MmcM - The Blossoming Years by Hype Allstars [web]
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▀▄ ░ Main Info ░ ▄▀
▒ ____________________________________________________ ▒
▓ ▓
█ "The Blossoming Years" is a new album by MmcM, who █
█ is one of the most prominent musicians to come out █
█ of the Russian ZX Spectrum demoscene. A compilation █
█ of 18 tracks from 1999-2001 shows the musician at █
█ the peak of his creative powers and easily explains █
█ the cult following that he enjoys in the homeland. █
█ █
█ The executable version of the album is made for █
█ an ultimate listening experience on a 48K ZX █
█ Spectrum with an AY8912 add-on or on any classic █
█ model with 128K of RAM. Some popular Russian-made █
█ clones are also supported. █
█ █
█ Hardware requirements: █
█ █
█ (*) ZX Spectrum 48K/128K/+2/+2a/+2b/+3, or █
█ (*) Pentagon / Pentagon-compatible clones, or █
█ (*) ZS Scorpion 256 Turbo+. █
█ █
█ Duration: 1 hour approx. █
█ █
█ HD recording of the full album is available at █
█ http://youtu.be/2eJNCm6bWww █
█ █
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▀▄ ░ Tracklist ░ ▄▀
▒ ____________________________________________________ ▒
▓ ▓
█ 01. Assured 3:43 █
█ 02. Jungle Bit Popsacid 2:10 █
█ 03. Melancholy 2:01 █
█ 04. Mentbi 3:35 █
█ 05. Bit Of Fantasy 3:00 █
█ 06. Cybernation 3:05 █
█ 07. Al-ya Trance 2:45 █
█ 08. Mad Men 2:34 █
█ 09. Bugs In My Mind 2:40 █
█ 10. Changeability 4:22 █
█ 11. Dance With Me Death 3:42 █
█ 12. Hopeful 5:11 █
█ 13. Laxity 2:29 █
█ 14. Nostalgia In My Soul 4:08 █
█ 15. Seeing 2:00 █
█ 16. Offence 3:58 █
█ 17. Rescue Me 3:14 █
█ 18. Suggestive 5:02 █
█ █
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▀▄ ░ The "Hype Allstars" Crew for ZX Spectrum version ░ ▄▀
▒ ____________________________________________________ ▒
▓ ▓
█ (in alphabetic order) █
█ █
█ diver^4d (Graphics, Design) █
█ dman^pcb^b7 (Ascii Art) █
█ hacker vbi (Scroller Coding) █
█ hun7er^cc (Party Spirit Support) █
█ introspec^lom (Design, Main Code) █
█ mmcm^sa9e (Music, All 18 Tracks) █
█ nodeus^lf (Video Montage) █
█ nq^skrju (Jingles for Hype and Album Intros) █
█ sq^skrju (Bug Hunting) █
█ trefi^debris (Hype Intro Coding) █
█ unbeliever (Nothing, but Ideas) █
█ █
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▀▄ ░ Linear Notes by introspec ░ ▄▀
▒ ____________________________________________________ ▒
▓ ▓
█ The ZX Spectrum version of the music disc was made █
█ in a little over 2 weeks. Although I immediately █
█ jumped at the opportunity to make a music disc with █
█ some of the MmcM's classic tracks, the restrictions █
█ that we posed upon ourselves (we wanted the album █
█ in the form of a single-load 48K demo) meant that █
█ we had to resolve some pretty severe challenges. █
█ █
█ One hour of pt3 music selected for the album █
█ originally occupied 97697 bytes, with the longest █
█ track measuring at 9705 bytes. We did not have time █
█ to design a player of compressed music (this would █
█ not be particularly pt3-friendly anyway), so we had █
█ to improvise. Using few tricks and the wonders of █
█ the amazing Aplib by Joergen Ibsen we managed to █
█ compress the music data down to 29440 bytes. █
█ Together with buffer for the longest track, this █
█ occupied 29440+9705=39145 of the memory normally █
█ available on the 48K machine, leaving us about █
█ 49152-39145-6912(screen) ~ 3095 bytes to play with, █
█ which is pretty tight given that over half of this █
█ space would be taken by a pt3 player and unpacker. █
█ █
█ Thus, we had a choice to make. We could have tried █
█ to make an extremely minimalistic player in 1K, but █
█ we knew that it would be lacking. Hence, we decided █
█ to design for the situation. Specifically, we █
█ placed 4K of compressed music data into the screen █
█ and then worked on the design to hide the resulting █
█ limitatons as much as we possibly could. █
█ █
█ Specifically, the spectrum visualizer in the upper █
█ third of the screen may appear to be a trivial █
█ attribute effect, done countless number of times █
█ before. However, since the bitmap data for the █
█ screen there stores data, we are only allowed to █
█ use attributes with the same INK and PAPER colours. █
█ We resolved this limitation by a specially designed █
█ raster effect (we call it "multicolour" here on █
█ Spectrum). The middle third is fully available for █
█ drawing, but since lower and upper thirds are █
█ distinctly low-rez, we felt that we needed to use █
█ lower resolution in the middle too. Hence, we █
█ designed a colour chunk display with a bit of █
█ subtle "gigascreen" to double the effective █
█ horizontal colour resolution. █
█ █
█ The bulk of code for this music disc was written █
█ afresh, although multicolor and hardware detection █
█ modules come from my other projects. In addition to █
█ these, we used Aplib unpackers by dwedit, optimized █
█ by utopian and Metalbrain, as well an integrated █
█ RCS+ZX7 decoder by Einar Saukas. The music is █
█ played using a modded version of Sergey Bulba's █
█ "ptxplay.asm". A use is also made of the arbitrary █
█ delay routine by Jan Bobrowski. █
█ █
█ The fact that I write so many words does not mean █
█ that I made the demo alone. This project was a █
█ truly collaborative project, with tangible, █
█ explicit contributions coming from at least 8 █
█ different people. I do not know the situation for █
█ other scenes, but this scale, for ZX Spectrum █
█ scene, was unthinkable, in my mind, even half a █
█ year ago. To a large extent, this became possible █
█ because of the creation of "Hype", a new website, █
█ a combination of a mag and a board for Spectrum █
█ scene obsessives and their friends. █
█ █
█ It is extremely late and therefore I am a little █
█ scared to write greets, in a fear of surely █
█ forgetting some people. Hence, I'll just write █
█ few short greets for my co-authors. █
█ █
█ diver^4d: █
█ it is great to have a friend I can always █
█ rely on in a moment of need. Love the art you █
█ made here and hope that I did not cause you too █
█ much stress with all this mess and all those █
█ out-of-the-blue graphic design sessions. █
█ █
█ dman^pcb^b7: █
█ many thanks for the ASCII, man, sorry if █
█ butchered some of it with my clumsy editing. █
█ █
█ hacker vbi: █
█ Vova, thank you very much for being the shining █
█ beakon of sanity :) You helped me a lot. █
█ █
█ mmcm^sa9e: █
█ I hope you enjoy what you find here. █
█ █
█ nodeus^lf █
█ thank you for stepping in the moment of great █
█ need! I am looking forward to seeing your work. █
█ █
█ nq^skrju: █
█ many thanks for your help, mate. Both your █
█ jingles are absolutely delicious. Note to other █
█ demomakers: the PSG for the second part of the █
█ intro packs into measly 741 bytes. Much amaze! █
█ █
█ sq^skrju: █
█ I do not know what you did to find that bug, █
█ but it great not to have it anymore! █
█ █
█ trefi^debris: █
█ what an absolutely lovely intro and written on █
█ an extremely short notice too! Mate, you know █
█ where to find me when you need help. █
█ █
█ unbeliever: █
█ you inspired and irritated, in equal measure, █
█ pretty much all of us. This was definitely a █
█ very interesting experience! █
█ █
█ Greetings to everyone who cares about ZX scene. █
█ █
█ Be cool. █
█░ ░█
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