Week 8.2

Sorry for the delay

Context*:  Sick in the hospital
Emotion*: creeping anxiety
Other:  Sterile machine beeps

Seems like all I'm doing is atmospheric.
Went with a glitch approach.  Delays on everything, except the square heart rate monitor noise.  Did a lot of additive synthesis.  I tried to think of noises you'd hear in the hospital, and a far away radio came to mind.  So that's what the filtered violin is, playing some happy, half-remembered music somewhere else.

Again, not my best, but all these 'out there' submissions are making me work to come up with something.  Not saying I wouldn't appreciate something that I could take a more melodic approach to.  Like 7.2.

~græy

Week 8.1

Context*:     walking through a ruined cathedral
Emotion*:    anxiety, discovery, and fear but not frightened
Other:      the air around you heavy with ghosts

Another atmospheric piece. This one has tension floating high in a synth that trails off into a blend of whole-steps. There are whispered voices stuck in and panned to all different directions, hopefully giving it a "spiritous" feel. And a classic gregorian moving 5ths choral bit.
Again, textural, not melodic.
The picture is from Sligo Abbey, in northern Ireland

~græy

Week 6.2

Context*: Robbing a bank while somnambulant

Emotion*: Sweet (w/threat of death)

Other: Staccato

So, robbing a bank while sleepwalking?

Well I structured this in three parts, the beginning of a dream (subject falls asleep and drifts away), the middle, happy section of the dream (subject is happily armed and dangerous, robbing the bank), and then the growing realization that something is very much not right at B (subject is not so sure this is still a dream).
I tried to keep a simple, light tone (monosynth) and a set of vibes to give it the 'sweet' request that carries the melody and the chord progression
There are several textural bits that I tried to layer under the 'sweetness' that add dissonance, keeping a threatening undercurrent
And staccato?  Well, I used the vibes, and there is a violin part, but that's more marcatto.  Well, it'll have to do.

~græy

Week 4

Four!

Context: An amplifier falling apart

Emotion: Certainty

Other: Gentle made abrasive

Another more textural and atmospheric.  Listen with headphones, there's some lower tones that don't really come through on crappy speakers (laptops).  Actually, I'd suggest to always use headphones if you don't have decent speakers.  It really does make a difference.

I used a bitcrusher on a set of drums and a few of the guitar parts.

This one is a lot like week 2 in the way I approach.  Melody wasn't really important, the color of the instruments was.  This one needed to be warm and clangy, unlike the cold detachment of W2.
I decided to do a sus4-major repeated chord progression, and detune it as the song went on.  It gets a little painful.  The synth pad adds a lot to the texture, and there are some crunched drums thrown in.

~græy

Week 2

Context: Lost in the airport

Emotion: Isolated, Numb

Other: Dream-like

I focused more on creating the emotion and keeping the texture etherial.  I used absynth and a couple other synthesizers, and I tried to keep everything cold and square/harsh.  It stays floaty, thins out at the bridge, then winds its way out.  The glitched drums are jarring and especially effective at pushing the anxiety.  There's a percussive bell instrument (synth) that plays out of time and flails into missed notes and accidentals that takes over during the bridge, and adds to the un-reality.
In retrospect, I think it should fade out for starting at halfway through the B section.

Again, much more atmospheric and textural than melodic.

Keep on submitting!

~græy