tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63379427888722211852024-03-05T04:46:06.913-08:00IP's Ancient Wonderworldlow-res news for lo-fi peopleutzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652075926822644916noreply@blogger.comBlogger660125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-16253304466948299632017-08-17T04:14:00.000-07:002017-08-17T04:14:53.411-07:00Gasman Presents: Zero to Chiptune in One Hour Yeah, I know it's been pretty silent around here for a long time. The main reason is that I've been massively sucked in by a huge project I've been working on for the last 10 months, so other projects like this blog have been taking back seat. I'm nearly done with the big one now, so soon you can expect to see some more action around here again.<br />
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For now, here's something worth checking out. ZX Spectrum legend Matt Westcott (aka Gasman) gave this amazing presentation at the SHA2017 hacker conference. I'm pretty sure that as a reader of this blog you're well aware of the basics of chip music. But I bet you haven't seen anyone talk about it for an hour while at the same time composing an AY chiptune cover requested by the audience!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="576" src="https://media.ccc.de/v/SHA2017-175-zero_to_chiptune_in_one_hour/oembed" width="1024"></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-20098709505422997942017-03-27T02:40:00.003-07:002017-03-27T02:40:52.371-07:00Introducing the ZX Egg PainterDon't you just hate it when you get them fingers all dirty while trying to paint some eggs for Easter? Then rejoice with me, because Joachim and Ulrich from the German ZX-Team have developed a <i>revolutionary</i> device that will spare you all the hassle. Lo and behold: The ZX-Eiermaler (ZX Egg Painter), a Sinclair ZX-81-driven egg painting machine.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2hIty9hYKfQ" width="560"></iframe></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-32128341404708362352017-03-02T00:52:00.000-08:002017-03-02T00:52:43.233-08:00[tool] Blackbird 1.0 by lft<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMqpXYrc2V1539Gl2Ayq25byieQpWBa8y0WhJ_p-XJvBzzy4MINEwan3CZZHp4v7fhIVP25UCNfAYKkti6hJKBzMp-1vdot6EtMys6aqhSx3S_GxyxSiSTbOCBG6OQxur8CjHKDGKMy4o/s1600/blackbird.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMqpXYrc2V1539Gl2Ayq25byieQpWBa8y0WhJ_p-XJvBzzy4MINEwan3CZZHp4v7fhIVP25UCNfAYKkti6hJKBzMp-1vdot6EtMys6aqhSx3S_GxyxSiSTbOCBG6OQxur8CjHKDGKMy4o/s400/blackbird.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Linus Åkesson aka lft has relased a new, native C64 tracker. Blackbird features a very clean and minimal GUI, an efficient playroutine, a live mode, and a unique microtonal fx system. It also comes with a well-written, in-depth manual and plenty of example tunes for further reference.<br />
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<a href="http://csdb.dk/release/?id=153555" target="_blank">download</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-40418108555584074702017-03-02T00:38:00.000-08:002017-03-02T00:38:00.436-08:00[album] winter songs by lpowerPterodactyl Squad has released a beautifully melancholic and and soothingly moody collection of synth tracks by lpower. Not really chip at all, but certainly worth a listen. You are very much encouraged to buy the album on bandcamp, but if you want to grab it for free, you can do so on <a href="http://www.ptesquad.com/more/pte067.html" target="_blank">Pterodactyl's release page</a>.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2447685716/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://ptesquad.bandcamp.com/album/winter-songs">winter songs by lpower</a></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-14758255826848629692017-02-25T09:36:00.000-08:002017-02-25T09:36:38.089-08:00[album] Balearic Beats vol 43 - Chipmusic sounds of summerNo, wait... don't scroll past this! Didn't your parents tell you not to judge a music album by its title? And hey, I'm on this one, too!<br />
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Still not convinced? Well, there's also tracks by Yerzmyey, Joss Manley, Hypnodrive, Comptroller, Cheapshot, Pulselooper, the Mist toggles, Mr. Spastic, Goto80, Jellica, Mister Beep, Rico Zerone, and Vince Kaichan! Yeah, I'm sure that now you'll give this a listen. And you should, because this is the most relaxing, laid-back chiptune compilations in a long time. And as you can guess from the artist rooster, it's about as generic-balearic as a Himalaya expedition. Many thanks to Chippanze and Kittenrock for putting this together.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1289924032/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://chippanze.bandcamp.com/album/kr075-cp077-balearic-beats-vol-43-chipmusic-sounds-of-summer">[KR075][CP077] Balearic Beats vol 43 - Chipmusic sounds of summer by Various</a></iframe>
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<a href="http://www.kittenrock.co.uk/releases/[KR075][CP077]BalearicBeatsvol43.zip" target="_blank">download 320kbps mp3</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-32091293373085901482017-02-22T01:25:00.001-08:002017-02-22T01:25:39.329-08:00[demo] Belong by MahoneyFrom the man who brought us such legendary productions as <a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=57471" target="_blank">Storebror</a> and <a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=56010" target="_blank">Cubase64</a>, here's a new, thoughtful and moody C64 4K intro. Not only is it one of the rare instances of a demo with a message, but it's unique visual style also sets it apart from the usual plasma-scroller-twister stuff. Music-wise, it reminds me of some works by Kjell <span class="st">Nordbø</span>. It won the C64 4K compo at Datastorm, and I'm tempted to give this a CDC on pouet, actually.<br />
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<a href="http://csdb.dk/release/?id=153525" target="_blank">download/discuss</a> (<a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=68873" target="_blank">pouet</a>)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-40114712458857514552017-02-22T01:06:00.001-08:002017-02-22T01:06:57.082-08:00[album] Mobile Swarming by Chrome CobraDamn, I've been neglecting the blog for quite a bit again. All my free time goes into coding at the moment. Well, time to finally look back on some of the awesome stuff that appeared on the internetz lately.<br />
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First of all, we've got a fantastic new, step-heavy Gameboy release by Chrome Cobra (aka Doomcloud/Radlib/Oxygenstar/a-few-dozen-other-names). I'm always delighted to hear this kind of material - danceable and party-ready, yet dark, and far away from the usual Mario-at-a-rave tropes.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2816393053/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://planetzaxxon.bandcamp.com/album/mobile-swarming">Mobile Swarming by Chrome Cobra</a></iframe>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-75955053920043043192017-02-03T09:02:00.003-08:002017-02-03T09:03:41.103-08:00[album] Rare Collection by Shnabubula (available February 3rd only)Today Bandcamp is taking action against Trump's immigration politics by <a href="https://daily.bandcamp.com/2017/01/31/bandcamp-human-rights/" target="_blank">donating their share of sales proceeds</a> to the American Civil Liberties Union. Chip jazzer Shnabubula is joining the action by releasing a one-day exclusive album, which will be available only today, Friday the 3rd. Of course, he's donating his share to the ACLU as well.<br />
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I'm not embedding this because it'll be gone by tomorrow anyway. So if you read this in time, <a href="https://shnabubula.bandcamp.com/album/rare-collection-1-day-exclusive" target="_blank">head over to Bandcamp to grab this bag of magic goodies</a> and support the good cause.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-54974659922487299772017-01-30T03:20:00.000-08:002017-01-30T03:20:51.179-08:00[tool] Polyanna - New C64/SID Tracker with Virtual Polyphony<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBpPL3REyiH6vQsRbryQSJqicyf7Pc3yVxIXE4azI1TwqxLrMpb1HBwOkFPDZjhdy7T9HSLDjeXZRguwEOaFE0xsZrFWJGWcvaNnfTgipXG2ptmZG1sAZ69XjrrP9szLoHnZX-orAvPJ4E/s1600/polyanna.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBpPL3REyiH6vQsRbryQSJqicyf7Pc3yVxIXE4azI1TwqxLrMpb1HBwOkFPDZjhdy7T9HSLDjeXZRguwEOaFE0xsZrFWJGWcvaNnfTgipXG2ptmZG1sAZ69XjrrP9szLoHnZX-orAvPJ4E/s400/polyanna.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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The legendary Aleksi Eeben has released a new tracker for the Commodore 64. Polyanna supports an astonishing 5 virtual channels on top of the SID's 3 regular ones. Unfortunately it works on old (6581) SIDs only. Nevertheless, I think this is a fantastic achievement. Folks at Demobit seemed to agree, since Polyanna took second place in the wild compo. Haven't tried the tracker myself yet, but the interface looks nice and clean, and knowing Mr. Eeben's work, I'm pretty sure usage will be rather intuitive.<br />
<a href="http://csdb.dk/release/?id=153091" target="_blank"><br /></a>
<a href="http://csdb.dk/release/?id=153091" target="_blank">CSDB release page</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-74586430716431184882017-01-30T02:01:00.001-08:002017-01-30T02:01:36.721-08:00[demo] Don't mess with Texas by DesireThe Texas Instruments TI-99/4A ought to be one of the most underrated and underused demo platforms out there. Until now, there were hardly any prods for it, aside from a <a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=67103" target="_blank">little intro by frog of realm of illusion</a>, which ran at last year's Revision, and some small thingies like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kW5vAioNlQo" target="_blank">Asmusr's 2k15 new year greetings</a>.<br />
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Well, the wait is over - Synchrony 2017 saw the release of a massive TI99/4A mega-demo. Props to Asmusr, jmph, orby, and Ramon B5 for an excellent show on this badly documented, ancient 16-bitter, and congratulations on 1st place in the demo compo.<br />
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<a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=68783" target="_blank">download/discuss (be sure to read the extended notes)</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-60029285418741154502017-01-30T01:38:00.000-08:002017-01-30T01:38:01.322-08:00[album] 50564: Goto80 vs PulselooperChippanze strikes again, this time with two of my favourite chip artists jamming on C64 and a circuit-bent TR-505! If you like dark and quirky stuff, this should be right down your alley.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1432926399/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://pulselooper.bandcamp.com/album/cp075-50564-goto80-vs-pulselooper">[CP075] 50564: Goto80 vs. Pulselooper by Pulselooper</a></iframe>
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<a href="http://www.archive.org/details/50564Goto80VsPulselooper" target="_blank">high quality download pack</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-70348686475831171952017-01-17T05:30:00.000-08:002017-01-17T05:30:16.149-08:00HVSC UpdatedHey, didn't you folks have enough of a chiptune fix yesterday? No? Ok, well then I think it's time for you to download the latest <a href="http://www.hvsc.c64.org/" target="_blank">High Voltage SID Collection</a>. While not as massive as the previous, 20 year celebratory update, the traditional Xmas update still adds a whooping 430 new C64 tunes, as well as the usual array of re-rips, fixes, and identifications.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-44376683623527267152017-01-16T05:25:00.000-08:002017-01-16T05:25:19.898-08:00[album] Basic 1.1 - Ready. A Chiptune Compilation by McKlainAlright, enough with all that fancy new-school space stuff. Let's treat ourselves to some classic, true-to-the-core 8-bit material. Well, as luck has it, McKlain has just what we need - a massive collection of his AY works on Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum, spanning a work period from 2011 to 2016.<br />
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Once in a while I stumble across a track on Soundcloud and just can't stop listening to it. "<span itemprop="name">I've Heard All This Before" is one of those tracks, I still play it at least once a week despite having listened to it like 300 times already. Luckily, I now have got another 29 tracks to go with it :)</span><br />
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<span itemprop="name">/end posting frenzy for today, see you back soon.</span>
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1643101993/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://mcklain.bandcamp.com/album/basic-11-ready-a-chiptune-compilation">Basic 1.1 - Ready. A Chiptune Compilation by McKlain</a></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-45331392129211908272017-01-16T05:13:00.002-08:002017-01-16T05:13:55.977-08:00[album] EP 0x00 by n0pAfter our trip through space with Remedmatika, we touch down on planet 0x00, a magic world ruled by Mister n0p and his Teenage Engineering OP-1. Bubbeling arps, intricate pads, and laid-back beats set the mood for a wonderful mini-vacation.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1696399431/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://n-0-p.bandcamp.com/album/cp074-ep-0x00">[CP074] EP 0x00 by n0p</a></iframe>
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For those interested, there's <a href="http://archive.org/details/CP074EP_0x00" target="_blank">free download package on archive.org</a> which includes additional high-res artwork and source material. However, I would certainly encourage supporting the artist by buying the EP on Bandcamp. In any case, many thanks to Chippanze for putting out this excellent release.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-12584989975533932162017-01-16T05:01:00.000-08:002017-01-16T05:01:50.254-08:00[album] Mesin Peretas Jarak by RemedmatikaIf you've been following this blog for a while, you probably know that Remedmatika is one of my all-time favourite chiptuners in the universe. And here is another reason why. Again, Remedmatika takes us away in the comfort of his beautiful spaceship, on to a galaxy far, far away.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1277868642/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://metallurgic.bandcamp.com/album/mesin-peretas-jarak">Mesin Peretas Jarak by Remedmatika</a></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-13664002703089183162017-01-16T04:51:00.000-08:002017-01-16T04:51:34.180-08:00[album] VA - Soundshock 3: FM Funk NirvanaBoy oh boy, the good chiptune releases are just piling up this month. Guess I'll go into a little posting frenzy today (at the risk of having nothing to post for the rest of the week), because otherwise I'll lose track myself.<br />
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Anyway, after nearly a year of silence, Ubiktune is back with a new FM funk collection, as usual featuring a high-profile rooster of artists such as zabutom, linde, Shnabubula, cTrix, Keishi Yonao, and more. Soundshock 3 marks the end of the series. Now that's what I call ending it on a high note.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=4230052423/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://ubiktune.bandcamp.com/album/soundshock-3-fm-funk-nirvana">SOUNDSHOCK 3: FM FUNK NIRVANA!! by Ubiktune</a></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-20494160471856337702017-01-13T14:05:00.000-08:002017-01-13T14:05:20.921-08:00[album] Artificial Presence by Rico Zerone<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibxsuPSXxHt6VteB0Exed5Na89uZwW4Rvt6dslHp7JeZMwkWAcBkMM4HYNjS6P-ZFs_9dYFXhY__Mi9sqgvesaP1vwqn6s6LeB2WQySGzRPk1wGo0a8_OBRcvumLidgRqSdVt9ZTqJqlhs/s1600/ricoartificial.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibxsuPSXxHt6VteB0Exed5Na89uZwW4Rvt6dslHp7JeZMwkWAcBkMM4HYNjS6P-ZFs_9dYFXhY__Mi9sqgvesaP1vwqn6s6LeB2WQySGzRPk1wGo0a8_OBRcvumLidgRqSdVt9ZTqJqlhs/s320/ricoartificial.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Austrian XM wizard Rico Zerone and French visualist Julien Ducourthial aka Otro have teamed up to bring you a magnificent audiovisual treat. Prepare yourself to dive into comfortingly lush pads, float through time on spacey melodies, and let the colourful visuals rinse the grayness of everyday life from your eyes. Ehh...enugh blabla, head over to <a href="http://artificialpresence.thejazzist.nu/" target="_blank">artificialpresence.thejazzist.nu</a> now to check it out!<br />
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By the way, if you are interested in the creative process and the philosophical thoughts behind this release, check out this <a href="http://www.kiwaida.nu/bmk/post/2016/12/28/%E1%97%A9%E1%96%87T%E1%93%B0F%E1%93%B0%E1%99%85%E1%93%AE%E1%97%A9%E1%92%AA_%E1%96%B0%E1%96%87%E1%97%B4%E1%94%95%E1%99%93%EF%AC%A1%E1%99%85%E1%99%93" target="_blank">Rico Z interview on Kiwaïda</a>.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-5582831262628045212017-01-10T12:59:00.000-08:002017-01-10T12:59:40.606-08:00Heinz Billing Passed Away<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heinz Billing in 2012, photo by Mark Bluhm</td></tr>
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German computer pioneer <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz_Billing" target="_blank">Heinz Billing</a> has passed away on January 4th, aged 102. A contemporary of Konrad Zuse, Billing developed the G1, G2, G1a, and G3 mainframe computers, which were used for astronomical calculations at the Max Planck Institute for Physics in Göttingen from 1952-1972. He also did pioneering work in the field of data storage, having developed his own variant of a magnetic drum memory in 1948. In the 1970s, he left the field of computing and moved on to become one of the leading experts on gravitational waves. Rest in peace, Mister Billing.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrUWeEXkU_uuwCkx-X0s5Av3i4_dj9iV4CSMd9GYy28cPCDwOlQ3rMe5hwU92E70ZRGklarDMLQfmVNrUARGe-q_N-zANfsKL-NqxtGhIhAd2OL8KH5fK-ab8wQyx-R7rExdHrJskJzpVZ/s1600/G3_Computer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrUWeEXkU_uuwCkx-X0s5Av3i4_dj9iV4CSMd9GYy28cPCDwOlQ3rMe5hwU92E70ZRGklarDMLQfmVNrUARGe-q_N-zANfsKL-NqxtGhIhAd2OL8KH5fK-ab8wQyx-R7rExdHrJskJzpVZ/s320/G3_Computer.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The G3 computer</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-66857245347416850892017-01-09T13:29:00.000-08:002017-01-09T13:29:12.417-08:00[album] Hardcore LSDJ Party Jams to Fuck Off To by Muzak Efron<br />
Another essential listening experience from December 2016 - here's some very creative LSDJ (ab)use by Muzak Efron aka Cooshinator, shifting back and forth between highly danceable and outright weird that defies genre boundaries. Reminds me a bit of that <a href="http://irrlichtproject.blogspot.com/2016/01/album-duke-flex-aint-dead-by-duke-flux.html" target="_blank">Duke Flex release</a> that came out on CalmDownKidder earlier last year, though "Hardcore LSDJ Party Jams" is certainly more on the quirky side.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1617614338/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://muzakefron.bandcamp.com/album/hardcore-lsdj-party-jams-to-fuck-off-to">Hardcore LSDJ Party Jams to Fuck Off To by Muzak Efron</a></iframe>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-8648009047315390012017-01-09T08:17:00.001-08:002017-01-09T08:17:50.873-08:00[album] #010010 by Pocketmaster<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpC1Q9ogNbaX2JxxwOkXQme8iE6ACOPzaEOioas-3rYowohF1i7aLH2q7U8FGjP6rB3aKO-ffuaetaaB4ygnUarhrMAxalRVTiF7blzC57FoNUON-PSg_eajAa-vkZR567ya94edONFzA/s1600/pocketmaster.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpC1Q9ogNbaX2JxxwOkXQme8iE6ACOPzaEOioas-3rYowohF1i7aLH2q7U8FGjP6rB3aKO-ffuaetaaB4ygnUarhrMAxalRVTiF7blzC57FoNUON-PSg_eajAa-vkZR567ya94edONFzA/s320/pocketmaster.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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A slightly belated Happy New Year to you all! Just came back from my yearly recording session in the middle of nowhere, and looking forward to a successful year 2017 filled with great chiptune releases and stunning demos. But before we get started on that, let's clear the backlog, shall we?<br />
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One thing from the end of 2016 that you definately shouldn't miss is the new Pocketmaster release. Once again, the duo is here to rock the micromusic dancefloor with their signature gnarly sound. A++!<br />
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There's no embedable widget for this, so head over to the <a href="http://www.daheardit-records.net/en/discography/dhr-31" target="_blank">release page on Da! Heard It Records</a> to stream, download, or order a CD. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-67524393509776561882016-12-04T05:27:00.000-08:002016-12-04T05:27:06.106-08:00End-of-the-Year Hiatus and 2016 RetrospectiveThe end of the year is approaching with big footsteps, and that means Ancient Wonderworld is going into its traditional end-of-the-year hiatus as I'm spending the month of December working on a new Doppelplusungut trash punk album in a remote studio far out in the middle of nowhere.<br />
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Looking back, I think it's been a good year for Ancient Wonderworld. Haven't posted as much as in the previous years, yet I believe the blog has benefitted from a stronger focus on the core topics: Chiptune, 8/16-bit demoscene (with a special love for sizecoding productions), and the history of creative computing.<br />
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At times I have contemplated stopping with th<span style="font-size: small;">is</span> project altogether because it seems like a lot of work for a limited impact. But then I noticed that the blog now has an average 250-300 views per day, a nearly tenfold increase from last year. That's not just a decent number for a little niche blog that does barely any outside promotion. It also means that there are appearantly quite a few people out there who do care about Ancient Wonderworld. So thanks and cheers to all you readers out there, you're the number one reason that keeps me going!<br />
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On a personal level, it's been a good and productive year for me as well. Aside from improving and extending <a href="http://irrlichtproject.de/houston/" target="_blank">HoustonTracker 2</a>, I spent a lot of time advancing my 1-bit driver coding skills. For the first half of the year, I mostly dabbled in digital mixing, developing a new "multi-core" technique which allows for reasonably accurate rendering of a sizeable number of volume levels on the ZX Spectrum beeper and other 1-bit devices.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Fluidcore, a 4-channel wavetable player for ZX Spectrum beeper
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These experiments eventually cumulated in the <a href="https://soundcloud.com/irrlicht-project/booom-zbmod-test" target="_blank">zbmod</a> <a href="http://randomflux.info/1bit/viewtopic.php?id=94" target="_blank">engine</a>, a 3-channel routine which can play back PCM samples of arbitrary length with a total of 21 volume levels, and <a href="https://soundcloud.com/irrlicht-project/the-aftermath-ti-92-plus" target="_blank">qed68</a>, which does the same with 4 channels/24 levels on the TI-92 Plus and compatible graphing calculators. In the process, I also disovered how to implement simple <a href="https://soundcloud.com/irrlicht-project/beepertoy-v01-test" target="_blank">low- and hi-pass filters</a> in 1-bit.<br />
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Later on, I turned my focus onto more traditional 1-bit techniques again, for a number of reasons. Digital 1-bit techniques are very powerful, but they consume a lot of RAM, and are extremely tedious to write. On top of that, they are surprisinly unflexible, since the technique ties up a several registers for jump calculation, and rules out the use of self-modifying code. All in all, it's a pretty lousy representation of the "digital minimalism" I'm striving for. So, back to the basics. One thing I did was to take Zilogat0r's classic Squeeker routine (which introspec kindly reverse-engineered earlier this year) and enhance it with drums and duty envelopes. The resulting <a href="https://soundcloud.com/irrlicht-project/squeeker-plus-test" target="_blank">Squeeker Plus</a> engine is certainly my personal favourite from this year. I later mated the Squeeker technique with Shiru's Phaser method, creating the strikingly powerful, yet nearly unusable <a href="http://randomflux.info/1bit/viewtopic.php?id=101" target="_blank">Phase Squeek</a> engine.<br />
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I stuck with the Phaser technique for a while, gradually simplifying the algorithm in the process. This yielded some significant speed gains, which allowed me to implement <a href="http://randomflux.info/1bit/viewtopic.php?id=106" target="_blank">several</a> <a href="http://randomflux.info/1bit/viewtopic.php?id=111" target="_blank">new</a> <a href="http://randomflux.info/1bit/viewtopic.php?id=112" target="_blank">tricks</a>. These simplifications actually went so far that at one point, the phaser algorithm became interchangeable with the standard threshold technique (the one used in Tritone type engines). Somehow, this was quite a revelation to me! In my perception, 1-bit synthesis is now transitioning from mainly trying to emulate other synthesis types¹ (programmable sound chip synthesis, pulse code modulation) into becoming a type in its own right: Binary modulation synthesis, if you will.<br />
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As my engines were becoming pretty much impossible to support in the existing 1-bit trackers and XM converters, Shiru suggested the creation of a dedicated, customizable music markup language to facilitate music composition for these tools. I was more than happy to follow up on this, as it provided a nice opportunity to finally acquire some proper C++ coding skills. Dubbed <a href="https://utz82.github.io/MDAL/" target="_blank">MDAL</a> (the Music Data Abstraction Language), the project has now progressed into a usable beta stage, although the standard is by no means finalized and there is a lot of work left to do. I'm intending to continue on this next year.<br />
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The most fun thing this year was probably the "discovery" of the fabled 5th sound channel on Gameboy. On April 1st, I posted this video on youtube:<br />
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Of course everybody thought it was fake. Until I posted the <a href="http://irrlichtproject.de/downloads/dmg5th.gb" target="_blank">actual ROM</a>. And the head scratching commenced... Sure, it's a trick, but a pretty convincing one. It's basically an application the good old "pulse interleaving" 1-bit method on the second pulse channel of the DMG. I intended this mainly as a friendly nudge to the Gameboy scene. The point is that in my opinion, the Gameboy music scene has been somewhat standing still in the last 10 years, resting on the success of LSDJ and Nanoloop. While these are without a doubt absolutely brilliant tools, they don't push the Gameboy to the limits by any means. I really want to see more experimentation with DMG sound in the future, however I don't want to do it myself, since I'm not an expert in Gameboy programming and I don't have the time to become one.<br />
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Last but not least, I also took some time to bring my decade-old web coding skills up to HTML5 standards, and tackle the long overdue rewrite of <a href="http://irrlichtproject.de/" target="_blank">my website</a>. While I think that CSS is as awful and frustrating to use as ever, I'm pretty proud of the new, minimalistic and responsive layout.<br />
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Coding certainly took precedence over writing music for me in 2016. As a consequence, I played only one show this year (to a wonderful audience at the <a href="http://www.vcfb.de/" target="_blank">Vintage Computing Festival Berlin</a>). I did, however, hold several talks on 1-bit music and HoustonTracker 2, which is an activity I enjoy a lot and would like to continue in the future. So if you would invite me for a talk, presentation, or workshop, please get in touch, either by commenting below or dropping me a mail at <i>utz at <a href="http://irrlichtproject.de/" target="_blank">my home domain</a></i>. Aside from the things mentioned, I also like to talk on the topic of early computer music history, if that's more your thing. Of course I'm still open for shows as well, and I hope to do more next year.<br />
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Anyway, thanks again for reading, and see you all back in 2017!<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">¹ With the exception of Pulse Frequency Modulation, which has been a 1-bit exclusive right from the start.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-63638746296191254622016-11-29T01:53:00.000-08:002016-11-29T01:53:10.274-08:00[album] Third Laser by little-scaleThrash44 Records has put out an album with previously unreleased Nanoloop 2.2 material from Australia's chip master little-scale. Float through space on those trademark lush pads being pitched against hypnotic, pulsating beats. This might just be my favourite little-scale release to date.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3827348044/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://thrash44records.bandcamp.com/album/third-laser">Third Laser by little-scale</a></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-34936252079212563552016-11-28T03:12:00.002-08:002016-11-28T03:13:14.022-08:00[album] OBOLE II by CYMBAThe folks from Cymba have been working really hard to create their own unique flavour of chipmusic that doesn't sound anything like chipmusic at all. Dark, evil, slightly acidic techno running off 4 Gameboy Advance. OBOLE II is one 12-inch vinyl that shouldn't be missing in your collection, if you ask me.<br />
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<iframe seamless="" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=2991032636/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/" style="border: 0; height: 120px; width: 100%;"><a href="http://obole.bandcamp.com/album/obole-ii">OBOLE II by CYMBA</a></iframe>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-45656618750197469942016-11-28T02:55:00.000-08:002016-11-28T02:55:47.158-08:00[demo] Electric Night by Dune and SMFXHere's the winner of this year's Atari Falcon demo compo at Silly Venture. It could have benefitted from a more tight pacing in my opinion, but otherwise it's undoubtedly a top notch Falcon prod with great style. I especially dig the underwater scene.<br />
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<a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=68566" target="_blank">download/discuss</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6337942788872221185.post-76435955802476473992016-11-28T02:50:00.001-08:002016-11-28T02:50:17.251-08:00[demo] Abeyance by SatoriZden's latest audiovisual glitch assault in 256 bytes. Appearantly it ran at Compusphere, but wasn't ranked due to lack of competitors.<br />
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<a href="http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=68569" target="_blank">download/discuss</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08626192788400640704noreply@blogger.com0