Of course people don’t just like to be scared out of their wits in movie houses, so his current project takes him to Times Square in New York City. With “Times Scare” he’s turning three vintage 1800s buildings into a super-haunted house complex complete with a bar and café in a crypt. Fittingly, one building was a crematorium in the 1940s and several murders were committed on the compound’s premises. The challenge, he said, is to extend Halloween to 365 days a year. Then, of course, there’s the reality show based on the exploits and excesses of Barnes and his motley crew of employees. “The Magic Maker, Where Reality is an Illusion,” is a joint project with Haydon Lane of HL Filmworks, a West Coast production company that began in Las Vegas. Lastly, the answer to the one question that everyone wants answered: “No, I won’t tell you how it’s done.” But we do know the price of making a hearse and coffin appear on a public street from a tornado of fire. It’s a cool $200,000.
blvdslv.com
By Joshua Ellis Bored with using your iPhone or iPad as just a phone, instant messenger, Facebook and Twitter client, video camera, movie player and catapult of rage-filled feathered friends? There are a ton of apps that can also turn your wifty iDevice into the kind of synthesizer and recording studio that the Beatles would have cheerfully killed the Maharajah to get their hands on, most of them for the price of a cappuccino. You don’t even need to be a musical virtuoso in most cases—just let your thumbs do the grooving! ThumbJam ($8.99) ThumbJam turns your iPhone/iPad screen into a virtual touch performance pad, taking advantage of the device’s Multi-Touch capabilities to allow you to perform in ways a piano-style hardware keyboard can’t (such as playing a virtual theremin, Brian Wilson-style). You can loop your performance, record from your microphone, and output your jam directly to the Net. GarageBand ($4.99) A companion to the Mac desktop version, GarageBand for iOS is a full-fledged recording studio on your mobile device. Record live music, play the built-in instruments (including a cool strummable virtual guitar) and upload everything to your MacBook for mixdown. BLVDS Las Vegas
Bebot ($1.99)
If
you’re not into all the bells and whistles, Bebot is an adorable app that’s like a stripped-down ThumbJam, featuring a cuddly onscreen robot who “sings” as you play. It’s surprisingly versatile, but also simple and fun for even small kids to play with. djay ($19.99) Looking to rock the wheels of steel, but don’t feel like shelling out for a pair of Technics turntables and a mixing board? Look no further than djay, which allows you to mix, spin and beat-match tracks from your iTunes library wherever you are. A bit more expensive than some of the other offerings here, but can you really put a price on becoming the next Skrillex? TouchOSC ($4.99) If you’re a serious musician/producer, TouchOSC allows you to design custom touch interfaces for your iDevice that can control your synth or digital audio workstation wirelessly via MIDI or OSC (Open Sound Control). It’s not for the beginner, but advanced music geeks will dig the extensibility and customization options. All apps available in the iTunes App Store. MUSIC + ENTERTAINMENT
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architecture + style
One might think that making magic stuff is a self-limiting business. How many magicians are there that need “big magic?” Turns out that the same skills, knowledge and aptitudes apply to making motion picture special effects. With the current vogue for horror films, Barnes has expanded there.
A MUSICAL TOUCH FOR THE AUDIOPHILE
Design
Barnes said he hasn’t found anything he couldn’t do, but the toughest parts of the job are the same old nemeses faced by all businessmen—bringing in the job on time and on budget. Of course his customers not only think he can make magic, but work magic as well with timelines and funds.