Monthly MeFiMu Challenge thread - June edition

Thanks to everyone who submitted a tune for the May Challenge! Thirteen submissions came in, which ain't bad. If you have any thoughts, opinions, or points you'd like to make about last month's or this month's Challenges, please do so here. Also welcome in this thread (or directly as MeMail to yours truly): ideas for future Challenges. More ideas needed!
posted by flapjax at midnite (26 comments total)

Actually, there were fourteen submissions, but snsranch's latest wasn't tagged "mefimusicchallenge" so it didn't show up on the Challenge playlist. I tried adding the correct tag, but haven't been able to make it stick, for some reason.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 6:57 PM on June 1

Challenge idea: non-musicians only, make a song noise here! (e.g. If you do not consider yourself a musician, or are not proficient at any instrument, or have never recorded a song before, etc. However you wanna word it, flapjax...)
posted by not_on_display at 4:48 AM on June 2 [1 favorite]

Challenge idea: non-musicians only, make a song noise here!

Might be worth a try. I reckon we'd have to make the announcement for it at MetaTalk, as the usual Challenge page here at Music wouldn't be seen by too many non-musicians. That shouldn't be a problem, though.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 4:56 AM on June 2

That's a great idea, n_o_d. Then we could do background accompaniment to the a cappella submissions, songsmith-style.
posted by umbú at 6:23 AM on June 2

Do mean "make a noise that could be a component of a song" (e.g. be our human sample database) or "make a noise that's what you think could be called a song" (e.g. if it's your first time at Song Club, you have to compose)?

I like both, I'm just not clear which we're talking about. And yeah, a Metatalk thread as organizational forum makes the most sense.

I fixed the tag on snsranch's song.
posted by cortex at 7:25 AM on June 2

Love the challenge idea this month- I'm already cracking on two completely polarized versions of the tune.

I also just brain-farted an idea for a challenge- what about writing a song completely backwards? Lyrics, chord progression, melody, harmony- the whole shebang. No cheating (listening to it forwards before finishing). That could seriously trip up comfortable songwriters, and lead to interesting results. Or it could lead to a month of either no submissions, or a series of sameness. Just a thought, really.
posted by self at 12:17 PM on June 2

flapjax/cortex, thanks for adding the tag!

I don't think not_on_display means "noise" literally. It sounds more like "open mic" challenge or an invitation for folks who aren't necessarily musicians or haven't participated before. Noise then being whatever one can improvise to create a song? And yea, flapjax, posting that to MeTa would be awesome!

Sounds good to me however it flies.

self's backward song idea sounds insane, one I would definitely have to try!

Whenever I think of ideas for the challenge I get a little stymied because the participants here have such vastly different musical backgrounds and abilities. Ideally I'd like to attract the largest possible number of people with the ideas I submit.

Considering that, does anyone have any ideas about coming up with good challenges that are appealing to lots of people? Maybe thinking about categories, styles, plates of beans, like I'm doing right now?

Just some food for thought and I'm asking in the same way I would ask about making a better FPP, just looking to be a better participant.
posted by snsranch at 4:44 PM on June 2

We could do an experiment and ask everyone who records a noise plan it so that it can be played along with the rest of the noise recordings so that in the end a song can be put together (or many, of course) by using the front page players as a mixing board.

Sort of a Zaireeka / Jingle Burn kinda thing.
posted by micayetoca at 6:04 PM on June 2 [1 favorite]

Yea, that sounds like fun. And, where have YOU been lately?! Been missing you here!
posted by snsranch at 6:49 PM on June 2

Me? I thought I had been here!
posted by micayetoca at 1:32 PM on June 3

I thought I had been here!

Hmm... I think there's a song there...

I thought I had been here
but it seems I was elsewhere
on a train bypassing your mind
traveling half-fare...
I thought I'd been around
but it seems I was wrong
and what was only a half-formed sound
is now a fully forgotten song...
posted by flapjax at midnite at 2:43 PM on June 3

Write that, flapjax!
posted by umbú at 2:49 PM on June 3

micayetoca, yea, I guess you were here and there's a brand new song to prove it!

flapjax, awesome!

umbu, good call!

flapjax, DO IT, DO IT, DO IT!
posted by snsranch at 3:48 PM on June 3

Wow, two requests! OK, guess I'll have to come up with a few more lines and put a little sound under it. When I do, I'll bring it straight to MeFiMu.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 4:01 PM on June 3

Have the various members of Mefi Music ever contributed to a pool of potentially loop/sample worthy material here? I mean material specifically intended for that purpose? Just a thought, but with the variety of styles and approaches to be found here I can easily imagine some interesting stuff growing out of it (I did do a quick search but didn't come up with much.)

I really like the idea of contributions by non musicians, as well.
posted by metagnathous at 11:32 AM on June 6

Karlos the Jackal's exquisite corpse experiment could be the beginnings of this, metagnathous. He posted the separate tracks as well as the final product.
posted by umbú at 11:58 AM on June 6

Thank you, umbu. I thought that track turned out really well. I guess I was thinking about something more fragmentary and potentially more abstract, but I'll check that one out in greater depth now.
posted by metagnathous at 12:20 PM on June 6

I was thinking about something more fragmentary and potentially more abstract...

That'd be cool. While I'm in no way casting any aspersions on the way the Karlos-organized exquisite corpse went, I think it'd be fun and interesting to set one up which isn't as specific-key-oriented, and that's less locked into a preset pulse.

As to who would be willing to take on the gargantuan task of organizing and carrying it out... there's the rub! Any takers?
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:42 PM on June 6

cortex: "Do mean "make a noise that could be a component of a song" (e.g. be our human sample database) or "make a noise that's what you think could be called a song" (e.g. if it's your first time at Song Club, you have to compose)? I like both, I'm just not clear which we're talking about.

I like the former idea, too, but yeah, the latter idea was what i had in mind.

Holy crap, though: a database of sounds provided by MeFite non-musicians for Mefite musicians to use? I bet the variety and quality of sounds and uses-of-sounds would be surprising.
posted by not_on_display at 7:32 PM on June 6

a database of sounds provided by MeFite non-musicians for Mefite musicians to use

[this is good]
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:56 PM on June 6

I uploaded an entry yesterday but I didn't tag it. Can someone tell me how I do this retrospectively - or do I have to upload it again?
posted by MajorDundee at 10:38 AM on June 7

There should be an "add tag" option under your tags for the post.
posted by umbú at 10:44 AM on June 7

Thanks umbu - fixed it
posted by MajorDundee at 11:24 AM on June 7

It's just way groovy to see how many Hallelujahs are coming in... MeFiMu Challenge rocks!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 6:27 PM on June 11

There are so many L's and J's on the front page of Music right now that it looks like the Ikea catalog. God I'm sick of this song.
posted by chococat at 9:34 PM on June 14

God I'm sick of this song.

I'll be posting one in a couple of days, choco! So be sure to check it out, y'hear?
posted by flapjax at midnite at 12:19 AM on June 15