21 days in and I’m kind of amazed that there’s still music coming out of me!
My wife got me a handheld retro gaming system for Christmas and I’ve been loving it. I played through Advance Wars for the GBA and now I’m at the end of Advance Wars 2. The music of those games absolutely influenced this jam.
I LOVE the way this TEO-5 patch sounds. It’s a slightly altered version of a default patch with, among other things, the distortion and X-Mod cranked up to get a ton of character in there. I go for a little intentional dissonance during the little solo bit, and I think some of it works really well, while other parts don’t. For a quick improv I’m pretty happy with it though.
Finally have some down time, so I’ll be going through and listening to a ton of y’alls work tonight, which I’m psyched about. Constantly impressed by you all!
The past days I haven’t been able to make anything as i’ve been having a pretty intense chronic pain flareup and also I’m pretty tired
But I wanted to make something for today, so I did something very simple
As I didn’t manage to send the audio of my iPad to the deluge without hearing nothing when I play I thought I do just an iPad only project where I wanted to showcase my new Roli Seaboard and play around with a virtual harp
Rough day! Sickness in the house, winter storm in the forecast, too long of a workday, decided to make a grunge track. Sample is a dude hammering stuff into his roof across the street during nap time.
been busting out school work in the free hours after work, started this one last night and finished it up this evening on the op-xy
then i just droned around with my lil diy rack. i got a new desk that has a space for the rack so now its right in front of the 404. i also sequenced some kicks live from the op-xy into my diy 808 kick. ran it through some fx and then did some more passes with even more effects
jan20th
not much time today. felt tired, lots of emotional stuff happening in my life lately. i wish things would let up a bit. so i made something soothing for myself i guess?
I’m not as eloquent as @tovia, but I like shoutin you all out for making awesome stuff. Seems like a lot of folks had rough days, but pushed through and made music to reflect that, or to process that. Sorry about the rough days, but glad you were able to use art to get through it
Feedback
You’ve been doing some really nice things with movie samples. Big fan of this groove - everything works together really well and creates a kind of gentle mood.
Also I’m going to end up watching 'In a Lonely Place’ because I can’t get the “I didn’t say I was a gentleman, I said I was tired” quote out of my head from yesterday’s jam.
I love the way the background textures change and evolve in this. The bass and keys give me a good anchor while things go a little more wild. The nature of the sound makes me feel like I’m leaving somewhere calm and encountering - not danger - but difficulty along the way. I make it back by the end. It’s just me, the bass, and the keys. None of that outside stuff.
The reversed buildup at the beginning into that gently overdriven guitar was really effective. You ratcheted up the tension and then sent me straight into nostalgia. I like this track a lot. And the ending is a nice touch. It’s a subtle reminder of how things started.
Jamuary is awesome for trying out new workflows - worst case scenario you don’t love it and you never have to do it again. This is really interesting. I’d agree that it’s mostly mellow, but there’s a real hint of something else there. Like a calm passage haunted by a malevolent spirit. What VST were you using, btw?
That’s a busy day! Love that you still took the time get something together. I’m completely in love with whatever the sound is at 0:34. Sounds like glass maybe? It just tickles my eardrums in such a great way.
Sorry about the pain flare-up! It’s good to embrace simplicity sometimes. The pad in the background is what really stands out to me here. It’s haunting. Love the glitchy element towards the end as well.
Great when you’re able to take stuff like a dude interrupting your nap and turn it into something that serves you. Really dig that as a percussive element. The production on this makes it feel like I discovered something special that was otherwise supposed to be lost media. (If that doesn’t make sense, I promise its complimentary)
This one hit me just right. I love the way you’re bringing the traditional sounding percussion in such a light way, never quite letting me get too comfortable with it, but giving me just enough to grab on to. The transition into the second part was unexpected and exciting. Feels almost introspective.
You’ve got an interesting thing going here, especially with the NBA Jam clips against an otherwise calm track. The bell sound that comes in around 0:16 grounds this all while the lead goes off on its own. Can definitely tell it was fun to make!
What a contrast with the previous track! It seems like you have a really great sense of how to create and hold tension. Keeps me feeling anxious without getting to the point of diminishing returns.
Making music to settle the brain. This works nicely. The ebb and flow of it reminds me of waves coming in at the beach. Very calming, with just enough chaos to keep things interesting.
YouTube playlist of what everyone’s posted so far! I think I got most of the folks that have been posting, but I’ll go back in the morning and add anyone I’ve missed
Day 21:
Working the overnight shift been kicking my butt this week so was particularly tired/uninspired.
Started playing with OT midi arp controlling drums, never really used it before and was noodling around with minibrute since was on the table from previous day. Everything sounded like garbage so switched the midi drum sequence to controlling proteus (kalimba sound) switched a couple notes around added the simplest beat with 909 samples and a few notes from recorders that were within reach
Turned out kinda fun sounding I think
hoping for peace and stability for those who seek it in these times
some comments
love how mechanical the rhythm of the low frequency sounds feels! Like a giant looming robot, or the interior of some kind of evil science lab
so easy to zone out to this piece! It puts you in this wonderfully light and suspended place. The pads feel like they’re lifting you up higher and higher as the drums stay running along the ground
love the way the resonant bass and the drums are interacting! Quite a wistful piece too. The second pattern, with the big synth melody, has a very bright and uplifting quality to it
great atmosphere! I love those little background gurgle sounds at the edge of the soundscape. It feels like you’ve just woken up, and your vision is blurry, but you’re still alert to the happenings going on around you
I absolutely love how you phrase the motif just slightly differently each loop! Like it’s building up the confidence for that loud/driving section, and then has this lovely reflection on the journey. The washed out intro was like fading into a memory, and the outro was the memory finally falling apart
so lovely! It has a very mellow air to it, but with just enough dissonance to tinge it with something akin to melancholy. Like coming to terms with things that still rub you the wrong way
super fun! So many extra little sounds you were able to throw in for such a short piece too! I feel like the short nature of the piece actually allowed you to get crazier with those extra sounds than a longer piece would allow for, since it would be difficult to keep up that constant evolution in a longer piece
that lead patch is crazy! It has like a wispy quality to the upper frequencies, and this fluid nature at its core. Great choice for a solo sound! And the other sounds have this great aggressive sound to them as well that really work to heighten your lead playing. I think the dissonance sounded great!
Side note: thank you so much for taking the time to listen to and respond to others’ work!
gorgeous! I love how you incorporate those happy accidents into the piece, and your triumph over them makes the piece all the greater. The wailing sound in the background adds this ethereal beauty to the whole thing, and I especially love the bit of modulation that flutters out of the harp sound at the end
this piece goes on a crazy journey! The way the sounds morph into these digital facsimiles of themselves is so cool, and I love a lot of those micro loops you were able to make and use as ear candy
love whatever filtering is going on towards the end of this piece! That was a nice surprise. I really liked that looping drone as well, and I thought you added some nice accents to it as well that let the listener’s ear settle on different parts of the drone. I also quite enjoyed the drumming too! It had this interesting effect of really placing the drone in time
wonderful summer nights vibe to this! I particularly enjoyed the drums on this. I love the little stutters you add in with different drum elements
nice rawness! There is quite a subdued quality to the beginning of this piece that is wonderfully contrasted against the rough intensity it reaches
like a beautiful interlude in a longer ambient album! There is a gorgeous vocal quality to the sounds in this piece, and if you zone out just a bit while listening, the synths almost sound like they’re saying “stay strong”
love how dark and grimy this is! And that spring reverb gives everything such a gnarly edge, like a frayed shadow. I especially enjoyed how the low mids kept evolving through this piece
sounds like the intro to some kinda punk TV show with lots of crazy characters and environments!
lovely use of effects here! The way that counter melody sound feels like it’s emerging from behind the listener is insanely cool, and then the chorusing when you incorporate it into the full soundscape is wonderful. I especially loved that use of the silhouette module to make that reverb swell at the end (I’m assuming that’s what’s doing it, but I’m wholly unfamiliar with eurorack)
such a hypnotic sound! So easy to just listen to that loop for a long time. I loved the little flute melody you threw on top as well! It added a wonderful flavor to the piece that allowed it to be more than just a nice loop, and the snares coming in on top of everything was really fun
Jam 22. This is all Analog Four Mark II making use of performance macros, an Old Blood Noise Endeavors CV control slider, fills, bar-fills and plenty of p-locked Sound Pool trigs.
People have been making awesome stuff, so the listening is easy! Responding takes time, and I don’t always have the opportunity, but I want to make sure you’re not the only one doing it!
I also find that responding to each piece makes me listen more intentionally and think more carefully about what people are making and why. Which then helps me to think more intentionally about what I’m making and why. So there’s a little selfish benefit too
