Maroon 5

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Maroon 5, Online Store Reverb Announce Sale Of Music Gear, Instruments

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Guitars, keyboards, microphones, drum machines, road cases and more will be for sale, each with its unique aura of musical history
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Aug 28, 2018 - 1:09 pm

Maroon 5 and Reverb have announced that more than 100 items from the band's accumulated musical instruments and gear will be up for sale online through the marketplace, beginning on Aug. 30.

The official announcement at Reverb, which came on Aug. 28, includes an email sign up so prospective buyers can be the first to know when the Techno Empire shop begins listing the items. Some items date as far back as the days when Maroon 5 was still known as Kara's Flowers. Many are from their world tour for the 2002 album Songs About Jane.

The details are more than mouthwatering and even the "Maroon 5"-emblazoned road cases for sale are experienced world travelers. When guys like these tour around with gear like this, memories attach — inspiring collectors and enthusiasts to start their own relationship to guitars, mics and more that already have a place in pop music history.

"It's nice to know that there's some history there when you put your gear in a case that's been all around the world with a band," said keyboard and rhythm-guitar player Jesse Carmichael.

A Gibson Les Paul Jim Beam guitar actually traveled up in the air on tour and landed with unknown consequences but still looks great. An Akai MPC 4000 drum machine enjoyed spending songwriting days at producer Rick Rubin's fabled Laurel Canyon home, also known as "The Mansion." A one of a kind Keytar prototype will tempt you alongside Carmichael's first tour buddy — a Yamaha S90 keyboard — as well as a versatile Open Labs MiKo keyboard that might even have some samples still on it. The guitars, keyboards, microphones and more all made a difference to Maroon 5's unique success and are ready to be passed on to new owners, for new creations.

"We used all of this gear when we were kids, working hard to establish ourselves as a band," said Carmichael. "Now, we're in a new phase and we need to clear out what we're not using anymore to make room for the equipment that will help us create what comes next. This gear was such a huge part of our story and I hope that it goes to an up-and-coming band or musicians who can make it part of their own story."

Maroon 5's first GRAMMY win was for Best New Artist at the 47th GRAMMY Awards, followed by Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal the following year for "This Love." At the 50th GRAMMY Awards, "Makes Me Wonder" brought them their third for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals. But those are just several of many reasons you might feel you need gear like this.

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St. Vincent

St. Vincent

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St. Vincent Remix Of Maroon 5's "Girls Like You" Puts Cardi B On Top

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"Stop!" and listen to how St. Vincent has Cardi B remixing the rhythm in complete command
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Aug 2, 2018 - 1:25 pm

A model of making her art her own way, St. Vincent and her 2017 album Masseduction have been seizing well-deserved attention. It's the follow up to her self-titled LP in 2014, which won Best Alternative Music Album at the 57th GRAMMY Awards. Now she's followed up on Maroon 5's star-studded remix of their own "Girls Like You" single, featuring Cardi B, with an appealing and punchy dance rethink.

Using samples from J Dilla, St. Vincent makes liberal use of Cardi B's attention-grabbing power, jumping into her rap at the top, making everything "Stop!" at her command, and closing the song on the same instruction. If you enjoy having your head rhythmically messed with half as much as St. Vincent says she had fun making this remix, "dancing alone in my studio," the track is an upbeat pleasure. GRAMMY-winning engineer Laura Sisk handled the mix.

St. Vincent was one of the powerful musical performances last weekend at Newport Folk Fest and we'll be reporting on her show and many others this weekend in Chicago at Lollapalooza. Masseduction reached No. 10 on the Billboard 200 last year, her highest ranking to date. Its single "Los Ageless" reached No. 23 on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart in March 2018.

After Lollapalooza, St. Vincent's tour dates take her overseas for the remainder of August, but she returns in September with festival engagements and west coast performances supporting Florence + The Machine and Lizzo.

Catching Up On Music News Powered By The Recording Academy Just Got Easier. Have A Google Home Device? "Talk To GRAMMYs"

Moby

Moby

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Moby To Auction His Entire Vinyl Collection To Benefit Medical Research

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"Everybody wins ... except me, because now I don't have any records," said the famous DJ
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Jun 12, 2018 - 3:53 pm

On June 12, GRAMMY nominee Moby announced on his blog that he will be selling "his entire vinyl collection on Reverb with the proceeds going to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine." Doors open online on June 14 for The Official Moby Reverb LP Shop, featuring a boggling selection of rarities and must-haves. He had previously auctioned off gear and guitars this past April on Reverb.

"These are all the records that I bought and loved and played and carried all around the world," Moby said. "I would rather you have them than me, because if you have them, you'll play them, you'll love them, and the money will go to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. So everybody wins. Well, except me, because now I don't have any records."

Many of the records include handwritten marks Moby would make, assisting his using them during live DJ sets.

The Physicians Committee pursues a revolution in medicine by placing greater importance on prevention and treatment research, such as approaches integrating nutrition and education. It also seeks to reduce and find alternatives to animal experimentation, no doubt hitting vegan Moby's animal-rights nerve, a passion of his for years.

In addition to his many GRAMMY nominations and a career as one of music's most influential DJ/producers, Moby is also on the charts right now because "Porcelain" from his 1999 album Play was sampled by ASAP Rocky on "A$AP Forever," giving Moby credit as featured artist. So in addition to Moby's new album Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt, which came out this March, he is on Billboard's Hot 100 for June 9 at No. 63, his second time on the chart. His first time was in 2001 for "South Side" featuring Gwen Stefani, which reached No. 14.

Catching Up On Music News Powered By The Recording Academy Just Got Easier. Have A Google Home Device? "Talk To GRAMMYs"

Spotify

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Spotify Adds Direct Uploads For Indie Artists

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The ability to upload directly onto the world's largest streaming service is unprecedented, and the latest step in streaming music's evolution
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Sep 21, 2018 - 6:01 pm

On Sept. 20, Spotify announced that it has begun beta trials of a feature allowing independent artists to upload their new tracks directly to the service for users to stream. The company emphasized that this is just one new way to release music on Spotify, and that this has been the most requested Spotify for Artists feature.

Spotify for Artists has tried to sweeten its destination for talent with various tools such as analytics and ways to communicate with fans. In a blog post announcing this beta feature, it described how they've been working with an initial handful of indie musicians including Michael Brun, Hot Shade, Noname, and VIAA to develop its interactivity and ease-of-use. "Their feedback was instrumental in shaping the feature, and now we're ready to see how a wider range of artists will put it to use," Spotify said in the blog post. "Right now, upload in Spotify for Artists is only available by invitation to a few hundred US-based independent artists, but we're excited to bring upload to even more artists, labels, and teams in the future."

Speculation abounds about the significance and financial terms of this new feature. It's free, in contrast to CD Baby, DistroKid and Tunecore. It pays, unlike SoundCloud. "There's not that much information needed other than the music and the metadata associated with it, and then we'll take care of the rest," said Spotify product lead Kene Anoliefo. Indie artists will get to set their release date, preview how their offering will appear to users, keep their royalties and rights, and receive 50 percent of whatever revenue Spotify takes in from their track.

It seems like an organic addition to what Spotify for Artists already offers, although observers speculate this means Spotify is trying to replace the role of record labels. Certainly for artists such as Chance The Rapper or countless DJ/producers who choose to initially go it alone in the music world, this is an opportunity to begin earning money for their music from a major platform at an earlier stage in their career, without signing away rights or making a major commitment to a label. Behind the scenes, as artists' fingers control their role in the music business more effectively, this is likely to empower new creative marketing strategies especially because it's been designed — with input from artists — to fit transparently within Spotify's extensive analytics and other tools for talent.

Upcoming Spotify Renegotiations Magnify Tussles With Labels

St. Vincent

St. Vincent

Photo: Tim Mosenfelder/WireImage

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St. Vincent On Magic Moments Behind 'Masseduction'

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The GRAMMY winner shared stories of the performances that made the final mixed master of her album 'Masseduction' at an exclusive Recording Academy New York Chapter event
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Sep 21, 2018 - 2:28 pm

The Recording Academy New York Chapter and the Producers & Engineers Wing joined forces to host a special Craft Session event at Electric Lady Studios featuring St. Vincent and legendary mixing engineer Tom Elmhirst. In conversation, the singer/songwriter described the magic moments behind her 2017 album Masseduction that Elmhirst helped create at the historic studios, originally built by Jimi Hendrix.

St. Vincent: Magic Moments Making 'Masseduction'

The two addressed the new evolution of recording technology that makes it possible to capture great performances wherever they occur. "In these days, there's not some big chasm between a demo and the final thing," St. Vincent said. "We all have these democratic tools to make what could be a final version of the song."

They agreed that although a high-end studio can capture better sound, it's the performance that's most important. "The fact that I'm able to record myself — we're all able to record ourselves, at least in an inchoate state — I think it can be very freeing," St. Vincent shared.

"Sometimes the best way to get a great master vocal take is to pretend like it's the demo," she added. "There are a number of vocal takes on Masseduction that were scratch vocals."

St. Vincent also spoke about collaborations, and admitted she was in awe of her experience working with GRAMMY-winning producer/songwriter Jack Antonoff, best known for his work as a member of Fun. While "blue-collar" hours or "bankers hours" in the studio, with strict start and finish times, represent virtuous dedication, Antonoff was an example of how magical creativity cannot be set like a clock or guaranteed to fill an eight-hour shift, she said. According to St. Vincent, he is someone "who can give you the best three hours of your life and then you don't need the other five because some magic happened in the three."

Elmhirst agreed "100 percent" and shared stories of his own intense, shorter windows of creative productivity. "Things happen in small periods of time," he said. He shared that taking his dog for a walk can be part of getting prepared for the most creative decision-making while mixing and mastering.

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