Check out iMedia on scoring the mobile experience, with insight from Joel Beckerman:
How are these sounds created? Beckerman explains that they take a customer-focused approach, based upon human needs. By putting these needs at the center, they can determine which states of being match with particular sounds.
Roses are red, violets are blue, you want to get laid and we’re here for you!
The perfect song can make or break the mood. Whether you are appreciating a long term beau, celebrating with a new squeeze or just showing yourself some love this Sunday, these custom Valentine’s Day playlists from the Man Made Music team hit all the right notes.
Fall for fresh talent with our New Love mix of emerging artists. Listeners will be impressed by a wide breadth of styles that come together to form a smooth, sexy and contemporary collection.
Everyone remembers their first. Bump-n-grind to over an hour of irresistible throwbacks with Baby Love aka “Songs to Get You Laid”.
xoxo,
Man Made Music
The world lost a rock legend this week, and we at Man Made Music were talking about the impact of Lemmy Kilmister of Motörhead on music, creativity and how we will remember his style, his intensity and his music. We’ve also shared a killer Spotify playlist of our favorite Lemmy moments and moods.
As most of you know, the rock world lost a legend to cancer on Monday. Lemmy Kilmister from Motörhead was 70 years old and the hardest badass rocker I’ve ever seen. They played hard, fast and loud with a wall of Marshalls behind them and Lemmy with his hat, in his quintessential rock stance with his head up growling into the microphone. I saw him for the first time perform live on the ’80s British TV show, The Young Ones, which aired on MTV back in the day. I knew he was a badass but to see him perform was a whole new experience and I wanted more. I needed to experience it in person. I needed to feel my ears bleed, my heart race and my body vibrate. The last time was in 2009 in NYC at Roseland, which is also no longer around (seems to be a trend). They did not disappoint. It was just as good as the first time. It’s the end of an era. Rest in peace, Lemmy.
– Kim Paster, SVP, Operations
Listening to Motörhead triggers a very distinct adrenaline rush that I don’t get from other rock or metal music – especially any rock music that’s been produced within the last 10 to 15 years. The best way to describe the feeling is to imagine riding shotgun in an old beat-up car with a reckless (possibly inebriated) driver. You’re going too fast and taking each corner with a death wish – yet you deep down know that you’re not going to crash – this wild driver, this old car, they’ve been driving this road for decades and haven’t crashed yet. So fuck it – live a little and trust Lemmy to get you to wherever the ride takes you.
There was a looseness to their playing. Recording to a “click” wasn’t important, nor were flashy tricks in virtuosity or slick record production. What you got was pure, raw rock and roll. We’ve lost these types of records. These were made before the volume wars, making recordings “appear” as loud as possible. “Ace of Spades” makes you want to turn your stereo up as loud as it goes. Try it sometime and see what happens. The loss of Lemmy means something to the history of Rock and Roll. As we try to perfect, package and sell “true authenticity”, remember that sometimes real authenticity comes with raw edges and a sense of reckless abandon.
– Dan Venne, SVP/Group Creative Director, Lead Producer
Image courtesy of Wikipedia
As we head into 2016, people are more connected to their media and technology than ever before and the Man Made Music team has been busy crafting the sound of the technology and experiences we can’t imagine our lives without. From the iconic tones of AT&T ringing on smartphones around the world to the new anthem for CBS’ coverage of the upcoming election cycle and even a brand new IMAX pre-movie countdown, sonic identities and experiences crafted by MMM are all around us. To honor this productive and exciting year, we decided to talk with pros from all reaches of the Man Made Music team about their favorite trends from 2015, and what is on the horizon for next year.
2015 Insights
Cutting the cable cord
2015 marked the beginning of the full streaming takeover. “A rise of streaming platforms coming into the market, as well as increased opportunities for offline viewing, has led to a whole new world of media, and advertisers are already being folded into the process.” (Andrew Einbinder, Assistant Account Executive for Brand Partnership) We are now able to gain, and always expect, access to content we want, whenever we want it on any device.
How have companies been aligning their use of sound with this new era of “always on, always with access”? For Jack In The Box, this millennial-centric trend was a perfect match to their restaurant’s 24/7 availability. When designing the sonic experience of the food chain, Man Made Music proposed using a day-parted playlist; an ever-flowing and changing rotation to match the restaurant’s shifting energy and needs throughout the day. For example, allowing room for dinner chatter in the evening or using upbeat and exciting rhythms during lunch to keep the guests moving, without feeling rushed.
Finding the universality in “niche” ideas
New media platforms have created more access points for media creators and opened up space for a wider array of content. “Whether it’s Amazon or Netflix taking chances on shows that traditional networks would consider too risky, or artists speaking their minds, blurring genres & forming unexpected creative alliances outside of their comfort zones… nobody needs to ask permission anymore.” (Amy Crawford, Producer)
One of our favorite trending topics this year: Process As Entertainment. “Examples: Sonic Highways, Foo Fighters documentary about recording studios, PJ Harvey having fans paying to watch her ideate, write and record her new album, 3D printing in general.” (Kristen Lueck, Senior Strategist, Culture and Innovation)
Designing immersive touchpoints using all five senses
As these platforms become more omnipresent there is the desire for it to become more transparent, intuitive, or human depending on the interaction – people expect more from the experience. “Experiences are no longer just tapping into one or two of your senses. Experience creators from restaurants to retail now think about the entire experience from touch to taste to smell to feel and of course to hearing and audio. It’s very much about multi-sensory interaction!” (Maya Friedman, Account Executive)
This year, Man Made Music helped IMAX rise to meet these heightened expectations with a new movie countdown, the “World’s Biggest Bass Drop”. This immersive audio experience pulls viewers in and jumpstarts a thrilling adventure before the movie even begins, highlighting how seeing a film at an IMAX movie is far different than simply going to the movies.
Automated voice becoming significantly more important
Another approach has been giving devices themselves a voice. Companies like Apple finally brought voice automation up to speed, making it a useful, reliable feature rather than a party trick. “Siri and similar AI assistance came into their own this year. These were a little clunky and hard to use in the past but now they have emerged as very effective tools.” (Jon Anderson, Producer)
In short, the theme of 2015 has been personalization. “Everything is about understanding the user and making a personal experience for them. Spotify — calculate your pace and they’ll pick the right track for you. Custom Converse: Can you design a better sneaker than Patti Smith? The user is in control — and I love it!” (Maya Friedman)
Now that the connection between human and machine is constant, we expect brands to adapt to our activities, predict our preferences and even talk to us. So what innovations are in store for 2016?
Further blurring of the lines between human and machine
Where streaming has allowed people to customize their experience with video and music, wearable devices and biometrics will help us customize the way we experience daily life. “From touch to speech, to gesture and eventually thought (see NeuroSky and similar technologies already used for decades in military applications) biometrics will become increasingly used for identification and for all kinds of purchases.” (Joel Douek, West Coast Creative Director and Chief Scientist)
Virtual Reality will become increasingly mainstream and varied in its use
The rise of VR is the trend we are most excited for in 2016 and it’s time for sound to take center stage in bringing this tech to the next level.
“The rise of VR is huge. Not a conference goes by these days where it’s not a focus. But Virtual Reality is currently virtual vision — to truly reach reality, the sound experience needs to be drastically improved and refined.” (Lauren McGuire, SVP, Managing Director)
“I’m so impressed by the New York Time’s new VR app and its first news story ‘The Displaced.’ To use VR beyond entertainment — and to extend it into education — has a lot of power to do good.” (Amy Crawford)
“For creative story tellers of any kind, the technology to do that work will finally be here. We are finally going to use technology in a compelling way; interactive storytelling, augmented reality, group games. We will finally be able to say, ‘Wow, this is so much better than anything that could be done in any other medium.'” (Jon Anderson)
“I am reminded of the first time a moving image of a train coming towards the screen was shown to audiences at the end of the 19th century — the viewers got up and ran away in fear. Our current reactions to VR are similarly surprised and disjointed, but we will likely accept it as a new form of enhanced media once the novelty subsides, and we will experience much of our visual and audio entertainment in the VR space.” (Joel Douek)
The cloud will be king
Huge leaps like we’ve seen in 2015 and the predicted innovations for 2016 will require new space and speed to keep up. This will be true “for music as much as any other data, and more of our apps will also be hosted online rather than on hard drives. In 2016 and beyond, new forms of computing, including quantum computing will radically change the speed and manner of data processing, and artificial intelligence will rear its autonomous head.” (Joel Douek)
Children will stop simply experiencing devices and start learning how to program them
In 2016, “coding becomes a school curriculum requirement, and more kids are inventing and building things than ever before. Basically everything from littleBits is on my holiday wish list this year.” (Amy Crawford)
What do all of these insights mean for the future? Huge innovations in technology enabling constant access to a mass of media growing at exponential rates will create a lot of extra noise for consumers and listeners. How can companies rise above the din? Our prediction: sonic identity will become even more vital in establishing the multisensory experiences and emotional connections that make brands stand out from the crowd, and Man Made Music is excited to be at the leading edge of sonic strategy. Happy New Year!
If you’re like us, you’re already a bit sick of holiday music. We’ve got an alternative for you — a DJ set with your favorite guilty pleasure tracks. So tune out the mall madness and Christmas radio. Belt out a chorus to spread some non-holiday cheer. You’re welcome.
Spotify Playlist + Track Listing
Man Made Music was inspired to craft a theme for CBS News’ presidential election coverage that embodied the concept of A New Beginning.
Brimming with anticipation and excitement, the theme takes the listener on a journey that touches on the many types of stories encountered on the campaign trail, from personal struggle and persistence to triumph.
We’re honoring the sound and prestige of the CBS News tradition, but at the same time taking a fresh look at our traditional notions of a presidential soundtrack — 2016 is about being modern and unexpected, inspiring to cut footage to, but definitely not bombastic or over the top.
CBS and Man Made Music in the news
USA Today: Orchestrating the election at CBS
Most of us take our sense of hearing for granted, but these moving videos of humans hearing for the first time in their lives compel us to take a step back and appreciate the wonder of this natural ability. From a 7-week-old baby boy with hearing loss to a 40-year-old woman who suffered all her life from Usher’s Syndrome, you can witness the very moment when their worlds begin to change dramatically.
Whether a person’s first time hearing is later in their years or early in their development, these videos show us that the ability to hear is a true gift that can move and astound us.
Image courtesy of YouTube
The solution to blocking out annoying and distracting noise? Adding more sound. Try these white noise and, softer, pink noise tracks to enhance focus or fall asleep.
White Noise
Use this playlist to stay focused. By blocking out the distractions around you – you’ll see a noticeable difference in the quantity and quality of work you can achieve.
Pink Noise
When I have trouble falling asleep I use pink noise for an uninterrupted rest. Experience pink noise for yourself using this playlist.
Whether you’re getting pumped up for the big game, trying to hit a deadline or drifting off to sleep; what you are listening to can have a profound effect on how you are feeling. Try these playlists to suit or shift your mood.
Be Optimistic
Enjoy this playlist full of uplifting and enlightening songs!
Be Calm
Tested on a wide awake wisdom teeth surgery and a last minute presentation prep, if you’re stressed, answering emails at home late at night this list is perfect. Genre free and roaming it is designed to put you at ease and let your brain wander.
Be Creative
Designed to create new brain connections this playlist is perfect background music for a group brainstorm with medium tempo and interesting textures. Brings energy to the room without creative distractions.
Be Productive
Get it done — minimalist, progressive rock, the kind of beat that keeps you moving without the distractions. The prefect background music to keep you focused on the path forward.
Be Motivated
The kind of anthemic songs you need to encourage you to put your best foot forward. You can rule the world with this intense playlist.
Be Inspired
Full of positivity with an upbeat tempo and organic instrumentation this list is designed to inspire.
Be Active
For a work-out, a pre-game, prepping for a confrontation — this playlist is all about getting your blood pumping and adrenaline flowing with intense tracks.
How Hospital Noise Can Sabotage Care
Hospitals are a place you go to heal, but their sonic environments can hurt your healing process. Beeping alarms intended to alert workers to emergencies are occurring too often and too loudly. This leads to stress among patients, and healthcare workers are becoming so desensitized that critical alarms are often ignored or silenced. Known as “Alarm Fatigue”, this worsening problem results in hundreds of deaths annually in the US alone. How can hospitals turn down the volume and tune into the needs of their patients?
