Mixed In Key Releases Mashup For Mac & PC
Mixed In Key has released Mashup for Mac and PC. Although somewhat late to the game since the flash-in-the-pan Mashup craze has come and gone, the new software application allows a user to quickly and easily beatmatch two or more songs, edit them for mashup fun, and then save the new track to a new audio file. Mashup uses Mixed In Key 5’s harmonic algorithm to find compatible songs, and simplifies the cumbersome process of mashup creation.
Mashup’s user interface is streamlined and straight-forward. Import songs into Mashup, and it will analyze them for key and tempo. Next, drag a song into Mashup’s audio editor, and its tempo will become the master for the project. If you’d prefer, you can manually enter in a different master tempo. As soon as one song is added, the song browser will show you which other songs in your collection are 100% harmonically compatible with your original song. Then drag other songs into the editor window, and they’re automatically beat-matched to the master tempo, using Mashup’s time-stretching algorithm.
Now you can start editing. Mashup lets you graphically edit each song’s volume, as well as three bands of EQ, all with breakpoint-style automation. The editor also lets you select and silence portions of songs, adjust phase, slide them in time, and more. When you’re done editing, you can export the result to a 320kbps MP3 file or a 16-bit, 44.1kHz WAV file. If you already use Mixed In Key 5, Mashup will load its database and will skip the analysis step. Mashup and Mixed In Key 5 work flawlessly with each other. “Our goal was to design software that could help you create a mashup in five minutes or less,” says Mixed In Key’s president Yakov Vorobyev. “We think that mashup creation should be easier than it is with Ableton Live.”
Mixed In Key’s Mashup is available now for $39 and comes with free updates until Version 2.99.
The Future: The new methodology may not save the Mashup genre from extinction, but it will provide a new avenue for mixing exploration and allow for some rewarding transitions. If the software makes it to version 2.0, we’d like to see the ability to change the keys of tracks that are not “100% compatible” – so any two songs can be combined.
