping in mind that the budget is tight (I have to figure that out yet), and this is a certainly a novice set-up, I want to sensitive to cost where possible without compromising too much those items that are important.
So it may be bare bones at first, but I would like comments on all this stuff.
- dp
lotusCast – Lotuspike Podcast #11 -July, 2006 – [podcast]
lotusCast – Lotuspike Podcast #11 -July, 2006
Lotuspike features Rudy Adrian and his debut release on Lotuspike Records, MoonWater.
Rudy also discusses his previous releases and the influences on his work.
Download the file here >>
Lotuspike and Carnegie Science Center Announce: Ministry of Inside Things – LIVE!
Henry Buhl Jr. Planetarium @ Carnegie Science Center.
June 9th, 2006 @ 8:00pm. Doors open @ 7:30
$10 general admission/$8 for students (w/ ID) and CSC members
Lotuspike and Carnegie Science Center are pleased to bring back The Ministry of Inside Things, Friday, June 9th at 8:00pm.
The Ministry of Inside Things, consisting of electronic musician Chuck van Zyl and electric guitarist Art Cohen, are considered among the most innovative of US synthesists today. Influenced by the early music of Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze and Ash Ra Tempel, their spacemusic has been described as linear, leading the listener across many sonic terrains. Based on improvisation, The Ministry of Inside Things creates electronic realizations that flow from theme to theme, with the experience often lasting up to two hours. Through use of textures and atmospheres as well as harmony, rhythm and melody, the group transports the audience on an internal sonic excursion.
van Zyl has been recording electronic music and performing live for more than 15 years but is best known for hosting one of the country’s most successful radio shows of electronic music, STAR’S END, for the past 20 years. van Zyl has released two CDs of spacemusic on the Centaur label, Celestial Mechanics and The Relic as well as a collaborative effort with Peter Gulch, Regeneration Mode on Synkronos and The Sound Museum with Gulch and Rath on Groove Ltd. Art Cohen has been pushing the limits of the electric guitar in the studio and in live performance for well over 15 years.
Performance will be accompanied with a laser light show and feature a meet and greet after the show. For more information, email: contact@lotupsike.com.
For more information: http://members.bellatlantic.net/~chuckv/moit.html
For online ticketing: http://www.carnegieonline.org/csc
(look for “voices beyond the dome concert series” at the bottom of the page)
Or e-mail us: contact@lotuspike.com
Call: 412-237-3400 for ticket information
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