Nur Ein IV Round Four "What Once Was Grand

[Reist]

My point is, worry about writing a really good song first and foremost. Embrace the challenge, don't fight it.

In respect to the other challenges, I'd agree with you - but this challenge really meddles with the phrasing and structure of the song - and if I'm working on writing an honest song, it's really tough when I don't really have control over its structure. A theme is helpful, and an additional bandmember/instrument is inspiring, but this challenge is really killing me.

On the other hand, I have a decent idea. It's just whether or not I have time to record it this weekend. But I haven't copped out on a Nur Ein round yet, so I might as well just go for it.

[JonPorobil]

Oh, quit yer whinin' and write a got-dang sonnet already.

[Ross]

Songet written.

Now 48 hours or so to record.

Nur Ein!!!!

[Reist]

I'm screwed.

[signboy]

Dude, I'll totally donate my Zombie Sonnet if you got nuthin

[Paco Del Stinko]

I'm screwed.

Just get something in there, best you can muster. I'm sending in my piece. Piece of what, I dare not say, but in it's gonna go. Try, man, try! NUR EIN!!!!

[JonPorobil]

(For the record, way back before Round 0 started, I predicted that I would drop out during this round. I'd love to be wrong.)

My lyrics are complete. They are a single sonnet, written in the Elizabethan style, with strict iambic pentameter as well. One could argue perhaps two syllables in my song, but I sing the stresses where they belong, anyway. It's tough recording a song in strict iambic pentameter, because I've developed instincts that the lines of a song should be different lengths to keep the melody appealing. This was a fun experiment.

I've got a rough draft of the recording done, but two of the instruments probably need to be rerecorded. The vocals might, as well. I'll decide in the morning.

In light of Furrypedro's comment on my "Silver Tongue," I adhered to a self-imposed challenge of my own: no fake instruments for this entry.

I'm very proud of my lyrics, but I might be doomed nonetheless; we'll see. Either way, it'll be a heckuva fight, and I'm looking forward to hearing my competition.

NUR EIN!!!!

[JonPorobil]

Just for your amusement, I've found a sonnet I wrote senior year of high school, revised freshman year of college, and got published in a student magazine.

Dante's Farm

In Italy, the nights are cold as hell.
Dear F, I often think we're losing touch.
And every now and then, it comes: the smell
of acid rain, commotion in the hutch—
the rabbits understand it more than we.
I wish I would explain it to you more;
we only know what we can hear, feel, see:
the whole farm shudders like a sounding board
and the dark that falls is tangible and full.
We've learned to do our chores without the light,
but this is dark so thick is chokes the bulb.
One day, the farm will vanish into night.
..........We work as normal, though in the dark, alone.
..........I fear I'll never find my way back home.

[Reist]

Just get something in there, best you can muster. Try, man, try! NUR EIN!!!!

I guess if I send something in, I'll have to ignore the iambic pentameter - I'll just go for the rhyme scheme. Otherwise this will ruin me. Wish me luck (I haven't even started recording and I'm working late tomorrow).

[Paco Del Stinko]

Wish me luck

Luck!

[Reist]

Thanks, but luck is apparently not on my side. All my tracks are recorded, the song is pretty solid, but my goddamn recording box thinks its hard drive is full. I just deleted 3 gigs of music, and the song only takes up about 200 megs, but still, this stupid thing won't let me export the files. I'm a little more than pissed off - if the files don't export, I fail.

[JonPorobil]

I had a similar problem a few weeks ago. Wish I knew what I did to fix it.

[Lunkhead]

Er, did you empty your trash?

[Geoff WreckdoM]

Whew! Viva Nur Ein! Viva Immunity!
Everything ya'll will hear this evening from us was recorded last night. That's not to say we didn't work on it beforehand, quite feverishly in fact, but we wound up having to scrap all we did throughout the week and start all over last night. It took a while to write the sonnet, then things went pretty quickly after that, BUT the "live" sound we initially were going for didn't work out. Vocally I did not have the chops I was reaching for, and thanks to bleed over in all the recorded tracks, we were either stuck with that lackluster performance or had to just start all over from scratch instead. It's funny, even though we didn't have to even submit a song if we didn't want to we still worked ourselves pretty hard, it was not an all together stress free endeavor, but shit if it weren't fun as hell anyways, and we're all tickled with the finished product too. It was quite a thrill last week to win round 3, we were all floating on a cloud I tell you. This is a lot of fun. I'm not sore at all for the loss of all the free time and socializing, I wouldn't have it any other way. See you in round 5!

[JonPorobil]

E-mailing mine now. It was done at about 4:00 yesterday, but I was feeling a little iffy about the mix. Got some advice from a fellow songfighter, slept on it, and tweaked the mix again this morning before sending it out. I'm glad I waited.

Mine features two instruments that have never before appeared in a Jon Eric track. See if you can guess which two they are.

[Ross]

stuff

Great, man - way to rub it in.



Nur Ein!!!!

[Reist]

Er, did you empty your trash?

Yeah, I did. However, after deleting another 3 gigs of songs, I was finally able to export the files. I'm mixing/mastering them quick before I go to work, and I'll listen to the tune on my iPod in my car. Hopefully it's a good mix, since I'll have to send it in as soon as I get home.

ps - I'm at mountain standard time - what time do I need to send this in by?

[Eric Y.]

MST is three hours behind EDT so I guess you want something like 8:59:59 pm.

[Geoff WreckdoM]

stuff

Great, man - way to rub it in.

Heh, realistically speaking this may be my only chance this competition to gloat, so forgive me if I take the opportunity.
Anyways, if you weren't prepared to defeat WreckdoM when you got in this thing, then you best get thataway right quick! Or be prepared to have some free time on your hands next couple weeks! Ha Ha!! NUR EIN!

[Reist]

MST is three hours behind EDT so I guess you want something like 8:59:59 pm.

Shit. My shift ends at 9. I guess I'll just send in the untested mix now.

[Lunkhead]

I shouldn't be helping you out, but I think Eric is messing with you, with the whole daylight/standard time thing. (You said you're in "standard" time, but probably you are on "daylight" time, observing daylight savings.) You are on Mountain Time which is generally two hours behind Eastern Time, so your deadline is 10:01PM. Check www.timeanddate.com to find out the current time in your location and the current time in New York City to figure out how to translate the Nur Ein deadline into your local time.

[Henrietta]

Yes!! I am Mountain Time too and our deadline is 10pm.