Record
Every Month.

I made an EP. I made it in my bedroom using nothing but an acoustic guitar and an iPad. I made it for anyone who wants to hear it.

Goodbye Eden is the third consecutive RPM Challenge offering to draw from a well of 283 songs that were written between June & September 2021. After completing last year's The Catalyst, plans were immediately drawn up for a follow-up, drawn from that same well of songs. A tracklist was devised, artwork was created and printed, and a demo sequence was burned to disc. But then I never got around to making it. And so this album stared me down, month after month, as other projects came and went, but really it was just waiting for the RPM Challenge to get me to finally lay it down (which happened to coincide with recovery from major shoulder surgery, so this is also the sound of me regaining my chops). While of course there are bits that could be refined, it's the urgency that the RPM demands that prevents me from overthinking, resulting in a cool, unique presentation, ever single time. This is my 18th consecutive RPM Challenge and, even though I record all the time, this is still my favorite part of the year and I love that this is still a thing.

2.5 weeks of procrastination + 5 solid days of messy experimentation + 2 extra songs made by remixing a handful of my old recordings using ai = garbagetimes. inspired by seasonal depression, adhd, chronic pain, and a dire political landscape - made using auxy, garageband, and a novation launchkey mini MIDI keyboard.

Was going to do a 10 track album but had other things come up and ran out of time. I started writing the song at 9:30 PM on the 28th and recorded it within 2 hours. I finished though! I hope to add more to the album in the future.

An experimental rock album, I played all the instruments and made it for myself to challenge what I can do in a month.

I made a Synth album, the sounds you hear, I think of them as past memory's. Some place very distant from this reality. I made it using Logic Pro and a Akai Mpk mini. I made it for people who like this kind of music, and for myself, to see if i can actually accomplish the challenge.

Jams turned into classics, and chickens

This track was done for the RPM challenge 2024. We wanted to create a folk punk inspired song to describe the vibe we want to bring to our streaming community. Here you will find a message intended to welcome you the family. Welcome 2 The Core.

Instrumental alternative rock song. First full recording I've made in years. Started with guitars trying to make something with a different feel and it evolved into something completely different.

A mix of guitars, beats, bass, my crash, and various synthesizers. Made it in my basement studio surrounded by too many instruments and possibilities! It was a blast to make.

Head nodders, and some deep cuts. It's always hard not to be influenced by Dilla month and especially this year with Dan Charnas Dilla Time book. Anyway have a dig and see what you think, I'm really pleased with joints like Neo and Transmission, I really felt I nailed the bass on those. The project really came together when Gregg Green came through with the goodies. I had asked him to voice message me what it means for him to be creative and what I got back was the thread that tied the tapestry together. Machines used: Model D, MPC One, SP404 Mk2 and DDJ-SB3 Anyway, please give it a listen and a share. It never seems it, but a lot of time and effort goes into the RPM Challenges, and I salute anyone who puts in the work. PJ

This was a collaborative project. We used the help of an AI lyrics generator to help inspire the lyrics. We made this for our tech-entrenched society

I recorded this song in my bedroom :)

My first completion of RPM! The three tracks are testaments to my development in the craft of 2000s style trance

I set out to make an instrumental EP but I wasn't sure where to go... but then I remembered I own an 8-string guitar.

Made an experimental single with my wife who has never made music before. This colab was a fun new adventure for us and a new way to spend time and connect. Wish we could have had time to make more for this challenge.

A rock record for ourselves.

Mix of Different types of Music...Dark Ambient as well as some upbeat track's ...using a combination of Modular and Classic Synth’s during this Production of this Song .. A really Fun and Elaborate Patch and Combination of different machines .. Along with the Different Drum Combinations

I made something sludgey and ugly. Which I really like

We decided to remix pieces of each other’s work and put them together to make something for RPM. Due to unforeseen circumstances we managed only this one track so far, which is basically an unfinished draft, so the collaboration is still ongoing. Beat(s) by both of us, vox by Buku(panda)

An exploration of effects laden guitars layered with a variety of instruments

I didn't have a lot of time this year, and wasn't sure I'd have anything to submit, so I'm glad that I got one song recorded so that I could participate. I wrote this song for my mom. It was inspired by picking apples together last fall. I've been learning to play piano since Christmas, so I wanted to incorporate that. I used GarageBand to record, and for drum and synth tracks. I'm still very much a beginner with recording, and had some trouble working out some problems...so there's much room for improvement with this track. But every year, I learn a little more about the process, and enjoy it so much. Thanks so much to Elling and all the organizers!

I recorded some songs using ideas that have been floating around for a while, some for years. Some folk, blues, and rock numbers. I sang and played all the parts, except for drums, into computer software. I used drum loops for the drum parts. I made it for the Challenge, but may perform some by myself or with my bands.

About going against other people's expectations of you. Created out of slight desperation to have something submitted for the 2024 RPM Challenge, even if it's only one song. Written very quickly with only three chords and questionably cliched lyrics. Oh well...

Just a few solo acoustic chords and riffs! I will be putting them on bandlab for people to add to if they want! under the same name. :)

I made a My Chemical Romance and Weezer inspired horror punk album with the theme mostly about trying to communicate with the dead. All the songs are connected together, like a story! The majority of these tracks were recorded in my bedroom while qauarinting after being Covid positive. I did a lot of research while writing the lyrics so that they would be as accurate as possible. I made the album for myself, but I hope my songs will resonate with at least one other person.

Glad to collaborate some this year (Sabrina Merdian, Johnny Kesh - and Captain Chambers & Preset1 from SeaStar

Recorded hastily with good friends.

We came up with the idea for the title track by looking out of our window over a construction site. The state of infrastructure in the UK is pretty dire, and using our facilities at uni we managed to express our own sentiment. Both the A and B side were written and recorded over late nights, technical issues and a few pints along the way. We sincerely hope you enjoy our little passion project. Love, Wazzocks.

Created this release while learning new hardware.

I dug deep and came up with some ideas, practiced opera singing and learnt / attempted Mongolian throat singing after a concept came to me. Made it for the pure pleasure, agony and ecstacy of it!

What did you make? I made a record inspired by the desert landscape of Snow Canyon State Park — specifically the image of a desert tortoise and the magenta bloom of the Strawberry Hedgehog Cactus that grows there. The seed of the idea actually lived on a sticker on our fridge: a Snow Canyon desert tortoise in its native habitat. That small, everyday image carried a sense of stillness and resilience that stayed with me and eventually became the emotional center of this album. What makes it special to you? Almost twelve years ago, I visited Snow Canyon with my mom and stepmom. That trip left a deep impression on me — the quiet, the color of the rock, the way life persists in harsh environments. The Strawberry Hedgehog Cactus, with its bright magenta bloom against the desert backdrop, became a symbol of contrast and balance. This record is personal because it reflects what I’ve been wrestling with internally: how to balance the social and political intensity of our world with the steadiness and simplicity of the natural world. How do we stay grounded in nature and in ourselves while living in a country that constantly bombards us with information, conflict, and noise? The desert feels like an answer — patient, resilient, uncluttered. The cover makes it even more meaningful: it’s a drawing by my son, Ollie. He’s almost two. His artwork captures something raw and unfiltered — the same kind of simplicity I’m searching for in the music. How did you make it? I made this record in the in-between spaces of my life. I recorded in different rooms of my house, picking up my bass or guitar whenever I could find time — often between playing with Ollie. At night, when the house was quiet, I refined melodies and riffs using GarageBand along with live playing. I built the songs gradually, layering ideas in small windows of focus. Lyrics were shaped in my head during workdays — lines forming while I was doing other tasks, turning over phrases about balance, simplicity, and tension. The whole process mirrors the theme of the album: creating something intentional and grounded in the middle of everyday noise and responsibility.

Inspired by the NASA Perseverance mission

Emotions in my head as I was separating from an ex

One evening group improv session recorded in the last week of February. The regular weird synth patterns, noises and moods fused for the first time with live processed drums. Sounded satisfyingly cool to us.

Only ukulele and phone via the microphone.

Loved collabing a lot more heavily this year! Just plonked around on a computer for a few weeks and this happened.

On this record I recorded and arranged all tracks. It was done in two weeks and was a great time to get back into releasing music.

Originally planned to be a full album, only to be partially usurped by my backup project. One half is straight ahead acid tracks, the other half is pseudo folk and bluegrass played only on four stringed instruments.

It was fun, this year was the most challenging for me in terms of the RPM_I was very busy and songs weren't flowing like in previous years. Still, I'm really glad I stuck with it and I got some lovely recordings! I want to learn how to record myself better, and each RPM I make I learn something. I wrote my first full length song in French for this album!

Andy X Andy produced a 35 minute audio journey with enveloping field recordings blended with synthesizers and percussive layers. We produced the recordings in our separate studios with Ableton Live.

Various weird microtonal songs.

My son wanted me to help him write a song. He wrote the words and structure of the song and I came up with music for it.

I made an album of original music. This was about 90% written in February. I have had many of these musical ideas kicking around for about a year, but they were _far_ from being considered complete songs. I recorded this in my home studio using Ardour on Ubuntu. I used MIDI for drums and keys. I made it for everybody. I feel like there were some things that people needed to hear.

Recorded in the basement of Pete Verdin's house buried under feet of snow. Songs are all mostly about dealing with addiction.

Did it as a learning exercise with a Digitakt, Lyra-8, Crave, Microbrute, Maximal Drone box, Boss DD-200 and let it rip. All songs recorded as is with minimal post processing or editing. Was super fun to make and inspires me to make much much more (or at least learn the instruments).