QUICK HITS

Apr 1, 2007 12:00 PM

BANG A GONG, GET IT ON

Remember The Gong Show, where often-untalented contestants embarrassed themselves before the bang of a gong? Now GrandMaster Roc Raida has his own version, the Gong DJ Battle, as seen on The First Annual Gong DJ Battle — New York DVD (Caroline, 2007). Hosted by Lord Finesse, Lord Sear and DJ Fat Fingaz, and judged by DJs Scratch, Rob Swift, Cash Money, Spinbad and GrandWizzard Theodore, contestants raced against time and the gong. Not surprisingly, charismatic battle DJ on the up-and-up, DJ I-Dee, took the first Gong DJ Battle championship.

WEBSITE OF THE MONTH

When you want to learn new music software, you want to do it now, not after going to a store or mail-ordering a DVD. MacProVideo.com sells professional video tutorials for immediate download. The site focuses on audio and video software, with a couple dozen tutorials covering the most popular Mac music programs: Logic, Reason, Ableton Live and GarageBand. The videos range from two to six hours at $40 to $50 each, with discounts for buying the download only (full price includes a DVD) or buying bundles of more than one.

MAD SKILLS

Books on music production are often just plain boring, which is why Thomson's Skill Pack books ($30 each; www.courseptr.com) are refreshing. Each title takes on a particular area of a program, such as Reason's Virtual Instruments or Editing Audio in Pro Tools, so you get concentrated training on the particular areas you want to improve. More importantly, they all come with CD-ROMs containing samples and program files for following along the lessons in the book.

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