In 1969, Cary Raditz, a recent graduate of the University of North Carolina, quit his job in advertising and headed to Europe to bum around with his girlfriend. They ended up in Matala, on the island of Crete, where they found a bunch of hippies living in a network of caves. Raditz soon decamped for…

Apple is in a music-streaming arms race. It’s getting closer to 50m paying music subscribers worldwide, but remains approximately 39m behind Spotify’s premium global user-base. Does Apple’s acquisition of Shazam hold the potential to help launch it towards pole position? The significance of the $400m buyout was meaty enough for European Commission regulators to launch an in-depth…

A mind-bending new suit straps onto your torso, ankles and wrists, then uses actuators to translate audio into vivid vibration. The result: a new way for everyone to experience music, according to its creators. That’s especially exciting for people who have trouble hearing. The Music: Not Impossible suit was created by design firm Not Impossible…

Spotify has teamed with Ancestry.com to offer users playlists based on their own DNA. By signing up through the genealogy company, you can trace your family history and input results to Spotify. It’ll then generate a playlist based on your family tree and listening habits. The program will “encourage [Ancestry’s] audience to explore the soundtrack of…

By 2008, album leaks were considered inevitable. Labels not only prepared for the worst, they wholeheartedly expected it, strategizing more about how best to mitigate the negative aspects of a leak rather than to prevent it altogether. Sites like MediaFire, Megaupload, The Pirate Bay, DC++, what.cd, and many more became forces to reckon with as…

Spotify got the entire music business talking last week with the news that it has started offering artists the opportunity to directly distribute their material on the platform – without the requirement for a third-party aggregator or record label. So… what’s the deal? Why might an independent artist choose to strike a direct distribution agreement…

If you love the convenience of Bluetooth headsets but don’t want to look like you’re stuck in 2007, you’re in luck: there might soon be a new headset in town. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) just agreed to spend roughly $10 million to start field testing and deploying the Molar Mic, a device that’s similar…

There are two pairs of high-top sneakers resting on the floor. One is  glittery and color-blocked, the other is ratty and worn, straight out of a Ramones album cover. Both belong to Claire Cottrill, who is rifling through a batch of bright outfits inside a Brooklyn photo studio. While applying glitter eyeshadow, the 19-year-old explains…

An all-star lineup of musicians, songwriters, and executives have penned a letter to SiriusXM Radio parent company Liberty Media threatening to boycott the company over its opposition to a copyright law with wide support in the music industry. Paul McCartney, Don Henley, Stevie Nicks, Katy Perry, Charlie Puth, Tom Waits, Carole King, Carly Simon, Pink,…