Download royalty free 8 bit chiptune music for use in YouTube videos, TikTok stories and podcasts monetized content as well as retro gaming events. It is safe for use both monetized content as well as retro gaming events.
One mournful vocal hook and some delicate Booker T organ work can easily turn this pop hit into an unforgettable tragedy about accepting death as inevitable, making this pop hit truly iconic.
Repetition
8-bit music (commonly referred to as chiptune) makes great use of repetition. Composers use this technique to craft catchy melodies that seamlessly repeat themselves – ideal for video game environments with their repetitive nature.
8-bit music in its purest form employs simple waveforms like square, triangle and noise waves to produce its distinctive, nostalgic sound. Furthermore, 8-bit composition often employs counterpuntal techniques with each voice moving independently while simultaneously supporting one another; similar to how classical musicians such as Bach used contrapuntal music to build tension and emotion through melody and counterpoint.
8-bit music has gained momentum across various genres of music today, thanks to its adaptable nature and royalty-free availability. Content creators find 8-bit music invaluable; contemporary artists often draw on its influences when creating innovative or nostalgic tracks to appeal to a broad audience. This trend looks set to continue as 8-bit evolves with modern culture.
Simplicity
Early video game hardware placed restrictions on composers that necessitated them creating 8-bit music with an instantly recognisable, nostalgic sound, often reminding many people of childhood games such as Mario Bros, Zelda and Tetris. Due to its easy creation process, 8-bit has also become popular among content creators as it requires no complex musical background for production.
Contrary to popular belief, 8-bit music doesn’t refer to sample bit depth but instead refers to the number of bits used for digital representation of sound. Similar to how computer monitors or picture files describe color depth, 8-bit music’s distinctive sounds come from its limited bit availability which limits which sound frequencies can be represented; its sounds usually take the shape of triangle, sawtooth, square and pulse (a shorter form of square waveforms).
This limited sonic palette gives this genre its characteristic sound, distinguishing it from more realistic instrument and synthesizer sounds commonly found in modern music. Furthermore, its repetitive structure caters well to gaming players’ short attention span and makes the music easy for them to identify and remember.
8-bit music offers many advantages despite its limitations, however. It can accommodate various genres from hip hop to classical and can be combined creatively with other musical elements for creative projects. Furthermore, many songs are royalty-free to reduce legal complications for content creators and reduce costs and expenses associated with creating the music.
Aesthetics
8 Bit Music features sounds generated with simple waveforms such as triangle, sawtooth, square and pulse waves (the latter of which being shortened square waves). Distorted sounds give this genre its characteristic sound; vocals or modern synthesizer effects are generally absent; arpeggios may also feature in this genre; often not concurrent chords are played instead played rhythmically offset.
Contrary to popular belief, 8-bit music does not originate on 8-bit computers anymore; rather it serves more as an aesthetic description. 8-bit sounds can be combined with other genres like hip-hop or spherical music for an eclectic sound; however using acoustic instruments or modern synthesizers makes creating pure 8-bit pieces harder than expected.
Some may perceive 8-bit music as nostalgic for videogames, while others, such as Malcolm McLaren, see it as a form of protest against capitalism, hi-tech and mass culture. He sees it as low-level cultural hacking that challenges the belief that newer technology is superior.
Influences
The term ‘8-bit’ as an umbrella term to describe video game music has obscured its complexities. Instead, its popularity stems from retro-themed filters that automatically convert modern photographs to highly pixelated pictures with sparse color palettes; similarly, discussions about 8-bit media stem from an incomprehensible mix of aesthetic and technical references from early video game production hardware.
Unfortunately, 8-bit music can have an enormous influence on cultural landscape. From recent indie games returning to 8-bit style through chiptune’s revival and retro club nights like Gamerdisco (running since 2010) that feature its songs across the UK – this sound clearly holds strong influence in our collective psyche.
What distinguishes 8-bit music is its simplicity and purity. Due to hardware restrictions, musicians could only produce basic sounds with limited bits. This produced a distinct sound that recalls early video game titles such as Mario, Zelda and Contra. Purist forms of 8-bit music utilize simple waveforms such as triangle, sawtooth and square waves which are then played as arpeggios (a sequence of notes played rapidly together).
In order to create effective melodic structures in 8-bit music, it is key that musicians think not in terms of chords and melody but of individual voices interweaved together – similar to how classical choral pieces use multiple voices moving independently but supported by each other voice. A good analogy would be how each voice in classical choral pieces moves independently yet supports one another.
This approach allows 8-bit music to express itself more expressively, with rhythms and tones helping evoke different emotions. For instance, slow tempo can help add tension or urgency; similarly using high notes in chords adds drama.