Hulver's site || Who should win MFC XIII?

Who should win MFC XIII?

yicky yacky - fiscal	7 votes - 25 %
TPD - BC	8 votes - 28 %
Phil Ulrich - Special K	3 votes - 10 %
Herring - Ibuprofen	17 votes - 60 %
Skippy - Junkie Style	10 votes - 35 %
motty - Nothing's Any Fun Any More	10 votes - 35 %
priestess - C.A.K.E.S.	6 votes - 21 %
606 - 100mg Pure MDMA	11 votes - 39 %

28 Total Votes

MFC XIII - The Voting | 49 comments (49 topical, 0 hidden) | Trackback

This probably goes without saying by Driusan (4.00 / 2) #1 Sat Nov 24, 2007 at 11:59:41 AM EST

But it needs to be said after just about every MFC:

606 entry is 100mg of pure awesome.
--
I needed a new sig. And now I have one.

Where did 606 get the vocals from by Breaker (4.00 / 2) #2 Sat Nov 24, 2007 at 04:55:58 PM EST

I wonder?

[ Parent ]

Same place as always by 606 (4.00 / 1) #6 Sat Nov 24, 2007 at 08:50:18 PM EST

bad youtube vlogs.

For serious.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

I take it by dark nowhere (4.00 / 1) #7 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 02:47:44 AM EST

you do this a lot. What's the quickest way to get the audio ripped? - or do you just capture on the soundcard?

I am not your dupe account.
[ Parent ]

If you're on a mac... by 606 (4.00 / 1) #10 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 03:31:14 PM EST

use Audio Hijack. Surprisingly versatile. I think there are Windows equivalents but I don't know what they are.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

: Cool by dark nowhere (4.00 / 1) #15 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 05:07:27 PM EST

I'd normally just capture with audacity, but I haven't migrated my soundcard to my new box yet. The on board stuff doesn't have wave out capture. :/

I am not your dupe account.
[ Parent ]
: I used Audio Hijack by cam (2.00 / 0) #46 Fri Nov 30, 2007 at 11:57:04 PM EST

for the banana splits cover too. Ripped it from a youtube banana splits episode.
cam
Freedom, liberty, equity and an Australian Republic
[ Parent ]

OMG by Breaker (4.00 / 1) #8 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 08:28:48 AM EST

The voice over is reminiscent of "little fluffy clouds"; finding that on youtube = awesome.

[ Parent ]

: It's all luck... by 606 (4.00 / 2) #11 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 03:32:47 PM EST

Yes, I thought it had a bit of Little Fluffy Cloud sound to it. When I look for samples I usually just enter the search term into youtube (I think I used "MDMA") and just click on through until something jumps out. Youtube is a sample goldmine.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

Thanks, by 606 (4.00 / 1) #5 Sat Nov 24, 2007 at 08:49:27 PM EST

but personally I'll have yicky yacky's track pumping in my headphones for the next while.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

and here I was thinking of busting out my acoustic by discordia (4.00 / 1) #3 Sat Nov 24, 2007 at 08:39:34 PM EST

and covering some country music.

this is the problem with open-format music competitions. It takes me fifty takes to get one run through a 3 minute song that I'm only partially happy with.

electronic music? You can sit there and bash at the same damn track for weeks, and then turn it in at the end, nicely polished.

sigh.

On the other hand... by 606 (4.00 / 3) #4 Sat Nov 24, 2007 at 08:48:11 PM EST

You can stare at the same track 50 times and go "hmm, maybe if I pump the bass up 2 dB. No, wait, throw a filter on that. No wait, maybe compress it a bit? No, this song needs to be restructured," and after 50 listens you hate it and want to throw it out and start over.

Anyhoo, this is the first MFC that I've seen that's had so much techno in it. And in any case, a simple acoustic ditty can be very effective against all the electronic madness.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

incremental saves by discordia (4.00 / 1) #18 Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 07:12:07 PM EST

and/or source control

[ Parent ]

: It's not that... by 606 (4.00 / 2) #20 Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 08:51:22 PM EST

It's just that after listening to a song, any song, 50 times you get sick of it. You either feel it's too boring and load it up with superfluous stuff that makes it worse, or you just get so annoyed you want to throw it away and write a new song.
That said I should try doing Save As..'s more often and branching out. It takes hardly any disk space.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

I got so sick by skippy (4.00 / 2) #31 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 03:01:01 PM EST

of my stupid track after hammering on it all weekend, making those 2 dB adjustments, trying different filters and whatnot. Finally I just decided, "This is good enough, I am sick of working on this crap and I don't want to hear it for another month."

I think that electronic music's rich heritage of drug use and abuse works well for the theme. Not that rock and other genres don't have their fair share, it's just that techno seems to have been so intertwined right from the beginning.

[ Parent ]

: You got my No.1 vote by cam (2.00 / 0) #47 Fri Nov 30, 2007 at 11:58:12 PM EST

that is wonderfully textured trance song. Kudos. More please.
cam
Freedom, liberty, equity and an Australian Republic
[ Parent ]

Ah, the key is to have no patience by priestess (4.00 / 2) #9 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 10:47:08 AM EST

When I say "one take's all it takes" what I mean is, "Right, bored of that now, what's next?"

I mean obviously you'll never win that way. But they tell me it's the taking part that counts.

Pre........
---------
Yes! The Conspiracy Really Exists...
[ Parent ]

: "demos" are good by 606 (4.00 / 2) #12 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 03:34:03 PM EST

and your song was damn catchy. Horribly catchy. Like ebola. But in a good way.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]
: I like C.A.K.E.S by TPD (4.00 / 2) #13 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 04:50:30 PM EST

(the song)

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!
[ Parent ]
: I'm a perfectionist by discordia (4.00 / 2) #19 Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 07:12:57 PM EST

which is very bad, in this particular case.
I don't regret the time i spent learning a tune for the MFC, even if I didn't record it. I now know a fun little tune pretty darn well.

[ Parent ]

Meh, meh, and thrice "bollocks". by yicky yacky (4.00 / 2) #21 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 05:48:56 AM EST

Getting a track sounding even moderately "polished" is a pretty non-trivial task. Getting it so as it sounds moderately polished on every sound system on which a person might be listening to it is an order of magnitude harder still (something at which I failed this time around). Getting "electronic music" sounding moderately polished is several times harder than getting "acoustic music" to the same state, as acoustic sound sources (steel-strung guitars, voices etc.) are generally incapable of spitting out the kind of spectrum-meddling frequencies and tone-mixtures which play hell with the "polishing" process.

On top of this is a time issue. Decent engineering takes time -- time on top of that taken to make the track in the first place. With MFCs, people have minimal amounts of time to spend on these things. You're hearing people "trivially knocking up some stuff that sounds decent"; I, on the other hand, am hearing people performing minor miracles given the lack of resources and time at their disposal. If it's so damned easy, might I humbly suggest you try it some time. As someone who can do both (to some low standard), it's been my experience that knocking out a track on an instrument and recording it is actually the "easy" part. Sure; it might take a few "takes", but then it's pretty much done. People who've made hay in both fields will take a different view to someone in one thinking the grass is greener in the other.

Secondly: I dispute your arbitrary taxonomy. I'm not sure where this line between electronic and other music is supposed to exist. This is the first time in an MFC that I've posted a track with absolutely no live playing on it. Herring and TPD's entries are almost all "real" music in some nebulous sense, but they've had similar amounts of bodywork to the more purely "electronic" tracks.

Lastly; this issue doesn't seem to have adversely affected Blixco much, does it?

----
Mr Murdoch can take substantial credit for the tide of vulgarity that now floods the UK. - Martin Wolf, FT
[ Parent ]

IVMATP by TPD (4.00 / 2) #23 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 09:25:33 AM EST

also I'd love to know more about how one goes about "Getting it so as it sounds moderately polished on every sound system on which a person might be listening to it", After a few complaints of some of my songs' mixes (which I may have agreed with but to a far lesser extent). I tried listening to a few of them on our kitchen stereo and was blown away by how much worse some of them sounded (all the complaints made perfect sense though), vocals dominating everything really variable sound levels etc.

But those issues seem almost unapparent on my headphones.

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!
[ Parent ]

It's a complex problem by yicky yacky (4.00 / 2) #24 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 10:19:04 AM EST

and the solutions are almost always an unsatisfactory compromise of one sort or other. It's often the case that, in order to make something sound better on one type of equipment, you have to make it sound worse on something else. It's pretty unsatisfying. I'll do a diary in the next few days discussing the problems I usually have and what I usually do (but often don't do for MFCs, just because it's so much hassle) to try and solve them. We might be able to get some sort of "tips exchange" going.

----
Mr Murdoch can take substantial credit for the tide of vulgarity that now floods the UK. - Martin Wolf, FT
[ Parent ]

: Subscribe, newsletter etc by Breaker (4.00 / 1) #29 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 01:37:22 PM EST

I'd love some tips. Even though the guitar is still firmly locked up in the case for the foreseeable.

[ Parent ]

What kind of headphones are they? by 606 (4.00 / 1) #26 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 11:28:28 AM EST

I use Sony MDR-V500's which are pretty decent "monitor" headphones. They are quite muddy in the bass, so that's usually where my mixing falls flat.

Then I burn my mix onto a CD, listen to it on my stereo, and go back and tweak some more. It's never quite good enough.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

Headphones by TPD (4.00 / 2) #27 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 11:57:09 AM EST

SENNHEISER (HD 205), not picked for any particular reason beyond I needed some, and that's what the shop had.

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!
[ Parent ]

Senns are good headphones by 606 (4.00 / 2) #28 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 01:26:58 PM EST

For listening, anyway. I haven't tried mixing with them.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

I too have Sennheisers by Herring (4.00 / 3) #30 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 02:01:33 PM EST

And when listening to all the MFC tracks on "normal" volume, I realised my mix was arse.

But I'm not about to do anything about it.

I feel that future tracks could be improved with a TPD guitar solo though. What's your weapon of choice for recording? I have been using Tracktion because for £30, it kicks arse.

When my grandfather became ill, my grandmother rubbed goose-fat into his back. He went downhill quite quickly after that. - Milton Jones
[ Parent ]

Cubase LE by TPD (4.00 / 1) #35 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 05:22:59 PM EST

not because it kicks arse (because it's so far away from kicking arse it's SCARY!), but I did get it free with my pedal/audio interface thing.

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!
[ Parent ]

Buy Tracktion by Herring (4.00 / 2) #36 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 05:42:22 PM EST

£30 - and has loads of stuff ...

When my grandfather became ill, my grandmother rubbed goose-fat into his back. He went downhill quite quickly after that. - Milton Jones
[ Parent ]

where did you get it for £30? by TPD (2.00 / 0) #48 Mon Dec 03, 2007 at 05:30:54 AM EST

also I'm looking buyng an audio interface soon/ another modeler with some kind of Audio interface properties built in.... I noticed a few of those seem to come bundled up with versions (not sure how cut down though)

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!
[ Parent ]

: Digital Village had V2.0 for that by Herring (4.00 / 1) #49 Mon Dec 03, 2007 at 01:00:24 PM EST

Because 3.0 is out. Not sure if they're still selling it.

When my grandfather became ill, my grandmother rubbed goose-fat into his back. He went downhill quite quickly after that. - Milton Jones
[ Parent ]

For my so-called mastering process by skippy (4.00 / 2) #33 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 03:19:44 PM EST

I am fortunate to have a pair of crappy speakers as the monitors in my home studio. Sure, I use some nice Fostex T40RPs to make sure I'm generally happy with the mix, but then I turn it up on the speakers. After toying with it so that it doesn't totally suck ass on them, I burn a CD and haul it out to the car, to give it a listen on my very mediocre OEM stereo. After that I throw in in the DVD player on our home stereo, which isn't an amazing piece of work, either.

If it sounds good enough that I don't feel like re-mastering it, then I call it the final mix and move on. Suffice to say, one pass was good enough when I mixed my track.

[ Parent ]

I wish you'd focused on the F part in MFC by TPD (4.00 / 1) #22 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 09:15:07 AM EST

rather than the C. These things are to be enjoyed everyone does what they want within the framework they can or choose to work within... Winning is not a big deal and neither is coming last.

My own track I'm still a long way from being happy with (it's a cover of an Avenged Sevenfold tune and unfortunately Avenged Sevenfold have a couple of rather good guitar players) so in that sense if I were of your mindset I would probably not be posting it, I certainly knew there wasn't even a hope of the thing winning, but I've never really seen that as being the point.

I hope you do record the tune at some stage though and hopefully let us hear it.

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!
[ Parent ]

Good point about "winning" by 606 (2.00 / 0) #25 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 11:23:21 AM EST

all you get for winning is the chance to run the contest yourself. There's not really as much power and influence in that as you'd imagine.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

: You don't always even get that by MohammedNiyalSayeed (4.00 / 1) #45 Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 02:30:43 PM EST

I won early on, never got to run shit, haven't run since. I'll get my power and influence the old-fashioned way; weapons used for violence!

-
You can build the most elegant fountain in the world, but eventually a winged rat will be using it as a drinking bowl.
[ Parent ]

I recognize my shortcomings in this area by discordia (4.00 / 1) #34 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 03:33:26 PM EST

and when I see a *FC all I really read is a *C, irrespective of ability, type, or personal commitment level.

What can I say? Competition really fucks with my head.

[ Parent ]

The C is for Challenge by 606 (4.00 / 1) #37 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 10:38:51 PM EST

and in a Challenge the only competition is yourself.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

if there is a winner, and losers by discordia (4.00 / 1) #38 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 11:22:16 PM EST

it is a competition.

[ Parent ]

I /said/ you are all winners... by 606 (2.00 / 0) #39 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 11:37:20 PM EST

I can't help it if you don't believe me.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

The winner is the loser by priestess (4.00 / 2) #40 Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:23:25 AM EST

I mean who wants the hassle of having to run one of these things? Making polls, thinking up challenges, compiling lists of links.

I for one am glad I'm not gonna "win" on account of how lazy I am.

Pre..........
---------
Yes! The Conspiracy Really Exists...
[ Parent ]

: Ob "you think YOU'RE not gonna win...." by Phil Urich (4.00 / 2) #41 Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 06:33:54 AM EST

etc etc

[ Parent ]

Motty and Priestess by TPD (4.00 / 2) #14 Sun Nov 25, 2007 at 04:53:59 PM EST

fort it out for 2nd in my heart (and both got a vote).... But Herring's entry is just genious!

I liked them all though!

Rock Hard Abs are just a sw-sw-swivel away!

May we vote for 3? by muchagecko (4.00 / 1) #16 Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 12:34:33 PM EST

n/t

"It means more if you have to earn it, even if it's by doing something as simple as eating a meal." Kellnerin

: You can vote for all of them if you like by 606 (4.00 / 2) #17 Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 03:44:43 PM EST

...it just won't affect the results much.

-----
imagine dancing banana here
[ Parent ]

There were a lot by skippy (4.00 / 2) #32 Tue Nov 27, 2007 at 03:15:00 PM EST

of amazing entries! I must say, I'm very impressed with everyone's songs.

Oh, 606, that was an awesome sample! I remember one radio show back in my university days; some very high individuals called in, and the host asked them what they were on. "Acid paper!" shouted one of the callers in the background. "Oh, wow. How, uh, very 1991 of you," was the scathing reply.

All in all, my favourites were Yicky Yacky's 'Fiscal', and 'Ibuprofen' by Herring. TPD's electro-guitar stylings reminded me a bit of Moby's "Animal Rights" album - and that is a good thing. I think I shall listen to it when I get home...

i like CAKES by misslake (4.00 / 3) #42 Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 09:28:31 AM EST

i gave the songs a little listen to, way back on friday.

i started with 606's, knowing it would be god and i'd probably vote for it anyway.
i listened to cakes and thought, my how delightfully amusing.
then i listened to the rest to decide who was going to get my other votes.

i thought i'd sleep on it and give them a listen at 606's.

within an hour i had forgotten every song i ever knew. OH! CAKES, I LIKE CAKES...
i told 606 about it.
we listened to it again, him not really haveing listened to it the first time, and me hoping that listing to the song that is stuck in my head would often dislodge it.
C-A-K-E-S, oh CAKES I LIKE CAKES...
both of us had trouble falling alseep because it kept playing in our heads. i caught myself singing it in the shower, humming it under my breath, walking down the street to the beat of the cakes.

there is no votes only CAKES I LIKE CAKES

Hehehe by priestess (4.00 / 1) #43 Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 11:03:22 AM EST

Sorry about that. Songs with lyrics will get stuck in your head more than all that electronic stuff. Especially if it's mostly the same refrain over and over and over and over again.

Hope you recover soon :)

Pre.......
---------
Yes! The Conspiracy Really Exists...
[ Parent ]

: woot by discordia (2.00 / 0) #44 Wed Nov 28, 2007 at 01:20:29 PM EST

thanks for submitting one for the acoustic crowd.
but on video, ye gods. I couldn't even imagine.

[ Parent ]

MFC XIII - The Voting | 49 comments (49 topical, 0 hidden) | Trackback


Make a new account
Username:
Password: