SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC067 March 2023 - Winners announced

[juhu]

please update your initial post with the appropriate links (final version), or explicitly mark your entry as "final entry".

Q: my first version is my only and final version, do I still need to mark it as "final version" somehow?

[Mister Fox]

If your entry is the first and last one, then there is no need to mark that as final version.

I will scrape through the thread to find all entries, but it would be way, way easier (and less work) for me to find your song in the original post.

[becsei_gyorgy]

Hi everyone,

Unfortunately the deadline has come again this month.
I write "unfortunately" because I started to make something quite late and so far I have a very unmixed, unbalanced song (song skeleton ).

Briefly about this month's exercise:
I initially used Scaler 2 for the pad chords. The resulting chord progression became the skeleton of the song.
Because of the style, I didn't want any particularly complicated chord progressions. But I varied the breakdown a bit.
For the breakdown chord progression I also used Scaler 2 (The "suggestion" mode of the prog.)
The following chord progression emerged:
Bbmaj - Dmin/A - Cmaj - Fmaj/C - Gmin/D - Fmaj/C - Bbmaj7 - Dmin/A

I used the Xfer Cthulhu program to create the Diva background arpeggios. (I didn't use Cthulhu much, so this was a learning opportunity)
I made midi chords from the notes of the D minor scale, then I turned on the arpeggio in Cthulhu and played long time with it to make the desired sequence.

The song is far from ready.
For the atmosphere I imagined a dark line with deeper sounds. Intense, competing instruments, sometimes a bit chaotic background - all part of the concept, but not properly developed yet (but so far it's a bit more chaotic than it needs to be)

• 125 Bpm
• Dmin
• Dm - Bb - Gm - A
Breakdown:
Bbmaj - Dmin/A - Cmaj - Fmaj/C - Gmin/D - Fmaj/C - Bbmaj7 - Dmin/A



Documentation:

► Show Spoiler

VST:
Algonaut Atlas
Diva
Pigments
Serum
Spitfire Cinematic Pads
Spitfire Frozen Strings
Kontakt (Duduk, Koto, Organ)
Synth V Pro (Kevin, Solaria)

FX:
Pro-Q3
Maag EQ4
Oxford Dynamic EQ
Vertigo VSC-2
ReaComp
RComp
RVox
Pulsar Smasher
Oxford Voxdoubler
SPL TwinTube
Saturn2
Echoboy
Trackspacer 2
soothe2
Waves DeEsser
TheKings Microphone
LFO Tool
PanMan
MSED
kHs Gain

Waves EQP1A
TDR SlickEQ M
Ozone 10
Oxford Inflator
Oxford Limiter
J37 Tape
SPAN
Youlean LM

TaiChi
Valhalla Vintage Verb
OTT

Lyrics:

► Show Spoiler

It is the time for something to happen
It is the time for something to hide

Darkness, brightness
One after another, just the time is less

It is the time for something to happen
It is the time for something to hide

Hide your disbelief,
I long for our love like you do,
Let's change the world together,
And hold my hand forever.

It is the time for something to happen,
It is the time to reach our heaven.

[A Future in Noise]

The electric guitar did not behave exactly as I had imagined. It's my first one; previously I have stuck to acoustic guitars. I bought this one maybe 2-3 weeks ago.

I used ToneSpace from Mucoder to create the unusual chords. I started out with: Em, Bm, Em etectera, but when I let Tonespce change it, this is what it became: Bsus4/E, Bm, Em, Bsus4, Gsus4, Am, {Bsus4/E}times2, Esus4, Bsus4/F#, Bsus4/E, Bm, Dsus4/G, Esus4/A, {Esus4}times2

The chorus is not fancy at all, in this respect. Not very many questionable chords. But maybe it's catchy, I don't know.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/19LkMGg ... share_link

Equipment used:

Electric guitar: BurnOut. Origin: Unclear.

DAW: Reaper

Modo bass, modo drums, ZynAddSubFx, Grand Piano: Addictive Keys.

Independence Free's delay. Two times Reverberate LE and IR files from Samplicity. Tube Amp from Voxengo

[Mister Fox]

It is the 25th March 2023, 00:50 UTC+1/CET - this month's Songwriting Competition has official ended

Apologies for closing this one out so late.


STATISTICS:

• If I didn't miscount, we have 13 submissions this month (3 entries more than last month, and also 6 more than March 2022)
• We have 0 submissions after the deadline (as of 25-MAR-2023 00:10 UTC+1/CET)
• We have 0 submissions that has been disqualified (production released outside of the game's timeframe)
• We have 2 submissions that has been withdrawn (one counts as entry within the deadline, one has been completely removed and not added to the total entry amount)
• The "staff balancing vote" add-on rule does not apply
• "Sole Winners Podium" rule (equal or less than eight participants results in a single winner) does not apply (3-position Winners Podium)

How do we go from there?

Over the course of the next (hopefully) 24-48 hours (usually up to 6-12 hours maximum after the game has ended), I'll gather all links into one post and hot-link to that from the first post of the thread. Please, no more changes to your entries, but please do check your links that these entries are accessible and downloadable. We then perform with the final feedback and "public vote" system.


We have 11 official participants. We are adapting the overhauled vote mechanic, as talked about in the following news blog:

Songwriting Competition - game mechanic changes: Voting Process (October 2022 Update)
(Info: I am aware that the Rule Book has not been properly updated yet. Time constraints, apologies for the inconvenience)


Summarized:

!

Bonus Info

Participants can (and must) vote for their Top 5 entries. You're furthermore asked to please reflect on your experience this month (2-3 paragraphs max), what you have learned, what you would like to do different in the future, etc. (personal growth) You are also asked to give feedback to at least five (number: 5) entries that either stood out to you and you would like to provide some additional final thoughts, or where you could provide constructive feedback for possible improvements. To add to the learning experience of our community, it is recommended that these entries are outside of your personal "top entry" voting. Have the chance to get additional bonus points if you decide to invest the time to provide more constructive feedback than the requested minimum. It must be more than just "nice production, please keep up the good work" however. This is to boost more interaction and can balance out your overall points on the score sheet. (get 1 point if you give constructive feedback to 2-3 more people, get 2 points if you give helpful feedback for everyone) The "Voting Process" mechanic is mandatory for all participants, and the only criteria to drop out of the game by not partaking. The overall "Bonus Point" mechanic still applies. Please update your posts with proper production documentation, most notably regarding whom you have collaborated with (as in: proper credits -- not doing so will result in a 2pt deduction on the score sheet at the end of the game). You got until the voting period has ended. Please cast your vote (not the feedback) in collective form through the "spoiler text" bbcode (button on the WYSIWYG editor that features the orange triangle with an exclamation mark in it). Please use the forum username of the participant to make it easier during the score collection to address what vote belongs to whom.

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⚠	Moderation Message from Mister Fox
	For transparency: The staff (Mister Fox) will not give feedback to all entries and/or cast a vote this month.

Feedback from non-participants and/or collaborators is highly encouraged (voting not needed!). The same goes for entries after the deadline, or those that sadly do not count for the current running game (even if you've exceeded the deadline, why not post your entry regardless?). Musicians and Engineers are always after constructive criticism. This is what this forum is about.





Have some general feedback? Please provide that here:
Songwriting Competition - General Gossip Thread, or on Discord.



Please have an eye on this thread!

[Mister Fox]

Let us kick off the VOTING PROCESS, which will end on Saturday, 01-APR-2023 23:59 UTC+2/CEST latest


There is a GLOBAL COUNTDOWN to check for deadlines.
Just follow this link: Global Countdown (on homepage)



Here is the collection of productions from all participants (in hope that I didn't forget anyone). As usual, if you click on the small upwards-arrow right beside the quoted name, you can jump to the original post and read up on the documentation for this production.


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"Apathetic"



WAV: Google Drive playback and download

"Untitled"

MPEG Audio: Dropbox playback and download

STAFF INFO: Unfortunately, entry was never updated.

"Quadrophenias Dreams"

"DeLorean"

WAV: Google Drive playback and download

STAFF INFO: link lead to a folder. I linked to the song directly

"The Day When My Heart Broke"



STAFF INFO: Follow-up documentation can be found here

"RockChord"

WAV: OneDrive playback and download

"Wonders"



WAV: Google Drive playback and download

"AI - Clickedu"



BONUS VIDEO:

► Show Spoiler

phpBB [media]

"Mirror Image"

WAV: Download from Personal Server

"NotQuite"

WAV: OneDrive playback and download

"Something To Happen"

"TaDigSamman-1"

WAV: Google Drive playback and download

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WITHDRAWN (not participating - feel free to give feedback, but you sadly can not vote for these entries)

"SadMountain"

WAV 24/96: Google Drive playback and download
MP3_48k: Google Drive playback and download

STAFF INFO: Entry has been withdrawn on request, but is listed as "bonus entry" to showcase what "Band In A Box" can do

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BONUS ENTRIES (submitted after the deadline - feel free to give feedback, but you sadly can not vote for these entries)


<no bonus entries>
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GAME MECHANIC SUMMARY:

► Show Spoiler

Please consult this news blog post regarding an overhaul to the voting mechanic. To make it simple for me for counting the votes - please use the forum usernames in your listing. Thank you!

Please also consult the previous post that features a summary for this month's mechanic (see "Bonus Info" in the red colored box).
.


This month's SWC participants giving feedback to each other is mandatory, it is the only criteria to drop out of the game by not partaking. If you have collaborated with somebody, then only the one doing the main entry needs to give feedback and vote. Bonus feedback is always welcome. However, please be open minded, objective and constructive.


INFORMATION: If you have submitted your entry in multiple file formats, the statistic sheet (posted alongside the results) will focus on the uncompressed material first (WAV), then FLAC, then MP3. The higher the quality (e.g. lossless format), the less possible loss on bonus points for "Loudness Specs" due to offsets introduced by a used CODEC.

Good luck to all participants!




If you have an idea for a future Songwriting Competition, please post about this in the theme/genre request page or on Discord.


Post updated: 25-MAR-2023 02:20 UTC+1/CET

[juhu]

1) My feedback to fellow participants:

► Show Spoiler

Arelem - "Apathetic"
Instant Moby vibes! I bet the author has been at least partly inspired by Moby here The track does leave me wanting for more interest, variety and adventure in terms of musical form and chord progressions though. Mix engineering is good on this.

canese - "Untitled"
Makes me feel light as a feather. Like sipping margaritas on some tropical island paradise! I would have included this track as part of my 5 votes, however, as the staff had raised the question of “how much of this was done by LARS software and how much by the author”, and this question was never addressed by the participant, I’m reserving this vote for other tracks.

madmax - "Quadrophenias Dreams"
Occasionally I get some 60’s and 70’s experimental fusion vibe from this, yet at other times I’m not sure what I’m getting. Difficult to find words to describe the track further. Perhaps that was the intent of the author

Mellow Browne - "DeLorean"
Definite Depeche Mode feel, especially once the chords start progressing more adventurously. Makes me really wish for a lead vocal part to be added! The mix engineering job is excellent.

OrpheusXL - "The Day When My Heart Broke"
Reminds me of the Monkey Island theme song (a PC adventure game from the 90’s). The note velocities seem to be all the same, which gives the track a robotic feel. Unless this was intentional, it might benefit from velocity variations. Also, at times the arrangement gets way too busy, just too much going on all at once, everything at equal level and equal note velocities, so much so that there’s nothing for my attention to lock on to. From the perspective of counterpoint, there is again too much similarity between different parts, e.g., multiple parts walking around at exactly the same pace at the same time. In other words - the track needs more contrast between parts! There are many ways to create contrast: if one part moves mostly upwards, make another part move mostly downwards at the same time; if one part moves fast, make another part move slower at the same time; make only one part at a time come across as the main solo instrument and put other parts into a supportive role at that time.

JeroenZuiderwijk - "RockChord"
The Rock feel is absolutely there and it’s super catchy! When the FM Synth chords kicked in I was instantly teleported back to my childhood, playing original Doom for DOS on a 90’s PC! I have only one complaint: the boomy ringing of the Kick drum. Other than that, an excellent track!

KukoBass - "Wonders"
The composition immediately catches attention in a good way. Stylistically speaking, it’s not far off from being easily transformable into a Progressive Rock version, should the author want to go there. There are a few issues with the performance aspect as well as the mixing aspect though. Timing and velocities of the drum hits are just a tiny bit inconsistent enough to distract the listener occasionally. The high-pitched bells / chimes have super-sharp transients poking through the mix. The lead vocals have build-up in lower-mids and bass frequencies, also the lead vocal level jumps up at one point in the song and stays up there till the end of the track in a slightly distracting way. Finally, the song ends a bit short and abruptly, which comes across as if the author ran out of time to finish the entire musical form. Those issues with performance and mixing aside, the composition is interesting and compelling and I would very much love to listen to a finished and polished version of this song some day!

EsteveCorbera - "AI - Clickedu"
First thing I noticed was lack of variation in note velocities on the acoustic piano patch. I think adding velocity variations to the piano would already go a long way for this track! Next thing I noticed was that everything was swimming in a cathedral filled with reverb. Heavy and long reverb can be a viable artistic choice of course, but in this instance it started clouding the actual instruments, so perhaps try EQ-ing the FX return bus and also experiment with different pre-delay times on the reverb tail in order to make it sit behind the mix in a supportive role so it doesn’t overpower the actual music. Might also want to reduce reverb tail length, or try different reverbs altogether. I trust you were using reverb(s) as Aux Send FX, not on each individual track as inserts? Because if you did use reverbs as inserts, this might have been a contributing factor to the issue. As for the drums, I would actually reduce velocity variations on the Kick and Snare a bit in order to make the beat more consistent. I think all those changes together would improve the overall impression at least 10X, as there is a good track hiding behind those few issues.

Jorgeelalto - "NotQuite"
This track comes across as an absolutely complete and finished product composition-wise. Also, it is almost complete and finished mixing-wise, I could identify only 2 things for improvement: 1) perhaps the acoustic piano chords need some EQ to reduce build-up in lower-mids, and 2) the bass wobble contains excessive stereo information in bass frequencies that becomes distractive when listening on headphones, so perhaps mono-ing the bass frequencies might help (this is not a problem when listening on speakers though). Overall, excellent production!

becsei_gyorgy - "Something To Happen"
No idea why the author describes it as “a very unmixed, unbalanced song (song skeleton)” because it sounds pretty good and almost “there” to me, only a few places where I can actually notice that a couple of EQ / dynamics / balance adjustments would be beneficial. I would describe the mix as “almost complete”. The song behind the mix comes across clearly.

A Future in Noise - "TaDigSamman-1"
The intro section immediately transported me into the Star Trek universe, as it came across as nothing less than Klingon opera! Next, the illusion dissipated as soon as the drums started playing in the following section, because the stylistic change was too abrupt and from a different, more Earthly / common / familiar universe. Now, had that main section been done in some style of Melodic Metal, I bet the illusion would have been reinforced even further! As the intro material repeated, the Klingon illusion returned. The electric guitar added during that repeat sounded out-of-tune a bit though. I would really like to hear a finished version of this song some day with improvements applied!

2) My top 5 votes:

► Show Spoiler

Jorgeelalto - "NotQuite"
Mellow Browne - "DeLorean"
JeroenZuiderwijk - "RockChord"
becsei_gyorgy - "Something To Happen"
KukoBass - "Wonders"

[A Future in Noise]

The electric guitar added during that repeat sounded out-of-tune a bit though. I would really like to hear a finished version of this song some day with improvements applied!

I feel very flattered by the fact that it was possible to give positive feedback on the verse. Personally, I probably like the chorus the most, simply because I think it is quite catchy. But the "out of tune" guitar: it came as a total surprise to me that electric guitars have different properties than acoustic steel string guitars in this respect: if I press the strings all the way down into the fretboard - with force - I simultaneously "bend" the tone, with an electric guitar. One apparently has to learn a new technique? Just press down the strings a little lightly, with the left hand? I will never learn that technique...

[juhu]

it came as a total surprise to me that electric guitars have different properties than acoustic steel string guitars in this respect: if I press the strings all the way down into the fretboard - with force - I simultaneously "bend" the tone, with an electric guitar. One apparently has to learn a new technique? Just press down the strings a little lightly, with the left hand?

Correct! The fretting fingers should apply just enough force to get a solid tone without pitching up, no more, no less! Just keep practicing with that in mind and it'll become second nature over time.

UPDATE: additionally, try positioning each fretting finger as close to the fret as possible, just ever so slightly behind the fret, that'll help tremendously!

[Mister Fox]

Just a quick heads-up.

I will always assume, that the Top 5 listing order is "1st place to last place" (if no numbering is used) once I collect all votes.

Thank you.