Amidst tragic news, there are some stories of relief. As Tristan and filarion have written in to tell us, Fats Domino has been reportedly rescued by boat. The Queen of Soul, Irma Thomas, had also been reported missing but has also been located.

Digidesign has unveiled the sequel to what has been its most popular interface: Mbox 2 [Digidesign] What’s new: In brief, same basic I/O plus new MIDI in and out, slick, new case, and huge software bundle. Still only two simultaneous ins, though, not including the digital ins. More after the jump.

Ah, 4-track recording — the Tascam 4-track tape machines could do it. But Mbox2 can’t support more than two tracks of simultaneous analog inputs at once (for mic / line / guitar ins, etc.) Is that a deal killer? Not at all; there are lots of people out there who use interfaces alone, adding a […]

I’m busy finishing — count them — 5 feature stories at once today (coffee, please?!), so that means it’s time to check in on the rest of the blogosphere. It’s “I love the 80s” time again on this week’s Best Music Blog. Words cannot describe the geeky goodness of the new Commodore 64 Music Blog. […]

In follow-up to my story Tuesday about the new Dubstation from Audio Damage (and other assorted Dub links), ever-vigilant reader Adrian Anders is here with a couple of free VST alternatives. I still think the Dubstation may be worth US$40, but there’s no reason not to check these out, too, if you’ve got a PC. […]

Some magazines have no standards, I guess. Nice work if you can get it, though. Seriously, though, the folks at XLR8R Magazine have a book out called Bedroom Rockers: Where DJs Call Home; check out a PDF sample plus parties for the book in NY (tonight), Miami, Chicago, Boston, and Berkeley, with DJs (of course) […]

ReBirth is the program that made Propellerheads famous; it was a brilliant emulation of the wildly popular Roland TB-303 bass and TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines and paved the way for Reason. Today, Propellerheads is putting that legacy to rest, discontinuing the application from 1997 and opening the ReBirth Museum. Among lots of other goodies, […]

More bad news continues to pour in from New Orleans, as musicians rally to keep strong and help. Associated Press had reported R&B legend Fats Domino was missing, but good news — he’s been rescued. Harry Connick, Jr. calls New Orleans residents “freakishly strong”. Friday he’ll be part of a televised fundraiser with other musicians. […]

To those of you from Mississippi, Louisiana, and other areas hit hard by Katrina, if you’ve got Web access and reading this, we’re thinking of you. It’s especially important for the music community to come together to help each other out around the world. Musicians often lack insurance, and are especially vulnerable financially, as all […]

Bored with keyboards and drum pads? How about light-sensitive photocells with customizable control options, all in a spacey case that looks like it escaped from Sun Ra’s Arkestra? Tony Amendolore of ElectroKraft has a new MIDI controller creation he calls the Lunar Module: Multiple photocell “portholes” light up blue for feedback; use as a Theremin-like […]