Twitter To Launch Music App

These days, it’s all about having everything you need in one place. At least that’s what smartphones, tablets, and social media sites tell us. It’s not longer about having a niche—you’ve got to have all the niches. And as Facebook moves over for other rising social media sites, we’re finding that we have a lot of choice when it comes to which site we want to use and for what.

Twitter in particular has been ramping up its game lately. Facebook recently acquired the photo service Instagram, and since then Twitter decided to launch its own photo sharing service, which is of course more convenient than Instagram. But Twitter’s latest foray raises the bar once more: they’re planning on launching a new app called “Twitter Music.”

Essentially, users who have Twitter Music will be able to stream music from SoundCloud directly through the app. They can choose music based on Twitter Music’s personalized recommendations. The app will have four different tabs for users to explore as well, including Suggested, Popular, Emerging, and #NowPlaying.

“Suggested” gives recommendations based on whom the user follows on Twitter, while “Popular” shows songs that are trending in general. Up and coming artists will be shown in the “Emerging” tab, and users can see specific song recommendations that have been tweeted using the hashtag “#NowPlaying” by people they follow.

The app, expected to be out as soon as the end of this month, is powered by We Are Hunted. Twitter recently purchased the company, which is one of the best music discovery services currently available. By partnering with it, Twitter is potentially putting itself in the same category as other popular streaming services like Pandora and Spotify (which Facebook partnered with in 2011).

Beliebe It or Not: Bieber’s Growing Up

It always happens this way. A young star or starlet begins his or her career being simply adorable and then, eventually, starts growing up. Sometimes this transformation is graceful, but other times the journey can be a little rough. And if recent events are anything to gage by, Justin Bieber is beginning to lean toward the second group.

It all began on his 19^th birthday on March 1^st. Bieber had been pumped up on Twitter, saying he had a “big night ahead.” But just a few hours later, instead of reporting on the best birthday ever, he tweeted that it had been his worst. Bieber and his crew had been partying at London’s Cirque du Soir, but after an argument with the club’s security, the entire group was told to leave. Many believe that Bieber’s paparazzi are to blame for the incident.

Just three days later, Bieber was scheduled to play a show at the O2 Arena in London. The concert had been advertised to begin at 8:30 PM on the school night, but Bieber didn’t hit the stage until 10:35 PM. Though Bieber claimed he wasn’t supposed to hit the stage until 9:35, making him only an hour late. His claim was that it was due to technical issues, but fans—especially parents—were still upset.

“Kids are having to leave as it’s so late. Not fair,” one parent tweeted. Another let a little anger through, saying, “Who the hell does Justin Bieber think he is?  Not on stage yet?! I hope everyone walks out of the O2.”

Bieber later apologized via Twitter, saying “there is no excuse for that [getting on stage late] and I apologize for anyone we upset. However it was great show and Im proud of that.”

But once negative headlines began to hit the stands, Bieber posted more Tweets expressing his frustration at what he called “fake stories,” “rumors” and “judgement.”

As if his week hadn’t been headline-heavy enough, Bieber once again made the news after fainting backstage at a concert on March 7^th. According to his manager Scooter Braun, he had been having trouble breathing during the concert. He was attended by medical personnel and later posted a photo to his Instagram from his hospital room.

Bieber’s final episode of last week came on Friday, March 9^th when he was caught on video lunging and shouting expletives at a photographer. The photographer, one of many in a group, had apparently been shouting “the worst thing possible” at Bieber.

Hopefully it’s just been what Bieber called a “rough week,” and that things will get back to normal soon. But with such widespread fame at his age, it unfortunately wouldn’t be surprising if his erratic behavior was just the first symptom of a long list of troubles to come.

SXSW: Looking Back

South by Southwest, more commonly known as SXSW, is one of the biggest music events every year. Based in Austin, Texas, the event brings together over 2,000 musicians, performers, filmmakers, and more. It’s one of the essential events for emerging artists, breakout bands, and even widely popular groups.

Part of the beauty of SXSW is the number of lesser known artists come to perform, gaining invaluable stage time, new fans, and generally having a good time. Labels like Mexican Summer benefit especially from it because of its large lineup and diverse set of genres featured. The label, which was founded by Andres Santo Domingo and Tom Clapp’s Kemado Records in 2008, focuses on indie rock and pop, psychedelic and punk rock, metal, and experimental music. This year, they saw four bands off to SXSW.

SXSW is also like a rite of passage for music lovers and anyone interested in film or music. Tons of networking, parties, music, shows, people, and opportunities abound every year. And while it centers on indie rock and hip-hop, there’s still a little bit of everything there. It’s a rockin’ good time for those who manage to snag some stage time or a ticket to the event.

Don’t believe me? Check out this Statigram feed, which features photos tagged with #sxsw. It’s got everything from pictures of groups performing to friends posing in their hotel rooms, pictures of city lights to backyard stage sets, artist interviews to street performers and crowds of people. Mexican Summer’s Instagram captured performances from three of its four featured groups: Autre Ne Veut, Mood Rings and Part Time.

Didn’t get a chance to go? No sweat. There’s always next year.

 See our previous profile on Andres Santo Domingo and Tom Clapp's Kemado Records here.

Music May Help Treat ADHD

A study out of San Diego’s Museum School is working to determine whether learning to play musical instruments could help treat ADHD in children. The study, which has been going on for over a year now, is based on the fact that students who have musical training have better processing skills and do better in school.

“We know from multiple studies that children who have musical training do better at school… What we’re interested in from a scientific perspective is why that occurs. What neural mechanisms are being driven by musical experience and how do they interact with other abilities,” said Paula Tallal of Rutgers University.

This study comes at a time when fewer and fewer schools are offering music programs due to budget cuts. If musical training does prove to be an effective non-medicated treatment—and a potential cure—for ADHD, those programs will have an even more devastating effect than we currently understand.

Students who have been participating in the study have been learning Gamelan, which is an Indonesian percussion style ensemble that has a strong emphasis on synchronicity. The precision of students’ rhythm and beat are monitored, and an algorithm is produced to show their overall accuracy. Those results are then compared with cognitive and behavioral tests.

“So far, we’ve found a correlation between their ability to synchronize and their performance on cognitive tests,” said Alexander Khalil, who is head of the Gamelan Project. “What this could mean is that learning to time in a group setting with other people musically could improve your ability to focus attention.”

Khalil believes that as students continue to improve musical ability, their ability to focus their attention also improved. About ten percent of children in the U.S. have been diagnosed with ADHD, which means they have trouble paying attention and may become hyperactive.

So far, the study looks promising and presents many exciting possibilities moving forward. But it could take up to five years to see the true results, as many of the implications could be fairly far reaching as the children continue to grow and develop.

Best Coast Talks Dad Rock at Co-Op 87

Best Coast has had a good three years. The band was formed by Bethany Cosentino and Bob Bruno just three years ago, and now the surf-pop/garage rock band is opening for acts like Green Day. The duo is currently on tour with Green Day for their rescheduled tour, and after that ends they’ll set off on their own for some smaller venue performances.

Signed on with Mexican Summer Records, it seemed appropriate when Best Coast were interviewed for Pitchfork.tv at Co-op 87, which was opened in 2009 by Andres Santo Domingo & Co.’s Kemado/Mexican Summer labels. It is one of Brooklyn’s top destinations for LP junkies, collectors, and music lovers.

In their interview with Pitchfork, Best Coast talked about what they call “dad rock” (AKA music your dad would rock out to). They went through some of their top dad rock bands, some of which they said had influenced their latest album. Leading lady Bethany Cosentino and her partner Bob Bruno flashed LPs from artists like The Doobie Brothers, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mack, Saturday Night Fever, America, The Beach Boys, and Bread.

Best Coast will be playing shows from New York to Los Angeles over the coming months, finishing up in early June. The tour will promote their 2012 The Only Place. As part of Record Store Day 2013, the band is also going to be releasing a new 7” on April 20^th that will feature two brand new recordings: “Fear of My Identity” and “Who Have I Become?”