Fears in the music industry are growing as Apple's power-grab over the release of new digital music could cover every single major label band and eventually lock down the entire music industry to one release source - APPLE...

Apple is pressuring every music label to release all new tracks exclusively through its iTunes store, in a move that presents a major threat to streaming services like Spotify.

Executives at the iPhone maker are reportedly pushing for an “exclusive window”, so that iTunes would be allowed to offer new releases well before its rivals. The model echoes the way that television companies like BSkyB pay to be able to show major releases ahead of the competition, and would help Apple to reassert its dominant position in the digital music market.

The Californian technology giant revolutionised the music industry in the early 2000s when it launched the iTunes music store, with a flat rate of 99 cents a song. For the first time, the system made it easier to buy digital music than it was to download tracks illegally, helping to reduce piracy at the same time as handing Apple a hugely powerful position and around 80pc market share.

However, a newer wave of streaming services has emerged over the past few years, and threatens to chip away at Apple’s dominance, by offering consumers a legal way of accessing music that is even easier than buying individual tracks, (streaming).

Services like Spotify, Beats Music, Deezer and Apple’s own iTunes Radio, allow music fans to stream songs over the internet for free, or for a very modest monthly fee if they don't want any adverts.


These companies have built a considerable following, although they have received mixed reviews from the record companies themselves. Some hugely popular artists receive more than half of their royalty income from streaming. However, many music executives claim it is much harder for smaller artists to gain traction. Last year, Thom Yorke and Atoms for Peace pulled certain tracks from Spotify in protest over the service, which they claimed was unfair to new artists.

The simmering controversy offers Apple the opportunity to launch its latest charm offensive, and persuade record labels to ensure certain tracks are only available on iTunes.

Many record producers will be quick to get on board, partly because they think Apple is the only music retailer big enough to make 'music streaming' mainstream.

However, others are afraid of handing Apple even more power, and would prefer to see iTunes co-exist alongside other several services.

Either way, Apple’s attempt to change the rules marks a major blow to Spotify at a crucial time for the business. Speculation is mounting that the Swedish music business is preparing to file for an initial public offering in New York.

Roland is pleased to announce the CUBE Street EX, a battery-powered stereo amplifier with big sound and generous connectivity for a variety of mics, instruments, and other devices. Building on the success of the original CUBE Street, the new CUBE Street EX infuses the popular mobile amp with a huge performance upgrade that delivers more projection, more channels, and more versatility.


Compact and easy to carry, the CUBE Street EX projects musical performances with ease. Featuring 50 watts of stereo power, two eight-inch woofers and two tweeters, onboard vocal and guitar effects, and up to 20 hours of operation on eight AA batteries, the CUBE Street EX delivers clean, punchy sound for street performances, small venues, stage monitoring, and other gigging situations.

Thanks to unique new power circuitry developed by Roland, mobile musicians can now enjoy clean headroom and audio reproduction with a level of quality that’s not possible with any other battery-powered amp. The CUBE Street EX’s output power is adjustable in three levels—Max (50 W), Normal (25 W), and Eco (10 W)—allowing users to conserve battery life when maximum power is not necessary. The amplifier can also be powered with the included AC adapter.


The CUBE Street EX has an onboard mixer with four independent channels, providing ample connectivity for any kind of performing setup. Mic/Instrument and Mic/Guitar channels feature XLR/TRS combo jacks to support microphones or devices with 1/4-inch outputs, and each channel has its own three-band EQ and reverb effect for discrete sound shaping. The mono/stereo Line In channel is equipped with 1/4-inch jacks, while the Audio In channel provides a stereo 1/8-inch mini jack that also supports Roland’s i-CUBE LINK. A rear-panel Aux In jack can be used to connect an additional mono device if needed.

With the CUBE Street EX, guitarists can plug in and get pro sounds right away. COSM tones for electric guitar include Lead, Crunch, and Clean, plus an Acoustic Simulator for extra versatility. There’s also an AC preamp optimized for acoustic/electric guitar and a convenient built-in tuner. Chorus/delay and reverb effects are available as well, and these can be turned on/off with optional footswitches while performing.


Roland’s innovative i-CUBE LINK interface lets users incorporate an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch into their performances with the CUBE Street EX. Via the included cable, i-CUBE LINK provides two-way communication with popular music apps. Roland’s free CUBE JAM app is an ideal partner, allowing performers to play along with music tracks and record the CUBE Street EX’s output right back into the app. CUBE JAM also includes a number of additional useful functions, including independent pitch/speed adjustment and Center Cancel for minus-one playing and karaoke.

With its angled back, the CUBE Street EX offers excellent projection for street gigs, small venues, and monitoring on larger stages. For broader sound coverage, the amp can be mounted on an optional ST-A95 Speaker Stand. With the Stereo Link function, two CUBE Street EX units can be used together to create a powerful stereo PA with up to eight separate inputs.

Roland’s CUBE series is known for its road-tough construction, and the CUBE Street EX is no exception. It features a high-strength ABS injection-molded body that’s passed rigorous durability testing, ensuring reliability in all kinds of performing situations. In addition to being durable, the CUBE Street EX is surprisingly light and easy to transport.

The optional CB-CS2 Carrying Case provides a convenient shoulder strap and accessory pockets, plus a water-resistant covering that protects the amp from moisture while traveling.

For more information: Roland

Andrew Wasson of Creative Guitar Studio answers questions from off of his Guitar Blog website...

Q). Some of my favorite music is quite lopsided in regard to how the riffs sound. I like a lot of jazz stuff, in particular, "Thelonious Monk." But, I also like a lot of rock & punk stuff too. So, whether it's the jazz guys, or someone like, "Vernon Reid," any players that jam out the dis-jointed lines really grab my ear. Could you make a lesson covering some tips on creating riffs and licks that have a skewed sound away from the diatonic keys? Thanks!
Ian - Tulsa, OK. USA


A). Music that applies chromatic concepts, and is to some degree poly-tonal offers listeners either a mild, or possibly even an extremely contorted musical effect. Obviously some bands and soloists will take this sound to the extreme, but it's often more common for groups (like Vernon Reid's band Living Colour) to inject a fresh sound with unusual harmonies and melodic lines for the effect of simply stretching the musical fabric. So, in this video, I'll be showing a few examples that you can use to either introduce this concept into your playing, or to expand upon phrases like this that you already know.

A New Report Confirms... The top 1% of Music Artists Earn a whopping 77% of all Recorded Music's Income...What exactly does that leave for the rest of us 99%...??

A new report titled "The Death of the Long Tail: The Superstar Music Economy" shared some interesting and somewhat depressing data regarding the state of music industry, confirming that top 1% of all artists are earning whopping 77% of all recorded music income today.

As the Midia blog post reads, "the given situation is caused by the industry's current state and the drastic changes brought by the internet era. As the income fell by over a billion dollars from 2000 to 2013, the artists' share rose from 14% to 17%."

However, the consumer behavior possibly has the biggest impact, as the fans haven't actually embraced the vast array of choices given by the modern time, but "have actually been completely overloaded by it."

Blatantly comparing the music fan behavior to sheep, the report says how, The concept of the long tail seemed like a useful way of understanding how consumers interact with content in digital contexts, and for a while looked like the roadmap for an exciting era of digital content.


Intuitively the democratization of access to music - both on the supply and demand sides - coupled with vastness of digital music catalogues should have translated into a dilution of the Superstar economy effect, the article also reads how... "Instead the marketplace has shown us that humans are just as much wandering sheep in need of herding online as they are offline."


The report adds, "In fact digital music services have actually intensified the Superstar concentration, not lessened it (see figure). The top 1% account for 75% of CD revenues but 79% of subscription revenue. This counter intuitive trend is driven by two key factors: a) smaller amount of 'front end' display for digital services - especially on mobile devices - and b) by consumers being overwhelmed by a Tyranny of Choice in which excessive choice actual hinders discovery."


Focusing on streaming services as one of the key culprits, the article insists that massive changes need to be made ASAP. "Action needs taking urgently to make sense of 25 million songs, not just through discovery and editorial, but also by taking the brave decision to keep certain types of content, such as sound-alikes, outside of music services' main functionality."

Until labels, distributors and artists come to together to fix the issue of digital catalog pollution - sound alikes and karaoke especially - the Tyranny of Choice will reign supreme, hiding 99% of artists under a pervasive shroud of obscurity and giving the Superstars another free lap of the track.


The report still stresses that streaming services aren't a bad thing, adding, "Ultimately it is the relatively niche group of engaged music aficionados that have most interest in discovering as diverse a range of music as possible. Most mainstream consumers want leading by the hand to the very top slither of music catalogue. This is why radio has held its own for so long and why curated and programmed music services are so important for engaging the masses with digital."

Music has always been a Superstar economy and there will always be winners and losers in music sales, with the big winners winning really big, the report concludes. "Over time the improved discovery and programming in digital music services will hopefully push the needle for the remainder artist tier," but, we also need to keep in mind...

a) it will not happen over night
b) it will still have a finite amount of impact

We've all met someone who claimed not to love music, or that they even hated music... For most of us, the attitude is so foreign that it seems like it must just be a pose. But it turns out that, for some people, it's actually physically impossible to enjoy music.

Researchers at University of Barcelona recently published a new study that reveals certain people are actually physically unable to enjoy music. We're not talking about people who are tone deaf, hearing impaired or depressed, which would obviously impair musical enjoyment — either. Nor are we talking about people who don't enjoy specific genres, like old people with Eminem or New Yorkers with country. The study identified a new psychological phenomenon termed "specific musical anhedonia," which refers to the reduced ability to experience pleasure from music, specifically due to some odd wiring in the reward centers of the brain. That means no crying during "Someone Like You."

Participants in this experiment were asked to rate their reaction to music on a scale from "very sensitive" to "not sensitive." They were also asked to bring in their favorite music that produces the most vivid emotional response in them. Participants listened to this music while researchers monitored their vitals.


Listeners who claimed to be unresponsive to music sat bored. They did not shiver at crystal clear high notes or have their heart rate quicken with crescendos. Imagine someone sitting there with a blank expression while Pavortti delivers the last few lines of "Nessun Dorma."

It's somewhat unthinkable, but it happens...

And to prove that this really was a specific mental block, as far as music was concerned, the researchers had all the participants play a game involving a little cash reward. Here, the hearts of those unaffected by music were racing along with the rest of the group. Though they weren't excited by music, they were emotionally excited by money!

As it turns out, people with specific musical anhedonia can be very well adapted, happy people, in spite of their musical block. And it's probably a welcome break from when the next sad song comes on the radio playing in the background.

Mason Marangella is a Guitar rig-builder / developer working out of Point Richmond, California who is gaining a serious client base of the world's top guitarists. Described by those in the business as caring and passionate about what he does, in his relatively short history (having only really started in 2006) he has built up an exceptional reputation for professionalism.

His quality equipment builds, combined with his approachability and knowledge have allowed him to work with some of guitar’s biggest names including: Andy Timmons, Oz Noy, Michael Landau, Kirk Fletcher, Josh Smith, Matt Schofield and many others.


He doesn’t just work with pros however, he will work with anyone that is serious about building their ultimate rig and he due to this, he gets glowing testimonials from all around the internet. His pedalboards in particular are not only sonically brilliant, but a visual work of art! Marangella is a true master of his craft.

In his new YouTube video, he offers some great free professional tips for anyone building or who needs to update their pedal-board.



BIO: Mason Marangella began Vertex Engineering in 2006 as a small custom shop in Berkeley, California, taking on small electrical engineering and design projects from local recording studios whilst attending the University of California, Berkeley. Soon after, he started to work as a contractor and consultant doing ghost designs and collaborative projects in the pro audio, guitar pickup, effects pedal, and tube amplifier fields.

In 2009, after having worked directly with many local musicians and artists along with the experience of completing several electrical design projects for both large and boutique companies, he developed an understanding of what was missing and what needed to be improved upon with both effects pedals and rig integration with a specific emphasis on networking devices for the best possible sonic performance. This is when Mason expanded Vertex Engineering with a new division called Vertex Effects Systems, which would focus on designing and integrating electronic devices as a network of effects, customized for the needs of each player. Within one year Vertex Effects Systems had been commissioned to design custom devices and systems for some of the most prestigious musicians in the world.

By 2011, after a successful two years Vertex Effects Systems, Mason expanded another division of Vertex Engineering called Vertex Effects to design the highest quality effects pedals and modifications for both reliability and tone.

All Vertex products are hand assembled in the San Francisco Bay Area with premium handpicked components from only North American companies. Each product is built in small quantities and rigorously tested for the highest quality and consistency. In 2011 Vertex released the Vertex Axis Wah, Vertex BC109 Fuzz and the Michael Landau Signature Arion Chorus.

On Friday March 7, 2014 I will be posting a new lesson on my main YouTube channel covering, "How to Practice Chords."

This will be a comprehensive video lesson covering everything from guitar set-up, to practice progressions.

In order to get the most out of tomorrows lesson, I highly suggest reviewing a few of my older lessons which are important to understand prior to watching the, "How to Practice Chords," lesson.

The are several ideas that will be (of course) included in tomorrows video. However, to keep the video length manageable, I will be forced to skim the surface on a few important principles.


The following lesson tutorials are recommended viewing prior to tomorrows lesson:

• Analyzing 11th and 13th Chord Extensions
• Harmonized Moveable Chord Shapes - Part 1
• Harmonized Moveable Chord Shapes - Part 2

Thanks and I hope you enjoy the Friday March 7, 2014 lesson!