Fix Your Face – DJ AM More Than A Club DJ

Posted by Travis Norman on Monday, August 31st, 2009

Written by Derek “New York” Doyle

The passing of Adam Goldstein, aka DJ AM, struck many in the music industry as a major shock.  There are many speculations (as there usually are when a celebrity dies) surrounding the cause of his death.

Like the death of Heath Ledger last winter, early reports claim AM was having problems getting off the pain killers prescribed after he survived last year’s plane crash with Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker (out of the six people on the plane Goldstein and Barker were the only two to survive). Police reports also claim a mixture of other illegal drugs in his New York City apartment.  So why am I taking my own time to write this piece?  My editors didn’t assign this; it is simply a work of passion.  A letter to the world to hope that people see past DJ AM as a simple club deejay and realize the significance he had on bringing two completely opposite cultures together.

For anyone who never had the opportunity of seeing AM live, it can only be described as watching a one man band.  He was more than a deejay.  The way he controlled the audience was like that of a charismatic lead singer, even though he was silent throughout his entire set and even shy in person.  The rhythms he managed to mash together created an energy that’s indescribable.  It was as if he created a world where everyone could relate – punks, thugs, hillbillies, and frat boys alike.  His work with Travis Barker on their mix tapes “Fix Your Face” and “Fix Your Face Vol. 2- Coachella Live” brought together the energy of the Sex Pistols with the club bangers of Jay-Z.  He made us all realize what we had in common: the need for a good time.

DJ AM could take MGMT and segue right into The Police, and then go directly into Outkast without losing ANY of the crowds attention at any moment.  At last years Lollapalooza in a tent that held about 150 people he managed to steal the show from bigger acts like Kanye West, Rage Against The Machine, and Nine Inch Nails.  All acts, ironically, that he sampled into his show.  He was a true music revolutionary, changing how we think about the term “genre,” and defying it all so the crowd could dance the night away.  When combined with Barker’s amazing drum style it was often a duel of prodigies as they played off each other in their usual positions: AM stage left and Barker stage right.

With AM gone the questions remains, who will take his place?  When entertainers who inspire me pass on I try and see the positive in it, with them gone it opens room for the next person to come through the door and take their place.  With so many genres crossing over in this day and age you can’t help and think that subconsciously he had something to do with it. So let’s respectfully take his passing as a challenge.

Let’s continue to try and change the game.  Let’s not follow in the footsteps of what’s been done and create a future in music that we can be proud of – unique, interesting, and personal.

Tags: Adam Goldstein, DJ AM, Lollapalooza, Travis Barker
Posted in Multimedia, Music | 1 Comment »

IPR and The U of M Celebrate 5 Years of Summer Youth Programs

Posted by Travis Norman on Monday, August 31st, 2009

The Institute of Production and Recording is celebrating our fifth year as a partner with The University of Minnesota in providing media arts education.  The U of M offers one of the largest summer youth enrichment programs in the country with thousands of annual participants across a myriad of subjects including sports, academics, and professional development.  IPR is once again teaching classes in Audio Recording for youth ages 12-15.  During each single week course, students perform, record, and mix their own audio CD while discussing related technology, the recording process, and elements of the music business.   Many parents have commented about how empowering and encouraging the program has been for their children.  So far, we’ve probably worked with over 250 students and the Sound Recording offering has been one of the most popular classes the University has ever offered in their 15 years of summer enrichment.

This year we’re even offering a second subject – Digital Cinema, wherein groups of young people are acting, shooting, and directing their own short DVD.

Adding to this experience, all of these courses are being taught by IPR graduates hired by the U of M: Kristen Schmitigal, Evan Backe, Ashley Thompson, and Emily Schultz.

Click here for further information…

Tags: Audio Recording, Digital Cinema, IPR, University odf Minnesota, youth enrichment
Posted in Newswire, Newswire Announcements | No Comments »

Letting Out The Inner Four Year Old:Blink-182 Return to Form

Posted by Travis Norman on Friday, August 28th, 2009

Written By: Derek “New York” Doyle

There are those who doubt the power Blink-182 still holds in the 21^st Century.  Can a threesome of immature So-Cal punks still relate to a general audience that has now moved on to graduating college and starting their own separate careers.

As someone who grew up on Blink, and as a writer who remains neutral in every position I can tell you with every drop of Irish blood in my body that the five years Blink took off to  creatively “find themselves” has paid off.  After last seeing them in 2003 before they broke up you could see the chemistry had left the band.  Fly forward to a week ago for their headlining performance at the Xcel Energy Center and the friendships are back.  The energy has returned, and Blink is in prime form.

Even opening act Fallout Boy (who I have repeatedly protested for years) managed to move and impress me.  With all the drama and indecision that fill our world, Blink 182 managed to put on a punk rock circus, to remind us that with all the troubles we face as a generation, there’s still room to laugh, grab a beer, and enjoy life.

Many of the band give credit to the life threatening plane crash that Travis Barker was involved in eight months back killing everyone on board except for him and Las Vegas deejay DJ AM.  Watching Barker tackle his drum set like his own separate symphony it’s hard to believe that less than a year ago he fought of death, only to return with twice the energy and enthusiasm he showed in his younger years.

For those of us who remember “The Mark, Tom, and Travis Show,” we might as well re-title it” The Travis Show” – at this point, he has become the star of the show.  Opening the encore by being lifted twenty feet above the stage and rotating all around the main stage he managed to mix up hip hop artists like Jay-Z, Juvenile, and Xzibit as if he were a top billed Brooklyn deejay.  Mark Hoppus spoke best when he compared Travis to a prime example of the films 9 ½ Weeks and Die Hard being combined.  He has taken slack over the years for coming across more as a rap star than a drummer, but seeing him live you cannot deny the talent he has conditioned for himself.

Between the two front man as well, you could see the love behind Mark Hoppus and Tom DeLonge blossoming back like an ex-couple running into each other at a random house party and remembering the good times.

Many bands I grew up on have been touring this summer.  No Doubt, Green Day, Rancid…but Blink.  Blink 182 is back to enjoying what they do best.  Helping us forget the daily frustrations and letting the four year old come out and play.  Even if it’s only for two hours.

Tags: Blink-182, Fallout Boy, IPR
Posted in Multimedia, Music | 1 Comment »

Come visit IPR at the MN-State Fair this Thursday!

Posted by Norbert Kreuzer on Thursday, August 27th, 2009

This coming Thursday, September 3, IPR will be at the Minnesota State Fair from 9am – 9pm. There will be prizes give aways for students and alumni who are stopping by.  Our booth is in the Education Building, and part of the MSB/Globe University stand. Click HERE for a map of the Fair. The Education Building is in X20-21 Cosgrove, Number 38 – 39.

We hope to see you all there!

Posted in Alumnus, Alumnus Announcements | No Comments »

Mod creation and distribution further simplified – the best of Blizzcon 09

Posted by Kyle Stallock on Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

“Cataclysm hits World of Warcraft!” “Diablo III Monk class gets old juices going!” “Battlestar’s Tricia Helfer to play Kerrigan!”  Blizzcon dominated videogame and tech news sites and discussions boards last Friday, Saturday, and Sunday without breaking a sweat.

Held last weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center, Blizzcon is “a celebration of the Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo franchises and the communities that surround them,” or so says developer/publisher, and organizer of the con, Blizzard.  The company owns additional properties, but they’re not as critically lauded, recognizable, and/or financially successful. Focusing on the big three’s a smart move for the company. You list your absolute best qualities and work experiences on your resume, right?

After each announcement, cheering, unending adoration, and maybe a few tears followed. Every warm body in attendance, and maybe a few thousand streaming the event online, succumbed to the will of Blizz. It’s not a cult (the integral “religion” component’s missing for that term). But spiked Kool-Aid is probably served somewhere in gaudy steins.

Other news emerged from the event, but were buried by the frenzy caused by the “major” three announcements. Who cares if Tricia Helfer lends her voice to the vindictive Kerrigan? Thousands, possibly millions, apparently. No offense to the beautiful and talented Helfer. She’s neat.

Here’s the biggest news to come out of Blizzcon: Blizzard’s entering the DIY indie game and mod space with Starcraft II, striking directly at the still-beating hearts of Kongregate and, to some degree, Steam. They should be terrified.

Blizzard’s a company with uncompromising quality standards. Warcraft Adventures and Starcraft Ghost were sent unapologetically to the trash can despite spending years in development and devouring, by my wild guesstimation, millions in funds. Nearly any other company (sup Activision?) would’ve cut their losses and dropped the stinky turd in the hands of consumers. Arguably worse, some poor PR person would’ve had to convince consumers to buy the fecal matter. Pity him, or her, or (heaven forbid) both.

Now imagine this determination applied to better assisting the independent community.

Rob Pardo, design head at Blizzard, explained the motivation behind Starcraft II’s powerful mod tools  in a piece on Gamasutra:

“Imagine what could happen if you could hire a small dev team and use Starcraft II almost as an engine.”

As the Gamasutra article alludes, the reason behind this design decision probably has something to do with a Warcraft III mod called Defense of the Ancients. Pardo probably agrees, as he said “The tower defense [genre] came out of the WarCraft III mod community, and now you see tower defense [games] on the PlayStation Store, and in [PopCap's] Plants vs. Zombies.”

And neither Blizzard nor the designer of the mod received cash for an inspiring job well done.

Pardo further explained that not all features in the toolset are used in Starcraft, saying “We don’t need an item system in StarCraft II, but we wanted to make sure that’s in there for people to use.”

So how powerful is the new editor? Well, it has the power to resurrect dead titles and near-dead genres. Don’t believe me. See the video below for yourself.

But why would anyone design content for Starcraft II if they could design and distribute it elsewhere and receive monetary compensation? Pardo’s got the answer: “This is an opportunity for [modders] to share in the rewards of our success.” Sometime after release, an official marketplace will be added to the title and users will be able to purchase premium content for a fee. Details are scant right now, but the system doesn’t seem unlike Xbox Live’s Community Games or Apple’s App Store. But when Pardo namedropped the competition, he mentioned neither. “We want to make sure the best amateur game designers out there are making content for StarCraft II, and not for Kongregate or Steam or anything like that.”

Slip of the tongue or an indication of Blizzard’s vision? You decide.

Kongregate’s a web-based one-stop shop for designing, uploading, and playing flash-based games. Developers can earn up to 50% of the ad revenue generated by their title/s. The site even offers a diverse set of tutorials for the budding designer with no previous design knowledge. It’s the closest thing to an “idiot’s guide to designing flash games” as you can get, and something I plan to soon crack wide open.

Steam’s a little different. It’s a digital distribution platform designed by Valve Software offering everything from small independently-developed titles to triple-A blockbusters for download. At first only Valve’s products were sold via Steam, but the library’s grown rapidly since its release on September 12, 2003, and now hundreds of titles from dozens of publishers are offered. Unlike the Appstore from Apple, which takes 30% of all revenue generated by an app, Valve hasn’t disclosed their cut from each title sold. I’m guessing it’s variable, but never exceeding 30%. In comparison, GameStop only makes $.21 on every dollar from new software.

If these two distinctly different services really are Starcraft II’s biggest competition, Blizzard’s more ambitious than they’re letting on. Don’t be surprised. The company’s notoriously tight-lipped and is now tied directly to Activision CEO Bobby Kotick following the Activision Vivendi merger. We’re traveling in sparsely charted PR waters, kiddies.

Whatever Blizzard decides to ultimately do, it’ll probably succeed. I’m reluctant to behave so overtly positive about a company, especially one with ANY sort of ties to Kotick, but the track record speaks for itself. And besides, did you see that video on Starcraft II’s mod tools? Combine that with the worldwide Starcraft phenomenon and we’re guaranteed to witness a solid eight years of new content. There’s at least one Defense of the Ancients buried within, right?

Posted in Gaming, Multimedia | No Comments »

Making MN Movie Magic

Posted by Travis Norman on Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

As I was recently revisiting Purple Rain and its glorious portrayal of First Avenue and 1980’s downtown Minneapolis I got to wondering: why are made in Minnesota movies so few and far between?  The answers likely concern unfavorable tax breaks (I hear Iowa is the place to go for this action) or perhaps the general non-native forgone conclusion that we exist in an icy tundra year round.  Thankfully, we do have the Coen brothers‘ upcoming new feature, A Serious Man, to look forward to – a project predicted to generate 6 or 7 million dollars for the state’s economy.  In the meantime though, I decided it was time to revel in past moments of Minnesota movie making glory.

“We’re like anybody, where you grew up is part of your identity. That doesn’t go away, even if you’ve been away for a long time.” ~ Ethan Coen

A Serious Man – Coming October 2nd…

Purple Rain – It remains a goal of mine to find someone willing to define their purpose in life as “the guy who carries a large mirror around for me” (this is in no way meant to diminish Jerome’s essential contribution to The Time, simply to state that a well dressed wingman is an asset in nearly all social situations)

Mystery Science Theater 3000 The Movie – The production crew would routinely buy out supplies of random toys and props from the Value Village thrift store I used to work at…

Fargo – you’ll never look at a wood chipper in the same way…

Mallrats – Amazingly made before the Maul of America Mall of America existed.  (Little known fact: Edina’s Southdale was actually the first indoor shopping center in the nation.  For a disturbing good time, arrive before they open to glimpse early morning “mallwalker” culture at it’s finest)

Airport – An early example of the now oh-so-predictable disaster movie genre

Tags: A Serious Man, Airport, Coen Brothers, Fargo, Mallrats, Minnesota, movies, MST3K, Purple Rain
Posted in Art and Culture, Multimedia | No Comments »

Join us for our Open House

Posted by Travis Norman on Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

Considering a career in Media Arts or Entertainment Business?

Join us for our Open House:

Saturday, October 3, 2009 • 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

312 Washington Ave. N., Minneapolis, MN

Come and see why IPR is proud to be recognized as one of the premier

music production, recording and entertainment business schools in America.

• Tour the campus and see our cutting-edge recording facilities

• Meet some of our award winning faculty members

• Learn about the wide variety of job possibilities with a degree from IPR

• Meet with representatives from Career Services, Financial Aid, Student

Affairs, and Student Services

IPR is a fully accredited college offering Title IV funding to those who qualify.

Posted in Newswire, Newswire Events | No Comments »

Alumni September Social Hour – Join Us!

Posted by Norbert Kreuzer on Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

All IPR Alumni are invited to our monthly Alumni “Social Hour” on Tuesday, September 8 at J.D.Hoyt’s (across the street from IPR). Click HERE for their website. The time is 5:30pm – 6:30pm. Their happy hour is from 4pm – 6pm and appetizers will be provided by IPR. So, be there, and network with all your fellow alumni. Please RSVP by clicking HERE�

Posted in Alumnus, Alumnus Announcements | No Comments »

“Nein Nein Nein!” The Inglorious Heil Honey I’m Home

Posted by Kyle Stallock on Friday, August 21st, 2009

In honor of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds and its sometimes wacky depiction of Adolf Hitler, I present to you one of the greatest blunders in TV history: British Satellite Broadcasting’s Heil Honey I’m Home.

Credible information’s hard to find on this turd from 1990, so let’s put our faith in the show’s, modifiable by anyone,  Wikipedia entry:

“Heil Honey I’m Home! was a controversial British television sitcom, produced in 1990, and canceled after one episode aired.

The show centred on fictionalised versions of Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun, who live together in suburban bliss, until they are faced with new neighbours, Arny and Rosa Goldenstein, who are Jewish. The show’s plot is centered on Hitler’s inability to get along with his neighbours. A caption at the beginning of the episode presented the series as a ‘lost’ sitcom from the 50s, recently re-discovered. The show spoofed elements of 1950s and 1960s American sitcoms such as Leave It to Beaver and I Love Lucy, including the corny title, light (even vacuous) plots and dialogue, and unwarranted applause whenever a character appeared on screen.”

Way back in 1990 this was (apparently) a good idea. Television producers have learned, right?

I guess not.

The Osbournes Reloaded – more painful to watch than Heil Honey? Probably if you don’t hang on every flaccid bottom shelf joke the family reaches for or idolize their “extreme rocker” ‘tude. I’m guessing Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger liked it. But even if he didn’t give the program a big greasy thumbs up (unlikely), the watered-down so-called “rock” he embraces represents the “I wanna be a rock star” blood coursing through the veins of this variety show. At least, theoretically coursing. No signs of life were visible during the hour or so it lasted. Ozzy’s a member of the walking dead, so why isn’t his newest show the broadcast equivalent?

Shortly after Reloaded aired the show was canceled (just like Heil Honey). The unaired episodes probably lie in a vault next to a dozen or so unpublished Ed Wood pieces and the director’s cut of Corky Romano. The rest of Heil Honey’s probably there too – no doubt running the joint in this island of misfit cinema. Will we ever see the rest of either series? Probably not, but we can always hope and pray the Rifftrax explorers uncover a piece or two and clean it with heavy doses of colorful commentary.

Posted in Art and Culture, Multimedia | No Comments »

EUPHONIX GOES BACK TO SCHOOL WITH DONATION OF MC MIX TO IDEAWERKS

Posted by Travis Norman on Friday, August 21st, 2009

EUPHONIX GOES BACK TO SCHOOL WITH DONATION OF MC MIX TO IDEAWERKS

Donation Supports Local Youth Community

MINNEAPOLIS, MN, August 20, 2009 — The Institute of Production and Recording (IPR) in Minneapolis is proud to announce that Euphonix, a world leader in large-format digital audio consoles, media controllers, and peripherals for over 20 years, has donated one of its MC Mix media controllers to Ideawerks^®, IPR’s unique multimedia arts after-school program in the Minneapolis Park System.  The program, which runs 12 weeks in the summer and 10 weeks recurrently during the school year, which at no cost to parents addresses current economic concerns, provides participants with the creative platform and tools that are vital to creating multimedia audio and visual projects from conception to completion.

“To us, education means that students should have hands-on access to the tools that they will come face-to-face with after graduating and entering into the audio industry,” says Euphonix U.S. Retail Sales Executive Luke Smith.  “Ideawerks is not only teaching kids how the music business was once dominated by analog audio, but also about all of the current trends in digital technology as well.  IPR and Ideawerks are embracing both worlds, analog and digital, and that’s what we think most schools should be doing.”

Euphonix donation to Ideawerks will expose students to all three industry standard control protocols—Mackie, HUI and EuCon.  This will allow the kids to become comfortable with each control surface and not become overwhelmed by them when they are asked to use the protocols in the professional world.  “Whether or not the students use our control surface down the road, they’ll be familiar with the protocols that all control surfaces use for audio applications,” continues Smith.  “Even if you’re using one of our competitors’ pieces, they’ll still have a general idea of how the protocol integrates with the software instilled in their minds.”

“We would like to thank Euphonix for stepping forward and taking interest in the Ideawerks program,” says IPR Executive Director of Music Industries Andre Fischer.  “With the current state of the economy, many companies are cutting back on crucial educational donations and support. It’s nice to see that Euphonix still recognizes the importance of getting the right tools into the hands of today’s students to prepare them for their future in the pro audio industry.”

Lance Sabin, executive vice president and cofounder of IPR adds, “It’s refreshing to see a high-profile company such as Euphonix take interest in educating tomorrow’s creative leaders by graciously donating MC Mix media controllers.  We are certain that the kids will learn a great deal from the MC Mix and we greatly appreciate the contribution.”

To date Euphonix is the only company that currently allows the user to switch between two different applications.  Its control surface is application-aware, which means it detects what application the user is currently working in and automatically loads that application’s data.  “The kids could be working in Final Cut Pro and Pro Tools at the same time,” explains Smith.  “We’re on the cutting edge of the control surface world and we want to make sure the kids know about it.  They’ll also be able to use our software with all of the leading DAW softwares out there in addition to using it with Final Cut Pro.  This is most beneficial to them as they’ll be exposed to all of the different programs including Logic Pro, Soundtrack Pro, Digital Performer, Nuendo and Cubase.”

About IPR

Integrating a liberal arts education with business and technical training expertise, The Institute of Production & Recording provides a learning environment that reflects today’s evolving entertainment industry.  Its classrooms invite active discussions, creative problem solving, and presents an open forum for the exchange of new methods and ideas.  Encouraging creativity and recognizing achievement, IPR assists its students in reaching their career goals in music, multimedia production, audio recording and music business.  IPR is based in Minneapolis, MN. For further information, visit www.ipr.edu.

Tags: Euphonix, IDEAWERKS, IPR
Posted in Newswire, Newswire Announcements | No Comments »

Announcements

April 28, 2010

Al Kooper Plays Dakota Jazz Club, IPR’s DIY360

November 10, 2009

Jackie Lee Robinson Remembered

October 30, 2009

Mary Ann O’Dougherty Remembered

October 14, 2009

Networking at AES