Music & Music Production Related Periodicals

• Guitar World contest page. Be sure to read the contest rules and regulations as not all of their contests are open to those in Canada and they don’t list ‘country’ in the entry forms.
• SOUND ON SOUND competitions
• Modern Drummer Magazine Contests
• DRUM! Magazine “Drumming for Fanatics”Givaways

Music Stores

• Tom Lee Music has stores in greater Vancouver and Vancouver Island and offers a gift card prize every season. They also have a contest for selected Live Nation concert tickets for Vancouver, BC and conduct a “Free Stuff Fridays” promotion for those who ‘like’ Tom Lee Music Canada on Facebook.

Guitar Brands and Manufacturers

• Fender Guitars Canada Promotions and Giveaways page

Possibly Related Posts:

• Canadian Acoustic Guitar Showcase at Tom Lee Music, Vancouver, until Feb. 28, 2010
• Ready Rabbit, Maching Mind, and The Synapse Fire at the Princeton Pub, Sat., Feb 6, 2010
• Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, Movement II Allegretto
• Album Review: Kyle Bobby Dunn – A Young Person’s Guide To
• MarcusBarnes: Another Awes…'>RT @MarcusBarnes: Another Awes…

Britt Paul Cloud Shadows – Track Listing with Descriptions

1. Solstice – Peaceful summer night sounds mixed with percussion
2. Lava Pillow – Blistering hot synthesizer and shakers
3. Water of Life – Bubbling brook and spaced out electric guitar
4. Train Trip – Acoustic guitar played as a percussion instrument
5. Ice Trees – Crackling ice coated trees, huge drum and Chinese gong
6. Shiny and New – Acoustic guitar next to a peaceful stream
7. Peace, Hope, and Joy – Hiking through the woods with piano interludes
8. Canyon – Light rain and flute, floating across the valley

Possibly Related Posts:

• Steve Roach – The Dream Circle
• Album Review: Kyle Bobby Dunn – A Young Person’s Guide To
• High Contrast – “The Agony & The Ecstasy”
• Ludwig van Beethoven’s 9th Symphony Stretched to 24 Hours
• Beautiful ‘Quiet Night’ jazz a…

QUESTION: What is your all-time favorite High Contrast track and why? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.

High Contrast Elsewhere on the Web

• High Contrast on Facebook
• High Contrast on Twitter
• High Contrast on MySpace
• High Contrast’s homepage
• High Contrast’s artist page on Hospital Records
• High Contrast on iTunes
• High Contrast on Discogs

Possibly Related Posts:

• How to Listen to Premier DnB & Jungle Beats from Toronto: The Prophecy on CUIT 89.5 FM
• Free Download of Cloud Shadows by Britt Paul
• Album Review: Kyle Bobby Dunn – A Young Person’s Guide To
• Beautiful ‘Quiet Night’ jazz a…
• Artist Highlight: Bop http://b…

This album is extremely calming – I write this as I’m about to get ready for bed. I’ve purchased several of Steve Roach’s albums over the years – possibly more than any other artist or group (with the possible exception of my Pink Floyd music collection). You can purchase Steve Roach’s albums on iTunes, Amazon, but the best place of all is directly from Steve Roach’s online store.

Have wonderful, peaceful dreams!

Possibly Related Posts:

• Free Download of Cloud Shadows by Britt Paul
• Artist Highlight: Bop
• Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, Movement II Allegretto
• Ludwig van Beethoven’s 9th Symphony Stretched to 24 Hours
• Album Review: Kyle Bobby Dunn – A Young Person’s Guide To

“An Evening with Dusty” will be featured on an upcoming two disc set Bring Me The Head Of by Dunn on Low Point.

Given how interesting I found Dunn’s earlier two disc release A Young Person’s Guide To, I look forward to listening Bring Me The Head Of in full.

Related Links

• Kyle Bobby Dunn on Facebook.
• Klye Bobby Dunn on MySpace
• Low Point Records on Facebook

Possibly Related Posts:

• Album Review: Kyle Bobby Dunn – A Young Person’s Guide To
• Favorite (Goa Trance Track): “Mai Mai” by Jaia (Jaïa)

Jane’s Addiction has been around since the mid 1980′s and it’s great to see the group release a new song that is way better than many of the songs played on the radio these days.¹ It’s really quite rare for me to hear a contemporary song that I want to play again and again. This is a nice compliment for the band. Great work & thank you for sharing your art.

Jane’s Addiction Elsewhere on the Web:

• Official Website
• Wikipedia Article

QUESTION: What’s your favourite Jane’s Addiction song or track and why? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.

References:

1. Jane’s Addiction http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane%27s_Addiction

Possibly Related Posts:

• Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, Movement II Allegretto
• How to Listen to Premier DnB & Jungle Beats from Toronto: The Prophecy on CUIT 89.5 FM
• Nate Harrison on the “Amen Break” – the foundation of jungle/drum&bass
• Turn Your KORG MS2000 into a Drum Machine with Bass Line and Lead
• Psytrance Internet Radio Stations

It’s notable that Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, II (allegretto) was featured in the climax of the film The King’s Speech, which won four Academy Awards, including the award for Best Picture. You can start learning more about Beethoven and his seventh symphony on Wikipedia.

QUESTION: What is your favourite composition by Beethoven and why? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Ludwig van Beethoven’s 9th Symphony Stretched to 24 Hours
• Experiments in Musical Intelligence: David Cope’s Emily Howell
• Artist Highlight: Bop
• Artist Highlight: Tim Schuldt (Hard Guitar Psytrance)
• The Best Music Listening Emoticon?

You can listen to 9 Beet Stretch 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on Raudio Special :: 9 Beet Stretch or using the RAUDIO IIIII iPhone Application.

You can find out more about 9 Beet Stretch and Leif Inge by visiting the project website.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, Movement II Allegretto
• Album Review: Kyle Bobby Dunn – A Young Person’s Guide To
• Free Download of Cloud Shadows by Britt Paul
• Artist Highlight: Bop
• How to Listen to Premier DnB & Jungle Beats from Toronto: The Prophecy on CUIT 89.5 FM

“Most music chooses its own position in terms of your listening to it. Muzak wants to be back there. Punk wants to be up front. Classical wants to be another place. I wanted to make something you could slip in and out of. You could pay attention or you could choose not to be distracted by it if you wanted to do something while it was on. I can’t read with a pop record playing, or with most classical records. They’re not intended to leave that part of the mind free – my mind, anyway. Ambient music allows many different types of attention.” ~ Brian Eno (Trouser Press interview, 1982)

Low Point (Catalog Number: LP033)
Format: Two CD set, packaged in a full colour folding card wallet
Release Date: 18th January 2010
Available for Purchase from: http://www.low-point.com/LP033.html

Track Listing:

Disc 1:

1. Butel
2. The Tributary (For Voices Lost)
3. There Is No End To Your Beauty
4. Promenade
5. Small Show of Hands

Disc 2:

1. Grab (And Its Lost Legacies)
2. Empty Gazing
3. Last Minute Jest
4. The Second Ponderosa
5. Bonaventure’s Finest Hour
6. Sets of Four (Its Meaning Is Deeper Than Its Title Implies)
7. The Nightjar

Album Preview

When I was asked to review A Young Person’s Guide To by New York-based Kyle Bobby Dunn, I did not know what to expect, as I was completely unfamiliar with Dunn’s musical work. Several other reviewers liken this album to the music of Stars Of The Lid. I encourage readers to check out the album web page on the Low Point website for links to these other reviews. Here, I will refrain from making artist comparisons other than mentioning the following story.

While studying the album for this review, a musically inclined friend heard the music and asked if I was familiar with of Leif Inge’s 9BeetStretch – a music project where Ludwig van Beethoven’s 9th Symphony was stretched to 24 hours with no pitch distortions. I find 9BeetStretch to be amazingly beautiful and powerful – retaining the emotion and passion of Beethoven’s symphony. In other words, the “wow” I experience from Beethoven’s compositions. According to the album description on the Low Point website, Dunn in fact drafted classically trained musicians while creating the soundscape palette for the album, which includes guitar, strings, and brass.

One measure in my mind of quality soundscape and ambient music is how it combines with the natural sounds present in one’s listening environment. With certain tracks on the album, it was very interesting how the music combined seamlessly with nearby construction noise. I actually turned the music off at points while listening to certain tracks to confirm that Dunn had not carefully and artfully added the construction noises into the compositions!

The last track on the album is the only one I have mixed feelings about. Dunn has done some interesting work on the low end with the bass, but I do not know what to make of the vocal samples that close the album. They confuse me and put me in a state of slight anxiety. I’m not sure if this was the intended effect – thoughts from the artist on this point in the comments section of this post would be very welcome.

Overall, I’m impressed by A Young Person’s Guide To – it is extremely beautiful and I found myself thinking “WOW!” at several points, just like when I listen to Beethoven’s symphonies or 9BeetStretch. I will be keeping my ears open in anticipation for Dunn’s future soundscape releases.

A Young Person’s Guide To by Kyle Bobby Dunn will make a worthwhile addition to your ambient music collection or as a gift for the ambient music aficionado in your life. You can purchase the album from the Low Point website. On iTunes, you can find some of Dunn’s other releases.

QUESTION: What is your favourite track on A Young Person’s Guide To by Kyle Bobby Dunn and why? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Free Download of Cloud Shadows by Britt Paul
• Ambient Music: An Evening With Dusty by Kyle Bobby Dunn
• Beautiful ‘Quiet Night’ jazz a…
• Artist Highlight: Bop http://b…
• Artist Highlight: Bop

Possibly Related Posts:

• Artist Highlight: Bop http://b…
• nytimesarts: Herb Ellis, J…'>RT @nytimesarts: Herb Ellis, J…
• timoreilly: Postal workers…'>RT @timoreilly: Postal workers…
• Experiments in Musical Intelli…
• Music Sweepstake and Contest Links