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Spotify Launches Traditional Television Ad Campaign This Week

Spotify is launching its first-ever advertising campaign this week, with an ad debuting tonight during NBC's premiere of its new season of The Voice, hoping to capitalize on music fans who haven't yet made the leap to streaming music services. The three initial ads are heavy on emotion and slow-mo ... More >>

Find Your Next Meal with the New Version of the Houston Press Mobile App

If you're one of the many Houstonians who have already downloaded the Houston Press mobile app you know just how handy it is to have the Press with you wherever you have your smartphone. Today we're happy to announce that we're taking things up a notch with the new and improved version of our mobil ... More >>

Brand New Version Of The Houston Press Mobile App Available Now

If you're one of the many Houstonians that has already downloaded the Houston Press mobile app you know just how handy it is to have the Press with you wherever you have your smartphone. Today we're happy announce that we're taking things up a notch with the new and improved version of our mobile ap ... More >>

Get Your Mobile Concert Listings With the New Version of the Houston Press Mobile App

If you're one of the many Houstonians that has already downloaded the Houston Press mobile app you know just how handy it is to have the Press with you wherever you have your smartphone. Today we're happy announce that we're taking things up a notch with the new and improved version of our mobile ap ... More >>

Special Year-End Edition: How Can I Get My Mexican Neighbor to Turn His Music Down?

And a special gracias from your favorite Mexican!

Rusko

Is One Halfway Decent Thanksgiving Pop Song Too Much to Ask For?

Not so long ago, Rocks Off was wondering why there has never been a decent pop song about Thanksgiving. Not despairing, just wondering. Apart from all the complete shite, you could fill an entire wing of your iTunes library with quality tunes about Thankgiving's yuletide neighbor, but Turkey Day its ... More >>

A Quiet Moment With the Very Loud B L A C K I E

See also Craig Hlavaty's review of B L A C K I E's new album GEN. To go with the Houston Press Music Awards issue, this week's feature story is a profile of B L A C K I E (all caps, with spaces), a noise musician that's a little too rap to be classified as a noise musician and way noisy to be class ... More >>

Houston Music Showcase: A Semi-Talk With B L A C K I E

See also Craig Hlavaty's review of B L A C K I E's new album GEN. This week brings us the Houston Press Music Awards and the feature story is a profile of B L A C K I E (all caps, with spaces), a noise musician that's a little too rap to be classified as a noise musician and way noisy to be classi ... More >>

App of the Week: NOAA Hi-Def Radar's Tracks Rain, Hurricanes and More

App: NOAA Hi-Def Radar Platform: iPhone Website: Apple Store Cost: $1.99 Anyone who knows me or reads my posts on this blog (thanks, mom!) knows I am a bit of a weather nerd and by that I mean I am a serious weather nerd. I've ranked and reviewed numerous weather apps and have an entire folder on m ... More >>

Rules for Dating

Linus Pauling Quartet

App of the Week: Use Your iPhone Camera to Scan Documents with TurboScan

App: TurboScan Platform: iPhone Website: Pixoft Support Cost: $1.99 I think I've said in this column 100 times that something every app should focus on when it came to features is simplicity. It's one thing to have software filled with options and complications when it is on a computer sitting on a ... More >>

A Slew Of New Houston Rap MP3s That Don't Suck

Here's a story. Back in late April, early May I had to fight through the most unwanted thing to anyone who owns a Macbook: A hard-drive fail. I'm sure we can curse Steve Jobs, Siri and the rest for making those short-ass chargers, but there's more headache than need be with a hard drive fail. So I ... More >>

The CD-R Turns 15 Years Old: A Blessing Or A Curse?

This year marks 15 years since recordable compact disc technology trickled down to the public at large. Before this, cassette tapes were all the rage for dubbing, recording, and other at-home use. The MiniDisc format made a go of it previously in the '90s, but it wasn't until companies like Memorex ... More >>

The Death Of The Greatest-Hits Album: Should We Be Sad?

There was a time when platinum albums didn't exist. An album might sell a million units, but there was no name for that accomplishment. It wasn't until 1976 that they gave that honor a label. The first album to be awarded platinum status? Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975) by the Eagles. That ended up ... More >>

Save Yourself: The 10 Worst Online Retailers

Ads like this are the only reason to visit AmericanApparel.com...if you like that sort of thing​It's frustrating enough to shop for friends and family members during the holidays. Do I get my 80-year-old aunt a gift card to Kroger or H-E-B? Decisions, decisions. Unfortunately, some online mer ... More >>

12 Music Business Predictions for 2012

Photo by Robert Bejil​Where were we? Oh yeah, crystal ball and prophesies. You ready for this? OK. What follows is a list of events we expect to befall the music industry in 2012. Yes, these are etched in stone and should be regarded as gospel. Full prophetic titillation ahead.

Best Of... App Gets a High-Five From iTunes

​It's the end of the year, which means lots of best-of lists, and we're happy to announce that our own Best Of... app made the iTunes 2011 Rewind's list off best travel apps. The app, which was released in March, contains all of the Best of Houston winners, as well as winners from our sister ... More >>

Is Spotify Ripping off Artists?

​Spotify made one hell of an entrance in July. Swedish-founded and U.K.-headquartered, Spotify arrived the States three months ago to adoring fans. Like a new bride, glowing in the light, flashing that pizza smile logo at us. Everyone wanted a piece of the sexy digital jukebox. Now that the ve ... More >>

My Five Most Indispensable Music Technologies

Previously the pinnacle of music technology...and pure awesomeness.​I started listening to music on vinyl way back in biblical times and things seemed just fine. CDs came along and made hauling around music somewhat easier and, once you got past the crispy clarity, the music sounded pretty dam ... More >>

5 Ways Apple Revolutionized the Music Industry

No other company has changed the music industry as much as Apple. For the better part of the last decade, the late Steve Jobs and his co-conspirators have empowered music consumers in ways no one would have ever imagined. The monstrous iTunes store made it possible for anybody to buy music without ... More >>

Jay-Z & Kanye West Bringing The Throne To Houston October 26

​This morning Live Nation announced that Jay-Z and Kanye West, two rappers you may have heard of, will bring their brand-new group The Throne's "Watch The Throne" tour to Toyota Center October 26. Rocks Off applauds the duo for reigniting mass interest in Otis Redding via their single, "Otis, ... More >>

Apple's iCloud and Cloud Computing: 10 Key Questions Answered

Apple's iCloud service was introduced June 6​The Apple World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) keynote address -- the way Steve Jobs and crew announce new initiatives to fanboys (and girls) -- was even more anticipated than usual this year, so much so that Jobs made a special appearance despite ... More >>

Prince Royce

The Beatles: Are They Too Late For iTunes?

​This morning the Beatles and Apple announced, rather quietly, that the band was officially on the iTunes roster of artists, joining millions of others with their thirteen albums. In a statement to the press this morning, Apple chief Steve Jobs said, "We love the Beatles and are honored and ... More >>

iPod: Happy Anniversary, You Little Devil

Can somebody please tell us what the hell Firewire is? Nine years ago today - November 10, 2001 - Apple unveiled a new kind of MP3 player known as an iPod. About the size of a deck of cards, the device contained five gigabytes of memory, enough for about 1,000 songs, and cost $400. Four. Hundred. ... More >>

The Eight Stupidest iPhone Music Apps

​Apple's foray into the social-network field failed big-time last month with the release of Ping, the iTunes-linked program that promised to connect you to your favorite artists, as long as your favorite artist is Justin Bieber. When it comes to iTunes, we at Rocks Off are a discerning sort. ... More >>

Grum's "Through The Night" Is One Rad Buddy-Cop Bromance

Every day Rocks Off trolls the tubes of you in search of videos to share. If you have something that you think deserves to be video of the day, send a link to jef_rouner at yahoo dot com. ​Your daily VJ has been using the phrase "homoerotic undertones" since the fourth grade, and we have the ... More >>

Whoa, Whoa: The Situation Releases New Single In Time For Rich's Gig

Truly a thing of beauty.​Remember when you were a kid and you would mix all the fountain sodas together into one monstrosity of a drink called a "Suicide" (or whatever it was called where you're from). As an adult you probably realize that the end result was something less-than-greater than th ... More >>

"Record Store Day 2010" With Freddie Steady Five, Grandfather Child, sIngs

Melissa Savcic, Not Jessica Alba But Both Band And Kickboxing Singer-Songwriter

Each Wednesday, Rocks Off arbitrarily appoints one lucky local performer or group "Artist of the Week," bestowing upon them all the fame and grandeur such a lofty title implies. Know a band or artist that isn't awful? Email their particulars to sheaserrano@gmail.com.​The other day President Obama* ... More >>

Our Decade In iTunes, Ol' Dirty Bastard Through the Fleshtones and Good Ol' Morrissey

​Maybe the biggest evolution in music this decade has been the availability of online downloads, starting with Napster and ending with half a dozen legitimately - licensed venues for purchasing music over the tubes. Rocks Off will admit it. Back in the day, we were illegal downloaders. Waiting 20 ... More >>

Friday Night Noise: Dangerous Live Tracks from Richard Ramirez and Dead Machines

Richard Ramirez, "Removal Off...(Live)" ​Now this is the sort of noise that plasters a big dumb 'ol smile on Friday Night Noise's normally dour mug. How can you hate this sort of stuff, this all-over-the-place, sliding-around-in-oil roar where the crud flies here and there with absolutely no s ... More >>

Are MP3s and Downloading Eroding Music's Communal Properties?

​ Although Rocks Off had every intention of rambling about something different this week, we thought it would be a lost opportunity to not examine an issue that seems to have been revealed by readers' responses last week. Although many fantastic points were made, we were fascinated to detect that ... More >>

Straight from the Sole: Houston's Best Metal Bands

You know Soledad. He's the vocalist from controversial Houston rap-metal act Daylight Coma. He's got a lot to say. Sometimes it's insightful, sometimes less so, but it's almost always said with conviction. This week, in honor of the fast-approaching HPMA, we asked him who he thinks are Houston's fiv ... More >>

Byte This

Consumers try hawking "old" digital music files through new Web sites.

Post-Valentine's Day Relationship Rescue Songs

Dwight McCannSo Valentine's Day is over, and you spent all your dough on Cupid swag for that special sweetie, which hopefully bought your way out of the doghouse for the time being. But if not, Casanova, your Rocks Off homies still have your back - provided you have an iTunes account. Sentime ... More >>

Meiko

Digitalia: iTunes' Top Holiday Songs

The holiday season is a time to enjoy favorite pastimes like expanding your credit-card debt, eating way too much food, and arguing with your relatives. And of course, there's the best staple of them all: butchering holiday jingles. Never finding a song they didn't want to shill, iTunes offers an e ... More >>

Download: Pimp C, 1973-2007

Pop Numerology: How High Can You Go?

Give Us a Hand

This Just In: We Are Doomed

I Want My MP3

Explain Your Most Played

DISConnect

Sales of CDs are falling faster than you can say iPod

Phat Promises for 2007

New Year's resolutions of the stars

Hip-hop as She Is Rapped

Translating the German Wikipedia entries of Houston's top MCs

So, What Is It?