Jet Daisuke Hearts Korg: nanoKEY on Shinkansen, microKORG XL Adoration

Many in the CDM community miss the days when big-name gear inspired real love. Peer into the studios of even the most dedicated DIY software and hardware maker, and you’ll still see products from big manufacturers. And, much as some may unfairly deride newcomers, the lifeblood of electronic music is the person who opens a […]

Livid Cell DNA: Simple, Networkable, Multi-Headed VJ App, And Spiritual Successor to Grid?

This is quite a week for visualist software – the release of Resolume 3, the 1.1 update to GrandVJ, and now an announcement regard Livid’s lightweight VJ app, Cell DNA. At US$149, it’s a neat little no-nonsense app — there’s even a lighter Cell Standard. What strikes me about the interface is that it’s reminiscent […]

Reminder: Noise Toy Making, Alternative Music Software Playing Tonight in Brooklyn!

Make me! Once a month, CDM goes from its virtual state to a sort of augmented reality existence in Brooklyn. (In Williamsburg, no less, which has itself been augmenting itself into neighborhoods formerly known as Bushwick.) Tonight is one of those times. If you’re in Brooklyn, you should come enter our physical dimensions so you […]

Wacky Wall Walker: Climbing Wall + Interactive Projection Mapping

Aside from cool aesthetic effects, projection mapping (mapping projection precisely onto real-world objects) and augmented reality (what you get when you add digital projections to your reality) can be useful. So, while we’ve already seen plenty of projections on walls and floors, this is a projection on a climbing wall. It might seem silly, but […]

ArKaos GrandVJ 1.1: Proper Alpha, Crossfader Support, Smart Input, Painted Black

Just as VDMX and Resolume have been treated to ground-up rewrites, so, too, has a name in VJ apps that has endured since the early days of computer VJing: ArKaos. GrandVJ is a completely new program, though it does maintain ArKaos’ signature feature – a music keyboard along the bottom of the screen. Now, I’ve […]

Pocket Jam: GorF DIY Sequencer + Renoise + Game Boys + Max + Live + Arduinome

What happens when you put all the digital and electronic tools you love together into one groove session? I expect it probably looks something like this video. Welcome to the new digital music age: DIY electronics, vintage digital tech (Game Boys), and modern computer tech (Monome as Arduinome clone, Max/MSP, and shiny MacBook) all coexist. […]

Exclusive: Inside Resolume's New, GPU-Powered, Live Visual-Ready DXV Codec

Multi-display visual installation by The Pixel Addicts for the London club space Matter. Part of the big idea behind Resolume Avenue 3 is putting audio and video in the same real-time performance app, without sacrificing quality or live processing in either. One key ingredient, hope the developers, is a new codec that transfers video decoding […]

Exclusive: Inside Resolume’s New, GPU-Powered, Live Visual-Ready DXV Codec

Multi-display visual installation by The Pixel Addicts for the London club space Matter. Part of the big idea behind Resolume Avenue 3 is putting audio and video in the same real-time performance app, without sacrificing quality or live processing in either. One key ingredient, hope the developers, is a new codec that transfers video decoding […]

Be a Music Geek Ninja with Electronic Music Programming in Pd: New Book

Okay, it looks a little scary, but just think of that as an added way of convincing your friends you’re a total badass. You may have heard about Pure Data (Pd), the open-source cousin to Max/MSP and a powerful tool for visual programming or “patching” music and multimedia. Pd has even appeared in the iPhone […]

Beat Blender: Actual Osterizer DJs with Real Fruit, Max, Ableton Live

Beat Blender Prototype from Matti Niinimäki on Vimeo. Sure, Wacom may be trying to get into the DJ market, but watch out for Hamilton Beach. This is a real flea market blender controlling Ableton Live beats with the aid of an Arduino and RFID-tagged fruits. Sadly, you can’t actually blend things (that might do nasty […]