Thursday, June 28, 2012

The Arturia/Moog Partnership ends; Does this mean Moog Plugins are on the way?

While Arturia releases the MiniMoog Original for free, the two companies seem to part ways


The Arturia MiniMoog Original


Last week, Arturia released a free version of their legendary MiniMoog plugin on Facebook and through their site.  I've been thoroughly enjoying it, but it begs the question: why release one of your products in its almost complete form for free?  The 'occasion' for this seems to have been World Music Day, but also the ending of a partnership between Moog and Arturia.  Arturia has said that they will release the same plugin in the future but with a changed name, which likely means that Moog didn't want to keep their partnership going.  Why not?

File this under "pure speculation", but my guess is that Moog is not far away from their own digital plugins of their popular synths.  The Animoog and Filtatron have been hits on the iPad and iPhone, so they obviously have an incentive to take it further.  They have the programming abilities in house to take care of programming sound apps, and they've released a plugin controller (no sound, however) for the Little Phatty so it can be used easily with a DAW.  The user interfaces of the Moog apps are outstanding, which is a huge selling point.  There's also a market of musicians who want authentic, "from Moog" sound, but don't have the pocket change to buy a MiniTaur or Slim Phatty.  Furthermore, Arturia has stepped into Moog's territory by creating the MiniBrute, which no doubt is in direct competition with at least three of Moog's synths.  The last big factor is that Moog is a synth company whose hardware isn't cheap, but they can easily hit a whole new spectrum of buyers in the sub-$200 range with software.

I know that seems vague, but I would put money on a Moog plugin for your Mac or PC coming down the pipeline-- perhaps very close to the MiniMoog in terms of style.  Maybe we'll even see some digital versions of the massive collection of MoogerFoogers that exist (because I can't quite see myself dropping $700 on a delay pedal any time soon).  What would you like to see from Moog in terms of plugins?

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

New Moogerfooger Delay is just around the corner...


A couple days ago, Moog Music put up a new YouTube video showing off a mysterious new Moogerfooger.  Fortunately, it's not hard to figure out what they're hinting at; the riddle in the video seems to be quoted from Tolkien, to which the answer is "Time".  A new Moogerfooger based on time?  Well, if you recall, Moog stopped production on the old delay MF not long ago, which is usually a sign that a newer, better version is coming down the pipeline.  It seems to be more fully featured-- somewhere on the net I've heard there's a leaked magazine insert that shows off this MF has MIDI capabilities.  Looks pretty exciting!

Monday, June 18, 2012

Arturia to release free-for-1-day-only MiniMoog Original Plugin


Arturia, who's quickly becoming one of my new favorite companies, is releasing a free plugin this Thursday, June 21st for World Music Day.  The MiniMoog plugin is not identical to their normal plugin, but a slightly stripped down version designed to work just like the original MiniMoog.  If you're any fan of plugins, you know that the Arturia emulations are outstanding, and some of the best in terms of recreating those vintage warm tones.  The MiniMoog is a great emulation of the original, so I absolutely wouldn't miss this chance to get your hands on such a high quality product for free.  This will also be a nice distraction for those of you waiting for the new MiniBrute, which is supposedly just around the corner in terms of shipping.  For the time being, everyone can get a little Moog in their sounds without emptying their wallet.  Dr. Moog would be proud.  Don't forget though, this is a one day only offer, so make sure you don't miss it!

From the press release:

"Get Arturia Minimoog-V Original for free on June 21!




GRENOBLE, FRANCE: music software and hardware company Arturia announces the end of an agreement with Moog Music that will see its Moog Modular V and Minimoog V soft synths soon remerging as the updated and renamed Modular V and Mini-V, and is marking the occasion by giving away a one-off ‘commemorative’ edition of the Minimoog-V on World Music Day... 


 On June 21 only, musicians everywhere can download Minimoog-V Original from the Arturia website (http://www.arturia.com/minimoogv-original) — for free! Minimoog-V Original includes all the sounds (more than 1,000 presets created by talented artists and renowned sound designers) and features (32-voice polyphony, plus much more besides) from the latest Minimoog- V update (Version 2.5), but without the additional functionality accessible behind the ‘hinged’ front panel — just like the original Minimoog.

Minimoog by name. Minimoog by nature. It’s been several successful years since Arturia announced the release of its much-admired Minimoog-V soft synth — meticulously modelling the distinctive tones and analogue nuances of the legendary Seventies-vintage Minimoog Model D monosynth — in an agreement with Moog Music initiated by Bob Moog himself. Moog changed the musical world with the Minimoog and Arturia helped change the music software world with the Minimoog-V, so what better way to toast the passing of that productive partnership and end the arrangement between the two companies on a high note than with a generous giveaway on World Music Day?


Don’t miss out: go get Minimoog-V Original for free on June 21! Save the ‘download date’ in your calendar..."

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Jupiter's new record 'Juicy Lucy' is Fantastic


If you dig 80s style funk dance music, a new record by Jupiter was just released yesterday, called Juicy Lucy.  I first got word of this record through Electronic Rumors, and boy does it deliver.  Every track by the French duo is incredibly danceable and upbeat.  The most exciting part for me, however, is the fact that it's an entire album of these gems.  This isn't one track that you'll listen to for a couple weeks and get burn out; there's heavy rotation to be had here because there's such a good selection of sounds.  It's hard to pick highlights because so many tracks are spot on, but "Saké" above is pretty awesome, as well as "Oh I".  Head on over to iTunes to buy Juicy Lucy, or listen to the set of previews if you're not convinced yet.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

AIMES - Somewhere In Space We Hang Suspended



Here's a new AIMES track.  This guy has definitely progressed for me, and I'm digging these new sounds alot. There's a ton of euphoric happiness happening in this track, and it's totally relaxing.  AIMES has tapped nicely into the calming section of the brain with this jam.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Korg Microkorg: Chillin



So this guy makes his MicroKorg sound pretty awesome, and if you click this video and go to the actual YouTube Page, he shows you the patches.  Rad.

Friday, June 1, 2012

She's the Queen - Last Goodbye [Jeff Buckley Cover]



She's the Queen honor the great Jeff Buckley with an awesome cover of "Last Goodbye".  This is a super-charged synth-laden version of the original with great vocals and awesome crescendos.  Dig it.
And of course, RIP Jeff Buckley.

Shook - Love for You



Absolutely love this new track from Shook.  An absolutely funky slow jam, which seems to have dipped a bit into the "Something about Us" feel of Daft Punk.  But don't get me wrong, this song is totally its own, and it's awesome.  Perfect for the end of the night.  Awesome warm funk bass and solos - both of which seem to be Shook staples.