GREG GIRALDO DEAD AT 44

Right now, it is being said that he died of an accidental overdose of prescription medication. Whatever the case, many will miss Greg's comedy. He was a regular on comedy central celebrity roasts and he was never off of his game.

You don't have to look very hard to see that he was well liked as a person. Even though he was an insult comic, he left people with a good feeling. Here's a link to a performance clip.

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/0eba527cea/greg-giraldo-is-the-best?=twitter

THE KING OF ROCK AND ROLL

Ok it's Stephen King but still, this creepy old guy manages to stay relevant. Recently in Entertainment Weekly, he wrote about music. He grew up in a small town that got only one radio station. Worse yet, that station played a lot of Perry Como. As pop and rock slipped in to the playlist, King found his bony feet moving to the new sound of Jerry Lee Lewis. The young geek's life was transformed.

Though EW held him to one page in the mag, which must have been tough for the high priest of blabbity blab, he managed to make good points without going all "The Stand" on us. One in particular says it all. "The best rock isn't about thinking, but about being on fire and delighted to burn".

Well said Mr. King, now get back to your IBM selectric and write something that will give us all emotionally damaging, horrible nightmares.

OCTOBER IS JIMI HENDRIX MONTH ON FIREPOWER

For the debut of our artist spotlight category,we featured Rush. In August, we published inspired pieces throughout the month so you would have a nice pile of goodies to work with the next time a Rush project makes its way to your in box.

Coming in October, we'll feature Jimi Hendrix. While gathering up all things Hendrix, we came across this Vanity Fair article that discusses the less public side of Jimi. It was written by a woman who got to know him while writing an article for Rolling Stone.

http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2010/09/remembering-jimi-hendrixs-vulnerable-side.html

YES, WHAT YOU DO IS ART

Music, production, sound design, sweepers, promos, even legal id's. All art. It helps to not think of your audio projects as "noise making" or "knob fiddling" even though your parents may call it that.

If you're creative, you should treat your projects like you treat your mint condition Star Wars collectibles. We found an inspirational quote about producing that sums it up nicely. The quote is from a dude we don't know quoting another dude we don't know so you know it's profound. It goes like dis...

"Greatness in art depends solely on how much love you put in to a work. You put it in, it pays you back, your friends back, and everyone who listens. Moral of this lesson. Never take mixing and mastering lightly."

Sure, sometimes you have to run out on a piece because happy hour drink specials don't last forever and your friends never remember to save you any jalepeno poppers. We've all been there. If your like most people though, true masterpieces don't come out of that scene. The good stuff oozes from long sessions populated by copious amounts of pizza, red bull and a sequestering from the public that rivals the O.J. jury.

WHY YOU DON'T HAVE A BIG CONSOLE

The first two reasons you don't own a monster console are price and space. But when you think about it, you don't really need a dining room and big consoles can be found used for less than some control surfaces. So now what's stoppin' ya'? After all, every major audio genius is working on one and they all they say nothing beats 'em for sound.

The one thing nobody tells you is what it costs to run juice through that big bucket of knobs. Some producers report electric bills of several thousand dollars a month. That includes outboard gear as well but, you get the idea.

WATCHING TRENDS

If you don't have your trend radar running 24/7 you can miss some premium pop culture blunders that are great fodder for today's promos/sweepers and in ten years when you're looking back on today.

For example, did this high heel tennis shoe thing show up on your late 1990s radar?

Here's a blurb on these fashion wannabes from http://shoes.lovetoknow.com/High_Heel_Tennis_Shoes...

"It's amazing what a pair of high heel tennis shoes can do to transform a look from sporty to sassy. This unusual style had its heyday back in the late 1990s, when platform styles made a huge comeback and every type of shoe imaginable was treated to an exaggerated heel. Today, they might be less common, but they're still every bit as fun as they once were."

WHAT DOES THAT PLUG REALLY DO?

So, they make cheeseburger flavored Doritos now. Some people think they're gross while others plow through the bag like there are diamonds at the bottom. Different folks like different flavors, it's that simple.

Same goes for plugs. There are dozens of equalizers on the market and most have their own unique flavor. When you demo a plug, you should be trying to figure out the properties of that flavor.

There's a lot more to consider than presets and interfaces when shopping for your next audio twister. Developers have burned a lot of calories writing code to differentiate their products and you can benefit by building your arsenal based on specific characteristics that you want or need.

Some eq's are more musical than others. Some compressors are good for drums but not so great on other tracks. Some limiters create more artifacts than others. Before you buy another plug ask yourself if you know the properties of the plugs you already own. It may sound geeky but, why not go try 'em out on different projects and make some notes.

MILK WAS A BAD CHOICE

Today was a good day. We secured our 12 pack of Ron Burgundy collectible trading cards. They come with the Rich Mahogany Edition of Anchorman that's out on blu-ray. Along with the trading cards, it includes Wake Up Ron Burgundy which is the extra movie that was made from unused scenes, out takes and alternate story lines of the original. Bubble gum not included with trading cards. Bummer.

MACHETE THE MOVIE

We can't wait to see this flick! The cast alone is pulling us toward the theater to pay way too much for popcorn and 98 ounce drinks. Hey, Lindsay Lohan stayed out of prison and rehab long enough to play a nun in this little masterpiece.

We were cruising the Machete website today and found a section where you can chop and post custom photos. Someone apparently is not a Steven Segal fan and the proof is in this piece of art pictured above. Give the guy a break, he was married to Kelly LeBrock. He's had it tough.

NEW SOUNDGARDEN ALBUM SEPT. 28

For the first time in about 13 years, Soundgarden have reaffirmed their commitment to not getting nice jobs at the DMV like their parents wanted them too and have pushed out another record. That's cool and all but, it gets better. The disc will be distributed with Guitar Hero Warriors of Rock. Reports are that it's the first time something like this has been done.

IT'S A SHILLER!

Can you tell the difference between the 3 band eq from one company and a similar 3band eq from another? A lot of people can't. It's confusing and companies that make audio gear know it. Competition is heavier than ever in the gear universe and that has led to some greasy behavior.

It's not uncommon to see a video on youtube from a respectable, professional producer that mentions specific gear used in a recording. It's an independent producer so, you think this person is being cool and honest by posting this vid about an audio technique. What you don't know is that sometimes, a producer has a relationship with a particular company and pushes their gear in his "instructional" videos almost exclusively. Beware when someone says "we did a mic shootout and picked this one because it sounded best". Could be legit...could be someone shilling in exchange for free gear or cash.

Keep your bull**** detector in good working order when you go to a free event, sponsored by an audio company. Often, the panelists for a seminar happen to agree the sponsor's gear is the best.

Most of us know enough to give the stink eye to paid endorsements. That guy wearing the lab coat in the tv commercial isn't a real doctor and we get it. Today he wants you to eat healthy and exercise while tomorrow he'll be telling you to get down to Taco Explosion for the 12pack meal deal. Of course, he'll be sans lab coat.

The regular guy nature of youtube and other sites is blurring the line between info and advertising in a new way. Old concept sure but, new way to chrome plate it.

When it comes to gear, the best beta test comes from those two chunks of cartilage on the sides of your head. If you don't trust your own ears, don't be too quick to pick up on skanky internet advice.