Time left




Saturday, April 3, 2021

SpinTunes 17 Round 3 Challenge

So far in SpinTunes 17, we've given you two character-based challenges. As a group, you've knocked them out of the park, but now we're going in a different direction: backwards. Well, also forwards. It's all the same, actually.

Here's your Round 3 challenge:

Coming or Going?: Write a song that features palindromes - structures whose elements are ordered the same forwards and backwards.
Don't panic! For the purposes of this challenge, any of the following are acceptable forms of palindromes: 

  • Letter-unit palindromes: Words or phrases whose letters are ordered the same forwards and backwards, e.g: 
  • Word-unit palindromes: Phrases whose words are ordered the same forwards and backwards, e.g:
    • "Is it crazy how saying sentences backwards creates backwards sentences saying how crazy it is?"
    • The bridge (and title) of "I Palindrome I" by They Might Be Giants: "'Son, I am able', she said, 'though you scare me.' 'Watch', said I, "beloved,' I said, 'watch me scare you though.' Said she, 'Able am I, son.'"
  • Line-unit palindromes: Poems or songs in which the order of the entire lines is the same forwards and backwards.
  • Sound palindromes: The sounds of the word or phrase, rather than the letters, are ordered the same forward and backward, e.g:
    • "Funny Scott talks enough."
    • "You're damn mad, Roy."
  • Musical palindromes: Some set of musical elements (pitches, chords, rhythms) is ordered the same forwards and backwards:
    • An ascending scale followed by a descending scale? Sure, that's a palindrome!
    • The Morse Code phrase "SOS" (▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄) is a rhythmic palindrome.
    • This entire movement from Haydn's Symphony no. 47, "The Palindrome", is a palindrome.
  • Other kinds of palindromes? Maybe you'll come up with some form of palindrome we haven't thought of!

Note: We're not asking that your entire song be palindromic, just that it feature palindromes in some notable way. If you think your palindromes are not self-evident, please point them out in your song bio.

If you include an image to be used as cover art for your track, I'll include it on the Bandcamp album. Otherwise, I'll use the artist photo or logo you sent me when you signed up. Bandcamp album art must be 1400x1400 pixels or larger. I'll crop and re-size it as best I can. If you didn't send me anything, the album art will be displayed.

Also, please remember that the fantastic folks at SongFight have opened a SpinTunes subforum on their message boards. So go there, sign up, and take a look around. SongFight happens year 'round. Music is universal... the more the better.

Submitting Entries:
  • Your entry must be received by Sunday, April 11th, 2020 @ 11:59 PM EDT. Otherwise it'll be posted as a shadow. Received means that it has to appear in my e-mail inbox (spintunescontest@gmail.com) by the given deadline. I will be going by the time stamp on the e-mail. One minute late is too late.
  • You are allowed and encouraged to submit a draft of your song early just in case something horrible happens and you miss the deadline. Then you can add polish to your song and send in a better version closer to the deadline. The last version received prior to the deadline is your official entry. 
  • Lyrics are mandatory. No instrumentals. Having no lyrics will get you disqualified.
  • Name your file the your band name + the song's title, but without spaces & punctuation.
  • Subject of the e-mail should be the title of the Challenge & your band's name. (e.g. "Coming or Going? - All the Robots") (The title of your song is whatever you want it to be)
  • Include information on anyone that should be credited for collaboration. Remember, collaborations are OK, even among competitors. You must write your song, but if you want to use another vocalist or musicians, do so. Use the Facebook and SongFight forums!
  • If you have a BandCamp account, you can just send me a link to your song on BandCamp if you include all the info I mentioned above. Make sure you have it set as a free download. THIS IS THE BEST FILE SHARING OPTION!
  • Other file sharing options if you need them: Sound Cloud (set to download a format BandCamp is ok with) & Drop Box. Please send an e-mail as I already stated, but with the download link if you need one of these services. 
  • If you're using something other than Bandcamp, It's best if you send your file in a format that Bandcamp accepts (.aiff, .wav or .flac, at least 16-bit/44.1kHz) You can find the specific requirements for Bandcamp files HERE.
  • If you send me an MP3, I will attempt to convert it for you. But be warned... I will be strapped for time, and I will post whatever Audacity spits out of the conversion. So if you picked the wrong sample rate, your dulcet tones may wind up sounding like termites or chipmunks or random static. And that is what will be judged. So please... save and submit your files in the right format. 

Side Notes:
  • You are allowed to send in a little background about your song. We encourage and appreciate "song bios". You don't have to do it, but if you want to write a couple sentences about your song I'll post it on the BandCamp page for people to see. I'll even link to longer blog posts if you want to explain your song on your blog. Some judges will read this extra info, but they aren't required to.
  • You can send in an entry to SpinTunes 17 without competing. Just tell me it's a "Shadow Song". It will be played at the listening party, but won't be ranked and you might not receive feedback from the judges. Check the FAQ if you don't know what that means. You can even complete past challenges from previous contests. It's a nice way of playing along if you can't commit to the schedule or you just want to get your feet wet.
  • The only other way to get your music played at the LP is to cover "Today's The Day" by Inverse T. Clown.

Feel free to leave any questions in the comments.
By at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)