I’ve personally used Propellerhead’s Reason for several years now, and love it. The software is well priced, the interface is intuitive, and the overall sound is pretty darn good. Maybe not equal to the final polishing of Pro Tools, but for a fraction of the cost. And you can always choose to an engineer to master your music at a professional studio with nice outboard gear

The big news in this upgrade, is that they have now added the audio recording and editing features previously available as Record v1.5 . Also in the new version, several creative effects including; the ‘Pulveriser‘, a bit-crushing effect with compression and distortion; ‘The Echo‘, an echo with modern delay and analog tape echo emulation; and the ‘Alligator‘, a three band pattern gate. Combining those elements with it’s already impressive built in sound modules, effects and processors means one thing… watch out Ableton.

From the official Propellerhead press release, “With version 6 Reason reclaims the spotlight. Combining all the features from Record, version 6 adds audio recording and editing into Reason, along with Propellerhead’s acclaimed mixing console with masterfully modeled EQ and dynamics on every channel, multiple parallel racks, all the effects you know and love plus new ones to fall in love with, and much more of what you’ve always wanted in Reason.”

Reason 6 will retail for $449, upgrades from versions 1-5 of Reason will cost $169, and this will all be released on September 30th, 2011. For more information on Reason 6, plus other products and upgrade options, check out http://www.propellerheads.se/products/

by
Lee Jarvis.

Dubspot and Ableton present the LA stop of their “Live 8 U.S. Sessions Tour”
Workshops & Panel Discussions Featuring World-Class Artists
@ King King in Hollywood – Saturday, Nov. 7 and Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009 (daytime)

Dubspot, New York’s premier DJ and electronic music production institute, announces the Los Angeles stop of their Ableton Live 8 U.S. Sessions Tour. This unique series of interactive workshops, Q&As and panel discussions features a diverse pool of world-class artists as well as Dubspot’s top-notch instructors sharing methods for the studio and the stage, centered around the powerful music software Ableton Live 8. Special guest workshop presenters for the Los Angeles weekend include Scientist, Daedelus, Kid Beyond, Justin Boreta, Christopher Willits, Thavius Beck, and Peter Kirn, along with the Dubspot crew. The LA session will be held at King King in Hollywood (6553 Hollywood Blvd / map) on Saturday November 7 (11:00am – 7:00pm) and Sunday November 8 (noon – 8:00pm), 2009. For details and registration please visit www.live8tour.com.

Check out their previous tour stop in NYC, and hear one heck of an endorsement from legendary DJ and producer Richie Hawtin.

This truly unique educational experience is intended to help both aspiring as well as established artists. Each day is organized into five “sessions” designed to develop a diverse range of production and performance skills, while enhancing creative abilities. Saturday sessions focus on production. Sunday sessions focus on performance. Tour workshops showcase how far-reaching the capabilities of Ableton Live 8 are by covering a wide variety of compositional, programming, mixing, and mastering issues. Topics include drum-programming, instrument and effect rack management, sequencing, automation, creating melody, harmonic awareness, mixing and mastering principles, sound stage management, synth programming, PA/DJ hybrid setups, controllers, live instruments in Ableton, efficient set management, looping, routing, licensing, and much more.

The tour involves pioneers of electronic music, along with new blood, to provide a more complete experience and perspective of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. In addition to the special guests lined up in each city, expert Dubspot instructors will present personally developed production and performance strategies in a dynamic interactive workshop environment.

The Los Angeles event is the third stop in a series of Ableton workshops that Dubspot is presenting in 8 U.S. cities. Next up on the tour is Austin, with the event to be held at The Parish Room on November 14th and 15th. Presenters and performers at the Austin event include Francis Preve (Different Pieces, Fap 7), Christopher Willits (Ghostly International, Overlap.org), Daniel Wyatt (Sonica Media Group, Atlantic), Jon Margulies (Heatercore, Hobotech), Barry Cole (Spot Music & Blue Mountain Music Publishing), and Michael Hatsis (Track Team Audio).

Again, the LA session will be held at King King in Hollywood (6553 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028; 323-960-5765 (map)) on Saturday November 7 (11:00am – 7:00pm) and Sunday November 8 (noon – 8:00pm), 2009. A weekend pass costs $195; a Saturday or Sunday day-pass costs $110. For details and registration please visit www.live8tour.com.

For more information on Dubspot, please check out www.dubspot.com

Lee Jarvis.