2024-MAR-01 Info: Check out Songwriting Competition 079 if you're into "Synthwave" music making.

SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Winners announced

Thematic Songwriting Competition - recurrence: monthly
fajebru
Posts: 18
Joined: Tue Jun 13, 2017 17:46 CEST

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#31

Post by fajebru »

DISCLAIMERS:
1. Sorry for spelling mistakes. I’m horrible at english, I am lazy, I don’t care that much (about spelling right. I care about the music of course!).
2. I didn’t pay attention to an overall nice feeling with every feedback text. Please keep in mind, that all of this is just my gut feeling. And that I’m generally amazed by all of your submissions. I just went on with it. That doesn’t mean, that if you didn’t get a lot of pro’s, that I didn’t like your track. This was meant to be only constructive feedback.

@Arelem
Nice build up. Cool sounds, very spherical. The part before the first drop may benefit from some extra love. just some extra sparkle. I love the pluggy sound in the bridge. Kinda reminds me of pizzicato strings. Really tasteful and musical. All spherical sounds in your song are. And you really play with dynamics and width in a very musical way. I think the main guitar sound could have benefited from some modulation. I might be biased here, because I know the base material, but it sounds a bit too uninspired in my eyes.

@A Future in Noise
I think the composition behind that track is actually pretty neat. However, I think, that the overall sound experience is a bit static. Everything sounds very placed. Something that would have been overruled by a human performance, of course. The track could use some unpredictable touches. Modulation, noise, weird stuff, delays, reverb. I know you used reverb, but that’s kind of a glueing reverb. What I mean, is something that really influences the sound experience and makes it more human.

@VCA-089
Great soundscapes in the start. The delays, the reverse sounds, the noisy stuff. All very beautiful and it’s really dragging me into the track. The topline in that very part sounds a bit rushed to me, since everything is so slow motion sounding. Really great drum sounds. Especially the snare with it’s Phil Collins’ish gated reverb vibe. The overall choices and songparts in this track are very musical. I kinda lose the plot with a certain note in the topline and I’m not really digging the bass line, which is a bit too hesitant in my eyes. It’ just that one touch not dirty enough. But then again, everything kinda comes together within the last part before the soundscape outro. Well done!

@J.Ruegg
What a start. Instant vibe, a bit scary, a bit cinematic, but everything in a good way. I kinda get vibes of playing GTA and it’s dark while there is a really scary mission and you have no clue what you actually should be doing. What I mean is, I instantly create pictures in my head. Thats what music should do, so every credit to that. Outstanding sound design, outstanding musicality. This & tinnitus’s track are my clear favorites in this competition. Well done, I have nothing to add.

@SuC76
I think the bass sound sounds a bit too obviously pitched. You kinda hear the natural noise within that sample shifting and I’m missing something when I hear that. If you’d make it really obvious & in your face, with some crunch and more dirt, you could use this to your benefit, but now it kinda seems as tho you wanted to hide it, but didn’t quite manage it. The main sound that starts right at the beginning (pluggy with delay) is really really nice. I really like that one. I think you could have sticked with the first melody bit for a bit longer and as you switch it up, maybe switch the sound with it.

@EsteveCorbera
I feel like the first too parts/sounds don’t really connect within the listening experience until they are together. Maybe, it wouldn’t have been bad, to give them at least a tiny bit of overlapping time before the first one fades away. As the bells turn off, you start that octave bass line. In my opinion, this could have been a main hook!! It’s really far away but I get 80s vibes (do you know the Stranger Things?. You could’ve picked that up from there and that would have glued everything together I think! Right now, I like the song, but I’m constantly waiting for the moment that I really fall into the song and feel it, but it just quite doesn’t happen for mere there.

@satchboogie
Nice spooky sound design shit. I love it. Even tho it takes a while for the first harmony/melody parts, it still sounds musical. For me, it’s perfect up until the drums. They kinda could have been more in front, in my eyes. After that, the drum composition is a bit inconsistent. And I think, since the sound design is a bit weird (but nice!), the vocal top line could have been a bit more poppy. I would’ve hoped for it to take over from there and hook me. Right now, it kinda hides behind the track and the arrangement.

@tinnitus
Top composition, top sound design. Very very musical choices. Nice voice as well. Very well used. I really get dragged into this track right away and it doesn’t let me go. To me, the whole percussion theme is soooo amazing. I’m not entirely sure, if what I’m hoping for is even possible, but I think that the percussion and especially the main parts of it could be more in your face. Just a touch. It all blends very well within that track, but I kinda miss a tiny bit of the track steering me through it. Other than then, that: This and J.Ruegg’s track are the clear winners.
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Guys, I really love that! Well done everyone. @Mister Fox I have no clue, if there will be any more sound design challenges, but If there are, hit me up :wink:
tinnitus
Posts: 11
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2022 04:40 CET

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#32

Post by tinnitus »

Alright, this is my first time entering so hopefully im not talking like an idiot. Here goes.

@Arelem
Very nice calm intro. I'm diggin the mood. The way the beat drops in sounds epic. I feel like it could do with just a bit more melodic/harmonic elements later in the song as it progresses to make it sound even more huge. Like some strings to fill the space or some other musical element. I can hear the song holding itself back a little. It wants to let loose, but stays resurved and well behaved. Its great, but there is potential to go further.

@A Future in Noise
At the start the dry midi-like sounds remind of SNES and pirates, but then when the guitar tones come in it catches my attention a little more. Then the bass. At this point I don't know what to expect anymore but im interesting and want to keep listening to find out. Around 0:52 to 1:02 specifically, the chord changes are brilliant (potential to cause emotional tears). The little touch of percussion was cool too. BUT THEN ITS OVER! I literally said out loud "Awww man." I like where it was going, but right when I got into it the song was over. It was cut too short. It would be cool to hear it keep building up but have some higher quality orchestrations start blending in. So in short, the sounds are a little dry, but I hear your talent pushing through. Just needs to be longer and more life added to the sounds. But great work!

@VCA-089
This sounds like early 90's gold. Wow. Back when 3D animation was fresh there were these movies called The Mind's Eye. This song would have been exscellent on there. Though I think this is a bit higher quality. It sounds like its telling a story with the progression. I can hear you put so much into it, even in the calm atmaspheric sections. So cool! The one thing that stands out to me that could use a little work is the drum EQ, but I can't put my finger on it. the mids almost sound a tad too wide, but the more I listen it doesn't sound bad either. Its not my particular taste in music BUT, this track is epic and it sounds like you are a musical master mind with lots of experience. Awesome work.

@fajebru
This entry has some interesting quirky sounds in the beat. That kick...punches. The atmosphere changing at 1:26 is so great. I feel it really needs Tom Yorke on vocals especially on that part. (I'll just have to imagine.) There is so much potential for it to build up even further, doubling up on the pads with complimenting strings. I think it would also be cool if more fx were used on the qwerky sounds here and there. Just to play with them more and add even more texture and change. Very solid track, I just want to hear more of it.

@J.Ruegg
Hot dang this track sounds big and cinematic. When the end comes I feel like it was cut short...but at the same time, not. Because it sounds so cinematic it sounds like it first perfectly for whatever show or movies scene it was made for. You remind us how much can be done with a simple noise when spending time to shape it into something new. I don't really have much else to say about this one. It sounds so good already. (side note, I was curious about Tantra and might be looking into it a little more thanks to (MY WALLET CRIES!))

@SuC76
The intro sounds nice and minimal. It causes anticipation. Around 0:36 a change happens which sounds like the calm before the storm. It almost feels like that section could be cut in half. When the beat comes back in it feels a little anti-climatic because the bass stayed close to the same. If it switched back to main bass form the start I think it might feel a little more satisfying. If there was a bring section though, this section seems like it would be more fitting. I think it needs a bangin breakbeat (yes I know we're limited in this contest so nevermind that part). There are some cool sounds in here, I just think the arrangement needs a little more of work to enhands the changes and progression. Its not always easy to do. I get stuck quite a bit in that area.

@EsteveCorbera
It kinds of gives me an eerie mad house vibe. Dark, yet happy and peacful at the same time. I like the changes around 1:36 with the warpy sounding notes. Very dreamy. The whole thing sounds beautiful, but like it needs a little more near the end section to help make it sound more intersting. Maybe some extra strings or atmospheric tones. Nice work though. I like the left over dry sounds at the end.

@satchboogie
The intro section was interesting (rat sneakin around and then getting chased down(Nice story!)). Very cool drum programming. The drums do feel a little bit weak in the mix though. I wonder if some extra saturation/light distortion could help bring them out to hit harder. Maybe some distortion for the bass as well as the keys + chorus. Something to add more movement to them. Extra high five for writing lyrics. The music sounds well written, but the sounds just seem a little too bland. Its more of a mixing/sound design preference though. But I think if more time went into that area this song could sound so much bigger and hit harder. Still, great work.
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satchboogie
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Oct 16, 2020 18:59 CEST

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#33

Post by satchboogie »

Hey !

There are some decent sound designing in the posts. Wow! I realized that when i hear a sample i try to associate it with some kind of an (imaginary) instrument, or frequency range where it would sit rather then knowing what i could make out of it. Maybe the tapproach would be better to think of a sound and pick the right samples to extract from it. Stacking up samples and filtering, etc. has some compromises in terms of the sound i wanted to make. (This is what i mainly did). I think i mainly just did sound shaping and tried to make a song from the relevant results.

satch
tinnitus
Posts: 11
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2022 04:40 CET

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#34

Post by tinnitus »

satchboogie wrote:
Tue Jan 25, 2022 12:54 CET
Hey !

There are some decent sound designing in the posts. Wow! I realized that when i hear a sample i try to associate it with some kind of an (imaginary) instrument, or frequency range where it would sit rather then knowing what i could make out of it. Maybe the tapproach would be better to think of a sound and pick the right samples to extract from it. Stacking up samples and filtering, etc. has some compromises in terms of the sound i wanted to make. (This is what i mainly did). I think i mainly just did sound shaping and tried to make a song from the relevant results.

satch
Yea I think that is kind of the natural response people tend to do when with starting out on these types of challenges. I've only done a couple of them, but my first one I felt less inclined to use the samples as a source for generating completely different sounds. instead I treated everything like a sample and used basic methods. I still have a long way to go with this. But its inspiring to hear what people come up with and makes me want to learn a bit more about transforming one sound into something new and unique. Brain stretchers.
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VCA-089
Posts: 107
Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2019 15:46 CET

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Submissions until 24-01-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#35

Post by VCA-089 »

tinnitus wrote:
Mon Jan 24, 2022 04:52 CET
Wave version:
SWC053_ShaneNewville_Walking.wav
Cannot download file (no access to a file, it's set to private i guess). Please enable direct download from SoundCloud....
tinnitus
Posts: 11
Joined: Mon Jan 24, 2022 04:40 CET

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Submissions until 24-01-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#36

Post by tinnitus »

VCA-089 wrote:
Wed Jan 26, 2022 16:19 CET
tinnitus wrote:
Mon Jan 24, 2022 04:52 CET
Wave version:
SWC053_ShaneNewville_Walking.wav
Cannot download file (no access to a file, it's set to private i guess). Please enable direct download from SoundCloud....
Oh weird. Its supposed to be accessible to anyone with a link. let me check again.

[EDIT] I updated it. Should be working now.
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A Future in Noise
Posts: 285
Joined: Wed Nov 07, 2018 09:26 CET
Location: Stockholm, Sweden
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Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#37

Post by A Future in Noise »

I don't think that I will be able to give feedback, this month, for various reasons. And I won't withdraw my track either (a track that was meant to be 3-4 minutes). If you other folks are going to comment on my track, despite of this fact, of course you're welcome. But maybe it's a little bit unfair if I benefit from your critizism when I don't give feedback myself. I just wanted to tell you this.
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Mister Fox
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Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2017 16:15 CEST
Location: Berlin, Germany

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#38

Post by Mister Fox »

Just a reminder to this:
There is a bonus point mechanic involved with the feedback and voting process. If you do not give feedback to everyone, you'll loose out on points. Please check in again with the Rules for Voting. Sometimes one point can make all the difference.


It saddens me to see that you probably might not be able to give feedback, @A Future in Noise, which would actually disqualify your entry at the end of the voting process. This hurts a bit, especially since you were one of those that created new waveforms from scratch. But it is ultimately your decision.

The voting process still runs for another 3,5 days.
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A Future in Noise
Posts: 285
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Location: Stockholm, Sweden
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Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#39

Post by A Future in Noise »

Mister Fox wrote:
Sat Jan 29, 2022 05:23 CET
Just a reminder to this:
If you do not give feedback to everyone, you'll loose out on points.
Do you think it would be possible to change the status of my track to bonus track? As if it was posted too late? It would be much more convenient for me, at least. Maybe I could give feedback to a couple of the participants after all (or everyone), and others could feel free to comment on my track or not. (I might even finish my track.)
Arelem
Posts: 120
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2021 06:09 CEST

Re: SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC053 January 2022 - Voting until 01-FEB-2022 23:59 UTC+1/CET

#40

Post by Arelem »

Hello,

Great work everybody. Lots of great sound design, and some really interesting tracks. Anyway, here is my feedback.

A Future in Noise - At 0:15 you have the bass play 1 note, but it doesn’t actually come in until later which was a little weird. The repeating 1/8th note chords sound like an old 90’s video game, which can be good, but I don’t feel like it fit this particular song. The melodies are nice if not a little busy. Having a prominent melody and counter-melody might not be necessary throughout the whole song. I know you were pressed for time, so I imagine that you had plans for more. Overall though, it’s a good start with some good ideas in there.

VCA-089 – The soundscape of the intro is really nice, and you did a great job with sound design. The drums came out really good and fit a retro aesthetic really well. As a stand-alone track, I don’t feel like there’s enough going on. There isn’t a melody or top line to grab my attention. It does leave a lot of room for a potential vocal which I think the track would benefit greatly from.

Fajebru – Really interesting drums and great use of the provided samples as foley. I wish there was more of a lead or top line. It got a little boring as the song went on. Maybe even just some more variation on what was there. It was essentially the same few bars repeating. It’s got some good bones to it, maybe just needs some more work in the arrangement.

Tinnitus – I really like the sound design here. The industrial feel of the drums and everything works really well. The song does feel a little empty though because everything feels like it is cut to the middle. There’s not much going on in the low end or at the top. The vocal accompanies the track really well. Great job.

J.Ruegg – Great work on the sound design. Everything sounds really good. The track itself is a bit too ambient for it to be something I would listen to casually. It kind of felt like one long buildup to a drop that never happened. Feels like it would make a good backing track to a video game or something.

SuC76 –There are definitely some good ideas in there, but nothing really feels fleshed out or polished. The kick that you managed sounded good, nice and punchy. The claps are a bit too wide for me. At least to be played through the whole song the way they were. The bass is nice and has some good variety in the melody it’s playing. The track also feels pretty empty with a lot of it being just the bass and the drums.

EsteveCorbera – The ambient pads are great; good work on the sound design there. The clap/sweep has that weird time-stretch sound to it which I really notice and am not a fan of. I know our selection of samples was limited but I would try different samples or maybe different techniques to achieve a similar sound without that effect. The track lacks some energy which I think it missed out on due to a lack of percussive instruments. I think something like a marching band style snare would fit really well into the track.

Satchboogie – Pads sound nice and full. I really like the arp and trumpet-y sound in the intro. The short synth that comes in at 0:58 sounds a bit too 90’s synth. It feels out of place because up until it comes in, everything sounds much more modern. The kick is pretty weak in my opinion; probably some more sound design work that you could do there. I like the harmonies/chorus that you have on the vocals. Well done overall.
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