TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Mr.Market]

I like the crisp beats at the beginning. The intro seemed a little dragged-out, but I’m enjoying the cutesy synths at :22. The piece is a little slow to progress, and generally the transitions are a bit abrupt. At :44, the pads sound a tad dissonant, although the panning on them was a creative idea. The mood shifts again pretty suddenly at 1:07, but I like the harmonies there and the bouncy synth lead. Overall, the texture here is pretty minimal. Have you considered including a more prominent bass or chordal instrument in the texture to make the piece sound more full and lush? I’d also like to see you create variety within individual phrases with things like volume changes and mixing effects. Those tools could in turn help smooth over some of the transitions here. Overall, there are a lot of good ideas here, but I think the arrangement doesn’t quite come together for me as a cohesive whole. Sorry if this is a somewhat negative review. You have a good sense of rhythm and harmony. Now I just want to see you develop a stronger sense of progression and flow to the piece. Keep at it, AthosBR64! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.25/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
4.5/10

[Dim Dimension]

I like the cutesy synths at the beginning. I think the reverb effects are a bit too strong, though. The drums fall a bit flat in the mix, while the synths sound a bit indistinct during some of the busier parts of the piece. In general, drums should be the loudest element of the texture, and usually putting a bit of compression on them is advisable. The composition of the piece is nice - I like the upbeat mood and dreamy synth arpeggios. The harmonic framework feels a bit stagnant, though, and the piece gets pretty repetitive after a while. At some point, using a bridge or breakdown to create some more variety in the sound design and chord progression might’ve been advisable. I also think some of the transitions here are pretty abrupt, like at 2:38. Overall, the cute mood and atmosphere of the piece are the highlights for me, and I admire your sense of harmony and rhythm. Finding a more unique sound design and progression, greater variety, and sharper mixing and mastering are probably next steps for you. Keep at it, Annie! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
6.75/10

[AniGleb - Inner blast]

I like the quirky bass instrument and percussion at the beginning. The chord progression and some of the synths (like the pads at :39) sound a bit generic, but I’m enjoying the upbeat mood and energy. The breakdown at :53 was good for some dynamic contrast, although the piece takes a rather unexpected turn at 1:19. I think you could’ve integrated the more foreboding mood there a little better with the more upbeat remainder of the piece. Most of the vocal samples in this piece work well, but the one at the very end seemed a bit drawn-out and misplaced. Overall, I like the mixing, progression, and sound design, but some of the elements of the composition threw me off, and a lot of the arrangement and harmonic choices are cliche. I also think there could’ve been some more memorable and/or dynamic melodies in the piece, but that’s more of a detail-oriented complaint. There are a lot of good ideas in here, including the part at 1:19. It seems like you tried to do a tad too much with the piece at times - some more repetition and building off of existing harmonic patterns would probably make this track feel more cohesive and conclusive. Still, I admire your mixing and mastering skills a lot - the piece is loud and punchy, but also well-balanced. Keep at it, AniGleb! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.25/10

[Laurie's Interlude]

I like the atmosphere at the beginning and the creative use of white noise at :27. The vocal effects and panning are really soothing too, and blend in really well with the synths. The entire piece is very flowing, including when you strip away most of the atmosphere at 1:30. The mix is a little quiet, but the ambiance here is already very luscious without much compression. The pacing of the piece is a bit slower towards the end, but the frequencies are rather well-balanced between the pads, bass, and vocal elements. I’m enthralled, honestly. This piece is beautiful. If there’s somewhere I can download it, please let me know. You’ve more than earned a scout, Ana! Keep it up. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
9.25/10

[Battle Spirit - Quest to Kill God OST]

I like the ominous tone at the beginning and the sense of build into :15. The flashy synths and bouncy melodies complement each other well, and the rich harmonies and crisp beats help give the piece a lot of depth. Some of the elements of the texture are a bit generic, like the prominent open hi-hat on the off-beats, but the mix is really clean and well-balanced. I like the filtering work at 1:16 - it was a wise choice for a re-intro. At times, there are some sudden transitions in this piece, but in a way they fit with the frantic character of the track. The arrangement starts becoming a bit repetitive towards the end, but for a piece with so much variety within the part that’s compositionally distinct (first 77 seconds), I think that’s fine too. Overall, this is an impressive track, AmishPimp! Bouncy, fun, catchy, and well-mastered. Fave’d and DL’d! Keep it up. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9/10

[The Beach Looks Pretty Today]

I like the tranquil mood at the beginning, the smooth synth bass, and crisp drums. The progression seems a bit square and formulaic, though. Most of the variety in the piece comes from adding and subtracting instruments over time, as opposed to more advanced methods like changes in volume levels, filtering, automation, etc. Some more ebb-and-flow to the piece within individual phrases might give it a stronger narrative appeal. There could also be some more memorable melodic content here and variety in the harmonic framework. I would’ve liked to see some more compositional risk-taking. The injection of energy at 2:24 was a good step in that direction, but the section before could’ve led up to it a bit more. Overall, it’s a cute piece with some nice sound design and solid mixing. I think the composition felt a bit bland at times, but the busy drum pattern at the end and cutesy synths will be stuck in my head for a while. Keep at it, Amelia! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
7/10

[AlphezoPlay - Tesseract (Growls & Guitars)]

I like the ominous atmosphere and soulful guitar solos at the beginning. The texture is pretty heavy and indistinct at :28, with the drums falling a tad flat. Then the mood shifts rather abruptly at :56, although I like the laid-back jazzy harmonies and rhythmic elements there. The mid-range bass is a bit too prominent in the mix at around 1:30 onwards compared to the pads and guitar melodies, and eventually it got a little irksome and grating when you used it to trace out all of the chord changes. The isolated guitar solos at 2:48 work well to provide a bit of a break in the action, and the energetic section at the end helps hit the piece home. I applaud your compositional risk-taking and unique sound design here. I think the mix could benefit from reining in some of these volume levels and scaling back the reverb and effects during some of the transitions. The drums, guitar solos, and other melodies should probably be the loudest element in the texture for most of the piece, not the mid-range bass or sweeps. I also think that, while it helps smooth over the transitions, the thick wall of reverb (like at :27) probably shouldn’t completely overwhelm the rest of the instruments for 5 seconds at a time. Still, you get full credit for originality, and strong scores for both composition and instrumentation here. Solid work, AlphezGD! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.75/10

[Millnnium]

I like the atmosphere at the beginning and the choir samples. The filtering at :13 is a bit abrupt, and most of the first minute or so the mix seems a bit bottled-up, as if you really limited the frequency range of each instrument in the equalizer. The drop at :57 is nice melodically, but again the mix feels very strained there. The volume levels are appropriate overall, yet the drums don’t come through the mix very well. It’s very strange. Usually, when people have mixing problems, it’s either that they don’t use enough compression and equalizers and so things sound really distorted and muddy, or they use too many effects and so things sound really artificial and off-balance. Hypothetically, the good thing about using too much compression is that the mix will sound really punchy and full, but that’s not the case here. Maybe the problem is that you have too much filtering on the drums? I’d suggest leaving almost the whole frequency range of kicks and snares intact in the equalizer. Clearly, they’re sidechained with the synths or something, because I CAN hear them. It’s just that they seem a bit quiet and thin for most of the piece.

Anyway, I’ve spent enough time talking about that. The composition of the piece is pretty nice. The atmospheric bridge at 2:06 sounds really smooth and dreamy, and the transition into 2:48 was really cool. You’ve got some fun, glitchy, and dissonant effects at 3:10 that help keep the piece engaging later on, but the mix still needs to breathe a bit more there. The somewhat cutesy outro was a nice touch too. You cycle through a variety of moods and textures here, and I’m impressed with the results. The sound design is pretty good, too, perhaps with the exception of the drum samples. In sum, the mixing seriously detracts from my enjoyment of the piece, but the composition is well-executed and full of energy and dynamism. Keep at it, Aetherous! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.25/10

[Hotline Miami : SHOGANAI - Rolling Punches]

I like the tranquil mood at the beginning and the airy quality to the texture. The energetic drums and saxophone melodies blend into the texture really nicely, and the mix is pretty clean, despite the heavy use of reverb. I think the arrangement/phrasing of the piece might need some work, though. The transitions are a bit rough in general, and most of the variety in the piece comes from adding and subtracting instruments over time, as opposed to more advanced methods like changes in volume levels, filtering, automation, etc. Some more ebb-and-flow to the piece within individual phrases might give it a stronger narrative appeal. That said, I really like the sound design and rhythmic elements here, and overall the piece comes together really well. Keep up the good work, achair225! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
8/10

[Tempest]

I like the frantic synth arpeggios at the beginning and the rhythmic content. The drums fall a bit flat in the mix, though, especially the kick. I’d suggest some compression, sidechaining, and/or other mixing effects to make them sound punchier. The synths have a fun retro vibe, and also blend in nicely with the piano at 1:00. There’s a bit of dissonance in the harmonies at 1:22, but otherwise I’m loving the variety of the solos in this piece, from the piano and guitar early on to the moody riffs during the breakdowns to the synth melodies later on.

Production-wise, I think there’s some room for better balancing some of the instruments in the mix. The guitar is really overwhelming the harmonies at 1:40. I’d double-check the equalizer there to make sure you’re cutting off the bass frequencies in the guitar (and if you don’t know what I mean, PM me and I’ll explain further). Other mixing effects, like reverb and filtering, could also help spice up your piece at times. The breakdown at 2:24 provided some much-needed structural variety in the piece, and was also rather melodious and flowing, like the rest of the piece. Your transitions are all really smooth here, and you make great use of drum fills and such, as opposed to typical EDM build-ups. And despite my complaints about how the drums are mixed, the drum patterns themselves are really creative too.

The modulation at 4:00 was also good for some variety, and you transitioned into and out of it seamlessly. Toward the end, the piece does tend to sound a tad repetitive, although I like how you brought back the guitar for a last hurrah at 5:30. The bridge at 6:00 was a bit bizarre, though - it didn’t quite fit the flow of the piece in my opinion. That said, you’re clearly a really talented composer. Your melody-writing is one of the best I’ve seen in the competition so far. Cleaning up the mixing and smoothing over a couple small nicks is all you need to make this a top-tier piece, my friend. This track reminds me of video game music from the 90s and early 2000s, which is always a good thing. ^_^ Keep it up, Aardvark04!

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.25/10