Part of me wants to call this roundup a special “music” edition because an odd amount of great music streaming and discovery apps came out this week — but let’s not forget the huge app drops from Twitter and Instagram, too.
Great apps are incoming.
Android
White Label – Hip Hop
Keeping up with what’s going on in music of any genre can sometimes feel like a full time job. Friend: “Hey, you hear that new Action Bronson album?” Me: “Wait, what? When?” Don’t be me. Avoid this awkward music slip-up and check out White Label. The app layout is incredibly simple. You just swipe left and right to see certain artists, and when you tap the image, a song starts playing (piped in from Soundcloud). Like the artist? You can go straight to their Twitter and get more details. Discovering music is one of my favourite pastimes, and White Label just makes it easier. [Free (already available on iTunes)]
Drupe
I don’t know about you, but I don’t exactly have a crap ton of friends, and I have even fewer friends who I talk with on a regular basis. However, I do have a million zillion different ways to contact them. That’s why Drupe is such a great idea. You can just drag the icon of one of your contacts to another icon representing how you’re going to reach them. It’s also available as a widget on the phone so you have quick access from the home screen or any other app you’re currently in. Great, great, great. [Free]
Beatport
Here’s the second of three music apps in this list. Beatport is an incredibly well-designed app created for one purpose — to get your dance on. This app is aaalllll about EDM, that clubby boom-shika-boom-shika-boom-shika music all them kids are talking about. But what makes this app so great is if you ever find yourself in the position of needing to throw a party (or a rave), it’s the perfect companion. And seriously, it looks so great. One of the best designed apps I’ve seen this year. [Free]
iOS
Choosic
Alright, so let’s just get the last music app out of the way, shall we? This one is an iOS-only guy that uses the “Tinder for X” model of app-making. But this is the Tinder for finding new music, which might make you perk up a little bit. As you’d expect, a song plays, swipe right to like, left to not like, and go on to the next song. The app will also learn your preferences over time. It’s simple, and kind of fun. [Free]
Periscope
We’ve heard about it for a while, and it’s finally here — the proclaimed Meerkat killer from Twitter. Just like Meerkat, Periscope is a live-streaming app that lets you capture what you’re doing in the moment and let all your Twitter followers watch along. Also, annoyingly like Meerkat, it’s only for iOS. [Free]
Layout
Another big hitter app announcement came from Instagram. Layout is a collage-maker that uses a lot of the same tricks from other 3rd-party collage apps — but brings close Instagram integration. Also, Layout doesn’t try to fit your photos into a pre-determined frame, but gives you pinch-and-zoom tools to create the exact image you want. You can read all about it right here. [Free]
Windows Phone
Simplify
Everyone has their daily habits. Whether it’s sending a quick text when you leave work or setting that alarm every night again, and again, and again. Simplify brings all those actions right to the home screen. It creates an icon for each action that you can just press and that’s it. You’re ready to go. I already love it. [Free]