Hopefully by now you have a version of the award winning SONAR X1 running on your machine, because A&M/Octone recording artist K’NAAN wants to hear from you; musically. With this exclusive opportunity through Cakewalk, Roland, Indaba Music and A&M/Octone, you can sign up for this contest and download the actual stems to craft your own work of art. If that work of art is chosen by K’Naan and his label, it will result in a nice chunk of cash or a Cakewalk/Roland gear package for you. Continue reading “Remix K'Naan's New Single to Win $1000 and SONAR X1 Production Suite”
Cakewalk Artists on Both PC and Mac Are Off to an Enormous 2012
Cakewalk Artists on Both PC and Mac are off to an Enormous 2012
We are well on our way into 2012 and many artists relying on various Cakewalk products are off to an enormous year. I’ve been fortunate enough to have spent some time with most of these artists recently, and even more fortunate to have worked with a few in some creative capacities using SONAR X1 in the recent past. There are some common threads that these artists share, but I think the most important element is that they are all working ridiculously hard in their own circles.
[Toronto, ONT, Canada] Murray Daigle is a very talented Canadian Producer/Mixer/Songwriter out of Toronto Canada. He just relocated to a new space in Toronto and opened a new studio running SONAR X1 Expanded. A big “congratulations” goes out to him on a “Certified Gold” record for Neverest’s track “About Us” along with a SOCAN #1 Award (co-written and mixed on Cakewalk Sonar X1.) Murray also produced and co-wrote other tracks on the Neverest release which came out in January and is already working on material for another release later this year. Continue reading “Cakewalk Artists on Both PC and Mac Are Off to an Enormous 2012”
Comic Book Heroes Set to Take Off in 2010
2010 is shaping up to be another huge year for the band Comic Book Heroes. In just the first two months alone, their music and visuals will be part of the soundtrack to the NASCAR 2010 Season as well as the Winter X-Games. They will also be included on the Warped Tour-sponsored “Wonka Music Factory” portal on MySpace.
Later this year they’ll resume touring the country, playing festivals, amusement parks and other major venues, and in between they’ll head into the studio to work on a new album.
They’ll also be graduating high school.
Yes, CBH as they’re known to their fans, are just teenagers, four lads from Wyomissing, PA. But they’ve already had a career many bands — with members twice their age — would envy. And by all accounts, they’re just getting started.
The guitar-driven rock quartet is manned by Steve Kowalski (bass, vocals), Collin MacGregor (drums), Ned Goldman (vocals, guitar), and Steve (Koz) Kosciusko (guitar, vocals). All are friends for years and come from musical families. They bonded over a love of music and formed the band when they were the ripe old age of 11, and have been steadily leaving their impression on the music business ever since. Now at 17 and 18 years old, the band members stand poised on the threshold of adulthood, with a career that belies their ages, and a host of impressive accomplishments under their belts including:
• Their single “Catch Me If You Can” became a Top 15 single on Radio Disney and entered heavy rotation on AOL Pop Radio (with 2 million listeners weekly)
• “Catch Me If You Can” was also downloaded over 160,000 times on iTunes as one of its “Discovery Downloads”
• Being featured in video performance on the Nickelodeon channel Noggin’s hit show ‘Jack’s Big Music Show.’
• Placing #1 for Best Rock Song on OurStage.com’s monthly fan poll voting (OurStage.com is the largest independent music Web site on the Internet, carrying the work of more than 80,000 independent musicians)
• Scoring a major endorsement by legendary guitar manufacturer Gibson, which featured the band on its blogs and websites, and continues supporting the band today
• Selection as a finalist for Taco Bell’s latest edition of its “Feed the Beat” promotion , which provides free food and marketing support to America’s up-and-coming rock acts
• Playing high profile gigs nationwide, including the America Music Awards official afterparty, Radio Disney concerts, and festivals including SXSW, CMJ, and the Warped Tour
• Sharing the stage with world renowned acts including REO Speedwagon, Steppenwolf, Smashmouth, and countless others
Continue reading “Comic Book Heroes Set to Take Off in 2010”
Have Gig Bag, Will Travel or Where in the World is Carmen Rizzo?
Carmen Rizzo checks his cell phone one last time as he boards the plane at LAX. This is the first of several flights that will take him half way around the world over the next 24 hours – from Los Angeles to Perm, Russia . He’s got a text message from the people he’ll be performing with in Perm; they want him to come back in 10 days for another show, and they need his commitment immediately. He’s taken slightly aback – he’s not exactly sure what he’ll be doing onstage when he arrives this time – but he agrees to make the return trip, figuring that as long as he has the right assemblage of tools, he’ll be able to handle whatever situation is thrown at him.
This is typical for a road warrior like Rizzo. The Los Angeles-based producer, DJ, record label owner, and radio show host is a rapidly-rising global brand, sought after for his wide range of skills that have earned him two GRAMMY nominations. He’s worked with the likes of Seal, Coldplay, Paul Oakenfold, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Alanis Morissette. He’s a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS). He also DJs a radio set heard by 14 million listeners each month on the highly influential KEXP 90.3 FM in Seattle. With so many irons in the fire, he’s become extraordinarily flexible, yet fastidious in his preparation, maintaining a strict work ethic that sees him keeping regular hours in his home studio during the week and, whenever possible, not working weekends to spend time with his children. But this last-minute request is not unusual for Rizzo. He’ll just roll with it.
Continue reading “Have Gig Bag, Will Travel or Where in the World is Carmen Rizzo?”
Stokes Audio Mixes Soundtrack for 'Why We Laugh'
Owner and Senior Engineer of Stokes Audio Recording & Post, Joe Stokes, is credited for his work in post-production and video editing for radio, gaming, TV and film. With SONAR and the V-Studio 700 sitting at the helm of his studio, Stokes mixed the soundtrack for his latest project, a documentary entitled ‘Why We Laugh’ for Showtime, the television network. Initially, Stokes mixed the film for launch at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival but remixed it for television airing. Earlier this year, we caught up with Joe in Tarzana, CA while he was working on the project in studio with the V-Studio 700. Click here to see our video!
Why We Laugh (produced by Robert Townsend and Quincy Newell) examines the history of African-American comedy featuring some of the most influential comics of all time – Bill Cosby, Chris Rock, Eddie Griffin and Keenan Ivory Wayans. The film is airing on Showtime 2 and will be available On Demand, throughout the month of February.
'Going Back to Memphis' with the V-Studio 700
Engineers James Lott and Matt Ross-Spang at the legendary Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee move away from ‘point and click’ with the V-Studio 700. The pair use the V-Studio 700 in their main production room to mix an original tune, ‘Get Back to Memphis’.
Artist Impression: Sun Studio on the V-Studio 700
Uploaded by CakewalkInc. – Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.
NAMM 2010: Creative Tools for Independent Minds
Jet-lagged and exhausted, the Cakewalk crew is slowly recovering from a monumental Thursday through Saturday at the NAMM Show. The weather was beautiful, the show floor was packed and the Cakewalk booth was the place to be.
Each year, the National Association of Music Merchants hosts an industry-wide tradeshow at the colossal Anaheim Convention Center. If you’ve never been to the NAMM Show, it’s a musician’s paradise, with thousands of exhibitors, live product demos, impromptu jam sessions, and celebrity sightings galore.
The theme for our booth was ‘Creative Tools for Independent Minds.’ As our product line continues to grow from recording software to complete studio solutions, we encourage musicians on every level to take production into their own hands and have fun making music.
Cakewalk Artist Relations Manager, Jimmy Landry put together an all-star roster of artists who appeared and performed in our booth while demonstrating how they use our products on the road and in the studio.
One of Rolling Stone’s Top 5 Up & Coming Female Artists, Cori Yarckin, acoustically performed her hit single, Everything You Said, and recorded a vocal track in SONAR with the V-Studio 100. Cakewalk’s Brandon Ryan showed the audience how to use the VX-64 Vocal Strip to process her vocals as well as the Matrix view to creatively remix her track.
Continue reading “NAMM 2010: Creative Tools for Independent Minds”
Cakewalk Pro User Spotlight: Hollywood Undead
Fresh off a sold-out tour in Europe, Hollywood Undead (A&M / Octone Records) is tearing up the music scene with their latest album, ‘Desperate Measures’. Charlie Scene, Da Kurlzz, Deuce, Funny Man, J-Dog and Johnny 3 Tears started performing in 2005. Their first album, Swan Songs, hit #22 on the Billboard 200 in it’s first week, selling 21,000 copies. Their songs can be heard in today’s hottest video games including Madden NFL 09, UFC 2009; Undisputed, Rock Band 2 and Velvet Assasin.
Cakewalk’s Jimmy Landry met up with group in Sacramento, California to talk about recording on the road with the V-Studio 100.
Artist Appearances at NAMM 2010
Visit with Cakewalk at The NAMM Show 2010 from January 14 through January 17 in Anaheim, California! Stop by our new booth location (Hall A, #6700) to see live demonstrations on SONAR 8.5, the V-Studio 100 and the V-Studio 700. Be sure to grab an official Cakewalk Passport then take a short tour of our booth, to win a free t-shirt and be eligible to win a V-Studio 100!
Also, Cakewalk will be hosting a series of special artist presentations and performances throughout the show. Our confirmed artist appearances (dates and times) are as follows:
Thursday, Jan. 14, 2010
2:00-2:45 Justin Lassen
4:00-4:45 Javier Colon
Friday, Jan. 15, 2010
11:00-11:45 Steven Slate
1:00-1:45 Cori Yarckin
3:00-3:45 Casey McPherson of Alpha Rev
4:00-4:45 Norman Matthew
5:00-5:45 Justin Lassen
Saturday, Jan. 16, 2010
11:00-11:45 Norman Matthew
12:00-12:45 Steven Slate
1:05-1:45 The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
2:00-2:45 Shifty and the Big Shots
3:00-3:45 Cori Yarckin
4:00-4:45 Javier Colon
Visit our Special Event page for more information: http://www.cakewalk.com/events/namm2010/
Cakewalk Pro User Spotlight: Comic Book Heroes
After starting a band at 11 years old, five years ago, and with hundreds of shows from coast to coast under their belts, Comic Book Heroes is finding national success on their own terms.
This hard working suburban rock band’s recent successes include: “Catch Me If You Can” their Top 15 single on Radio Disney and an iTunes Discovery Download (earning 161,500 downloads), selection for Taco Bell’s Feed The Beat tour (2010), featured music & videos for ESPN / NASCAR Season (2010), top ranking artist on Radio Disney for “Next Big Thing” (2008 / 2009), “Catch Me If You Can” in heavy rotation on AOL Pop Radio (2M weekly listeners), a music video in rotation on the Disney XD channel, and additionally a featured music video on FUSE TV.
Visit Comic Book Heroes MySpace page to their music!