“Movies without music are just snapshots”
~ Stephen Whitty

With the Academy Awards just a few days away, the exciting is growing. The heavy red carpet gets rolled out, Hollywood celebrities grin (hard under the influence of botox!) and bear it during their grueling last minute nips and tucks, starstruck fans buzz with anticipation, and talented artists from all facets of the film-making world hope and dream that this might be their year…

Let’s – just for a moment – bypass all the rest of the ruckus, though, and focus on the music. Though not a central theme, music plays an undeniable role in the biggest night of the year for film. In fact, though it rarely gets the attention it should, the music often makes the movie.

Naturally, we’ve got the four award categories that are music-related, which is all about the behind-the-scenes artists. These are the guys and gals who slave away composing, editing, and mixing and hardly get any recognition for their hard work. Unless, of course, they win an Oscar. Here is a breakdown of those categories and their nominees.

- Music (Original Score): Avatar (James Harner), Fantastic Mr. Fox (Alexandre Desplat), The Hurt Locker (Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders), Sherlock Holmes (Hans Zimmer), Up (Michael Giacchino)

- Music (Original Song): The Princess and the Frog for “Almost There” and “Down in New Orleans” (Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman), Paris 36 for “Loin de Paname” (Music by Reinhardt Wagner and Lyrics by Frank Thomas), Nine for “Take it All” (Music and Lyrics by Maury Yeston), Crazy Heart for “The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” (Music and Lyrics by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett)

- Sound Editing: Avatar (Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle), The Hurt Locker (Paul N.J. Ottosson), Inglorious Basterds (Wylie Stateman), Star Trek (Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin), Up (Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin)

- Sound Mixing: Avatar (Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson), The Hurt Locker (Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett), Inglorious Basterds (Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano), Star Trek (Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin), Transformers (Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson)

Beyond the music-related categories, there are the movies about music, like Crazy Heart. Apparently, public opinion has Jeff Bridges taking home the Oscar for Best Actor. It’s his fifth nomination and this time, say fans, it’s his time. Over here at Evolving Music, we say movies about music and the profound role it plays in people’s lives should win more often! Actually, there should be more movies about music (and musicians) period. Interestingly, this year it seems the music stars themselves did not come out on top. Idolator points out that Leona Lewis’ Avatar theme “I See You” didn’t even get nominated (although it did get nominated for a Golden Globe.)

Whatever your predictions and sentiments are for the event his year, don’t forget to take a moment to appreciate the music because, as the wise Stephen Whitty said, “Movies without music are just snapshots!” Speaking of shots, here are some drinking games for Oscar night in case you’re interested.

When you approach a decade between albums, especially in a genre as fluid and fickle as Hip-Hop, you run the risk of falling into irrelevance. Hieroglyphics Imperium’s Souls of Mischief, however, isn’t worried about perception. They’re worried about putting out what they consider quality music on their time schedule.

This isn’t to say that the past nine years have been absent of new music for the crew. Opio and A-Plus have both released solo albums and Tajai has remained consistently busy with solo and collaboration projects. After the 2003 release of Hieroglyphic’s sophomore album, Full Circle, the rumors of a new Souls of Mischief album kept building, but nothing seemed to surface. Even after an early 2009 interview where Opio and Tajai mentioned plans for a new song for download every week from Hiero Imperium, the only news of new Souls was more rumor. After such a long hiatus, it wasn’t surprising to see the release date for the long-awaited album pushed from November 10th to December 2nd.

It’s worth the wait.

Sporting cover art from renowned artist Steven Lopez, Montezuma’s Revenge drops today and should provide a healthy reminder of why this crew has retained credibility and a solid fan base despite the lack of regular releases in the flavor of the month hip-hop industry. Cover art isn’t the only place they brought in talent though, and the results are fantastic.

You only need a minimum of knowledge of Hip-Hop to have heard the name Prince Paul. Over the past 20 years, he has carved out a spot as one of the innovators, creators and most well-known producers in the industry. He has participated in groups from the ’80s pioneer Stetsasonic to the horrorcore originators, the Gravediggaz. With Paul announced as the primary producer for the album, it was anyone’s guess what direction the sound might head towards.

Prince Paul has chosen to take the backbone of the Souls of Mischief sound and amplify it with his personal flourish. The heavy basslines, creeping melodies, kicked back beats and slick guitar and string loops the Hiero crew members favor are all here, combined with catchy hooks, clever samples and seamless production in vintage Paul fashion. The resulting tracks are audio canvases that provide Tajai, Opio, Phesto, and A-Plus room to roam lyrically while sounding completely at home. Under Paul’s production, the group finds a consistency and energy missing from their solo efforts and reminiscent of the debut album.

“Postal” offers a lush string background and uptempo beat as the group raps about heartbreak and break-up, effortlessly making a down topic into a head-nodder. “Proper Aim”’s addictive and naked bass line follows the one rapper at a time format and makes a good introductory track to new listeners still attempting to attach voice to group member. “Dead Man Walking” utilizes the constant keys and scales of West Coast rap to back lyrics dealing with vengeance and the street.

“Home Game” is an old-school cruising track with music, weed, driving and women as focus, lyrics finding the blend of relaxed flow and taut tempo. The album closer “LaLaLa” features quick back and forth between the group members over a drum and guitar sample combination and interspersed tambourines. The quick jigsaw exposes the chemistry of these four, never missing a beat or word between complex rhyme schemes and multiple voices.

And in between all of these songs? Tracks that show Prince Paul boosting the rich history of sound and style native to Souls of Mischief while letting Souls of Mischief effortlessly demonstrate the tenacity, chemistry and complexity of lyricism that has been their calling card since ‘93. This one could be around for a while too.

It is well known that over the last 10 years the barriers to making music have been shattered by highly effective, and cheap, music making software. Musicians now have many great resources when it comes to digital studio software and online collaboration and production tools. And, as music making technology continues to spread and becomes easier to use, even fans have entered the music making process by remixing and collaborating with their favorite artists.

The next step in the evolution of music production very well may be mobile music making, and while many mobile music tools have been released in the last several years, IK Multimedia’s GrooveMaker may be the most effective. After the success of their first four applications released last August, IK Multimedia has put out two new versions of their GrooveMaker music production apps. The new GrooveMaker Techno and GrooveMaker Trance add to IKM’s existing genre collection of House, Hip-Hop, and Club. If you get the itch to make some beats on-the-go, these apps allow users to create and share full length, non-stop tracks in real-time, perfect for DJing, remixing, or creating multimedia soundtracks. Pretty sweet, eh?

The GrooveMaker apps contain advanced remixing software that allows for control over eight stereo loop tracks. Users can pull from GrooveMaker’s extensive library of high sound-quality drum, bass, bass drums, lines, pads, percussion and effects loops, and loops are easily arranged by dragging and dropping. GrooveMaker’s randomization feature lets users create millions of possible grooves with just one touch. Once a user is done with their jam, tracks can be saved, previewed, recalled, and exported as .WAV files to a computer through a Wi-Fi network.

While GrooveMaker Techno and GrooveMaker Trance are available in the iTunes App Store for $9.99, IK Multimedia has given us a few copies to give out for free! The first four people to tweet out “I dig the GrooveMaker iPhone app and @EvolvingMusic!” will get a free copy of the GrooveMaker app. Or check out GrooveMaker’s fully functional basic version, available for free on iTunes. And to check out audio demos, visit GrooveMaker’s website.

Curious to learn more about music making on the iPhone? Read this.

Calling all DJ’s, Producers and Recording Artists!!

Talenthouse is partnering with MixMatchMusic’s online remix technology to give you the chance to remix Photek’s track and submit it to Talenthouse for a chance to be on an upcoming Photek release. For all of you Drum & Bass lovers out there, here’s your chance to help Photek finish a song! Photek, who has been producing and spinning creative drum and bass since 1992, is looking for dubstep and 4 to the floor remixes of his Drum & Bass track, “Fake ID”. He’s asking creators to produce a banging track that people would want to hear in a club. Our friends at Talenthouse say that they’re not looking for Photek clones, but for people to be original. Can you dig it?

If your remix is selected by Photek and the Talenthouse community, it will become an official Photek release and you will be credited in full as the official remixer and receive full promotion and distribution.

How to participate:
The Photek “Fake ID” remix contest can be found on the Talenthouse website as well as in a Remix Wizard that has been setup for the contest.  Stems can be downloaded from either place, but please be sure to upload your remix to both places. If you don’t have any music making software, you can use MixMatchMusic’s MixMaker to make your own remix online! For a complete list of rules and requirements, check this.

Who is Photek?
Although Photek is recognized as one of the founding pioneers of Drums and Bass, what sets him apart from the crows is his amazing ability to take the signature Photek sound to different places, outside the D&B genre.

While on Virgin Records, he managed to chart some of the most groundbreaking music into mainstream consciousness with the albums “Modus Operandi” and “Solaris”. His singles have spanned the full spectrum of electronic music, with straight up club hits like “Mine To Give” to the most legendary & abstract “Ni Ten Ichi Ryu”. It is this versatility and originality that has made Photek a favorite among artists such as Trent Reznor, Andre 3000, Bjork & David Bowie.

Originally from London, Photek is now based in Los Angeles where he finds himself evolving into an ever broader range of music through film music and artist collaborations. The UK/USA connection seems to have worked out perfectly for Photek, with the “Love & War” named Single Of The Week on BBC Radio 1 in London and his mixes of NIN’s “The Hand That Feeds” a hit on KROQ in Los Angeles.

Here’s a little taste of some of Photek’s remix, production, and score credits:
Nine Inch Nails, David Bowie, Bjork, Gwen Stefani, Goldie, Zero 7, Shy Fx/Elephant Man, Everything But The Girl, Roni Size “Reprazent”, Beth Orton, Attica Blues, London Electricity, Bumblebeez, Therapy, The Faint, Ringside, Jem, Rairbirds, Craig Armstrong, M. Night Shyamalan’s – Signs, Six Feet Under, The Matrix – Animatrix, The Italian Job, Stay, Invincible, American Wedding, Dreamland, Blade, City Of Industry, Raising The Bar.

But, there was one remix that really caught the attention of Slightly Stoopid and stood out above the competition. Congrats to icehouseindustries for winning the remix contest! His remix was chosen by Slightly Stoopid as the grand prize winner! Check it out…

Icehouseindustries will receive a HUGE prize pack that includes a set of the new Slightly Stoopid branded headphones (Skull Candy); an autographed Stoopid poster; 2 tickets to the next Slightly Stoopid concert in their area; a limited edition Slightly Stoopid branded glass pipe; CDs of Slightly Stoopid’s entire discography & Chronichitis vinyl; a copy of Slightly Stoopid Live in San Diego DVD; and the icehouseindustries remix will be posted for streaming on Slightly Stoopid’s Website, Myspace, Facebook, and their theSixtyOne.com page.

There was also a prize for the fan favorite, for the remix that received the most fan votes. Congrats to Karma for getting the most fan votes for his unique remix that brought a grooving lounge sound to 2am, complete with funky flute, saxophone and jazz guitar. His remix definitely caught a lot of attention. Karma wins a set of the new Slightly Stoopid branded headphones (Skull Candy) and a limited edition Slightly Stoopid branded glass pipe. Saaawwweeeet!!!

Make sure to check out some of the other remixes submitted. I’m a fan of NotoriAce’s remix and all of the different levels and genres used, as well as We Like it Edgy out of Galashiels, Scotland’s “2am edgy remix”. Also, I’m kinda diggin’ the use of Daydreamin’ by DJ Devan Air and Biggie Smalls in Will Becker’s mash-up. And, big ups to Gravity Terminal for his electro-dub version of 2am. Click the image below to check out all of the submissions. While you’re there, be sure to browse the Remix Wizard site to find other remix opportunities and to see how you can host your own remix contest using MixMatchMusic’s FREE remix contest platform.

Heads up fans, producers, and DJs! We’ve got a brand new remix contest for all of you looking for new and impressive ways to participate in the creative process and show off your DIY skills. MixMatchMusic has joined forces with Bay Area rapper Lyrics Born and eyewear company Sutro Vision to bring you a chance to remix Lyrics Born’s newest single, a re-union track with the other half of his Latyrx duo, Lateef the Truthspeaker, called “Pushed Aside, Pulled Apart.”

“Pushed Aside, Pulled Apart” will be appearing on both Lyrics Born’s upcoming Variety Show mixtape and the studio album he has due in 2010. The track utilizes female vocals, synths and moving drum and clap percussion to frame uptempo lyrics from Born and Lateef surrounding the decisions and choices they’ve been faced with making for their careers. Check out the video for the single below.

In an effort to engage and interact with fans, as well as contribute to the growing number of artists allowing fans to remix their work, Lyrics Born has loaded the stems to “Pushed Aside, Pulled Apart” into the MixMatchMusic Remix Wizard and has given you two options for making a remix: Either download the stems for free and use any software you want, or just click on the MixMaker button on the widget to make a remix in MixMatchMusic’s simple online music editor. If you’ve never experienced remixing before, or just want to see how the song was made, check out the MixMaker. Once you’ve completed your remix, upload it so that others can listen to, vote on and share it.

So what will you win? From the entries, Lyrics Born himself will be picking three winners – a grand prize and two runner-up prizes. The grand prize winner will receive a pair of Lyrics Born signed Sutro sunglasses (these shades are sweet!), autographed copies of the entire Variety Show catalog, a Lyrics Born T-Shirt, 2 free tickets to any Lyrics Born show, a meet and greet with Lyrics Bron at said show, and their track featured on LyricsBorn.com presented by Lyrics Born himself.

The 2 runner ups will each receive a pair of Lyrics Born signed Sutro sunglasses (he will sign the case), a copy of the new Lyrics Born Variety Show mixtape, a Lyrics Born T-Shirt and 2 free tickets to any Lyrics Born show as well as their remix featured on LyricsBorn.com. The official rules for the contest are available here.

So what are you waiting for? The contest starts today (Tuesday, August 25th) and runs through Friday September 25th. Tune in, sign on and start mixing!

In fact, some, like rising YouTube sensation The Mentalists, are taking these applications quite seriously. Check out this band’s covers of MGMT’s “Kids” or Estelle’s “American Boy”.

Stanford University even has its own iPhone ensemble, called the Mobile Phone Orchestra, or MoPhO. MoPhoO director, Ge Wang, developed his own application for the group, called Ocarina, which turns the iPhone into a woodwind-like instrument sensitive to touch, movement, or breath.

The App Store has music applications for everything from digital drum pads to mash-up machines to kazoos. Some of the most popular include Jumpei Wada’s Mini Piano, Curious Brain Inc.’s TouchCords, and Magnus Larsson’s DigiDrummer Lite, all free. These apps are very user friendly, allowing even the least music-tech savvy people try their hand at a little music production.

Just another way technology is allowing a more hands-on experience for enjoying music, much like MixMatchMusic’s Remix Wizard allows artists to bring fans into the mix through remix promotions. For an Evolving Music list of other cool music related apps check out this earlier post.

A sad day in music today as one of the older trailblazers, Lester “Les Paul” William Polfuss passed away. He was 94. Born only a few short years after the sinking of the Titanic, Paul lived through two World Wars, numerous armed skirmishes, the Depression, three “first” Supreme Court Justices as well as the first African-American president. But in a life that spanned all of those historic events, his contributions to music, the recording industry and the guitar dramatically changed the way it was created, played and recorded on a level unparalleled elsewhere.

Not only was Paul an accomplished musician, but his DIY tendencies and desire to see how things worked lead him to develop technology that shaped the future of the music industry and huge developments within genres. The standard of multitrack recording was pioneered by Paul, and the practices of overdubbing and delays were advanced by him as well. Dissatisfied with the acoustic guitars available, Paul created his own electric guitar. This would go on to be manufactured and sold by Gibson, becoming one of the iconic guitars for rock musicians from multiple generations. Certainly we may not have had the Steve Miller Band were it not for Paul being Miller’s Godfather and giving him his first guitar lesson. I’ve also read that when he broke his arm he asked the doctor to reset it in a permanent guitar playing position. I can neither confirm nor deny that.

When it comes to instrumentation and studio techniques, few people in the recording industry have had as much of an impact as Les Paul. His influence and love for music was so great that he continued playing guitar into the last year of his life, and created continued inspiration for premier guitarists worldwide. In a musical climate where “innovation” comes in the form of auto-tune and artists rarely have more than monetary attachments to the instruments they play, Paul’s truly significant leaps of technology and his subsequent engineering attachment to the instruments he created will remain singular and unique for some time to come.

Over the last several months, MixMatchMusic has been busy working on a short film for South By Southwest, titled “Remix…A New Way to Engage Fans”. Well, we’re happy to announce that the film is now live and you are invited to see how artists and fans are turning to remixing to connect and interact with fans in a music 2.0 world.

Emerging hip hop artists, the Bayliens, are poster children for a music 2.0 world that is nearly as much about connecting with fans off stage as it is entertaining them onstage.  This film shows how they’re connecting with fans at an almost molecular level, by offering them the musical building blocks of their songs and encouraging them to remix them into new sounds and new songs. The film also features insights from AmpLive (of Zion I) and Trifonic on the power of artist-fan collaboration.

Musicians are navigating a dramatically changed music business landscape.  More than ever, they have to engage and involve casual listeners in order to build deep and lasting relationships with them.  The group behind the video, MixMatchMusic (aka, the dudes writing this post), is focused on helping musicians make those connections and deepening the bonds that link them with fans.

Do you ever find yourself searching far and wide for high quality, royalty-free loops that you can use in your music? If so, Prime Loops will most likely have what you’re looking for.

Prime Loops is a music production team based in the UK that meticulously crafts audiolicious loops and stems for you to use in your songs and remixes. They make pristine loops in almost every genre and format imaginable, and package them into libraries of fat and flexible samples that you can instantly download after paying a few bucks. After that, they’re royalty-free, which means that you can use them in anything you want, at no extra cost. You can even use them in songs that go on actual CDs, if that’s your kind of thing.

To give you an idea of how silly dope these loops are, Prime Loops and MixMatchMusic have partnered to bring you an exclusive set of loops on MixMatchMusic. They’ve uploaded over 50 loops for you to listen to, mashup, and get down with. Each loop is intricately created and individually mastered. Download them from MixMatchMusic, and if you need more, go to Prime Loops’ website and check out their massive collection of loops, tutorials, and studio tips.