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Amazon snags exclusive Jack White documentary and EP
Amazon will soon be the home for some exclusive Jack White content, the company announced on Tuesday. The musician will release a documentary on Prime Video that centers on his concert at The Anthem in Washington, DC -- part of his Boarding House Reach tour -- as well as White's time spent exploring the nation's capital. Additionally, Amazon will release an EP featuring six live recordings from the concert through Amazon Music. It includes four songs from White's most recent album along with the title tracks from Blunderbuss and The White Stripes' Icky Thump.
Stream Lollapalooza sets live on Red Bull TV this weekend
It's that time of year again, when big names from across the music world come together in Chicago for four days of festivities at Lollapalooza. If you won't be in the Windy City this weekend yet still want to check out some of the performances, Red Bull TV has you covered. Starting Thursday at 7PM ET, you can watch sets from the likes of headliners The Weeknd, Jack White and Arctic Monkeys. Other artists on the streaming docket include Chvrches, Catfish and the Bottlemen, LL Cool J, Khalid, Vampire Weekend and Tyler, The Creator.
Watch this weekend's Governors Ball music festival live on Twitter
Festival season is officially upon us. But if you'd rather not stand in the sun for hours to hear any of this weekend's Governors Ball performances from New York, Twitter's got you covered. The microblogging service will be live-streaming the concert all weekend long, with performances from Sylvan Esso, Jack White (above), Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Post Malone, Eminem, CHVRCHES and others among the scheduled acts. Note that the stream schedule embedded below is through AT&T, and is split among two different channels.
Ascape Audio and the economics of making headphones in America
Ascape Audio's home page proudly proclaims "Designed in Detroit," but at this point it's not helping business. "It hasn't made any goddamn impact," marketing director Dean Clancy said. "I want to put that in as many places as possible, because regardless of how it impacts our sales, I just want people to know we're doing it here," he said. "Designed in Detroit" they may be, but economics makes manufacturing Ascape's earbuds in the Motor City impossible. President Paul Schrems estimated it'd take at least $5 million to build a factory and staff it, so the company has offshore-manufacturing contracts for the wireless earbuds it designs in the D. "These things I wanna make are not made here," Schrems told me recently.
Jack White is the latest musician to ban phones at shows
We hope you weren't planning to document your next Jack White gig as it happens. White is following the lead of Alicia Keys, Dave Chappelle and other performers by banning the use of phones during his next US tour, which starts in April. When you get to the venue, you'll have to put your phone and other camera-equipped devices in a Yondr pouch that stays locked until the end of the show. You can unlock your phone if there's a call you need to make, but you'll have to go to a designated zone in the concourse or lobby first.
Jack White's label played a vinyl record at 94,000 feet
Jack White's Third Man Records label is no stranger to using technological feats to draw publicity, but its latest feat is something truly special. The company recently teamed up with Students and Teachers in Near Space to become the first to play a vinyl record, the Carl Sagan-sampling "A Glorious Dawn," at the edge of space -- to be exact, in the stratosphere at 94,413 feet. As you might gather from the video (skip to 1:21:20 to see the maximum ascent), it involved a lot more than strapping a turntable to a high-altitude balloon. Key designer Kevin Carrico explains that there were quite a few technical considerations needed to keep the record spinning for as long as possible on its journey.
Curtain lifts on first 'Rock Band 4' songs
Not to be outdone by Guitar Hero Live, the folks over in the Rock Band 4 camp unveiled the first handful of tracks for this fall's face-melting simulator. And they're pretty diverse! As noted on IGN, the half-dozen ranges from Avenged Sevenfold to The Who. Developer Harmonix is debuting gameplay on Twitch with the IGN folks as well. Sadly there's no word of Deftones, High on Fire, Katy Perry, Mastodon, or Taylor Swift yet, but we still have a long ways before this new tour kicks off. There's that whole song request form in case there are any dream songs you'd want included, too. Prep your air guitar and jump past the break for the full list.
Jack White's Third Man Records now has its own synth and amp
Jack White has been know to go all out for Record Store Day events with his Third Man Records imprint. This year, in addition to transferring Elvis' first recording from acetate to vinyl for release last weekend, White and his label revealed a synthesizer/amplifier combo that offers some stellar retro aesthetics. The pair, which includes the Septavox synth and Terz amp, was designed and built by Brooklyn instrument company Critter & Guitari. If the synthesizer looks familiar, the same outfit also makes a more compact Pocket Piano instrument. For the Third Man version, though, a metal enclosure houses 41 maple keys alongside seven modes and seven tones. That adds up to 49 different sounds, combining electric organ, vibrato and more. There are controls for tweaking parameters, tuning and volume alongside MIDI input/output, too.
Jack White brings VR performances to Google Cardboard
After a world record, an elaborate vinyl release and two box sets of classics from the Paramount vault, Jack White is trying his hand at VR. White's Third Man Records teamed up with Jaunt to create immersive versions of a few recent performances with the Third-D app. The software pairs with the just-updated Google Cardboard for 360-degree 3D live videos of "Freedom at 21" and "Ball and Biscuit" from The Bleacher Theater at Fenway Park as well as "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground" from Red Rocks Amphitheatre. And there's Dolby Atmos audio thrown in for good measure. If you'll recall, Jaunt has been focused on delivering "cinematic VR footage" to both Cardboard and Oculus Rift for months, including live looks at Paul McCartney and more. Don't have Cardboard yet? If you're not looking to make your own, you can grab one from the likes of DODOcase and others for around $20-$25. The app itself is free though, and it's available now over at Google Play.
Jack White's 'Lazaretto' Ultra LP is the best-selling vinyl release in 20 years
Since its release in early June, Jack White's Lazaretto Ultra LP has sold 238,000 copies -- making it the most popular vinyl release of the year. That tally also earns the artist's second solo album the best-selling record of any year since Pearl Jam's 1994 effort Vitalogy. Billboard also reports that number two on the vinyl sales chart for 2014 is Arctic Monkeys' AM with 29,000 units sold and Daft Punk's popular Random Access Memories sold the most in 2013 with 49,000. Of course, Mr. White adds this accolade to a trophy case that includes a Guinness World Record for the fastest release awarded back in April. [Photo credit: Gaelle Beri/Redferns via Getty Images]
Jack White's Lazaretto 'Ultra LP' is a marvel of vinyl engineering
Setting a Guinness World Record after tracking and releasing a 7-inch vinyl in under four hours last month wasn't enough. Now, Jack White and Third Man Records have revealed plans for the Lazaretto Ultra LP ahead of its June 10th release. We'll provide the full list of details after the break, but here's a quick rundown of the highlights. First, there are two vinyl-only hidden tracks that are tucked underneath the labels on each side. What's more, one of those tracks plays at 78 RPM and the other at 45 RPM, making this 180-gram vinyl release a three-speed record. If you're familiar with White's project The Dead Weather, you know he's embraced the under label groove before.
It took Jack White less than four hours to track and release a record this weekend
How does Jack White celebrate Record Store Day? By setting a Guinness World Record for the fastest release, of course! White recorded, pressed and released a 7-inch 45 at his label's shop in three hours and fifty-five minutes, besting the previous mark that hit shelves the day after tracking. Two songs including "Lazaretto" -- the title track off the upcoming LP -- and a B-side cover of Elvis' "Power of My Love" were captured live from the Blue Room at Third Man Records in Nashville for the release. While the production was going down, White went on to perform an hour-long set for those who turned out to observe the feat. The full-length Lazaretto releases on June 10th, but for now, you can relive this weekend's events after the break. [Image: Jamie Goodsell]
Griffin and Third Man Records team up to add vinyl to your iPhone case
In the market for a new case for that iPhone 4S? A fan of all things Jack White? If so, Griffin and Third Man records have teamed up to put a vinyl spin on your next Apple-friendly smartphone case. The pair has introduced a set of accessories that make use of a legit 7-inch record die-cut to protect the back of your mobile device, blending analog and digital without making a sound. Each case is comprised of a two-part frame that wraps those precious edges -- with openings for controls and jacks, of course -- and a piece of genuine vinyl, pressed right in Nashville. You'll have your choice of three color variants that come with a Third Man-branded vinyl. If that's not enough, you can spring for a set of three inserts, one from each of Mr. White's musical projects. Protip: If you happen to opt for the extras and snag The Racounteur's insert, this collaboration marks the first pressing of "Steady, As She Goes." Each case is $30 and the set of extra inserts will set you back another Jackson. If you want a closer look before parting with fifty bucks, hit the gallery below. %Gallery-141740%
'3 Dreams of Black' is the trippiest WebGL interactive music video you've seen all day
Perhaps you had your fill of WebGL yesterday after playing Angry Birds from dawn till dusk, but there was an even more graphically intensive Chrome browser experience unveiled at Google I/O this week: "3 Dreams of Black" by Rome. Simply put, it's an music video that runs in your browser window, starring the talents of Danger Mouse, Daniele Luppi and Norah Jones, but instead of watching Norah serenade you from a stage or set, you're thrust into dreamlike, interactive 3D worlds. It's a fantastic tech demo for WebGL and the games it might inspire... and it's also something you'll want to experience for yourself. Find it (and the copy of Chrome Canary you may need for it to run well) at the source link below.
Mii Spotlight: Musician edition
Another week has passed, so it must be time for Wii Fanboy's Mii Spotlight! Last week, after Eric showed off how good it was to be a gangsta, we sent out a request for musician Miis, and we got a few that we're excited about showing off. If you haven't yet seen your Mii here, be patient -- we're saving some of the submissions for later editions. If your Mii is creative, well-made, and interesting, don't despair. You'll probably see it here eventually! It just takes time to get enough that are thematically linked.But we also need to make something very clear: the Miis you send us need to be your own, or you need to credit the original maker if you're sending photos of other people's work. We've had some complaints that not all of the Miis we've featured were actually made by the person claiming credit. It's one thing to see a Mii somewhere and make your own based on that, and another thing altogether to take someone's photos and send them in as your own. We can't check everything, and there's no real way to verify, so we ask you simply to be honest, and please remember to be respectful of people who put their spare time into creating Miis for your enjoyment. But enough with the lectures -- let's see some Miis!
