TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

["Glorious Morning" .remix_]

I think the hardstyle sound design actually fits the tune really well. The transitions at :54 and 1:20 are a bit sudden, and much of the piece is pretty minimal. The synth bass is a little too quiet in the mix relative to the lead and drums, but otherwise the production quality is solid. I feel like you could've added more onto the original and really made it your own - fleshing out the structure more and adding a countermelody might help. Still, you really captured the triumphant and upbeat feel of the original, and I like the instrumentation, especially the dreamy bells at :54. Keep it up, X-500! ^_^

X-500 responds:

you know, there was an idea to add something else here, but I could never fully achieve it. As for the bass in the mix, everything seems to me that it seemed normal on my part and this time I wanted everything to be in harmony, but in any case, thanks for noticing this and for this great review, TaintedLogic! =-)

[-Ghost Tower-]

I like the eerie atmosphere at the beginning. Some wet reverb and other mixing effects could help enhance that effect even more. The ghostly pads and fat bass at :23 are really nice, but at :49 or so the piece loses its ominous feel. It would help thread the ghost theme of the piece through the different sections a bit better if you had maintained the atmospheric drone from the beginning as a backdrop during the more rhythmic sections. I still think you're overemphasizing variety over coherence with this track - there are a lot of pretty abrupt transitions here, and also end-of-phrase filler content (like at 1:26) that makes the structure feel pretty disjointed. I like the breakdown at 1:53 - you're really returning this piece to its ghostly roots there. :D Also, the atmospheric outro is wonderful - thread that sort of content throughout the piece with some more gradual transitions, and I think this would feel a lot more like a cohesive story. The sound design and production quality are strong here, though. Keep at it, CF24! ^_^

Creeperforce24 responds:

Sorry for replying so late! Thank you for the advice! I (tried to) put better transitions in my latest song actually

[-Deep Water Henge-]

I like the quirky melody at :15, but the synths sound a bit unpolished and dry in the mix - some more reverb and filtering could add some interest there. By :30, the texture comes together nicely, and the rhythmic content here is super catchy. For most of the piece, the texture is still pretty minimal, though, and the piece often feels like it's missing some higher-pitched tones and some depth in the middle range. At 1:30, there's also a bit of harmonic dissonance between the bass and the pads, and I would've liked to see you vary some of the lead riffs by the end of the piece. Otherwise, the arrangement sounds a bit formulaic, with regular changes in the texture but not much of an overarching sense of direction and storytelling. Overall, not your best, but there are some seriously catchy individual riffs here, and the mixing is solid. I'm impressed you made this in 50 minutes. Keep at it, CF24! ^_^

Creeperforce24 responds:

Yeah, I never expected this to be my best, this was mainly a test in msking FM Sega beats, I’ve never done it before lol!

[Ways of Remembering]

I like the smooth guitar and crisp drums at the beginning. The piece has a bright tone and some good syncopations, and the sound design is probably my favorite element of it overall. The drums get a little buried in the mix at :33. I like the choir at :33, but I agree that some more "foregrounded" vocals would add a lot to the piece. The heavier guitar solo at 1:31 was a nice change-of-direction, but in general the composition could've been a tad bolder here, especially in the first half or so. I always admire the use of creative meters like 13/8, and the extended solos towards the end tie the piece together nicely. Overall, solid work, Possibly! Best of luck in the 13/8 compo. ^_^

Possibly responds:

Thanks for taking the time to review when you've got so much other stuff on with the other comp - appreciate it!

Yeah, sometimes I just need an excuse to make something to mess around- so it's just a thing I made with no good home really.

[Break Me]

I love the atmosphere at the beginning. The rhythm is a tad difficult to follow until the beat comes in, but the heavy sidechaining at :38 and the sound design in general are really nice. The chord progression is a bit cliche, but I like the melodies a lot, especially the one at the breakdown at 1:51. During the build-up at 2:46, I don't hear quite as much of the drums as I want to in the mix, but otherwise the production quality here is really strong. The last couple of minutes or so sound a tad repetitive - some more variations on the main melody, or even a switch-up to the harmonic framework, would really help take this piece in a bolder direction compositionally. That said, I really like the spacey atmosphere, melodies, progression, and instrumentation of this piece. Keep up the good work, OVERSCORE! ^_^

OVERSCORE responds:

Thanks for such a thorough review, TL! I understand why you call it repetitive, there’s definitely more I could have done at the end to keep it interesting compositionally. Glad you liked it, thanks again for the review!

[-Aurora-]

I like the rhythmic synth at :01 and the added harmonies at :13. This piece is really catchy, but also a bit minimal. The mixing and mastering is really clean, and I love the descending mallet line at :52 and the bridge with the strings at :57. The pace of the piece is pretty fast - the texture seems to abruptly change every 15-20 seconds, with just a brief riser or drum fill to smooth things over. I think you've gotten really good at production, sound design, and creating dense rhythmic patterns. A good next step for you would be working on the arrangement of the piece - give it a cohesive, overarching "story." Right now, this piece sounds like a string of different ideas playing in succession, with not a lot tying those ideas together. Some more gradual transitions might help in that regard, but a little more repetition of some of the core motifs from the first minute or so could also help. You already do that in a subtle way with the low-register piano line at 1:30, but the instruments you're using have changed so much in the preceding minute or so that the piece still doesn't sound very coherent. Does that make sense?

I'd also encourage you to reach out for feedback to the judges who actually scored your piece in the competition, if you haven't already. Cheers! ^_^

Creeperforce24 responds:

Help, waterflame turned me into a fridge
(Thank you lol!)

[shattered]

I like the murky sub-bass at the beginning. The synth on top of that sounds a bit squeaky and grating, though - maybe some wet reverb and equalization to remove some of the treble tones would help soften it a bit. The arpeggios at :17 are nice, though, and the piece is coming together nicely by :32. The transition at 1:00 is pretty abrupt, and within a given section this piece doesn’t sound very dynamic. Some more filtering and automation could really help maintain interest within a given phrase and maintain a sense of momentum throughout the piece. That said, the injection of energy at 1:36 helps tie the piece together nicely towards the end. You clearly have a great sense of harmony and rhythm, and the sound design here is really enjoyable. That said, the choppy arrangement detracts from my enjoyment of the piece. I’d suggest creating some more gradual transitions into 1:00 and 1:36 at the very least, even if it’s just with a riser or drum fill. Still, this is a catchy and fun track with a solid production quality. Keep at it, zynth-music! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
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
7.25/10

[Big Gigantic - The Little Things Ft. Angela McCluskey [Zerky Dubstep Remix]]

I like the bouncy piano riff at the beginning and the powerful chords and vocals at :08. The mix sounds a bit overwhelmed there, though, and neither the piano nor drums come through very well. There was a good sense of build-up into 1:12, and I really like the drop at 1:14. It’s really catchy, and has some refreshing sound design and melodies too. I also like the fast turnaround to get to the second drop at 1:54 - you really channeled the momentum of the piece well in that regard. Overall, this is a really fun track. I love the instruments, energy, mood, and progression of it. The mixing isn’t perfectly clean, but it is very loud and punchy, and while at times the piece could use more variety, it comes together well by the end. Keep at it, Z3RKON! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
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
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.75/10

[xandex - PSYCHO]

I like the quirky atmosphere at the beginning, although the sub-bass at :09 is seriously distorting the other instruments. I think you need to separate out the frequencies in the sub-bass and the harmonies with an equalizer. To be clear, that means putting an equalizer on each instrument besides the bass and kick and removing all the pitches below around 200 Hz. Right now, the mix is distorted enough that, for most of the piece, I can barely hear anything besides the sub and the drums.

Composition-wise, the piece also needs a lot more depth and variety. That said, I like the atmospheric bridge at 1:36, and also how you switched up the snare at 1:56. The sweep at 2:32 also sounds pretty cool. Otherwise, the entire piece is just very bland and repetitive. I’d encourage you to keep working on this, though. It has a lot of potential between the dark mood, sound design, and rich atmosphere. It just needs a thicker texture, a more well-balanced mix, and more variation in the harmonies. Keep at it, xvndex! ^_^

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

xvndex responds:

ty for the feedback, the track is about a year old and i’m not suprised it wasn’t that highly scored. i will most likely be making a remade version.

[XCRIZ - On the waves]

I like the rapid fade-in at the beginning and the pensive-sounding synth line at :02. There’s a good sense of build-up starting at :32, too. The drop at :46 is both airy and punchy, if a tad over-compressed and generic. I like the nature sound effects and dynamic contrast at 1:20, and the build-up into 1:47 was also pretty neat. Some more variety in the harmonic content here would be nice at some point, but you keep things interesting by playing a lot with the energy level and using different instruments to play the main riffs. One thing that I think definitely could use some more variation is the second drop at 2:32 - you go up the octave at 2:54, and use some filtering at 3:02, but frankly I wanted to hear some bolder compositional details here. Still, overall you’ve put together a catchy, evocative, and well-produced track here, XCRIZ! Keep it up. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
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
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8/10