We are truly living in a renaissance period for independent musicians.
No Longer are we dependent on major labels to record quality songs, distribute these songs to fans, or market our music effectively.
At this point, each artist can serve as their record label.
This point is punctuated by the ever-increasing number of successful independent artists with just as much steam and momentum as many artists signed to major labels.
Chance the Rapper, Arctic Monkeys, and Mac DeMarco to name a few.
However, the downside to this newfound freedom and access is that we now have an ocean of apps focused on serving our needs.
A never-ending supply of tools to experiment with and figure out. New day, new learning curve.
Well, lucky for you I took it upon myself to test 25 different apps that focus on musicians or some aspect of music creation — whether that be recording, music production, songwriting, collaboration, teaching, etc.
The apps that I tested did not include music streaming apps (like Spotify or Tidal) or apps that focus on music distribution (like DistroKid or TuneCore). Distribution apps are a whole entity itself and deserve an entirely separate blog post.
So, without further ado, here is the Mount Rushmore (top 4) of musician-focused mobile apps.
1. Moises
Moises is an app that uses AI to provide musicians with the capability to separate the vocals from songs, and even better yet, separate the instrumental or beat from the song.
Not only can you isolate the instrumental or vocals, but you can change the tempo and pitch of a track without affecting its quality.
Practical Use for Indie Musicians
The fact that you can isolate the instrumental or vocals from any track, along with its chord detection feature, makes this app an incredible tool for you to use for practicing, playing along to, and sharpening your skills.
Plus, for DJs, this app is an awesome tool for making interesting song remixes and mashups.
2. Bass Parlour
Bass Parlour is an innovative new app that focuses on peer-to-peer, musician-to-musician training. Bass Parlour features musicians from around the world representing several different genres.
The independent musicians on the app host different livestream workshops where they teach each other various music skills. Plus, the Bass Parlour community tends to be very active in both hosting and attending these music workshops.
Practical Use for Indie Musicians
Bass Parlour is particularly beneficial for independent musicians who want to learn a myriad of skills and gain insight from other musicians. This app is also an excellent way for you to expand your network of musicians.
3. Listento Player
Listento Player by Audiomovers is a new app for real-time audio streaming. With ListenTo Player you can share high-quality audio remotely with minimal latency.
This app is perfect for remote collaborations, allowing you to stream your DAW’s output directly to your collaborators.
Practical Use for Indie Musicians
This app is perfect for remote collaborations. ListenTo allows you to stream from your DAW’s main output (or individual track) directly to your collaborator’s DAW.
Couple this with a FaceTime or Zoom call and it’s a pretty good replacement for being in the studio together.
4. FL Studio Mobile
FL Studio Mobile is the mobile version of the mega-popular digital audio workstation (DAW) FL Studio. This app allows you to produce, record, edit, and mix music directly on your phone or tablet.
Practical Use for Indie Musicians
FL Studio Mobile is powerful enough to produce and record quality music, but it’s mobile.
This means you aren’t tied down to your home studio and can make music at the beach, the coffee shop, at work, or wherever.
Conclusion
As independent musicians, we don’t have much time to waste. Having the right tools is vital for squeezing all the juice out of each day.
These four apps are a great mix of tools that are beneficial for evolving your skills, expanding your musician network, creating, and collaborating from anywhere.