Ferocious Designs enters FediVision 2024 Song Contest with “Open Your Eyes”

Single to be released in June with two additional tracks.

Ferocious Designs, the music project of central New Jersey-based songwriter/musician Brian Kelley, has submitted the new song, “Open Your Eyes,” for entry in the 2024 FediVision Song Contest — a Eurovision-like competition open to those with an account in the Fediverse, a network of servers that are used to communicate with each other, share messages, music and more.

“I’m so excited to be taking part in FediVision for a second straight year,” said Kelley. “I discovered so many fantastic artists among the fediverse through last year’s contest.”

“Open Your Eyes” is a techno-rock anthem with some chiptune and ambient elements.

“The song started as the result of my playing with some techno beats with the drum/sample pads on a recently purchased keyboard controller,” said Kelley. “I built a basic groove and just kept layering on with other instruments.

“A couple of key lyrics came to mind — ‘running out of time’ and the titular ‘open your eyes’ — and the rest came out of my natural tendency to dwell on the mess the world is in and the need to hurry up and start solving some big problems,” he added.

The song is entered as representing the fictional Constellation of Kasterborous — a Doctor Who reference — and has been assigned the code KAST. Those with accounts in the Fediverse connected to the fedi.vision server can vote via the Fedivision Bot. Voting is open now through 5 p.m. UTC/1 p.m. EDT on Sunday, May 26, 2023. To vote for “Open Your Eyes,” use your Mastodon or other fediverse account (i.e., Pixelfed, Friendica, PeerTube, etc.) to send a message saying “Vote KAST” to the Fedivision Bot.

The winner and runners-up will be announced Monday, May 27, at 1 p.m. UTC/9 a.m. EDT.

“Open Your Eyes” will be a available to stream/download on Friday, June 7, and along with “Life’s in the Balance (Pensive Version)” — an alternate, more acoustic take on Ferocious Designs’ 2023 FediVision entry — and an updated version of “Why Is It So Hard,” which Kelley originally wrote as a teenager in the late 1980s.

Visit fedivision.party to listen to all 72 entries from across the Fediverse and vote for your song of choice. Click here to jump to “Open Your Eyes.”