It was 20 years ago today – Shazam, now an Apple subsidiary, first launched and changed how the world identifies tunes. Here’s a look back, including some obscure history.

Video killed the radio star, then reality TV killed MTV, then social media killed the Internet. Well, it’s back, all of it. Sort of. The Game Boy Advance will save us. And that brings us back to some retro Asheville chillwave from the more innocent age of 2012.

Starting with a cut titled “Birth,” find yourself in lo-fi, acid-washed hallucinations and a bath of music. It’s a lo-fi, vapor-y, glitch-y sort of womb – but where better to feel at home? Detroit Underground does it again.

Soundtoys VST3 public beta is here, for both macOS and Windows but crucially with Apple Silicon VST3 support on the Mac. And since I use their stuff an embarrassing amount of the time, let’s round up some tips.

It’s still some of the most fun you can get with patching on a budget – KORG’s volca modular. But if you need some new ideas, Audio Wanderer has some cute ones.

One of the most creative modular and software makers at the moment, Noise Engineering has two very desirable-looking modules hitting today. And there’s a new “platform” concept behind them, too – one that might help you keep your modules fresh.

What’s new in analog synths? Melbourne Instruments has one answer – a luscious vintage-inspired poly that adds path recall and automation. That’s motorized automation. And now they’re accepting pre-orders.

You’ve almost certainly already seen a torrent of high-quality text-to-image generation pics lately. Now one of the most impressive generative tools has published code and opened up to academic researchers. It’s called Stable Diffusion – and you’ll probably be hearing a lot more soon.

Liz Clark over at Adafruit has a great DIY project. It’s compact. It’s beginner-friendly. It teaches you some simple embedded Python with Circuit Python. It’s… a skull.

ALM / Busy Circuits out of the UK has some tasty-looking new modular gear, including a very friendly little sequencer. You’ll find dual filters and stereo multi-effects added to their range, as well.