Music and Musical Gear

Music Diary, Crowdfunding, News & Features

TemPolor Melo-D Wants to Turn Humming and Text Prompts into Playable Music

The TemPolor Melo-D is a foldable generative AI guitar aimed at people who have musical ideas but not necessarily the finger strength, theory background, or patience to wrestle with a traditional instrument. The company is pitching the TemPolor Melo-D as the world’s first generative AI guitar, capable of turning humming, text prompts, style tags, chord progressions, and uploaded audio into original songs or playable guitar parts. That’s a big claim, and the real test will be how musical the results feel, but the concept is easy to understand: make songwriting and guided playing less intimidating.

Music Diary, Gear Bits

Fender’s “Workhorse” Turns 75: The Telecaster Diamond Jubilee is Here!

If you were to look up “don’t mess with a classic” in the dictionary, you’d probably see a picture of a Fender Telecaster. The Telecaster is my single favorite guitar on earth! Since 1951, this slab of wood and two pickups has been the backbone of everything from chicken-pickin’ country to face-melting indie rock. Fender is throwing a birthday bash with a commemorative collection that proves this old dog has plenty of new tricks. Whether you want to feel like you’re playing a relic from a smoky 1950s dive bar or a spaceship from the future, there’s something here for…

Reviews

Fender Mustang Micro Plus Review: The Ultimate Wireless Headphone Amp for Guitarists

I have played electric guitars for over thirty years, which means thirty years of noise for anyone who lives with me, whether they like it or not. I have tried multiple headphone methods in my amplifiers, but they are cumbersome. With the new Fender Mustang Micro Plus headphone amplifier, my guitar practices are now wireless, on headphones, and full of effects!

Music Diary, Gear Bits

Metallica x Yousician Will Teach You to Play Guitar Alongside Metallica Greats

For many of my early guitar learning years, I dreamt of being able to play along with Metallica; I would lie on my bed just wishing I could figure it out. After years of working at it, I was able to make that happen, but technology can help players learn the moves much faster. Now, there’s a Metallica x Yousician course.

News & Features

16-Guitar Fender Custom Shop Hot Wheels Guitar Collection Combines Two Long-Time Favorites in a One-of-a-Kind Collaboration

As a long-time guitar player, Fender guitars bring back so many memories from different times of my life. I spent much of my youth trying to obtain a Fender guitar, and I’m still obsessing about them as an older man! Another great memory from my childhood is playing with Hot Wheels cars, so the idea of a Fender Custom Shop Hot Wheels Guitar Collection sounds pretty epic!

News & Features, Gear Bits

Limited to 60, Custom Fender Violinmaster Tele Relic Stuns with Stradivarius Features

Fender Custom Shop is renowned for building one-of-a-kind guitars that are art, and the new limited edition Fender Violinmaster Tele Relic has just been announced. The guitar is inspired by the world-renowned violinist Joshua Bell and his legendary 1713 “Gibson ex-Huberman” Stradivarius violin. “Wow” is an understatement when you see the fantastic design and understand how Principal Master Builder, Yuriy Shiskov, captured the essence of the 300-year-old violin.

Gear Bits, Music Diary

Fender x MoFi PrecisionDeck Turntable Combines Fender Style with MoFi Sound

With the resurgence of vinyl as a popular audio medium, so too are the devices to play those records. Amazing sound mixed with classic style is always a great thing. Fender has announced a partnership with Mobile Fidelity Electronics (MoFi), the legendary foremost audio technology company, to offer the Fender x Mofi PrecisionDeck Turntable to play your favorite recordings.

Gear Bits, Music Diary

Fender Player Plus Series Introduces Fresh Looks, Tones, and Feel with 4 New Guitars and 3 New Basses

The Player Series guitars released by Fender in 2018 reset the standard for entry-point Fender guitars and became one of the best-selling series in Fender history. The new Fender Player Plus series includes four guitars and three basses; it is the most visually striking line Fender has ever produced.

Bottom of the Fender Stratocaster LEGO Set guitar

Gear Bits

Fender Stratocaster LEGO Set Hits the Stage with Meticulous Detail and All the Accessories

I love guitars and love LEGO bricks. LEGO has collaborated with Fender to introduce the perfect model for guitar fans and LEGO aficionados alike. The Fender Stratocaster is known as an industry-standard guitar sound across music genres and can now be built in black or red LEGO bricks complete with stand, amp, and foot pedal. A Fender Stratocaster LEGO Set? Yes, please! View this post on Instagram A post shared by LEGO (@lego) The Fender Stratocaster has been meticulously reimagined in LEGO bricks designed by a fan designer from Slovakia, Tomáš Letenay. Letenay turned his teenage dream of…

Gear Bits, Music Diary

HeadRush MX5: A Compact, Easy to Use, and Fully Featured Guitar FX and Amp Modeling Processor

One problem I have always had with guitar gear is the size and number of gear needed to get many great tones. For years I just used a pedal and a cheap amp and imagined what the tones could really be. The HeadRush MX5 has just been introduced, and it might be the most powerful and easiest to use compact guitar FX and amp modeling processor ever.

Music Diary, News & Features

BOSS Announces EUROS GS-1 Electronic Guitar, First Wireless Expression Pedal, and Gig Bags

I am essentially hapless as a guitar player. My brother, now he can rip; he has a mini-studio, several guitars, a bunch of effects, friends he records with, and he even had a band for a while. Me? I stick to the piano. But I do love the equipment, the gizmos and gadgets, and gear. And here comes BOSS to fulfill my gadget/gear/gizmo-loving soul with the new EUROS GS-1 Electronic Guitar, Wireless Pedal, and gig bags.

Reviews, Music Diary

Fender Mustang Micro Personal Amplifier Review: An Amazing New Must-Have Guitar Accessory

Electric guitars are great for playing in huge stadiums with thousands of screaming fans. Still, it can be tough to practice without lugging around a heavy amplifier or waking up the neighborhood. Thanks to the Fender Mustang Micro personal amp, you can plug in and jam out using wired headphones, and it’s less than $100.

News & Features

Qualcomm Snapdragon Sound Plans to Redefine Wireless Audio with Less Latency, Better Sound, and Longer Battery Life

We’re used to hearing (or reading) the word Snapdragon regarding processors, but there is a new Snapdragon in town! If you’ve been frustrated by breaks in connectivity, audio dropouts and glitches, latency issues, and poor audio compression when listening to audio over your wireless headphones, Qualcomm Snapdragon Sound is a phrase you’ll want to remember.

News & Features

Spotify Stream On Event Shares What’s Next for Spotify with Exciting Podcast Updates

Spotify has become the go-to music and podcast streaming service for many with good reason. Breaking the traditional recording industry model and making the release of new material more accessible and monetizable for musicians and content creators, the service has made it possible for unknown talent to break out and for established talent to get their material out to even more listeners. Whether you use Spotify Free or Spotify Premium, you’ll be interested in today’s Spotify Stream On event.

Music Diary, Events, News & Features

IK Multimedia Introduces the UNO Synth Pro and UNO Synth Pro Desktop

Back in late 2018, IK Multimedia surprised vintage synth lovers with their Uno Synth – a tiny monophonic device with capacitive buttons for the keys as well as numerous functions and a few knobs. The surprise was that while Uno Synth looked like a toy, it controlled and sounded like a pro-grade analog synth punching way above its price point. I have put dozens of hours into creating fun sounds with the Uno Synth, and so was thrilled to see IK announce the follow-up – the UNO Synth Pro and UNO Synth Pro Desktop.

Music Diary, Reviews

Scofield and Swallow’s Musical Journey Continues on ‘Swallow Tales’

My first encounter with guitarist John Scofield came forty years ago as a young bassist looking for work by Steve Swallow and finding a new release by a trio led by Scofield called ‘Shinola.’ I was thrilled by Swallow’s playing, but also instantly fell in love with Scofield’s jagged, angular lines, and innovative fretboard shapes.

Gear Bits, Music Diary

Watch Beyoncé’s ‘Black Is King’ Starting Today on Disney+

Beyoncé’s Black Is King is debuting on Disney+ today. It’s a visual album in which Beyoncé “reimagines the lessons of “The Lion King for today’s young kings and queen’s in search of their own crown. The voyages of Black families throughout time are honored in a tale about a young king’s transcendent journey through betrayal, love, and self-identity.”

Music Diary, Reviews

Fender Acoustasonic Stratocaster, the Shape-Shifting Guitar

Fender has mixed technology with its usual craftsmanship and iconic Stratocaster shape. The Acoustasonic Stratocaster retails for $1,999.99 and comes in five colors. This unique guitar will allow players to get both acoustic and electric sounds out of the same instrument — all the while playing on a great looking guitar with the quality expected from Fender.

Music Diary, News & Features

Steinberg Brings Cubasis 3 Audio Workstation to Android Devices

Back in 2012, Steinberg released Cubasis, a fully-featured DAW (digital audio workstation) for iPad with plug-ins, full audio, MIDI recording and editing, and many other professional features. Having used Cubasis on iPad quite a bit through the years, I have always loved how they were able to pack so many features into a mobile platform. Last year’s Cubasis 3 took things to another level, making the iPad version a true mobile DAW. And now Steinberg has brought the acclaimed full-featured mobile studio to Android.

Music Diary, News & Features

Esperanza Spalding and Fred Hersch Announce 5-Song Duo EP to Benefit Musicians

The global pandemic has presented nearly all of us with unique challenges and hardships in every phase of life, but there are many people whose chosen profession requires them to live from day to day without a safety net or health care resources. Musicians fall squarely in that camp, with fewer than 5% able to make more than the poverty level based on their music alone.

Music Diary, Reviews

Fender Fullerton Series Ukuleles Bring a Rock ‘n Roll Style to the Island Scene

The Fender Strat Ukulele as if a Fender Stratocaster went on vacation to Hawaii, decided to settle down and assimilate with the local music scene. It’s as if a ukulele went through a teenage rebellion phase and got all rock ‘n roll. And for just about $200, the Fender Fullerton Series of ukuleles are well-built, stylish ukulele with great features.