Summer is almost upon on us! It’s a time for picnics, hiking, sports, water parks, and, for those with the time, boundless fun. More importantly, where I am concerned, it’s music festival season. From now until the last leaf falls from the trees, all over the northern hemisphere, millions of music fans will travel long…
Most of the time, the decision to see live music takes place weeks or even months in advance. You know the routine: Talk to your friends to see who else is going, somebody throws down a credit card, and then you put the show on your calendars. Thrillcall, which released an iOS app on Wednesday,…
Attending a show is different now. Everybody’s holding up a cellphone shooting video instead of watching and listening. This doesn’t have to be a 100-percent bad thing, however. A startup called OutListen intends to turn this sow’s ear into a silk purse by encouraging concertgoers to upload their smartphone footage to an online calendar. If…
First, we bought tickets from a cashier. Then, we did the cashier’s work from home on the web (for a fee, somehow). The new box office: Facebook. Ticketfly’s Facebook ticketing app, which launched on Thursday, aims to boost sales in part by letting people know when friends buy a ticket. The big idea is to complete…
Is anyone as loyal as a diehard Phish fan? Not that we’ve met. With 25-plus years under their belt and a staggering amount of studio, live and even bootleg albums in circulation, the band continues to attract a loyal following — one that increasingly looks to the internet and apps to connect with the band, and…
When you’re trying to navigate something unfamiliar, or even something familiar but specific, the right mobile app makes all the difference. City guides, live music apps, music festivals, sporting events, or any other large gathering can keep attendees in sync with each other and enhance what they’re seeing. You know those people who sit there…
All around the world, musicians are sitting alone by their webcams, and they’re nervous. They’re about to appear in front of strangers everywhere, where they’ll have to bring their best stuff. Otherwise, these hopefuls will be unceremoniously booted from one of YouNow‘s two (and counting) stages. “What you’re seeing here is live,” YouNow founder Adi…
First, a story, by way of explanation: A few years ago at a Boredoms show, I watched, rapt, as singer and multi-instrumentalist Yamantaka Eye wielded two glowing orbs. I still don’t know exactly how it happened, but as he moved those two spheres around in his hands, noises emerged that seemed controlled by the positions…
For bands, radio exposure has never been the end result. It’s always been the means. Whether to boost album or ticket sales, artists have traditionally seen the radio as a method for promoting a product or good. So has Joey Flores. Last year the Venice, CA, musician-turned-marketer launched Earbits, a site that masks direct marketing and…
App developers have some new competition for music fans’ attention: Apple itself, which released a free iOS app on Tuesday that will stream live performances from the iTunes Festival London 2011 at the city’s famous Roundhouse venue, which will run for 31 days throughout the month of July. In case you miss one you wanted…
The Live Music Archive from Archive.org, an “online public library of live recordings for royalty-free, no-cost public downloads” according to its FAQ, doesn’t have a smartphone app of its own. Luckily, Josh Bergen’s Music Archive brings the whole shebang to the iPhone for $2. There’s a lot to check out within this app: over 70,000 live concerts…
In last week’s roundup of apps that help you find the best shows, we lamented the fact that Songkick didn’t have a mobile app. The Britain-based service is in a league of its own when it comes to telling you who’s playing where and when, based on your own music collection. Instead, fans can access…
Live music aficionados need three basic things from their live music smartphone apps: finding out where the shows are, firming up plans for said shows, and sharing photos, videos and thoughts when that show hits town. These crucial matters make some apps necessary for any complete mobile app arsenal, and some better left by the…
SuperGlued understands that concert apps are inherently social; they’re designed to get you out of the house, for starters. The difference with SuperGlued, which mirrors the web-based service by the same name, is that it promotes conversation about the concert at hand, so in that sense, it’s a social media network unto itself. Some aspects of…
Expectations run high when you’re tied to Songkick. The British-based concert tracking site, founded in 2007 (previous coverage), has earned a solid reputation as one of the most valuable music tools around on the strength of its massive show database, easy calendar integration, social features, and search flexibility. Site visitors can find practically everything there…
