Your computer is a powerful piece of technology, and it usually has a lot of storage space on it, enough to store band discographies that you’ve never even listened to one track off of. Your phone and tablet are great mobile devices, but they’re also great for listening to music and watching videos while at home. So, you’re sitting on your couch or laying in bed, and want to listen to that one album from that band that you’ve never really listened to all the way through. However, you’re too lazy to get up to your computer to actually put it on there. Or maybe you downloaded season 5 of Breaking Bad but your storage space is best measured in kilobyes, not gigabytes. If only there was a way to stream the media from iTunes to your iOS device!

Well, there is, and it’s called iTunes Home Streaming. This streams media from an iTunes library over a local wi-fi network to any iOS device.

Set it up on iTunes first. Log in with the Apple ID of your choosing – it’s best if this is the same Apple ID that was initially set up on the device, and is logged in to iCloud, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be. To manage the Apple ID that is logged in to Home Sharing, go to Settings -> Music or Video and tap Apple ID.

To access music from a local iTunes library, go to the Music app. Tap More, Shared, the name of your iTunes library (configurable from iTunes’s preferences), and then the standard music listings will instead show what is available from the remote library, which can then stream the music to your iOS device.

Now here’s the kicker: it also works for video. As long as the video in the iTunes library is compatible with iOS, then it will play. DRM-protected content purchased from iTunes plays back via Home Sharing too. These videos can also be streamed from AirPlay to an Apple TV. It’s the ultimate in high technology being used for new levels of laziness.

Now, the only real downside to Home Sharing is that it only works over local wi-fi. There are plenty of ways to stream music and video over the internet, but that would fill up a completely different article. Until then, enjoy using thousands of dollars of technology to stream video to TV without getting up to your computer.

Regular commuters will know that driving can get pretty dull and tedious. Sure, you can turn the radio on but even that can turn uninteresting after a time. What you need is a sense of being part of an epic adventure, right? In which case, backing Mission: Escape might be exactly what you’re after.

Currently in development and in need of Kickstarter backers, Mission: Escape is the brainchild of Fernando Macias-Jimenez. Recently graduated from the California State University in Chico, California, Fernando is a young composer with a passion for writing music to a set scene.

Recently, while driving through Chico and listening to David Arnold’s Quantum of Solace soundtrack, he realised something.

“I was driving about 30 miles per hour and I was pretty much alone in the street, yet the music suddenly gave me this rush of thrill and made me feel like I was in an action movie, with people chasing me and so on. The feeling was so vivid that it made me say out loud to myself “wow, that was awesome”. A few days later I though, “wouldn’t it be awesome to have something that would take that feeling one step further and REACT to how you are driving so that the music doesn’t seem arbitrary and generic, but customized to what you are doing at the moment?”"

Fernando then joined together with others and came up with some great ideas and features, eventually leading to the creation of Mission: Escape.

The music is set to be 100% original with the focus on being “very epic” and “very fun”. The app will react according to situations such as if you’re waiting at a stop light, it’ll turn calm and serene, while once acceleration kicks in, the music will turn more cinematic and exciting. Sound effects of enemies and messages from “home base” will also be included. It sounds thrilling but what of the safety aspect? Surely, it could turn things risky?

Fernando explains, “The speed limit is definitely a big one since it’s the most obvious to cause problems. This also happens to be one of the “easier” ones to implement to some extent. Others, such as overtaking, are a bit more difficult to determine. However, we are trying to develop a security system that will try to gauge if the driver is driving recklessly and will advice the user to stop doing so or it will shut down the application. The way we would do this would be by detecting aggressive actions such as harsh acceleration, hard stopping, extra sharp turning or movement (changing lanes too fast), among other things. The iPhone will easily give us information when a user is doing something like that. The only thing to do is to create a balance point so that the security system only works when the user is actually driving recklessly and not because of something else,” with the plan for plenty of testing and development to ensure it works well and in the right scenario.

Fernando was also keen to point out that safety will take priority alongside such exciting thrills.

It all sounds pretty intriguing to me and certainly an unique way of using such technology. Check out the Hands-on demo video below as well as the Mission: Escape Kickstarter page. We’ll be sure to keep an eye on the app’s development.

Michael Jackson may be gone, but if Michael Jackson The Experience is any indication, it seems that his music and his legacy will be with us forever. After showing up on every platform from the Wii to the PSP to the iPad, Ubisoft’s rhythm game tribute to the world’s favorite smooth criminal has now arrived on the iPhone. Luckily, this mobile version comes with a few new reasons for players to not stop until they get enough.

While the game retains the iPad version’s rhythm gameplay, the input system where players “draw a series of shapes with their fingers according to the beat and choreography of the Michael Jackson avatar” has been adapted for the smaller screen. The game also includes two new, exclusive songs: “Leave Me Alone” and “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough.” The rest of the soundtrack consists of “The Way You Make Me Feel,” “Smooth Criminal,” “Speed Demon,” and “Blood on the Dance Floor.” More songs can also be purchased in-game.

Remember the time, on the go. Michael Jackson The Experience for iPhone is available now for $2.99 on the App Store.

$2.99

Michael Jackson The Experience

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-08-09 :: Category: Games

Mumford & Sons, one of my favorite bands, has an official app, of course, this being the age of the smartphone.

Users can read up-to-date news from the band and check out posts from signed-up members of the app as well as from the band itself. Gentleman of the Road users can also find upcoming shows and venues, read posts from Mumford & Sons’ Facebook page, see profiles of other members of the app, and then browse and (obviously) buy music from within the app, though it only links straight to the iTunes Music store.

In addition, there’s a music player which will scan your iPhone for Mumford & Sons tracks you already own. Users can also write messages and include audio, video, photos in them, ostensibly to share Mumford & Sons concerts and sightings in real life.

Posts can be rated and then sorted with rating, highest viewed, and newest posts filters in the Wall and News sections, both accessed on the bottom tab bar.

Gentlemen of the Road is free, out now, and available in the App Store. If you’re any kind of Mumford & Sons fan, you should probably check it out right now.

FREE!

Gentlemen Of The Road

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-07-25 :: Category: Music

Music fans should appreciate new live music discovery app, Thrillcall.

The app offers the means in which to search for, discover and purchase concert tickets and other exclusive offers, all in the space of a few clicks.

Users can check out the latest music listings for major cities, as well as browse and buy local show offers that only appear briefly. These show offers give users exclusive access to some of the best concerts out there. Users, unfamiliar with certain acts, can listen to audio previews of artists to see if it suits their taste.

In each case, it’s possible to share live music offerings with friends so it’s simple to arrange an impromptu night out to check out new gigs. A built-in map, also, ensures it’s clear to see exactly where each live event happens to be located.

The flash concert offers are only currently available in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York, but it’ll be spreading to Chicago and Seattle soon.

Thrillcall is out now and is free to download.

FREE!

Thrillcall Live Music

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-02-15 :: Category: Lifestyle

Plenty of people dream of becoming musicians but few realize just how hard that life can be. To break through, aspiring musicians must not only be good at their art but also know the right people so they can have a chance to show off just how good they are. With Musicr, musicians are now able to connect and share with each other like never before.

The app is basically a social network for musicians. Users can search for fellow artists with whatever skills they are looking for. Whether it’s a local drummer to help fill out a jazz band or someone to explain just how an accordion works, users can connect with them on Musicr. Amateur rock stars can also showcase their own talents and share how far they are progressing in their careers through text, photos, or other social networks. It’s all about bringing performers together so that they can give each other much needed help and exposure.

Make some new musical friends and be a part of the world wide jam session. Musicr is available now for free on the App Store.

FREE!

BandFriend - The Musicians Network

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-07-25 :: Category: Social Networking

Looking for some fellow musicians to jam with? Or perhaps it’s time to really get together that Afrikaans metal band together, for real? That’s what musicr is designed to do: bring local musicians together. Users can fill out a musical profile that shows their interests and musical proficiencies, like what instruments they play. Then, they can find other people with smilar interests who play other instruments to help get a band together, or people who play the same instruments to practice with and get tips, or just some cool folks to jam out with.

The app also serves as a great vehicle for self-promotion. Share photos of instruments and setups to wow friends and other users on the service, or even just to prove that yes, you do own a 12-string guitar. Use status updates share info on upcoming gigs, or to say how that song is coming along, or anything music-related.

The app is coming soon to the App Store.

OneTuner is a radio station app that not only features streaming music, but also features integration of user’s social accounts.

There are thousands of radio stations available from several dozen different genres. It’s possible to filter by country and language, though sadly there are no Afrikaans heavy metal stations. Stations can be starred and added to a favorites list. Of course, the app supports background audio for listening while using other apps. Have a streaming radio station that would be worthy of inclusion in the app? Use the “Add radio station” feature in the options to submit for inclusion.

What the app’s most intriguing feature might be is its ability to play a user’s Twitter timeline and Facebook news feed as audio. Just log in, and the iSpeech text-to-speech engine will automatically playback tweets as a news channel. It’s perfect for staying up to date while in the car, or if one wants to stay up to date while still playing whatever game they want. Someday, if Apple opens up some Siri APIs, the developers should add in the ability to say “Siri, Like!” “Siri, retweet!” Maybe someday.

The developers claim that the app does not and will not have subscriptions, and is supported through ads in the free version, and a paid ad-free version.

$1.99

OneTuner Pro Radio Player for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch - tunein to 65 genre stream!

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2012-07-19 :: Category: Music

FREE!

OneTuner Radio Player - tunein to RnB, Rap, DJ, HipHop, Chillout, Reggae - 65 genre stream

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-07-19 :: Category: Music

Know about the band Blur? They’re most famous in America for that one 2:02 song that goes “Woohoo!” and then has a bunch of otherwise indecipherable singing? It was all over rock radio in the 90’s and shows up in movie trailers to this day. Well, they’ve been producing music besides the aformentioned “Song 2” for almost a quarter-century now, and there’s a new app, appropriately titled The Blur App, to celebrate their lengthy career.

Check out an incredibly exhaustive discography in the Music section that shows off pretty much every single physical release of Blur music ever released. There’s links to buy tracks where available. A music player with samples of live and rare tracks is there too There’s videos featuring interviews and live concert footage from all throughout the band’s history. This is all available in a timeline format that features photos, clippings, and even notable setlists from live performances with anecdotes from the band.

FREE!

The Blur App

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2012-07-23 :: Category: Music

Of the many great things about Christopher Nolan’s final Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight Rises, Academy Award-winning composer Hans Zimmer’s bombastic, sensational score is certainly one of the greatest. Zimmer, who previously brought musical life to films like Gladiator, The Last Samurai, and Pirates of the Caribbean, helps create a Gotham City that feels almost real. Reality Jockey is looking to finish the job with The Dark Knight Rises Z+, an “augmented soundtrack experience.”

Similar to the developer’s work on the Inception soundtrack, another Nolan-Zimmer collaboration, The Dark Knight Rises Z+ takes sounds from the real world and filters them through the sounds and music of the film to immerse the user in an altered reality. Alongside its atmospheric audio effects, the app features a BAT flight simulator, commentary with Nolan and Zimmer, and an extended “Origins” soundtrack with new, exclusive songs.

Enter Gotham before it turns to ashes. The Dark Knight Rises Z+ is available now for free on the App Store. The Dark Knight Rises is in theaters now.

FREE!

The Dark Knight Rises Z+

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-07-19 :: Category: Music

Serj Tankian is best-known for his work with System of a Down, who could be heard all over rock radio in the mid–2000’s, but he’s also embarked on a solo career of his own. In fact, he’s got his third solo album, Harakiri coming out, and to help promote it, there’s a new app, I Am Serj. This lets users remix the vocals from his solo albums (sorry, no System of a Down material here) with special custom loops in order to create custom songs.

There are 30 loops available, and vocals can be added in, with the ability to modify properties including the tempo and pitch of the song to get that perfect remix of the music. The randomizer can be used to find interesting combinations or just to find a good starting point to then modify. Songs can either be exported as MP4 video files, or even as custom ringtones to use. The app is $0.99 to download, with in-app purchases for additional vocals and content, though it can all be unlocked with a single $1.99 IAP.

FREE!

I Am Serj

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2012-07-11 :: Category: Music