kartmaze
Offline
Trondheim, Norway

This is my first post here on the forum, and I'd like to share my newest creation, "Brownout". I'm new to chipmusic, so a couple of pointers and general impression are appreciated.

The song

I wanted to create a chiptune inspired by my favourite music genre: progressive rock, and this is what I came up with. Even though I've used almost only SID samples, I didn't want to dive into the typical blip-bloppy sounds and arpeggios that is usual in original chipmusic, and the resulting sound is perhaps not as authentic as it could be. But I'm quite happy with the result. Tell me what you think!

Doxic
Offline
California, United States

I'm guessing you're not completely new to writing music, because this sounds amazing. All fake-bit prejudice aside, using one set of samples is perfectly ok. And not all chipmusic is blip-bloppity-arp-hoppity stuff, jus' saying.

Also welcome to the forums!

NationalBroadcastNetwork
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This is great. I can tell you have a great concept of melody and song structure. It's complex and rich without descending into wankerdom.

And I wouldn't worry about traditional bleeps and arps. A well written song will sound good on anything. Bob Dylan wrote some of the worlds greatest songs on nothing but his acoustic guitar and harp. And if it's a badly written song, the coolest sounding chips/synths/effects in the world won't make it sound any better.

In short, well done. Make more. I want to hear more prog rock chiptunes.

ToasterBash
Offline
Ontario, Canada

This reminds me of Rush! I actually love it so much!

kartmaze
Offline
Trondheim, Norway

Thank you all for the kind and encouraging words! smile
I will definitely make more in the near future. It was really fun!

Is this the best part of the forum to post new songs, btw?

NationalBroadcastNetwork
Offline

It is if you're looking for constructive criticism. If it's a complete song and you think it's ready to release, the releases section would likely be the best bet.

gusse^dsx
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Awesome work Kartmaze!!

Original and triumfant crossover between chipmusic and progressive rock. Very good!!

I'm not sure if you know about the Swedish progressive rock band Änglagård, but I have worked with them very much during this last year (filming them for a documentary series) and hearing your take on combining the genres makes me very happy.

Keep up the good work and thank you for the music!!

chunter
Offline
Brunswick, GA USA

Unicron eating a planet ftw.

Make 9 more and release on Ubiktune please. Or start a rival label.

Chainsaw Police
Offline
Sydney, NSW

So good! Personally, I can't find anything to criticise heavily. You sound like you come from a musical background of some kind, which really shines through in the composition value. The progression of the song is great too; I love how adventurous it is!

One thing I'd love to hear is some cheesy overdriven FM faux-guitar sounds in there. That would really complete it.
Don't be afraid to make things sound not-chip. One of the cool things about the Sega MegaDrive's sound is how authentic and natural it tries to sound - not blippy-bloppy, but not exactly real either.

Keep it up, you've got some real talent behind ya! big_smile

Last edited by Chainsaw Police (Dec 22, 2012 7:20 am)

Downstate
Offline
shanghai

amazing. i know its amazing because i sat intently for the whole 8 minutes and then went straight for a replay ! seriously wicked. let us know if you have a soundcloud or something....the music section on here is a bit shit really. well not 'shit', just no one really checks it that much

SadPanda
Offline
Chicago IL, USA

Just listened because Downstate posted it on facebook. 2 things I needa say.

1. Unicron. Fuck yeah.
2. this is epic as fuck. It's totally something that would have been in the transformers movie. I hope to see more stuff like this from you in the future.

Fearofdark
Offline
Brighton/Southampton
chunter wrote:

Unicron eating a planet ftw.

Make 9 more and release on Ubiktune please. Or start a rival label.

Agreed! I just listened to this on a whim, and really enjoyed what I heard. This has a real YES/Flower Kings vibe to it.

Do you have any other music anywhere? I'd love to hear more smile

Last edited by Fearofdark (Dec 22, 2012 2:58 pm)

kartmaze
Offline
Trondheim, Norway

Wow, thanks guys! big_smile This is really overwhelming. I honestly wasn't expecting this kind of appraisal.. It really motivates me to make more chipmusic!

Nice to see that people know their prog here as well. smile

gusse^dsx wrote:

I'm not sure if you know about the Swedish progressive rock band Änglagård

Yes, I know the group. Haven't listened to them too much, but what I've heard have been really nice. Awesome that you've worked with them, though! smile

Downstate wrote:

let us know if you have a soundcloud or something....

www.soundcloud.com/kartmaze smile

SadPanda wrote:

It's totally something that would have been in the transformers movie. I hope to see more stuff like this from you in the future.

Vince DiCola, who made the amazing soundtrack to that movie (and also some of the Rocky IV soundtrack), is a big inspiration for me. I'm working on a new song at the moment. Will probably upload it before 2013.. smile

Fearofdark wrote:

Do you have any other music anywhere?

Only some prog rock from my former prog band. A couple of songs are on my Soundcloud page. Haven't made any other chiptunes yet, though..