What has a shoe brand got to do with music? Something pretty significant! Clothing and footwear brand, Converse, in partnership with Music Technology platform and online musician community Indaba Music, has just launched Rubber Tracks, a free recording studio, and a massive audio samples library.

Musicians all over the globe can access this library, any time. The organizers of the project have decided to put it online so that the public can make use of its impressive audio library. Synthtopia puts it this way – “Creators are free to explore, download, experiment, and create using library samples and can use the resulting works in unlimited ways.”

For those who are just toying with the idea of becoming professional musicians, newbie songwriters, startup bands, or struggling artists, this milestone is just too good to pass. Recording sessions on professional studios are just a fraction less than exorbitant.

Anyway, let’s see what a real pro – Rick Camp, RC1 Productions & Master Mix Live – Las Vegas, NV, says about this: “For the Do It Yourselfer, on a little small Pro Tools rig that you probably paid $400 for and you can do it for free, do it in your bedroom. Or you could go to a project studio and maybe spend, you know, a few thousand dollars. Or you could go to a big studio and spend, you know, 10, 15, $20,000 to cut a track” Camp has done work with Jennifer Lopez, Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson, Usher, Dr. Dre, Earth Wind & Fire. A music library of samples this big is a gift from the music gods.

As of late, the studio library has unleashed more than eleven thousand samples. If that doesn’t impress you, I don’t know what will. “The library is massive, featuring over 10 days of one-shots, stems, and loops recorded at Converse’s Rubber Tracks Studio,” Synthtopia added in a blog post featuring Converse’s Sample Library.

Converse Chief Marketing Officer Geoff Cottrill in a press release said, “by opening Converse Rubber Tracks, it’s a way for us to say thank you to musicians all over who have helped us become the brand we are and to provide a place for new artists to have access to resources they may not be able to afford […] This is our way to invest in the future of music and we couldn’t be more excited about it.” he added.

Shoes and music can actually blend well, don’t you think?

Featured photo credit: Photo Credit: MTI Berklee via Compfight cc via compfight.com

Whether at work or at school, people these days are under tremendous pressure to perform, perform and perform! Stress and pressure can have adverse affects on the well-being of a person, and need to be controlled.

Now, this doesn’t mean you make a dash to your nearest therapist. There are a number of wonderful and smart apps that you can use on your phone. These brain training apps have been scientifically designed to target specific areas of the human mind and control harmful emotions such as anxiety, as well as to improve memory and sharpness of the brain.

Here are 11 iPhone apps that you will not only enjoy but also find useful in keeping your mental health balanced at all times.

1. Lumosity

This app consists of games that focus on improving the user’s memory, problem-solving capability, attention span, and thinking. There are three games in each session, and they challenge the brain by changing every time. The user has to complete the games while playing against a clock.

Free of trial. $15 per month for the full version.

2. Fit Brains Trainer

This brain training app has 10 sets of games that work on different areas of the brain and improve memory as well as concentration. A user is required to finish a particular task from each category on a daily basis and the app tracks the progress by a color coded graph.

Free.

3. CogniFit Brain Fitness

Developed with the help of neuroscientists, this fun app improves a person’s cognitive abilities, which includes memory and concentration. The progress made by the user over a period of time can be tracked. Users can also play challenge rounds with their friends. The app also modifies the difficulty level to suit the profile of the user and provide recommendations based on the results. Spending 20–30 minutes a few times every week can give measurable improvement in the performance of a user.

First four games free, then $13 a month.

4. Brain Fitness Pro

The makers of this app claim that it can improve the IQ of a user, and improve intelligence and memory. The app is fun and is user friendly, and 30 minutes a day can fetch you results in less than three weeks.

Buy for $3.99.

5. Happify

If nothing else makes you happy in life, this app will. Well, this is what the developers claim at least. This app comes loaded with lots of quizzes, polls and gratitude journals, which work on the fundamentals of positive psychology. The app also helps to control stress and emotions to make you feel better.

Free to use.

6. Clockwork Brain

You will like the little gold robot that comes in every time to explain the next game you are going to play. While the games are not much different to those offered in apps such as Luminosity, the look and feel reminds me of a workshop from old times.

Free.

7. ReliefLink

Initially created as an app for suicide prevention, it has found its use as a great app for tracking the mood of the user by taking measure of all things relevant to the user’s mental health. In case the user experiences high emotional stress, the app has a coping mechanism that includes voice-recorded mindfulness, exercises and music for relaxation. There is also a map that informs the user of the nearest therapist and medical facilities for mental health treatment.

8. Eidetic

Eidetic is a memory enhancement app and uses a ‘spaced repetition’ technique to help users memorize information such as important phone numbers, words, credit card details or passwords. It also notifies you when it’s time to take a test to see what you remember, so that you retain information in your long-term memory.

9. Braingle

Braingle helps to maintain the sharpness of the brain and improve the reasoning ability of a person through riddles and optical illusions. It is different from other brain training apps that employ memory and reaction based tests. You can also compete with your friends and family members in figuring out the fun riddles.

Free.

10. Not The Hole Story

If you have a penchant for solving hard riddles, then this app is a must-have for you. Filled with exclusive riddles along with a simple-to-use interface, the app gives you riddles that you have to solve through a book. You will be given hints along the way, and when you give up, the answers will be revealed. This app will encourage you to broaden your thinking and put your mind to a challenging test.

Free.

11. Personal Zen

This fun brain training app follows the journey of two animated characters who travel through a field of grass. Personal Zen is a nice app meant for reducing anxiety and trains the brain to focus on the positive aspects. The developer’s advice is to use the app for 10 minutes a day to see the best results.

Free.

Featured photo credit: NeONBRAND via unsplash.com