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Users Approve Apple Touch
When it comes to tech gear supremacy, nobody popularizes touch-screen technology quite like Apple, and the WiFi, super skinny iPod Touch with a nice 3.5" screen made it in the top 30 Yahoo! Shopping searches for the first part of this holiday season. With over 100 ratings and reviews, users gave this admired multimedia player an average of 5.5 out of 6 stars.
posted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (3) | Permanent Link-
Top Ten Acoustic Guitars
Despite all the hype on mock music-playing video games (like Guitar Hero and Rock Band), a popular type of music instrument maintains a top position in Web shopping searches: the acoustic guitar. Featured in many music genres, this string instrument has thrived for many millenniums -- proof of early guitar-like instruments date back for at least 5000 years.
Today, renown U.S. and Japanese guitar manufacturers go head-to-head to lure guitarists with their handcrafted, wood beauties, while Web shoppers search the most for these famous acoustic guitar brands:
1. Yamaha
2. Fender
3. Ibanez
4. Martin
5. Gibson
6. Washburn
7. Takamine
8. Epiphone
9. Ovation
10. Taylorposted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (1) | Permanent Link-
Guitar Hero Rocks On
The heyday of shredding guitar solos has passed, but those wicked music tracks just got hot again with Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. This week, Web searches for this simulation video game grooves way beyond popular. By giving gamers a chance to simulate solos by rock legends like guitar idol Slash, it comes with a wireless guitar controller and screenplay similar to the Dance Dance Revolution concept. Choosing from dozens of songs by memorable bands including Black Sabbath and Guns N' Roses, players pick, jam, and battle with rippin', original guitar performances -- hammer on, pull off, and bend that whammy bar just like a real guitarist. Don't worry. Note reading isn't required, but you better bring on serious rhythm and dexterity to master Guitar Hero 3. Versions available for the Playstation 3, Playstation 2, Nintendo Wii, and Xbox 360. Rock on, dude.
posted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (1) | Permanent Link-
TV Ads Boost New Music Artists
In the '90s, Microsoft used The Rolling Stones' popular hit "Start Me Up" to promote the "Start" button in a Windows 95 commercial. Now, advertisers use other tactics: Apple, Sony, and Old Navy apply more eclectic tastes through less-mainstream music in TV ads -- helping the featured musicians with a career jumpstart shown by Web search surges for...
"1 2 3 4" by Feist (captured above while performing for "Who's Next?")
- from her album "The Reminder"
- featured in a commercial for the Apple iPod Nano
"Heartbeats" by José González
- from his album "Veneer"
- featured in a commercial for the Sony Bravia LCD TV
"The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson
- from her album "Girls and Boys"
- featured in a commercial for Old Navy clothes
posted by Chris Lindsey | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (3) | Permanent Link-
Kanye West vs. 50 Cent
After achieving a remarkable 21 million albums sold worldwide with "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" and "The Massacre," rap uber-star 50 Cent swallows a bitter pill: The selling of 691,000 copies of his latest album, "Curtis," was overshadowed by top-selling recording artist Kanye West's 957,000 of his latest album, "Graduation" in the initial week of their release.
Yet, selling 691,000 copies during the first week of an album release should put a smile on any music mogul's face. Unfortunately for 50 Cent, he declared on the record that he'd retire if Kanye West outsold him. Now he may suffer damage to his image, as names like "loser" and "welch" come to mind, since he shows no plans to cease his recording contract.
The battle between these hip-hop giants included 50 Cent forming a loose alliance with unlikely sidekick George W. Bush in an attempt to undermine West -- and this wasn't the first time 50 has aligned himself with the U.S. President, but that's another story.
The story here concerns 50 Cent, the underdog, whose tough-guy persona fails to cast a net wider than the handsome and philanthropic West. But we here at Yahoo! love underdogs. We know what it's like to have some snot-nosed upstart sneak in and steal a little thunder.
So have a heart and look deep into the eyes of our beleaguered 50 and think about how this defeat hurts him. Then again: He only shows humor when referring to this charade-like comparison with West (helping to advertise his newest project with either conclusion).
As for West, he's done his share of good in this world -- speaking out passionately against discrimination, performing at Live 8. With a politically saturated style, he's a class-act that cleverly catches more fans.
What about the music? Listen to track samples, find the best price from your favorite online store, and get both CDs -- so you can make up your mind on who's the better artist; and not the better marketer.
posted by Chris Lindsey | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (2) | Permanent Link-
Manilow vs. Hasselbeck
Two strong-minded, political celebrities shot way beyond Yahoo!'s hot searches this week: Barry Manilow (the 64-year-old master of pop music with four Emmy awards) and Elisabeth Hasselbeck (the 30-year-old co-host of "The View" married to fellow, former "Survivor" star Tim Hasselbeck). The showdown between the two is simple: Manilow, a liberal who supports the Democratic party, requested not to be interviewed on "The View" by Hasselbeck, a conservative who publicly opposed morning after pills -- even in cases of rape and incest -- and defended creationism. Denying his request for another interviewer, the show backed out of the opportunity, and Manilow refused to compromise.
We can view this controversy as a failure for both sides, but the conflict just brought inundating attention to everybody involved -- making it more of a success by botching the interview idea. Hmm...can we say conspiracy?
posted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (17) | Permanent Link-
Record Quality Audio On the Go
Capturing the sound of a momentous live performance, subway roar, or an abrasive siren had required costly equipment and skilled engineers...until now! The handheld Zoom H4 allows pros and amateurs to gather up sonic gems on urban, rural, and wilderness landscapes with twin studio-quality X/Y pattern condenser microphones. It stores audio snippets on SD memory cards ,up to two GB, in a rich 24-bit/96KHz format. The portable H4 also runs on two AA batteries, features two XLR inputs, records directly to your computer through a USB port, and comes bundled with the Cubase LE software (digital-audio workstation with 48-tracks). Conducting a found-sound, musical expedition has never been easier.
posted by Chris Lindsey | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (0) | Permanent Link-
Linkin Park Lives On
While scanning top shopping-item searches, I found a band's name: Linkin Park. This alternative metal group earned the world's attention starting with their first release,"Hybrid Theory," back in 2000, which received three Grammy nominations. Four Albums later, they still rock the world with their latest hit, "Minutes to Midnight." It's no secret: The girls go gaga for lead singer Chester Bennington (cleverly covering the female demographic). But the true, current appeal of the band, according to plethora of positive fan reviews, is the development of their style and songwriting.
Yet, not everyone digs the new album. But consider this: As the band members get older, it's only natural that their music appeals to an older crowd (20 to 30-year-olds), instead of the economy-driving teenagers.
For me, the radio track "Shadow Of the Day" (in "Minutes to Midnight") sticks in my head. It might be down-tempo for a sextet known for a much edgier sound.
Whatever your opinion is regarding tracks on the group's Rick Rubin-produced LP, you got to give them props for changing up their craft and keeping their careers alive.
posted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (3) | Permanent Link-
A Turntable Tutelage
We all hold nostalgia for vinyl record turntables, and the audio industry answers our attachment to them with a plethora of players -- like the inexpensive Ion USB Turntable (a vintage, belt-driven record player with software and ports to allow us to digitize any old album collection, and store it directly into a computer). And for all you DJs out there, the full-manual, direct-drive Technics models top the most-wanted, high-quality scratch gear. Also, notable Numark popularizes a fresh, digital idea with hybrid CD turntables that function like 12-inch LP players; they even feature processing effects and beat-keeping tools, as well as full MP3 playing options.
Not to exclude those of us who skip the chopping up or mixing of music, Crosley takes you back a few decades with their wood Grand Music Centers (classic-looking, all-in-one contraptions combining a radio, turntable, and cassette player).
It seems manufacturers pitch every consumer preference perfectly and cover all the bases. But we await one music media that has yet to be revisited: the elusive 8-track.
posted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (3) | Permanent Link-
Modern Motown: Amy Winehouse
Using a deep, growling voice that brings back the appeal of those Motown mega stars, British beauty Amy Winehouse wallops us with catchy tunes backed up by a tight band, using old-school instrumentation. My girl goes nuts for her songs and locks herself in a room just to jive to Winehouse's grooves in private.
Her recent album, "Back to Black", catapulted Winehouse to stardom worldwide (especially the U.S.). She pulls no punches with an addictive personality that typically plagues top entertainers by busting out singles like "Rehab" -- and the tabloids work hard to add to her wino stage presence with recent gig cancellations due to "exhaustion". But, for me, the hedonistic gossip gets old. I just enjoy retro-type tracks, enhanced by a booming vocalist worth listening to.
posted by Arnold Chao | 03.31.08 8:35pm | Add a Comment (4) | Permanent Link-