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Nick's Daily FMJamuary2026 Entries

Final Works: 1. Big Bass Trouble A bad-ass, orchestral boss madness! Finishing up Day 8, Day 18, and Day 20, this song combines the different sections from ALL of these songs! 2. Now Rest My first finished lo-fi track! Finishing up Day 5 and Day 21, I improved the chords to be much calmer, but also included some of the chords from Day 5. And I added some "ear candy" just for fun :) 3. Piano's Plenty A solo-piano piece, reminding me of my earlier works! Finishing up Day 4, Day 19, and Day 24, I included both the work from Day 24 and Day 4 almost in full. A lot of dynamic changes, tempo changes, and simple chords make this song way more powerful than I've ever made it before!You can listen to this song too on the Friendly Music Jamuary 2026 - Compilation Album! Credits to SoD for making this compilation! 4. Unordinary World A song in 11/8, with odd chords yet still relaxing! Almost an identical copy of Day 17, which was ironically called "Ordinary world", despite this song being everything but ordinary! (Visit these four songs also on Soundcloud.) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day 1: Phrase: Experimentation. I want to experiment with a lot of new things (effects, chord progressions, new instruments, using my own vocals, adding intros, adding transitions...). So I started off experimenting with an interesting chord progression using an augmented chord. I found that it fitted a space theme, so I added other instruments and a simple melody to fit that vibe. The melody uses a lot of whole-tone-distances (fitting the augmented chord) to give a magical vibe. Or at least, that was the intention. Day 2: Phrase: Odd. I try to stand out creatively and like out-of-the-box ideas. I also love to use odd time signatures for these reasons. Hence, the phrase “odd” feels fitting. That's why I made a song in an odd time signature. I chose 5/4, since it is my favorite! I did try to use a different rhythm than the classical 3-3-2-2 though. And I used funny chords too ;D. I also added an ending since I want to get used to doing that more. The melody is, as usual, a bit meh, but I'll just keep trying things. Day 3: Phrase: To be Optimistic. The past year has felt rough on me, and the thing I've been working on the most is trying to focus on the good parts of life instead of the bad parts: in other words, to be optimistic. If I don't succeed in making a good song, that's okay, and I should value the attempt! I will have made something, and I will have learned from it. So, following this theme, I tried to implement a simple "hopeful" chord progression, and experimented with instruments and effects while I was at it. When it didn't work out at first, I tried to stay optimistic :) Day 4 Phrase: "Gentle"Song: "Lauren Daigle - Thank God I Do" My girlfriend chose the song, and I summarized it in the word "Gentle". The song is very emotional yet soft. I think “gentle” fits the style, as there are few instruments or even notes played by those instruments. And I think such an emotional song requires a gentle touch. So I made a song in a similar style. A song where every note is placed with care and minimalism is key. A song which gives me the feels with very few notes. The song is played solely by piano, and I took extra care to switch up the tempo and dynamics to make it as if a human played it. Was fun to try! Hindsight inspiration: NF - Wake Up, or Lucas King - Hurt. Day 5 Phrase: "Peace" A feeling that's meaningful to me is "Peace". I want to work on my inner peace, how corny that may sound ;). To stay calm in stressful situations, and to not let painful moments get me down. Since I also wanted to experiment a bit, I chose a relatively peaceful genre of music I have never composed in: lo-fi hiphop! I picked the first song of this Best of lofi hip hop 2021 ⭐️ compilation and made a song matching the style. And I added slightly interesting chords, cause why not ;) Day 8 Phrase: "Exploitation" (reverse of "Experimentation") In my classes, a few years ago, I got explained the 'exploration vs exploitation' tradeoff, where exploitation simply means, to exploit the knowledge you already have. So, in that trend, I wrote a song in a genre I am comfortable in: boss fights. I did want to experiment a bit, since that is my goal of this jam, so I made a funky chord progression using the chord a tritone away from the tonic. Worked out pretty okay :) Note: I named my file "R-Intention", short for "Reverse Intention". Day 9 Phrase: "Common" (reverse of "Odd") The opposite of "Odd" is "Even" "Common". So I tried to make a standard kind of song: a pop song perhaps. I figured, what's more common than vocals and a simple pop beat, so I took some free vocal samples from online and planted a beat under it. It was fun to do, almost like a puzzle, trying to figure out what key, chords, and tempo fitted the vocals best :). Maybe someday I'll have the guts to record my own vocals... Day 10 Phrase: "To be pessimistic" (reverse of "To be optimistic") It is finally that time: I added my own vocals. But, since that idea still scares the shit out of me, I morphed it into such an irrecognizable sound that I don't mind :D. I made the song very dark (pessimistic), using only the basic progression "i-V" over and over again, and focussed more on what I could do to my vocals. Small bits of autotune, a vocal transformer, some reverb, etc. I learned a bunch :) Day 11 Phrase: "Quick" (reverse of "Gentle") I interpreted "gentle" as having few notes, and placing them carefully. then, the opposite would be having MANY notes and placing them wildly! So I took inspiration from different songs which incorporate fast melodies and tried my hand at it. Not great, but I learned a bit from it. And I didn't take too much time to make this, since I am in a rush Day 12 Phrase: "Trouble" (reverse of "Peace") I interpreted "peace" as easy on the ear, calm, and chill. So "trouble" should be anything but that! I wanted to experiment with dissonance, as well as with reversing audio, so I made a very experimental and weird piece xD. I do kinda like it too haha. Hindsight inspiration (reversing audio): Twenty One Pilots - Nico and the Niners, or Celeste - In the Mirror, or Theophany - Time's End. Day 16 Theme: "Ordinary World." My small story is:"Once upon a time,there was a peaceful land far away.It was visited by an odd manwith suit and matter of white and gray." This story is going to continue each day and follow the steps of the "Hero's Journey" (hence the name, "Ordinary World"). Today, "peace" and "odd" came together for a quite relaxing but odd song. The chords, the time signature, it is all very weird in this song xD. I am unsure whether this song is nice on the ears or surprising, confusing, and hard to follow, so I would love some criticism :) -- can anyone guess what the time signature is? Day 17 Theme: "Call to Adventure" "He exploited the gullibilityof the people, fair and kind,spreading pessimistic lies.He called himself, the "MIND"." I didn't have much time, and intended to have a badass "evil character theme" but didn't go the way I wanted it to. That's the downside of having only a day! I'll upload it anyway just for consistency sake. Day 18 Theme: "Crossing the Threshold" "You too were infectedby the lies of the awful man,and rushed off to set it right,exploring your options to find a plan." I wanted to make a hopeful, "LET'S GO" kind of song. I used "Pursuit - Completely Corner the Culprit" by Phoenix Wright as inspiration for the instruments and chord progression. It is a similar progression that I've used for Day 3 actually. Day 19 "But your path to peace was long and hard,for the lies had stuck like glue.Refusing any help at all,the thoughts gently invaded your soul,until you believed all the lies to be true." I wanted another try at the whole "solo piano" thing. Though I had so little time that I couldn't finish it properly. But I tried some cool stuff that I scienced the shit out of xD. I wanted to find as many cool ways to modulate from D minor to E minor. Maybe someday I'll make it a cool whole. I am content :) And I am only now realizing I am working a day ahead, whoops! It's because I skipped the intro song. I guess that gives me an extra day off tomorrow, since I won't have time to make a song anyway! Day 20 "The darkness had become your new norm,and its web of lies had you completely bound.Luckily, a bystander heard your cries,and pulled you out of the pool of liesin which you very nearly drowned. She explained it's only a matter of perspectiveand showed you some verbal transformations:how "odd" can become "different"and "failing" becomes "experimentation"." I made Day 21 on Day 20 and reverse, so I'll upload them both now to keep the order intact ;). I wanted an epic battle, so I added a lot of drums and an epic orchestral sound with evil chords~. Kinda nice. Day 21 "Her tips were easier said than doneand took a while to get the hang of.But after a bunch of tries,you could finally see through the lies,and for the first time in forever, you managed to laugh. At last, the pessimism-pendulum swung back,as you quickly let out some tears.You felt strengthened by this new knowledgeand were ready to face your fears!" I wanted another try at Lofi, and I think I did a pretty decent job :D. First time I followed a tutorial in forever.