Just Browsing: Music to our Ears!

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Bit of melodic tangent this week. Nothing in the following two entries can really be considered games, as such, more of a musical journey. One pondering, relaxing and clever. The other hectic, thrashing and joyfully exuberant.

One of the most interesting parts of the evolution of the internet is that it allows people feel experiences that would never have crossed their paths otherwise and this dive into musical experiments is a brilliant example of this.

January by Rich Vreeland
The chip-tune beauty of Rich Vreeland’s music has (AKA DisasterPeace) become a consistent backdrop to my work routine in recent times. There is something enchanting, mystical, in the constant bouncing melodies that underlie his music, particularly in his recent soundtrack to Polytron’s masterpiece Fez. During my almost stalker-like obsession with him and his music, I stumbled across this rather interesting experiment in algorithmic player generated music.

A man, lost in his thoughts, stumbles through the January snow. As he wanders he looks up and sees the first flecks of a snowstorm heading his way. Chords and Choruses bounce through his mind as the snow lands on his weary head, slowly a wonderful song erupts as the storm crashes in. And then, like all things in life, it is over. Perhaps too easily written off as ‘arty’, this fun little experiment showcases how a simple musical mechanic, combined with scenic pixelated views and carefully chosen poetry, can create a very atmospheric experience.

Here’s a word of advice if you find yourself stumbling through the snow silently... look up.

Plink by Dinah Moe
Unlike the solitary affair of January, Plink is something rather more dynamic and social. After logging on and choosing a name, you are presented with a pulsing screen with which becomes your magical instrument. Sweeping up and down and holding the mouse button sends cascades of sound out from your speaker, magically rhythmic and tuneful.

By itself this would not be a particularly novel or entertaining experiment, many similar applications already exist, but what makes Plink so downright brilliant is the cooperative aspect. As you play along, other random Plinkers join you and together you combine to create a symphony of sound. The magic of Plink is that no matter what instrument you choose, or how you play them, everything sounds deliberate and chordal, as if you and a random internet browser have, by pure fluke, joined together to form a musical superpower.

It is all a trick of course, using very basic key structures and rhythms, but that does not make the experience any less involving. Plink is an experience that only lasts a matter of minutes due to its repetitive nature, but in that time you and your new friends have created a masterpiece that Mozart would be proud of. Maybe.