TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Primordial Complex]

I'm also down for a WF/pftq collab. This one is a little minimal at the beginning, but I like the ominous tone it starts taking by the time the piano and vocal pads come in. Really nice job with the sound design on this one - the combination of the percussion, cutesy mallets, and horror-esque ambient effects make this piece sound both cinematic and exotic. I might've liked to see a bit more development in the composition, but the atmosphere is just engrossing. Nice work, guys! ^_^

[Needlemouse - All Is Lost (Sarah's Theme)]

I like the dreamy and pensive mood. The texture is a tad muddy - probably equal parts the generous use of reverb and the close proximity of the instruments in terms of frequency. The composition could've been more dynamic, but the sense of flow and relatively stable energy level of the piece would be good for a video game soundtrack. The melodies are nice. I almost expected it to loop, but the laughter effect at the end works too. Solid stuff! Keep at it, TheMusicalManiac. ^_^

[Who Knows]

I like the dreamy tone at the beginning and the filtering in the first 20 seconds or so. The quirky drums are nice too. Once the piano becomes prominent at around the 1-minute mark, the piece feels really uplifting, and I'm enjoying the bridge at 1:35 too. The piece flows really nicely, but also has a lot of variety, and the production quality is top-notch as usual with you. At times I think you overdid the reverb a tad, but it really helps fill out sections like 2:45 well. You also threw me off a tad with the guitars at the end. I still find your chaotic and variational style to be really engrossing and unique. Hope you start posting more often than once a year soon. Keep it up, Garlagan! ^_^

garlagan responds:

thank you TL! and i hope so too lol

[Movin On]

Really cute sound palette and neat rhythmic elements. It's like I never know what kind of instrument is going to come in at the end of every 4-bar mini-phrase. :) The mix is really loud and clear, and I'm hearing some similarities in melodic contour and instrumentation to "Moon City" and some of your other tracks. The melodies and phrase structure feel a bit meandering and aimless after a while, but the cutesy percussion was a nice way to end the piece. Dorky track indeed, but it totally puts a smile on my face. Keep it up, Michael! ^^

Michael-Flaherty responds:

I really appreciate the review. Thanks a lot for listening!

[Abendmusic - Nightfall]

I like the sense of climax into :28 and the apprehensive mood. The vocals at :40 are a nice touch, and I can confirm that the mixing and mastering are really strong in this re-upload. The string-heavy bridge in the middle has a really rich and beautiful texture, and I like how you meld together the string-dominant approach with the progression of the first half of the song in the final climax. The tranquil outro was also a nice touch. Really strong work here, Abendland! Keep it up. ^_^

[Nadir]

Wow. December 2020. This just shows you how far behind I am on my reviews. I like the orchestral texture at the beginning - very enchanting and tranquil mood here. The melody at 1:14 is so soulful and majestic - the wavering quality of the instrument that plays it is really great too. Almost reminds me of an erhu. The jazzy/glitchy touch at 2:00 or so is really creative. The distorted percussion and dramatic hits at 2:20 or so were a little overdone IMO, and once the mellow and majestic tone returns at 3:10 I'm unsure of exactly how to interpret thee part at 2:20 narratively. That said, I'm really glad that quirky melody instrument makes its triumphant return at 3:45, even if it's a little short-lived. The tranquil piano outro is really sweet, too. Lot of variety and whimsy in this one, 1f1! Keep it up. ^_^

[The Wait]

Hey, been a while since I heard from you. I like the crisp drums and variety in the tone of the vocals. The production quality is really good - all the instruments sit really well in the mix. I know it can be hard for the vocals and drums to come through with all the heavy guitars in there, but the entire texture is very well-balanced. The lyrics themselves are also strong. You're right that the chorus feels a tad generic, but something simple like adding a little variety to it the last time around might've helped negate that for me. I might've also liked to hear more of a proper outro, but that's another small detail. The instrumental riff at 2:32 was a nice touch, btw. I think my favorite part is still the soulful vocals, and I like how you threw in the more throaty vocal section at :37 as well. Keep it up, Bad-Man-Inc! ^^

Bad-Man-Incorporated responds:

Thanks man. Definitely been a spell!! I agree with everything you said. I try to keep my ideas simple, and honestly, the choruses were just copy and paste, for the idea. I know the choruses just scream melodies all over. I'll definitely switch them up live. The outro is definitely missed in my mind as well, but i write with the live element in my head. Just try to keep it simple. haha. I appreciate your thoughts and compliments very much! I really want to share all our other ones here, too. I love feeding the metal! \m/

[<{quan.tum.super.pos.ti.tion}>]

Ever since "Cranial," I've been looking forward to another collab from you two. The staticky atmosphere at the beginning and the slightly cryptic piano chords complement each other well. The eerie synths and minimal drums are great, too. Also, what the hell did you do to that organ at 1:25? Lol. I like how the piece resets itself at 1:50 before launching into an even glitchier section. My favorite part of the piece is the layering of the different chordal riffs at 2:55 - gives me goosebumps every time I replay it. The melodies at 3:20 or so totally hit the piece home, too. Even though the piece is really minimal at times, and also could use some more harmonic variety, the generous use of detuning and glitches totally makes up for that and then some. This piece is awesome and you should both feel awesome. I'm giving this a "just weird enough" out of 10. Happy 2022! ^_^

SkyeWint responds:

Happy 2022, friend!

This was a pretty quick smack together over about 8 hours on stream, sadly I didn't quite have enough time to play too much with harmony (that and the piano sample didn't have too many harmonies I could make cyclic chord progressions with!) or it would be a LOT crazier. I did definitely want to play with a lot of detuning and weird glitchiness though.

The 'organ' starting around 1:25 is actually two detuned sine waves (they actually detune in opposite directions too, making for some REALLY crazy dissonant harmonies even in the same note, while remaining vaguely identifiable as the same note. One also has some ring modulation and the other has some waveshaping to give it a bit of extra character. It was super fun to make lol

Interestingly, the chords starting at 0:55 or so are actually the piano that's been playing since the very start! But, it's run through a granular synthesis plugin controlled by midi data to make chords that... mostly have an automated rhythm? Makes for a really crazy texture as you can hear! The percussion is also absolute nuts, I have so many glitch plugins on it creating all the weird little alterations when it's mostly just straightforward rhythms at the basis. Great example of that is the high hat starting at 1:52, if you pay attention to it it's doing all kinds of crazy stupid stuff.

Thank you so much for the review, friend!

[F-777 - Stay Tuned]

I like the upbeat mood and fast pace of the beginning. The drums are a bit generic, but you've kept my attention with the dreamy atmosphere and fun melodies of this one. The frantic lead at :42 is a huge plus, although the piece does get a tad repetitive after a while. The mellow breakdown in the middle is nice for some structural contrast, and the minimal bridge at 2:10 or so also helped slow down the pacing. The riser at 2:20 is awesome, and the more atmospheric, smooth-flowing outro was a nice touch too. Stellar track, F-777! I will stay tuned, indeed. :)