Yearly Archives: 2011

SoundCloud SoundCloud Voices

SoundCloud Voices is a weekly Community feature focusing on new spoken word creators found on SoundCloud. It might be a podcast, radio show, audio book, interview, audio messages, a poem, anything! Keep an eye out every Thursday for a new post.

This week we are going back to basics with the theme of talk. There are hundreds of quality talk podcasts out on the Cloud; here’s a few to get you started. First up is Employee of the Month hosted by Catie Lazarus. The show focuses on dreamy jobs and features interviews with the likes of Joey Mazzarino star of Sesame Street and comedian Steve Wright, who you might recognise as the DJ in Reservoir Dogs. Take a listen to an interview below.

Next up is the Tower of Sour, hosted by Mike Sains and Mike Marlow. These two opinionated buffons, as they aptly title themselves, spend the best part of an hour chatting about whatever the feel like which may be current affairs, football, music, film, whatever they want. You may or may not agree with it all, but they have proved over the last year that you can set up a podcast on SoundCloud and generate an audience by purely putting yourself out there and talking about ‘what you know’. Well done guys.

And last by no means is Getting Better Acquainted hosted by Dave Pickering. Dave’s on a journey to get to know the people he knows better. In his own words – “There are lots of shows about famous people. This is a show about the rest of us.” Take a listen as Dave gets to know his brother Tony.

If you are interested in trying out SoundCloud as a spoken word podcast platform we are currently running a beta program which you can sign up for via this form. Successful candidates will be emailed with further details.

Edward Found Sounds: The Speed of Sound

Found Sounds is a SoundCloud community feature focusing on some of the most weird and wonderful sounds that can be found on SoundCloud. Count on new installments with some of our favorite sounds each Tuesday!

Before we get bogged down in the speed of sound, lets take a look at the sound of speed. Can you pin point it? What does speed sound like to you? A car goes by and you say “boy, that sounds fast”, but was it, was it really the sound of speed?

The only time when I really feel the true force of the sound of speed is when I’m watching motorsport and I’m really in amongst it. Hearing the roar of a Formula 1 engine, or a Gran Turismo car tear by, you can then fully appreciate what these drivers are putting themselves through. Matthew Layton is a radio presenter for infamous UK race circuit Silverstone and in this recording he’s caught the excitement and sound of speed at a race track.

Matthew uses SoundCloud to upload his field recordings and interviews from down by the track side, he even managed to catch up with F1 champion Sebastian Vetel and ask him about his terrible taste in music!

Is this not fast enough for you? Does this not define speed? How about a fighter jet, that fast enough? ABC Open caught the sound of a McDonnell Douglas FA-18 Hornet on their account which is collecting, curating and publishing local contributions from the local Australian ABC regional audiences.

Recorded by Evan Croker at Wings over the Illawarra in March 2011, here’s the sound of speed from the air!

But lets get down to the real question. What is the speed of sound? The speed of sound is the distance travelled during a unit of time by a soundwave transmitted through an elastic medium…. Got that…?

Well, here’s the sound which etiennedeleflie collected to demonstrate this…

That’s all for this week’s Found Sounds! Tune in next week for more crazy sounds from the ‘Cloud.

David Fun Friday: Meet Jane Shin

Howdy folks! Today is Friday so you know what that means – I am going to introduce you to a new member of the SoundCloud team! This week I am happy to introduce you to Jane Shin, our first community manager in San Francisco! She’s a true Californian who loves concerts and traveling! Listen to her audio interview below and read more below.

Hi! How are you doing today?

Heyo! I’m doing very well! Happy Friday everybody!

First, can you take a minute and let us know what you do at SoundCloud?

Sure thing. I’m a community manager along with the rest of the rad folks on the community team. I interact with our awesome users to share the latest on the ‘Cloud and make sure they’re getting the best experience they can. It has only been a few weeks, but I’ve already connected with some wonderful people who are doing what they love through SoundCloud. That gives me warm, fuzzy feelings inside and solidifies why I love what I’m doing here.

You are working from the San Francisco office is that correct? What do you love most about San Fran?

Yep! It’s a small but neat office that’s coming together. San Francisco is a beautiful place with something in store for everyone, so you won’t be disappointed or bored. I like the chill yet busy vibe of the city in general, and the overcast weather is pretty nice, too! Don’t get me started on the food…

This is a question I always love asking – How did you get introduced to the ‘Cloud?

This was about two years ago when my childhood friend Geo shared his sounds on the ‘Cloud as an up-and-coming artist. I remember thinking I hadn’t seen any other sound/music-sharing site as visually and functionally appealing as SoundCloud’s.

And this is an easy one – What are your favorite things about working at SoundCloud so far?

It’s instantly clear that people love what they do here. I share that same sentiment. With that said, the people here rock. Everyone is super intelligent and funny. I can’t ask for a better set of teammates or a more inspiring environment to be in. As someone who wasn’t always in the tech/Internet scene (there was a time when I thought I would be a journalist!), I feel very lucky to be at a place where the learning and fun don’t stop.
Enthusiasm for ping pong. I got schooled by Eric last Friday, even though he was playing easy. On the plus side, I am honing my skills and bringing my A-game back to San Francisco.

At the moment, what are your favorite sounds on the ‘Cloud?

Ack, this is hard. Too many talented sound creators are out there on the ‘Cloud. Johnny Ripper is gold. He has such beautifully crafted tracks that immediately remind me of the VIPs in my life.

For some lulz, SoundCloud’s very own Thom Cummings recorded a funny conversation he had with Siri. I think more people should record and upload their interactions with her.

One more! My friend Hannah is a talented illustrator who told me about this great podcast called Your Dreams My Nightmares, conversations with illustrators and art directors. The use of audio to provide insight into the visual world is very cool.

Lastly, do you have any fun facts you can tell us about?

I’m a concert nerd, and I have collected all the ticket stubs from shows I’ve been to over the years. They’re all kept safely in a book that I will continue to build and treasure forever. They may just be pieces of paper, but to me they’re records of all the good times I’ve had. If anyone needs a concert buddy, count me in!

Since that’s a photo of me from my July trip to Iceland, here’s a funny fact from that trip: Prior to it, I hadn’t driven in over 5-6 years since I can get around San Francisco without a car just fine. I also had never driven long-distance before. Lo and behold, I ended up driving the whole time on our road trip in South Iceland, covering roughly 600 miles or so. There are many other places I have yet to visit, but I can confidently say Iceland is one of the best places on earth.

Where can we find you on the interwebz?

Twitter: @janeshin
SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/janeshin
Tumblr: http://jane-shin.tumblr.com

Thanks Jane!!!!