Blast Radio, the free audio platform for listeners to hear studio-quality broadcasts directly from the artists they love, daily, is expanding their product line beyond hardware to include a software plugin that allows artists to broadcast to the platform directly from their digital audio workstation (DAW).
To celebrate the launch, Blast Radio is announcing exclusive broadcasts from artists including Alex Cameron, Animal Collective, Kevin Morby, Roy Molloy, and more.
“We launched Blast Radio to give artists a place to experiment and get creative without worrying about their permanent brand, visual identity, or having something live on forever. It’s been amazing to see artists lean into the virtual performance environment and do things they aren’t doing anywhere else. In the past few months, we’ve had everything from a chamber orchestra broadcasting live rehearsals to DJs and rock musicians hosting call-in radio shows,” said Yousef Ali, founder and CEO of Blast Radio.
Some broadcast highlights from the past few months:
- Animal Collective broadcast a series of live jam sessions in advance of their Summer tour - including sharing unreleased material.
- Alex Olson, the pro skateboarder and musician, broadcast a series of sound-guided meditations
- Alarm Will Sound, the critically acclaimed chamber orchestra, broadcast a series of live rehearsals covering works by artists like Aphex Twin and Eartheater.
- Steffi broadcast an unreleased recording of her performance with Privacy as ‘Negroni Nails’ at Herfstdrift Festival in 2019.
- King Britt broadcast the first installment of his ‘The Beauty and Sound Show’ covering a wide range of genres that kept a tight orbit around jazz, R&B, and contemporary trends in electronic music.
- DJ Bus Replacement Service & Surgeon broadcast a cassette tape recording Surgeon’s 1998 venue performance from the night they met in Detroit.
- Carl Craig, Matthew Dear and Shigeto have been broadcasting live shows and at-home mixes for fans that can’t attend in person or want to experience more of their work.
- Detroit venues TV Lounge, Marble Bar, and Spotlite have been broadcasting nightly sets, showcasing performers in their spaces.
Blast Radio plugin
To date, all content on Blast Radio was broadcast directly to the platform by artists using Blast Box, the company’s proprietary hardware device. Now, the company is expanding its product suite to also include a software plugin that allows artists to broadcast audio directly from their DAW (digital audio workstation).
Whether broadcasting via the Blast Box or the Blast Radio plugin, all content is distributed in a lossless format, ensuring the best possible quality for listeners.
“We originally launched with a piece of hardware for broadcasting, Blast Box. Artists have loved the simplicity of pressing one button on an actual piece of gear to share work with listeners. Now, with the addition of the plugin, we’re creating that same one-button experience for those using a DAW to create. We think it will be especially useful for bands in a studio setting or producers using programs like ProTools, Ableton, or Logic to create,” continued Ali.
Both Blast Box and the Blast Radio plugin are available for purchase on the company’s website. The plugin comes as VST, VST3, AAX, and Audio Unit, which should ensure compatibility with most any DAW (ProTools, Ableton, Logic, etc).
Blast Radio Exclusive Broadcasts for October
- Alex Cameron will debut his new radio show 'Demo-itis' which explores the art form of the Demo. Via submissions, guests, and Alex's own personal collection, Demo-itis is a show that serves to demonstrate what happens to a song before it is exposed to professional production, the recording studio and especially before it is treated to be heard by the rest of the world. Songs in their rawest form - straight from the artist to listeners’ ears. The show will be exclusively on Blast Radio.
- Animal Collective, known for reworking and perfecting new material on the road, spent a few weeks at Drop of Sun studio in Asheville, NC rehearsing and jamming before their end of Summer tour. Starting on Octover 27 for four consecutive weeks, the group will share additional recordings from those sessions, giving listeners a glimpse into the raw energy of their music before it gets that post-production sheen. And who knows… they may throw in some other goodies here or there too.
- Kevin Morby, recording artist and founder of Mare Records, will broadcast collected field recordings from the past year, played along to improvised piano on October 18th. Later in the month on October 25t he will host a live, halloween-themed conversation with Jess Williamson from the road while on tour.
- Roy Molloy, esteemed saxophonist, savvy business partner, and literal lifesaver, will continue hosting his “Drive Time Power Hour” radio show Monday-Thursday throughout October where he takes song requests via email or his private discord channel and hilariously narrates a morning show of absurdity.
What the artists are saying:
“We only just started using Blast Radio in the last couple of months, but it’s exciting and fun to have an audio-only platform that can be so spontaneous and spur of the moment. We really like the potential for being able to jump on to share something new, old, planned or improvised, whatever, whenever. I really appreciate the minimal approach to feedback as well. It brings the focus to the broadcasting and the listening. In some ways I feel that actually opens up the door to more intimacy for the performer and for the listener. The value for the player is knowing that someone is listening and for the listener… to just engage and receive the sounds rather than think about how they should or could give feedback,” said Deakin of Animal Collective
"I am happy to be asked to participate in Blast Radio. What I have always loved about radio in general is its fleeting nature. Listening to something over the airwaves gives you a sense that the voice coming through the speaker is your companion, living and breathing, sitting at your side. It forces the listener to really listen because once the broadcast is over you're not sure when you'll hear it - if ever - again. I'm happy that Blast Radio is bringing back the spirit of the airwaves to us all and encouraging us to tune in and really listen," said Kevin Morby
“I relate to audiences by telling stories through music. The demo is the first draft of what becomes that story. Through this Blast Radio show, I'm hoping to give listeners a look into a side of the story creation process they seldom get to experience. By doing it as a live show that doesn't exist forever, my hope is it creates a special moment that me, my guests, and our listeners can all experience together," said Alex Cameron
"Blast Radio is the premier audio platform, folks. Pure freedom. Flawless, unfettered audio streaming that's easy to access and super smooth to use. Thanks to Blast for making my broadcast dreams come true," said Roy Molloy
In addition to these and the many unannounced broadcasts from Blast Radio artists, listeners can also catch these featured broadcasts (full calendar here):
- The Album Leaf will broadcast ‘Chance’ a performance he’s been designing for the past year wherein he uses the midi functionality in Ableton to trigger melodies, chords, and time signatures on pieces of hardware.
- Airpark have elected to share some working demos, as well as dissect a selection of tracks that make up the terroir of their forthcoming release. With Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore of Tennis at the net for their next effort, Nashville’s Airpark breakdown their heartfelt, psychedelic twang and share their best techniques for getting all the right feelings to coalesce.
- Black Girl / White Girl will broadcast a teaser performance leading into their upcoming Amsterdam Dance event on Ben Sims' and Kirk Degiorgio's iconic Machine stage at Dockyard Festival.
- bodyimage will host a series of conversational broadcasts to share some of their favorite tracks and discuss what inspires them as they currently work on their upcoming album. Bringing together a conversation about music, inspiration, life, and everything in between.
- Com Truise will broadcast “Komputer Cast Live!,” focused on deep cuts, demos and other unreleased material. Keeping with the Komputer Cast traditions, listeners can expect to hear lots of library music, funk and other experimental electronic music.
- DJ Bus Replacement Service will broadcast a recording from a select past live show and give listeners commentary into details of the night, the music she chose, and the vibe she was curating.
- Emily Elhaj will host the ‘Jim Keltner Fan Club’ focusing on the work of the legendary American drummer most known for his session work.
- The Field will share a 2+ hour broadcast featuring a collection of musical fragments recorded in the studio with the artist’s cell phone throughout the past 7 years. The clips were sent to friends throughout the period and can be seen as an open sketchbook and collection of memories. While some of the recordings became actual tracks, many were archived and forgotten. Listeners can join The Field for a time travel broadcast divided into 7 parts.
- The Golden Filter (Penelope and Steph) will host a series of live discussions from their home in Brighton covering their favorite recent musical discoveries, film, books, and more.
- Luke Slater will continue his ‘Monthly Meditative Gathering’ series where he broadcasts a selection of his favorite ambient recordings to counterbalance the demands of daily life.
- Miss Tahloulah May will continue her ‘Sound of the Underground’ radio show where she shares works from her favorite underground and on the rise musicians.
- M Ross Perkins will be broadcasting a 3-part weekly pirate radio show where he will showcase and talk about his favorite Ohio-based music, including one broadcast focused on the music of Colemine Records.
- Spencer Tweedy will host weekly show ‘Spencer Tweedy’s Drum Diary’ where he practices new beats, revisits favorites, shares music he loves and philosophizes on rhythm.
- Taso will host a series of broadcasts where he plays unreleased collabs with Dj Rashad, Machinedrum, El-B and discusses how they were made. He will also do live phone interviews with artists like RP BOO and Gantman, as well as a group of female rappers, singers and dancers to get their perspective on the state of the music industry.
- Teen Daze will host a series of broadcasts sharing music to ‘transport and move listeners’ while facilitating live discussion through his discord channel
