For chillwave maestro Tycho, effects are as much instruments as the ones you play
Sometimes beautiful music is a happy accident. For Tycho, also known as Scott Hansen, preserving the stumbling process that leads him there is as important as the intentional part.
The Crystal Method explain the art of the remix, why MP3s suck, and Satan Gas
Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland have made a living remixing other artists as The Crystal Method, but on their latest album, it’s their work that goes under the knife as other mixers take the board.
How many Avett brothers does it take to salute Elliott Smith? One, and an indie prodigy
Indie icon Elliott Smith inspired a generation of songwriters before he tragically passed away at 34 in 2003. Now Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield are rekindling his memory with a touching tribute album.
Arcade Fire’s Will Butler burns short, bright and solo on <em>Policy</em>
Free from the constraints of Arcade Fire’s frantic sextet, multi-instrumentalist Will Butler explores everything from Americana to electronics music on his new solo album <em>Policy</em>.
Pushing the aural envelope with high-res audio evangelist Steven Wilson
Steven Wilson doesn’t just prefer the clarity of high-resolution recordings, he’s genuinely dumbfounded by artists that choose not to make them in 2015. And his new album, Hand. Cannot. Erase. , is a perfect showcase of what it can sound like.
For alt-J, recordings are a ticket to the afterlife (so don’t mess up)
After going from a tiny British electronic act to headlining Madison Square Garden, the guys behind alt-J are coming to their grips with their fame – but one thing remains the same: Recording quality trumps everything.
5 songs you need to hear this weekend
Not sure what new music to listen to? We'll let you know what new tracks and albums dropping this week that are are worth using your bandwidth on.
After decades propelling the B-52s with her throaty growl, Kate Pierson flies solo
On Guitars and Microphones, B-52s singer Kate Pierson gets a chance to break out of formation and fly solo – alongside Australian songwriter Sia – on a record that showcases unique vocals that could “cut through steel.”
After facing judges on The Voice, Michelle Chamuel faces the fire in the studio
After landing a runner-up position on The Voice in 2013, Michelle Chamuel steps back into the spotlight with Face the Fire, her first solo album and a hard-fought lesson in how to distill “the sound of emotion” in a studio.
Butch Walker is all about that tape, about that tape (no digital)
Butch Walker has produced talents from Weezer to Taylor Swift, but on Afraid of Ghosts, he gets personal, and lays it down unpolished, over the hiss of tape.
iTunes ‘sounds so small’ to punk rock founding father Marky Ramone
The Ramones may have had a reputation for rocking hard and living fast, but as drummer Marky Ramone explains, slowing down and getting meticulous to get record just the right sound in the studio was never out of the question.
Slow down! The Ting Tings Katie White gets Super Critical about modern dance music
Katie White of the Ting Tings tells Digital Trends about the decision to go all-analog for the new album Super Critical, her club dreams of years past, and her Stevie Nicks obsession.
Did Simple Minds fast forward, or new bands rewind? Big Music sounds fresh either way
They say you can’t recapture the past, but Simple Minds comes damn close on Big Music, a contemporary take on the sound the band brought to the mainstream in the ‘80s.
Rocker Devon Allman talks vinyl, vibing and hearing his dad on the radio
He may have descended from rock royalty, but Devon Allman earned his musical stripes on his own, and he proves it on his latest solo album, Ragged & Dirty.
‘There are no rules.’ No -fi is too lo or hi for Cut Copy DJ Dan Whitford
In his latest work spanning 80 minutes and 19 tracks, Cut Copy DJ Dan Whitford explores everything from electro disco to tribal house music. And somehow, it all flows.
Tom DeLonge on Blink-182’s legacy and dreaming big with Angels & Airwaves
we sit down with Tom DeLonge (of Blink-182 fame) and speak about his new Angels & Airwaves album, The Dream Walker.
The Pixies’ David Lovering talks high-res, Doolittle, the death of a drumkit
In Part 2 of our interview with the Pixies, drummer David Lovering tells us about his smashed drum kit and Doolittle's 25th anniversary.
In case of catastrophe, listen to vinyl! And more from the Pixies’ Joey Santiago
DT’s Mike Mettler interviews Joey Santiago of The Pixies about Nirvana, MP3s, and Doolittle’s 25th anniversary.
How The Kinks’ Dave Davies changed the course of rock with a sliced speaker cone
When The Kinks’ guitarist Dave Davies sliced open a speaker cone with a razor blade in 1964, he literally set the tone of rock music for decades to come. And that sound lives on in his latest solo album, Rippin’ Up Time.
Guitar wizard Adrian Belew on how his Flux app creates bite-size music for the Twitter era
DT’s Mike Mettler sits down with guitar wiz Adrian Belew on his new app, Flux, and how he hopes to change music for the Twitter era.
For their last-ever album The Endless River, Pink Floyd recorded on a boat
Pink Floyd recently came together to record their last album of new material, The Endless River. And appropriately enough, they did it on a boat, embracing the latest recording technologies yet again.
Behind the scenes of OK Go’s mind-boggling new music video
We speak with OK Go about its newest video for "I Won't Let You Down," which employs hundreds of extras, robotic scooters, and drones to show us something we've never seen before.
For Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, feeling ‘in the room’ is the pinnacle of hi-fi sound
From Aerosmith cofounder to solo artist and back again, Joe Perry has seen – and heard – it all. With the release of his new book, Perry delves even deeper into the fascination with sound that has shaped his entire career.
While hipsters relive the sound he pioneered, Gary Numan keeps forging forward
Remember the ‘80s? Gary Numan does, and he’s ready for something new. The electronic music pioneer talked with us about hi-res recording, the magic of the piano, and why he’s running alongside today’s electronic crowd – not in it.
Blues maestro Joe Bonamassa: Hi-res is hype, digital is clinical, bleed is good
For a guy who’s only 37, Joe Bonamassa is undeniably old school. The celebrated blues artist told us why more resolution isn’t better, why sequencing the order of songs on an album is a lost art, and why bleeding is good.
After pioneering synthpop with Depeche Mode, Vince Clarke just kept innovating
Vince Clarke was making synthpop before many of today’s electronic musicians were born. But with Erasure and his latest album The Violet Flame, he’s still pushing the sonic envelope.
Billy Corgan on his 107-track Smashing Pumpkins reissue, and what’s ahead
Digital Trends’ music columnist Mike Mettler speaks to Billy Corgan about his new 107-track reissue of the 1998 Smashing Pumpkins album Adore, and what’s ahead for the band.
Fetishizing cassettes, the dignity of LPs, more from the mind of Robyn Hitchcock
From his days in The Soft Boys to his latest solo work, Robyn Hitchcock has seen it all. And he has a pretty good idea what's next: bioimplants, fetishizing dying formats, and a lot more great music.
‘How the hell did we do this?’ Moody Blues frontman Justin Hayward looks back
When Moody Blues frontman Justin Hayward isn’t preserving the band’s sound in the highest digital quality possible, he’s forging ahead with new techniques in his own solo recordings.
Have you been to a Headphone Party? Why Quiet Events are making a lot of noise
Quiet Events holds silent disco parties in New York City. Just put your headphones on, select you DJ, and get your groove on.
How Brian Setzer wrings classic rockabilly sound from modern recording
Brian Setzer’s new album, Rockabilly Riot: All Original, sounds straight out of 1957. Here’s how he does it – from inspiration to recording.
THE AUDIOPHILE: Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson brings back the flute for new HD audio album
Former Jethro Tull lead man Ian Anderson is not living in the past: For his new album Homo Erraticus, he’s fully embracing high-resolution digital audio.
Inside Sony’s plot to snuff out the MP3 for good with high-res audio
Here's how Sony plans on converting you from MP3 audio to high-resolution audio in the next few years. A lot of progress has been made already.