30 Songs in 30 Days

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 1:37 am

While Rick Griffin's busy writing a boring novel, I am going to compose 30 exciting songs in 30 exciting days! Apparently, a handful of people in the chiptune community did this last year, and possibly years before, and I'm going to do it this year! I need motivation to create music lately. Why am I telling the Housepets! community about this? I don't know!

Ahem. I'll start composing my first piece of music after I get some much-needed rest.

dalonewolf25 · Post by **dalonewolf25** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 2:18 am

Cool! Are you going to make them from scratch?

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 10:48 am

dalonewolf25 wrote:Cool! Are you going to make them from scratch?

Yeah. In fact, that's the point of the exercise. ^_^

I'm already at work on song 01, so hopefully you'll get to hear it later today.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 2:26 pm

Song 01 is complete! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] This is an 8-bit NES chiptune about a guy who wants to be let in. After knocking, doorbell-ringing, and saying "Let me in!" prove ineffectual, he decides to just play some music instead. A gripping story that must be heard to be believed!

Psykeout · Post by **Psykeout** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 6:24 pm

there's this, nanowrimo, and "create 30 characters in 30 days". so many creative marathons!

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 10:27 pm

Psykeout wrote:there's this, nanowrimo, and "create 30 characters in 30 days". so many creative marathons!

A bunch of people from the chiptune community tackled the 30s30d challenge last year, which inspired me to tackle it this year; however, I hope to do more than just chiptunes. I want to keep things varied, especially since not all of my online acquaintances care for chiptunes.

yoyodude · Post by **yoyodude** » Tue Nov 02, 2010 1:57 pm

Psykeout wrote:there's this, nanowrimo, and "create 30 characters in 30 days". so many creative marathons!

Well I'm participating in "No Shave November" XD

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Tue Nov 02, 2010 6:13 pm

Song 02 is complete! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] This NES chiptune makes use of an expansion chip called the MMC5 to add two square channels to the other channels available, making deeper harmony possible. Entitled "A Foxger's Prayerful Dream", it represents exactly what it says on the tin. Wow.

Teh Brawler · Post by **Teh Brawler** » Tue Nov 02, 2010 7:10 pm

mathgrant wrote:Song 02 is complete! This NES chiptune makes use of an expansion chip called the MMC5 to add two square channels to the other channels available, making deeper harmony possible. Entitled "A Foxger's Prayerful Dream", it represents exactly what it says on the tin. Wow.

The first thing I thought was "Pokemon" for some reason.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Wed Nov 03, 2010 11:10 pm

It took waaaaay too long (losing 23/128 of my work didn't help), but I finally finished song 03 in the 30s30d series, entitled "Dance of the Ominous Shadows [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]"! This time, the VRC6 expansion chip by Konami is used, which adds two square waves (different from the 2A03 waves) and one sawtooth wave to the default quintet of channels. All eight channels are used here, so the sound is very rich for a chiptune. Well, it gets rich eventually, anyhow.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Thu Nov 04, 2010 7:29 pm

Song 04, Calm Day, is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] I didn't have the energy to create anything longer than a minute or actually good today, so I created this instead. It was made in WarioWare DIY, which can be considered a cross between WarioWare and Mario Paint where you create your own graphics, music, and microgames using some simple, but powerful, tools. As a musician, I find the WarioWare DIY's Record MakerMatic to be a huge step up from the music composer in Mario Paint, because you can use sharps and flats (composing in C major and/or A minor gets tiresome after a while), have a wider range of notes and instruments, and can make much longer music.

The Game · Post by **The Game** » Fri Nov 05, 2010 4:50 pm

You're really good at this Mathgrant!

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Fri Nov 05, 2010 10:19 pm

The Game wrote:You're really good at this Mathgrant!

:3 Inorite? There's a reason why my fursona wears boxers with musical notes on them [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] and goes "riff".

For song 05 in the 30 Songs in 30 Days series, I rolled a twelve-sided virtual die four times to generate the random melody C D# D B, and challenged myself to create a song with it. The result: Theme of a Gumshoe [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]. (While it predates the 30 Songs in 30 Days series by a few years, I'd also like to include a link to Mellowed Ease [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED], another song created from a randomly-generated melody.)

Teh Brawler · Post by **Teh Brawler** » Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:02 am

mathgrant wrote:
The Game wrote:You're really good at this Mathgrant!
:3 Inorite? There's a reason why my fursona wears boxers with musical notes on them and goes "riff".

For song 05 in the 30 Songs in 30 Days series, I rolled a twelve-sided virtual die four times to generate the random melody C D# D B, and challenged myself to create a song with it. The result: Theme of a Gumshoe. (While it predates the 30 Songs in 30 Days series by a few years, I'd also like to include a link to Mellowed Ease, another song created from a randomly-generated melody.)

http://objection.mrdictionary.net/go.php?n=4477134

Psykeout · Post by **Psykeout** » Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:09 am

Teh Brawler wrote:
mathgrant wrote:
The Game wrote:You're really good at this Mathgrant!
:3 Inorite? There's a reason why my fursona wears boxers with musical notes on them and goes "riff".

For song 05 in the 30 Songs in 30 Days series, I rolled a twelve-sided virtual die four times to generate the random melody C D# D B, and challenged myself to create a song with it. The result: Theme of a Gumshoe. (While it predates the 30 Songs in 30 Days series by a few years, I'd also like to include a link to Mellowed Ease, another song created from a randomly-generated melody.)
http://objection.mrdictionary.net/go.php?n=4477134

over ruled

Teh Brawler · Post by **Teh Brawler** » Sat Nov 06, 2010 1:15 am

Pshah, judges don't use emoticons. Try to be professional when you're overruling someone.

But, seriously, I love it, Mathgrant. Keep 'em coming.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sat Nov 06, 2010 8:07 pm

Teh Brawler wrote:But, seriously, I love it, Mathgrant. Keep 'em coming.

It's people like you who will motivate me to not give up on this project, no matter how much my head hurts.

Oh, and song 06, "The Uneasy Town", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

Esquire Fox · Post by **Esquire Fox** » Sat Nov 06, 2010 8:27 pm

I love the simplicity of 8-bit music.
It cuts away all those extra layers and gets right to the musical core.
A strong melody with a powerful nostalgic effect.

Keep it up, I know I'll be checking in to hear more.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sat Nov 06, 2010 9:32 pm

Esquire Fox wrote:I love the simplicity of 8-bit music.
It cuts away all those extra layers and gets right to the musical core.

The simplicity of 8-bit music, huh? You might want to rethink that statement. [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] (That is actual music from an actual licensed NES game. Tim Follin is considered by many to be one of the best video game musicians of all time.)

My style does tend to be simpler, though, so yeah. ^_^;

Esquire Fox wrote:A strong melody with a powerful nostalgic effect.

Keep it up, I know I'll be checking in to hear more.

Thanks! I will definitely keep it up.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sun Nov 07, 2010 6:03 pm

Whoooo, I've survived a week of 30 Songs in 30 Days! This is gonna be great!

Song 07 is a WarioWare DIY tune entitled Cooking Race [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]. Wheeee, the Record MakerMatic is fun!

Teh Brawler · Post by **Teh Brawler** » Sun Nov 07, 2010 7:14 pm

mathgrant wrote:Whoooo, I've survived a week of 30 Songs in 30 Days! This is gonna be great!

Song 07 is a WarioWare DIY tune entitled Cooking Race. Wheeee, the Record MakerMatic is fun!

That was amazing. I liked the others, but I loved this one.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Mon Nov 08, 2010 7:58 pm

I was absolutely not in the mood to compose music this morning. My head hurt at the mere thought of it. I thought I was doomed to fail the 30 Songs in 30 Days challenge. I decided to go the random four-note phrase route again for song 08, in the hopes that it would inspire me. I got E C# F C#. After a lot of footling and dawdling and watching TV and basically anything but music, I finally created Ranqom's Eye [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] in WarioWare DIY. Phew.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Wed Nov 10, 2010 12:20 am

Song 09, "Hydroplanes", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

I've also created album artwork for when I release this project as an album for free download after the end of the month. Check it out. [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:27 am

Song 10, "Experiments in Math", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 12:08 am

Song 11, entitled "Contrition", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

With each passing day, it feels more and more inevitable that I won't be able to complete the 30 Songs in 30 Days challenge, yet I keep managing to create songs that, while not always masterpieces, sound good enough that I'm willing to publish them.

Blue Braixen · Post by **Blue Braixen** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 9:25 am

You can do it, Grant!

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sat Nov 13, 2010 12:59 am

The bad news is that [WEB SITE], the site where I usually upload these things, is down for the moment. The good news is that I have other places to upload, so song 12, entitled "DIYTechNOOO!", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]
Edit: [WEB SITE] is back up now! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sat Nov 13, 2010 10:53 pm

Song 13, entitled "Western Loop", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

I promise I'll compose some actual good music soon enough.

Teh Brawler · Post by **Teh Brawler** » Sat Nov 13, 2010 10:59 pm

Very good, Math. I'm likin' this one.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sun Nov 14, 2010 8:06 pm

Song 14 is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] Titled "Link and the King Get Logical", it combines Link and King Harkinian of YouTube Poop fame with sound effects from the logic puzzle games of [COMMERCIAL OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]. Why did I decide to do this? I have no idea! But enjoy!

Zander · Post by **Zander** » Sun Nov 14, 2010 8:10 pm

OHMYGOSH xD i love #12 so much! can i make it into a real techno song? *brings out synthesizers and VST's*

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sun Nov 14, 2010 8:46 pm

Zander wrote:OHMYGOSH xD i love #12 so much! can i make it into a real techno song? *brings out synthesizers and VST's*

Every single one of these songs is released under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA License, so you certainly may! I'd love to hear your results. :3

Zander · Post by **Zander** » Sun Nov 14, 2010 9:25 pm

okay, uploading it now :3 also, i kinda only used the first, maybe 15 seconds of the song :o

Here ya go :P
http://rapidshare.com/files/430919261/technooooo.mp3

I'm used to makeing hardcore techno, so sue me if it sounds weird :P

Moderator Edit: Merged Double Post. There is an edit button; it looks like this: (EDIT).

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Mon Nov 15, 2010 9:13 pm

Zander wrote:okay, uploading it now :3 also, i kinda only used the first, maybe 15 seconds of the song

Here ya go
http://rapidshare.com/files/430919261/technooooo.mp3

I'm used to makeing hardcore techno, so sue me if it sounds weird

Moderator Edit: Merged Double Post. There is an edit button; it looks like this: (EDIT).

Everything about this post is beautiful, but especially the MP3. <3 Nice work, Zander. You make me feel good.

However, now I'm wondering why the moderator didn't pwn me for all the double posts I've made in this thread.

Song 15 is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED] In this song, I attempt to emulate the unique style of Mega Man music.

Zander · Post by **Zander** » Mon Nov 15, 2010 9:19 pm

Zander wrote:Moderator Edit: Merged Double Post. There is an edit button; it looks like this: (EDIT).

no it doesn't. you mean this button?

I'm just messin' :3

Post by **Dissension** » Tue Nov 16, 2010 2:42 am

I'm going to bonk you to death.

Mathgrant, each of your posts is considered an "update" in the same way that updates in the translation forum are exempt from the double-posting rule.

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Wed Nov 17, 2010 12:52 am

I asked random.org for a random four-note phrase to incorporate into a song, and it gave me A# A A# A. I guess God wanted to go easy on me today. The result: song 16, entitled "Purification"! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Wed Nov 17, 2010 2:36 pm

Song 17 [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED], entitled Silver Ocean, was composed while sitting in the waiting room at the doctor's office! Wow! Who knew that waiting could be so productive?

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Fri Nov 19, 2010 11:56 pm

The forums were down yesterday, so I couldn't post about song 18, but it does indeed exist, as does song 19 as of today.

After-Dinner Jazz [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]
Untitled Nonsense [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

mathgrant · Post by **mathgrant** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 8:22 pm

Song 20, entitled "Starry Story", is up! [OFF-SITE LINK REDACTED]

I am now two-thirds of the way through 30 Songs in 30 Days. While I've been very pleased with the results so far, I have to admit I'll be glad when this project is over.