Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
I have never formally studied music, so intuition is all I can use for now I’m afraid.
I don’t need to follow the tonal centers of anything, buddy.
Besides, even though music is an artform, I do not believe it can be evaluated and judged with the same criteria used for visual arts
You have never opened an art theory book in your life. You probably don’t even know two things about art’s history.
I’m sorry to all the “thinkers” who equated “repetitive music” with the death drive… but this is what the most energetic and productive activity sounds like. It’s unconscious genius perhaps, but it’s truth that is being aurally expressed by Száhala.
I’m not claiming Száhala is making any testament.
This I’ll do, though:
stop writing for a sec
Are you really giving me any choice? Enjoy one more thread for nothing but your own posts, I guess.
The thing is that anyone can hallucinate a narrative out of Firecloud. In other words, the “narrative” is not in Firecloud at all, it’s in your brain, i.e. it’s entirely fictional and superimposed on the track by you.
As is the testament you claim he’s making through Enuma Elish’s simplicity. I don’t buy it, but again, personal opinions.Like I said, follow the tonal centers. Follow the basslines if that’s simpler. Look for the relation between each part. Mine has a theoretical foundation too, even if it’s weaker for a number of reasons, one being that I don’t know all the right terms. (And also was trying to keep it simple so that people who haven’t dabbled in theory could follow along.) No, by the way, it’s not what I think of when listening to it. I was considering adding timestamps considering how much interest you seemed to have in it, and if I had more time right now I might. For now, I’ll just add for the tenth or so time that I’m not speaking in absolutes.
Not sure what gave me that idea actually. I think I looked at a Google Translated version of some page when I first discovered him and didn’t think to look back into it. Everywhere seems to say he’s Finnish through and through.
Guess I can’t blame you for not understanding it as I wrote it all when half-awake on my phone (don’t even know why; originally I just had the Hyphen quote), but in short, Firecloud uses its structure to suggest a possible narrative, and it does it in a way that’s quite straightforward but that for some reason, other tracks simply don’t do, the majority of his own included. (Actually, that’s the type of complexity you want to denounce, but I’d rather not get into which is “better” as there’s no accounting for taste (hence my stance on reviews)). What do I think he more likely intended? To put down random notes until he liked how it sounded. Why do I think so? Because it’s advertised as music, not storywriting! Nonetheless, the excitement factor from having all those distinct sections just can’t be overlooked in my opinion.
And one more thing I forgot, because I’m afraid to edit that:
“Good news! You can make freeform even if you can’t eat salmiakki. But salmiakki is really good!” ~ Hyphen
Just look at what salmiakki did for Firecloud! Without even knowing about music, just follow its tonal center due to how distinct each section is (for me this takes away a lot from the enjoyment, but only for one partial listen). To start off, he introduces an awesome (but simple) part based on E, and then soon after, a more complex one based on G. Nothing too surprising until…what other producer would do the jump at 1:50?! And then follow it up with all the ensuing theatrics, going to far as to suggesting that cool opening section was meant to represent the “fool” archetype? It would be amazing if Alek did that more, or anyone else on that note. The rest proceeds from there, in completely different territory, until the G-centered section self-consciously waits for the right time to say “hey, can I come back now?” and the close-enough F one is like “sure, let’s see what you can do,” but then it gets stuck, and as it quiets down to try and get a grip on itself, the previous one is like “nope, you clearly have no clue what we’re trying to get done here!” and then pushes it out once and for all to finish the tune, paying brief tribute to the single-note intro, but in a kind of mocking way by virtue of being a semitone above it. At the same time it could be seen as “hey, I’ll never pretend to understand what the heck you are or why you’re here, but you helped me get this far, so thanks!” Who am I to say? And all that said, what of the mysterious, initially jarring D# section that changed it all? The “king” one made a more intimate address to it, but didn’t overall pay it much mind or let it take the stand. Instead, it ends with the usurper and his likely annoying acquaintance. To Alek, was that fate? Considering the reprise of the first section follows the “king’s” key and even gets more than one repeating note at the end, could the “fool” have gained wisdom from witnessing this conflict and living by taking the winning side? Again…*bites into Tootsie Roll Pop standing on top of a hill* the world may never know.
There is a logic to it, as with all art, just not the kind that lets it get away with hackneyed techniques, and this off-the-cuff interpretation is one of infinitely many.
To clarify, when I say the name of a note, I mean “some minor-ish scale based on this note”. My ears aren’t good enough for more yet. Nor is this intended to be a review of the track, because in the end…I just don’t enjoy listening to it as much as other ones! I simply think it’s one of the most simultaneously clever and heartfelt tracks in the scene, and whether the “idiot -> previous king -> fate -> revolutionary -> previous king -> (revolutionary + fate + idiot) = new king (standing next to a smarter guy than at the start)” narrative is intentional or not (I doubt it is), it sets the groundwork for it through its use of modulations.
Your review reads much more like a series of essays on various topics than just thoughts on Enuma Elish, but that’s certainly not a bad thing. Develop each of those ideas more and you could have a long series of pieces on the hidden meanings in Finnish freeform, all centered around a single track at that! Being strictly anti-review myself it was pleasingly thought-provoking.
It’s also cool to hear you’re interested in learning more about how music works, and if this is one of your means toward that then I’m all for it. I can think of a few points off the top of my head.
Ziggurat, Afternoon Owl, and Maruuk, for instance, all make heavy use of the blues scale. Compare to Last Window’s Sorrowful Nightfall or Insomnia, or for a really close comparison, Telefang’s Bryon Ruins. You’ll be amazed! Personally I’m often afraid to use this scale out of fear I’m treading on some holy ground at the wrong time, for a lack of a better way to explain it.
There are a lot more tricks he employs that you’ve no doubt noticed and that I couldn’t explain any better than you. Using and repeating a melody that “feels” like it should be longer, for instance…it all conveys a sense of “where the heck am I?”, and as an Australian living in Finland with an inescapable obsession on a long-dead civilization, that’s no surprise. I really look forward to understanding those techniques more…all I know comes from ripping MIDIs from games, as no amount of printed material or videos ever explained these things to me in a way I could understand…
Unicorn Grove and Firecloud get a lot of their power from sudden modulations, which is why I suspect they’re two of your least favorites. I’ve always considered that sort of thing intrinsically tragic, with exceptions of course, so it’s interesting to see someone feel the opposite way. Maybe cathartic is a better word for what I mean… To me, so-called “logic” in music is cowardice. What else can you call it when someone’s unwilling to leave the same place or experience something new even after becoming bored of where they are? Always be ready and always make your first priority be making the place you are your own, I say.
Having effectively reviewed nearly every track in the scene with that, I’ll spare you the rest of this “review of a review” before my Hebrew side takes over. Now, with interest, that comes to five million Euros, plus tax!
Found the source for some of the Liberation samples, thanks to Solvynt’s transcription. Look at 16:18 here: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5h3fyt
It seems like a Ghost in the Shell spinoff of some sort. They sure seemed to be into that.Ah, and the dudette in War Monger is saying “We’re going to die now”, according to this old post!
One more movie to watch, thanks to Hollow:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwJUOI5Dxy0Another post disappeared when I tried to edit it! I had added more in defense of Nomic, but I’ll take this to mean that’s a better topic for another time. Not too much point in recopying the rest unless others want it, but here was my list:
1. Betwixt & Between – Reincarnation
2. Hase – Houkai (Reloop)
3. Alabaster – Strikes Back
4. Hase – Brionac
5. Betwixt & Between – Liberation
6. Alek Száhala – Caballo 2004
7. Twisted Freq – Hanuman Visits Lanka
8. RR-ThermalForce – Moving Flare
9. Pain on Creation – Night Prey (Live Edit)
10. Einhander – Storm ComingFrom a native speaker: “vavi/வாவி/ʋɑːʋɪˑ refers to a narrow stream of water, by a river bed. like a trickle or a small stream. rarely used though i’m sure it’s more of a poetic register”
That’s a bigger question mark now. Don’t know what other language it could be though…it’s apparently a Hebrew name too for whatever it’s worth.
Another note on Phobos is that it’s also the name of a god representing fear, whose brother was…you guessed it, Deimos, the other track with that same melody! Both translate to English as “fear”, but referred to different varieties of it in the original Greek.
Noitavasara is almost certainly a reference to the Malleus Maleficarum.
(I tried editing this, but it seemed to disappear…let’s try again.)
Felt like looking up a few more.
Alek Száhala – Noitavasara “Witch hammer” (*)
Epyx & Cyrez – Subida del Muerto “Sleep Paralysis” (*)
Epyx & Cyrez – Unohdetut “The Forgotten” (*) (*)
Epyx & Cyrez – Unhola “Oblivion” (*) (cf. Unholy Word 😉 )
Epyx & Cyrez – Kanashibari “Sleep Paralysis” (*)
Epyx & Cyrez – Toivoton “Hopeless” (*)
Epyx & Cyrez – Tyhjyys “Void” (*)
Le Dos-on – Epatoivo “Despair” (*)
Le Dos-on – Unelma “Dream” (*)
Substanced – Oneiroi “Dreams” (*)
Alabaster – Santuario “Shrine” (*)
Betwixt & Between – Surendrajit “Garuda” (*) (Supriya is another Hindi name…)
Betwixt & Between – Unam sanctam “(only) One Holy Church” (*)
Tecda – Vavi “Reservoir” (?)
Betwixt & Between – Tout Est Bien (Sein Zum Tode) “All is Well (Accepting Death)” (*) (*)
Hattifnatt – Dasein “Existence” (*)
Betwixt & Between – Tindaros “Tindalos” (?) (possible, considering Gates of the Silver Key)
Alek Száhala – Ngarnuuk “Nganjuk” (?) (bit of a stretch, though he might have taken that more literally 😛 )
Hase – 法界 “Realm of Truth” (?)
Alek Száhala – Phobos “Fear” (*)
Alek Száhala – Unilaulu “Lullaby” (*)
Alek Száhala – Emberevő “Cannibal” (*)
Betwixt & Between – Zusammengehörigkeit “Togetherness” (*)While I’m always interested by whatever he comes up with when not doing freeform, I still wouldn’t say I love it…a good tune to know about, anyway. Would have probably not found it for a long time if not for this post.
It might be worth mentioning, too, that his remake of Elwood’s Dead Lock is on that same album. It is very similar to the original, though, so I can see why you didn’t link it. I always have had a soft spot for demoscene music, though, so that’s the better find for me.
On second thought, it is cool to see how each of our tastes differ when forced to narrow it down as far as this, knowing we all share a certain common ground. In the end a lot of what I love so much about Betwixt could just as well be said for Alek: both clearly worked for their own sake (or at least gave a very strong impression they did), were always trying new things and taking liberties with common patterns, the result in each case being a vast selection of tracks all distinctly different from one another. Throw characteristic sound design and their beautifully disorienting melodies on top of that and you get…well, whatever it would be called, this community knows what it is!
Ironically, you ended up explaining some likely reasons most of my top spots were stolen from him too. Heh…
I also meant to reply here a while ago! Finally got around to listening to those newer tracks. That Tim Reaper one is really something. Definitely a genre to dig deeper into one of these days.
A quick clarification on Endlicher Entfernung because it’s bugging me: it was written for this comp, so it certainly wasn’t made to be presented alongside Iron Squid or even freeform in general, just the other tracks on that CD. There’s a distance between them, even if it’s finite. 😛
You probably misinterpreted my post earlier, considering my main point was that I agreed with you on “the style’s narrow sweetspot”… Personal experience accounts for the rest, and it’s hard to think of a better teacher. Or maybe I just misunderstood what you were saying originally. Whatever, water under the bridge. Always good to see some more activity here, at least.
