The S3M and MOD formats were file format extensions called tracker modules. The information
contained in these tracker modules were spreadsheets of sequenced instructions triggering embedded
audio samples. Unlike MIDI, S3M and MOD were self-contained and thus playback essentially sounded
the same from system to system.
I ended up composing about ten of these little nuggets in total over the course of my demoscene career
with a group I founded in my early teens called Sonic Equinox. I have only been able to find four online,
of which two are different versions of the same "tune." While they are probably doomed to obscurity, lost in the ether,
or otherwise irretrievable on some 5.25 inch floppy disk locked in a storage somewhere, and, being the nostalgic person
that I am, here they are ... in their full, unadulterated, eight-bit glory.
I am almost embarrassed to post these, but since they're already available online elsewhere I will make them
available here. Imagine a fourteen year old, pimple-faced, video game playing, Eighties synth band listening,
BBS-modeming demoscene computer nerd experimenting with music composition. Around this time, I also began to wane from my
classical piano studies and I joined the school band playing bass guitar. All of these influences were brought to bear
in the way these "tunes" were composed.
Techno-Sadness
Your browser does not support the audio element.
Funky Fusion and Jazz
Pacifists and Patriots 1
Pacifists and Patriots 2
Downfall of Snow
Also, they were released under the pseudonyms Dark Avenger, Eternal Soldier, Indigo Dreamer, and Illusionary Enigma.
So, before you do ... don't ask. Yes, Chris Trinidad went through that kind of a phase.
This ain't Mozart or Beethoven, folks, so listener beware!
The original MOD and S3M files had repeated instructions to loop. The converted WAV files disregard the looping instructions
and end abruptly.