Users On Facebook Believe That All News Can Only Be Found On Facebook

Research scientists at the Center For Social Media Studies in Alhambra, CA have reported findings confirming earlier suspicions that a majority of social media users believe that the only source for news is the social media service they most frequently visit.

Findings supported earlier hypotheses, showing a 67% positive correlation between most social media platforms and news consumption. Instagram was the lowest, with only 23% of users consuming news at all, and 54% using Instagram as their main news source.

Twitter was ranked as "most trusted" in news delivery, with over 80% of users believing that everything they read on Twitter was true, compared to Facebook (59%), Google+ (74%), Reddit (72%) and Myspace (3%).

However, the bulk of the research focused on consumption of media via Facebook, the largest social media site in the world with over 1.2bn active users. Topics ranged from use of third party apps and services to use of in-house content and data management, such as Photo Albums and Events.

"For the most part, I just use Facebook once a day to check messages from me mum," said Caleb Hunt, a young man living in Liverpool. "She's very protective so I don't get to use it much. But every once in a while, I'll sneak a peek at some of me mate's posts and think, 'Wouldn't it be grand to speak to me friends?' But then I go back to tending to the pigs."

Caleb was an obvious outlier in the study, but one that brings up questions of social media use in rural communities.

Nevertheless, the study concluded that an astonishing number of users, over 90%, believed that Facebook was the only source for news - despite their distrust of most news on the platform.

"I learn about recipes, my friend's new grandchildren, and how to keep Obama off my property!" said 86-year-old Granny Dills. "I mostly click on the links and then the computer takes me somewhere else. I don't like it."

Granny Dills currently has nearly 2,000 tabs open on the Chrome browser that her grandson installed 4 months ago.

Findings corroborated Granny Dills' testimony with that of the younger generation, as well, albeit with interests skewed more toward relevant modern dilemmas.

Dr. Jack Richards of the CSMS explained his fear that younger generations would not use more than one source of news to make an opinion.

"It's truly worrisome that these younger generations only consume media from one source," says Richards. "Without the ability, or desire, to do independent investigative research on topics, corporations with enough money to promote their news on Facebook could skew viewpoints in a very tangible way."

Richards urges Facebook users to use more than one platform, separate from social media at all if possible, for news consumption to avoid bias. In a surprise to even this publication, Richards informs that these Facebook links to news articles are actually a part of a bigger entity, called a "website." Richards notes that not all of a "website's" content actually makes it onto Facebook, and that there's a lot that people are missing.

Badklaat w/ Shiverz @ Beyond The Stars Palace

SubConcentrate Recordings brought their all last night when BadKlaat came through Los Angeles to some of his signature deep bass and wobbles. True to the fans, there were no bros or raver hoes, only straight-up riddim lovers.

Along with BadKlaat, Shiverz from the Monsters label made his debut west coast appearance and rocked the rafters. Playing a massive set that was even extended an extra 15 minutes, the crowd could not get enough. Characterized by super high energy and crazed movements on stage, Shiverz put on a hell of a performance. Shiverz style, and that of Monsters, is most commonly emulated by producers like those on Firepower Records - Getter, Sub Antix and others.

The one detriment to the night was the organization for the event. It was advertised as free entry before 10 p.m. but the line was intentionally held back and slowed down to let in as few people as possible. After 10, the line crawled, with management stating that they had reached capacity - while simultaneously letting women in for free. By around 12:45, the cops had been called and were apparently handing out citations. (The show was not shut down.)

Aside from the obvious setbacks, the line up was solid and the sound was exceptional. I would go see these guys again in a heartbeat, just maybe not at Beyond The Stars.

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UPDATE: SubConcentrate responded to some bad press on the Facebook event page for the show and it turns out that it's mostly due to bad organization from Beyond The Stars along with the city of Glendale police having nothing better to do.

SubConcentrate: The cops arrived and notified the owner that they didn't have proper licensing to be serving alcohol in a concert setting, they suggested we shut down the show or the bar, after that the owner/security were being uptight but let the show go on. Unfortunately we did not know this until the cops notified us, we thought it was a good idea to let the music continue. We appreciate you making the commute, we did our job, it's unfortunate the venue couldn't do theirs.

Far Too Loud - Christmas Mix 2013

No one can deny that the past two years have been a monumental success for the Brighton-native Far Too Loud.

He has released three EPs on two labels, the last of which was released on Never Say Die's sister label No Tomorrow Recordings. Far Too Loud's unique brand of electro house is a breath of fresh air in a scene where similar synths and sounds are all too prevalent. From SKisM's remix of his track "600 Years," to original tracks like "Light Sticks" and "Trailmixing," to his collaboration with Destroid on "Destroid 8: Annihilate," the man has earned his reputation as a high-energy production phenom.

Keeping up the momentum, Far Too Loud's first release of 2014 will be on Never Say Die Records and features two brand new tracks: Acid 9000 and Doomsday Machine. Fortunately, the man was kind enough to give us a little sumpin'-sumpin' to tide ourselves over with until it drops on January 20th. This hour long "Christmas" mix was actually released on New Year's - not really an issue, considering how much play time it'll be getting from y'all.

With an eclectic tracklist with names like Steve Aoki, Felguk, and Botnek, energy is the name of the game with this mix and it never ever lets up. Hell, he even drops some Figure in at the end, just to say, "Hey - I'm not tired yet, how about you?"

Far Too Loud is currently on a tour of Europe promoting his newest release, but hopefully we'll see him back in the states sometime soon. Festival season is quickly approaching, after all; and, I wouldn't be surprised to see him on many a line up.

Clyde Machine - Dangerfairy [CLIP]

The last time I featured Clyde Machine was for his Je Peux. EP which came out not too long ago. In all honesty, despite how much I loved Je Peux, it really can't hold a candle to how much I am looking forward to this next release.

Wonderfully fanciful and exceptionally gritty, Dangerfairy fuses the dark side of dubstep with something a little more whimsical. And personally, I'm loving the match up. Couple that with a few choice samples from Legend Of Zelda, and you've got a nerd's anthem. I've listened to the full track, and the clip is really only a taste of what you're gonna get.

Dangerfairy comes as the first single from Clyde Machine's upcoming EP, due for release sometime in mid-February. It features two original tracks - Dangerfairy, and a drum and bass tune titled Freezing Run. There are also four remixes to accompany the original mixes. 

[Album Review] Draper - Sonder EP

First off, I did not end up going to see Figure in Santa Ana on Sunday. I saw the movie Saving Mr. Banks earlier in the day and did not feel emotionally stable enough to drive late at night.

That being said, I wasn't planning on writing a post before the end of the year, so when Draper dropped his Sonder EP, it really hit me as a surprise.

I've known of Draper for a while, but haven't really kept up with him. Since he was signed to Monstercat, however, his rise in notoriety is undeniable. 

Known for melodic, liquid dubstep and drum & bass, Draper has been at it for a little over three years. For as long as he's been producing, his style and vision are unmistakable. Long, heavy and beautiful chord progression with a variety of instrumentals and synths make his music dynamic and acoustically pleasing.

Sonder EP follows this same ideal - that music need not follow the Rusko or Skrillex patterns. 

With only two releases in the past year on Monstercat, Sonder EP is Draper's first full release since his eponymous EP almost two years ago.

Beautifully crafted with plucky guitar riffs, some 808 drum snares, and catchy piano melodies, Sonder EP is a wonderfully executed concept. Coming at the end of the year, with track titles such as New Year, Aftermath, and Aspire, the EP is meant to encourage future-thinking. Complacency is the enemy of progress.

Run DMT w/ SPL @ King King Hollywood

Having just gone to Sub Focus the night before, I have to admit, I was having reservations about going to see Run DMT and SPL at the King King in Hollywood.

Holy fuck balls, am I glad that I got over whatever that was.

Run DMT and SPL put on one of the best shows I've been to this year, despite the meager turnout.

Originally scheduled for the end of October, to open up for Maxim, of The Prodigy, the show was postponed until last night. The King King is a small bar off of Hollywood Blvd. I hadn't heard of it having any connection to bass music, but that must have been before The Do Lab got a hold of it - now it's hosting the likes of Phutureprimitive and The Lucent Dossier Experience. Still being new to the bass scene provides its own challenges, namely drawing in a crowd.

I arrived about 15 minutes before SPL's set time and there were maybe 25-40 people there? At most. Highly disappointing. Even by the end of the night, there were perhaps 250-400. (I'm awful at estimating, if you can't tell.)

As for other bass music event necessities - sound and lights - there were no lights. Which actually... didn't bother me too much. It was a small venue/bar anyway and the dim lighting was more than enough for the show. As for the sound, it's nothing like the Avalon or House of Blues, but with such a small venue, you don't need that much. With what was there, it was enough.

Now, as for the music - I said earlier, Run DMT and SPL put on one of the best shows I've been to this year. I'm not kidding. SPL did a damn fine job representing LA-based record label SMOG by showing off his chops throwing double drops and throwbacks from Flux Pavilion, Skrillex & Alvin Risk and more. His own style of "balearic" bass music, termed after the balearic house of the 80s and 90s, is exciting, melodic and plenty unique. And while playing to such a small crowd, SPL's energy didn't seem affected in the slightest - bouncing around, throwing his arms up, shout outs to the crowd were all in full form last night.

Run DMT was no different. The heavyset heavyweight of trap and bass stunned the crowd with his wide array of genres, reaching drumstep, dubstep, drum and bass, electro and trap. I was especially pleased, personally, that a metric fuckton of Figure tracks were dropped. Nothing kicks up the crowd like some 160 BPM magic. The trap was also not entirely displeasing. As the producer for the track 'Shaman Juice,' I had high expectations for whatever trap Run DMT would be throwing and he did not disappoint - only the highest quality for this man.

Energy remained high throughout the event, and I would be remiss to pass up an opportunity to see either of these amazing musicians again in the future.

My next show is in Santa Ana, seeing Dirty Deeds supporting Figure on December 29th at The Observatory. See you there!

Sub Focus & Delta Heavy @ House of Blues Sunset Strip

So many factors coalesced to make last night at the House of Blues Sunset one fucking helluva show. First off, personally, last night was my 50th show. I'll probably stop counting now, since after fifty it just gets pretentious, but it was still a milestone for me. I've been going to shows for about three and a half years now and it's been one of the best rides of my life. Here's to hoping it continues much longer. Also, last night marked the first time in over a year that I revisited the House of Blues (last time was to see FuntCase). Still an amazing venue, and they even boosted the sound for the night. Plus, cheap drinks! $8 whiskey ginger, whaaaat??

But the main reason last night was awesome was, of course, the drum & bass tyrant Sub Focus. Making his first appearance in Southern California since Nocturnal Wonderland 2012, and having just released his newest album Torus, it seemed right to tour on "the other side of the pond." Bringing with him Delta Heavy, and openers Machete and Fallen, the night was filled with quality drum and bass.

I missed a little bit of Machete's set, but from what I saw when I got in, he had been killing it from the beginning. As a resident DJ at RESPECT Drum & Bass in SoCal, you wouldn't expect anything less. Unfortunately, as with most openers, the crowd isn't full yet and people are less likely to seriously hit the floor hard. (Even happened to Evol Intent in Pomona... such is life.) For what it's worth, he played a fantastic set worthy of more praise than he got.

Next up was Fallen, a relatively little known producer (can't even find a Facebook or SoundCloud page). Starting off with a little downtempo, he was quick to make sure that the crowd didn't become too complacent - playing a set of downtempo and shifting into drum and bass kept the crowd on its toes and worked its ass off. Alas, an hour and a half set for a newbie isn't easy to keep up and he kind of faltered toward the end.

No worries, however! As Ben Hall, one half of Delta Heavy, was set to take over. I've seen Simon play before, in Santa Ana, so it was nice to see the other half. While Simon played a lot of house and moombah, Ben spun straight drum & bass and electro and it was phenomenal. Playing tracks like his 'Must Be The Feeling' remix and earlier releases like Hold Me, newer releases like Empire, the set was pure fire.

For the first 3 hours of the night, the crowd was teased by an LED-array in the front of the DJ booth, and an even larger one behind it. I was sure that we would be given a treat for Delta Heavy, and to some extent ... not really. The front array lit up to read "DELTΔ HEΔVY" and that's about it. Toward the end of Ben's set, it 'melted' and transformed though, so it was possible. A shame they didn't make more use out of it.

As Nick Douwma, Sub Focus, approached the stage, the crowd erupted in furious cheers and applause. I was a little disappointed that he was touring without the Torus live-visual display, but I understand the reasoning behind it - too much to insure, transport from the UK, and assemble at every show. However, the back LED-array was finally illuminated and it served its purpose valiantly.

As for the music, Sub Focus played a well-balanced mix of drum and bass, dubstep, trap, and house. Keeping the energy level high throughout the show, the genre didn't really matter as much as each track brought the house down. Classics like 'Rock It' and his remix of Rusko's 'Hold On,' along with a slew of tracks from his newest album, the Londoner lived up to his reputation and played for a SOLD OUT crowd.

Tonight, I'm at the King King in Hollywood to see Run DMT and SPL - sure to be another fantastic show.