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Rock Band celebrates Facebook milestone with Stevie Wonder, Coldplay, Breaking Benjamin, and Dream Theater
In honor of the Rock Band Facebook page topping 2 million "Likes," Harmonix decided to let news loose a bit early about some varied, excellent artists arriving on Rock Band 3's DLC service in the "coming weeks and months." We're actually inclined to skip right over two of the groups -- Breaking Benjamin and Dream Theater -- as they've both already had DLC tracks added to RB3 in the past. Here are the two brand new biggies: Stevie Wonder and Coldplay. We simply cannot say "Hooray!" loudly enough. No mention is made of which songs specifically will be launched, but Coldplay, Breaking Benjamin, and Stevie Wonder all have full track packs on the way, while Dream Theater's keeping it more low key with a single. Perhaps if you go "like" the Facebook page we can get Stevie Wonder right now? Maybe just one track, even? [Thanks, libregkd]
Count The Beats: First look at Amidio's Seline HD app for the iPad
The guys over at Amidio Inc (Touch DJ / Noise.io) have recently released their latest app for the iPad, Seline HD (US$5.99). Seline HD is a musical instrument designed for performance and composition of music on the iPad. One of its key features is to make the creation of complex melodies easy, while accompanying those melodies with big sound scape type pads. With its all new, ergonomically designed interface, the ioGrid, Seline HD makes playing music a breeze, literally, without the strain (RSI, anyone?). Seline HD's intuitive CrystalClarity HD sound engine analyzes what you are playing in order to add subtle nuances to your strokes of genius. And the keys are designed to be suitable for players with all hand sizes, according to Amidio's press release. So, how do you play? You lay your hands down on the keys, like you're about to play a piano. A fully adjustable 16-note scale is divided between your left and right hand, odd and even notes respectively. The idea is to place your index, middle, and ring finger over three individual columns, each finger being responsible for its own column. As a result, interesting playing and improvisational input possibilities occur, but more importantly, you get the added comfort of knowing you will never hit a wrong note. In your face, music teacher! But the playing doesn't end there. Some well thought out features enhance your Seline HD skills even more. Aiming for the center of each key (in a column) will provide maximum volume, while aiming slightly off center and to the edges will provide less. In effect, more or less velocity. Your thumb (or you can move and use your index finger) is left to control a center, two semi-tone, up or down pitch bend, while going left or right will add manual vibrato. There's also note shift, up or down buttons (to create great trill sounds), and, in addition to this, the joystick on each side calibrates the attack of the notes being played. To add a luscious background to your melodies, activate the Drone (chorded synth pads). Analyzing what you are playing, the Drone will add sound scape backgrounds to your melodies. Using Amidio's CrystalClarity HD sound engine, Seline HD makes it easy for beginners to play as well as for seasoned musicians to find depth in the experience. By implementing dozens of algorithms to analyze the melody being played, Seline HD will subtly introduce character and expression to your input. For example, play an intensive solo where you land up holding the final note, Seline HD will detect this passage and add a subtle vibrato to that final note, as a finishing touch. To top it all off, Seline HD is equipped with a full range of recording possibilities, including direct recording to .wav files. With 20 built-in factory voices (flutes, bowed strings, reeds, synth leads, and more), and nine drone voices, we're looking forward to spending some quality time with Seline HD. After the break, check out Seline HD's tutorial video, Seline HD being used by The iPad Orchestra, and Jordan Rudess (of Dream Theater) playing a piano accompanied by Seline HD.
Spiritual Guidance: Discipline and ICC raid buffs
Every Sunday (and the occasional weekday) Spiritual Guidance offers holy and discipline priests advice on how to wield the holy light and groove to the disco night. Your hostess Dawn Moore will provide the music. Last week, Blizzard activated the first stage of the scaling raid buffs in Icecrown Citadel. When entering ICC now, you'll see either Varian Wrynn's hair (and the rest of him, attached) or the conglomeration of cliches we refer to as Garrosh Hellscream. Each NPC grants a faction specific buff to your raid party which increases your health, healing done, and damage done by 5%. Periodically, the strength of these buffs will be raised a notch by Blizzard, thus allowing guilds of various commitment levels to see all of Icecrown Citadel. So, what does this little news item have to do with priests any more than the next other class? Well, if you're a discipline priest and your lip gloss be poppin' bubbles be poppin', you'll notice that they are not poppin' with any more oomph than they did the week before. That's because, for whatever intended or unintended reason, the buff does not apply to Power Word: Shield. Don't have a panic attack, disco priests. In this article I will be addressing the issue, particularly for non-priests who might have misconceptions about the validity of a disc priest. I'll also be rehashing some older arguments. That's right folks: it's that time again! When all of Azeroth asks! *Cue game show music* What good is a disc priest? Update: Blizz has announced in the notes for patch 3.3.3 that Power Word: Shield will now benefit from the ICC zone buff. While that makes portions of this article obsolete, keep reading to learn more about the benefits of bringing a discipline priest to your raid.
