carrier wavecarrier wave

A FULL-LENGTH SONG IN STRUDEL
EDIT FREELY · ⌃ Enter PLAY · ⌃ . STOP
TRANSPORT — READY —

STRUCTURE

01PRELUDE supersaw bed + shimmer + static 02UPLINK band fades in, static sweeps up 03VERSE I pad / keys / sub + call melody16× 04REFRAIN call & answer, 5/4 kit lands 05VERSE II IDM kit in 5/4 — ghosts + ratchets16× 06LIFT full melody, shimmer rises 07BRIDGE warm palette, drums drop, air16× 08BUILD bit-crushed 5/4 glitch, restless16× 09CLIMAX restless + full band in 5/416× 10CODA answer dissolves into static16×

HOW TO ADJUST

  • Tempo: Change setcpm(20) (20 ≈ 80 BPM, 24 ≈ 96 BPM).
  • Harmonies: Swap a palette — replace ORIGIN with BLEAK, WARM, or RESTLESS anywhere (also swap ORIGIN_B and CALL_ORIGIN / ANS_ORIGIN to match).
  • Form: Reorder / repeat / delete lines in arrange(…)[cycles, pattern] pairs.
  • Melody: Rewrite notes in CALL_ORIGIN / ANS_ORIGIN (and other palettes). Each bar: [beat1 beat2 beat3 beat4 beat5] — call sings first 3, answer plays last 2.
  • Pad texture: Edit .vowel(…) (try "a o u" for wider drift), .legato(…) (lower = snappier), or .lpf(…) (lower = murkier).
  • Keys timbre: Push .fm(sine.range(1.5, 5) higher (try 8) for glassier FM, or adjust .fmh(2) (harmonicity ratio).
  • Drum feel: Move the 1s in kit5 kick/snare/hat rows (20-step 5/4 bar). Keep kick on beat boundaries (steps 0, 8, 12, 16, 20) to resolve.
  • Chaos: Raise sometimesBy(0.2, …) odds in idm5 / glitch5, or add ?0.7 to drum hits for probability.
  • Grit: Add .crush(5) / .coarse(3) / .shape(0.15) to any voice for bit-crush / coarse / waveshape.
  • Solo a voice: Uncomment $: kit5 (or any pattern) at the bottom to hear only that layer.

LYRICS · DRAFT

PRELUDE(instrumental — static carries the room) VERSE IAll winter on the dial, a hum where the words should be. I left a light on for you in a room that never closed. REFRAINCarrier wave, carrier wave — carry me. VERSE IIYou came back as a frequency I could not tune. Familiar as a fingerprint, faint as a thumb on glass. LIFTCarrier wave, carrier wave — carry me through. BRIDGEWe were tuned to a different room. We were tuned to a different room. The needle held still and the static went quiet. BUILD(half-spoken) …do you copy… do you copy… …still here… still here… CLIMAXI can hear you arriving — the air is going thin. Hold on to the hollow note. Hold on. Hold on. Hold on. CODA(instrumental — dissolves)