Tune Contest 10/03 to 24/03: Outer Space [WINNER announced]

nihilyst · Thu 10/03/2011 03:40:34

Welcome again to this fortnight's tune contest. This time we deal with outer space. You may choose any style, length and instrumentation you like.

Your song somehow has to be depict something located in outer space. Examples:
- A tune that would fit to a scene taking place in an abandoned space station
- A song for Monolith Burger's tv ad
- ... a deserted desert planet
- ... a dessert planet
- ... an epic space battle
- ... and so on

You earn extra points if you manage to convey the feeling without the standard space synthies. Are you creative enough to get your setting nailed even with a balalaika or a recorder?

If you want, you can elaborate on the setting you choose, write a short story, show a picture. With certain pictures in mind, your tune might have a greater impact on the listeners.

The contest ends March 24th. Then the winner will be decided.

Have fun!

cheers
nihilyst

Pinback · Thu 10/03/2011 12:39:24

Sounds like an interesting topic- please excuse this ultra noobish question but with so many choices I can't seem to find a simple, reliable and free way to upload music for quick listening. Emphasis on simple. Anyone got any suggestions?

TomatoesInTheHead · Thu 10/03/2011 13:45:22

Quote from: Pinback on Thu 10/03/2011 12:39:24
Sounds like an interesting topic- please excuse this ultra noobish question but with so many choices I can't seem to find a simple, reliable and free way to upload music for quick listening. Emphasis on simple. Anyone got any suggestions?

I think www.soundcloud.com might be good for that, though I've never tried it myself, only listened to stuff that other people uploaded there.

TomatoesInTheHead · Wed 23/03/2011 01:12:02

I've got an entry finished!

Well, I have not not used the standard space synthies (at least I generated them on my own), but I have a picture along with my track, so one extra point off, but another one added, or whatever.

Okay, here is the tune, if you want to call it a tune, and this is the accompanying picture:

The (in my opinion) interesting thing about it is that I drew the image, and made a program that interprets the image as a sound and converts it into a wave file. Every 16 pixel in x direction give a second, and the y direction gives a frequency spectrum, where the brightness of the pixel is the intensity/amplitude of a sine wave with the given frequency.

The picture kind of tells a "story" from left to right, and so does the song: There's a lonesome spaceship travelling through space first, then shots, escalation, a second spaceship is hit!, and then a deserted panet comes in view, with some abandoned houses, and there is no life... or is it?

Fun fact: While I worked on this, the shuffle function selected Prodigy's "Out of Space" to play - coincidence? Or a sign from an angel?

nihilyst · Wed 23/03/2011 01:33:46

@TomatosInTheHead: That certainly is spacy

Anyone else want to enter? Two days left.

nihilyst · Fri 25/03/2011 16:40:12

If there's no other entry until midnight, I end this with TomatosInTheHead winning by default.

AnalogGuy · Fri 25/03/2011 17:52:20

I could make one tune but only at next monday if you could postpone the deadline, and meanwhile hope for better competitor...

nihilyst · Fri 25/03/2011 19:57:40

The deadline is hereby postponed until next tuesday

TomatoesInTheHead · Fri 25/03/2011 20:19:23

Glad to see someone else is joining!

Because I would have had no idea for a new topic if I'd won...

Bror_Jon · Fri 25/03/2011 20:37:43

What is this? So few joining? I'll have to do my duty and join as well!

Pinback · Sun 27/03/2011 21:57:47

Damnit I made like 3 entries now and I'm not happy with any of them! Arg!

Edit) Although, I did only just now get my hands on a proper midi keyboard- so I may still be able to whip something up I'm not ashamed to post in time.

Bror_Jon · Sun 27/03/2011 22:44:33

http://www.qfpost.com/download.do?get=f0b41c72172a82cd0e11231df446c0a4

Picture a deserted ship, drifting through the endless vacuum of space.

Pinback · Mon 28/03/2011 15:54:44

Could use some more work, the second scratch solo is a bit redundant, but the final crescendo turned out well I think.

http://www.qfpost.com/download.do?get=6f9c9f165d5052ff2d3aab67a98868b4

BLOSSOM

Meteors impact silently across the hulls of a thousand vessels. Nightcycle watch is on duty across the fleet, and the worst seems to be behind them. A few minor breaches are reported, but nothing critical, then; Warning sirens!
Brilliant plumes spew across the void- the casualties begin to mount almost immediately- An ambush.

Thanks for the tip Tomatoes, and great entries guys!

AnalogGuy · Tue 29/03/2011 18:23:01

Damn... I think I have to ask for more extension to deadline... so much things to do now so I'm not sure whether I am able to make the tune today evening or tomorrow.

Anyway since you're getting now more competitors, isn't it good thing to extend deadline? Who knows how many other will join...

nihilyst · Tue 29/03/2011 18:25:10

Granted

AnalogGuy · Wed 30/03/2011 21:33:49

Here's mine tune. It didn't become as great as it was supposed to be, so I let you to have free imagination about the context of the song.

http://www.dmelody.com/music/Other%20Creators/AnalogGuy/untitled.mp3

You have to put:

username: dmelody.com
password: tallinn

This is because the friend of mine had to prevent hotlinking and making unnecessary traffic.

nihilyst · Thu 31/03/2011 14:09:33

Okay, time's over. We had four totally different entries, which made them hard to compare and difficult to decie a winner. First, some comments to each of you:

TomatosInTheHead
+ I like the idea of converting an image into sound. It certainly has a unique feeling of spaceships drifting in orbits, computers running and calculating.
- It's not much of a tune, I fear, and would classify rather as background ambience than a piece of music.

jon_swe
+ The background with that scratchy white noise, distorted wind thing sets the atmosphere of loneliness.
+ Instead of portraying a gloomy, dark scene, as a spaceship drifting in space would normally be portrayed, you chose a bright, exploring theme. I could easily imagine the ship flying in front of colourful nebulas and distant planets, until it finally would arrive on some strange new world.

Pinback
+ An action-packed theme in space; the story you describe is vividly converted into music and effects.
+ Great beat! Good choice of instruments.

ptpt88
+ Classic instrumentation; well used
+ Conveys a feeling of lonelines, but also has some kind of storyline near the end
- It's a bit too bland, there could have been more variety

Because it struck me as the most immersive, I choose Pinback's song as the winning tune.

Thanks for the great entries, guys!

Congratulations, Pinback! You're next.

TomatoesInTheHead · Thu 31/03/2011 15:14:05

Congrats Pinback, well-deserved!

Bror_Jon · Thu 31/03/2011 19:00:12

Well done Pinback! Congrats!

Pinback · Sat 02/04/2011 14:33:36

Thanks guys:D

Hmm, what topic to pick...