TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Ji4H3 - Nothing will beat us down (Original Mix)[Free Download]]

I like the atmosphere at the beginning. Some of the synths are a bit cheesy, notably the one at :22, and I also think the chord progression is a bit generic. That said, I enjoyed the build-up into :45 and the subsequent melodies. The production quality is also really strong here. In fact, my main complaint is probably a lack of originality. Everything from the sound design to the arrangement to the harmonic structure seems cliche in this piece. It might’ve helped if you had offered more variety later on, especially by making the last refrain distinct from the first one. The ending also cuts off a bit suddenly, although that should be an easy fix. Overall, though, you won me over with the rich atmosphere, blissful mood, and solid mixing and mastering. You clearly have good melody writing skills too. Keep at it, Bow1255! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
7.25/10

[Hold]

I like the walking bass and generous use of the ride cymbal. The electric guitar and saxophone solos really help hit the piece home too. The fade-out ending was a tad lazy, though, and I think there’s a lot of room for more creativity in the arrangement of the piece. The structure could be fleshed out a lot more, and I also might’ve liked to see the rhythmic content of some of the harmines (piano, bass, etc.) be a little less square at times. The distortions on the guitar at around :42 are a nice touch, though. You won me over with your excellent melody writing and the solid production quality, but going forward you’ll probably need a more structurally complete piece to advance in this competition. Keep it up, BlueCheeseCult! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
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?)
.5/1
Composite score
8.5/10

[House Down]

I like the pensive mood at the beginning and the ominous synth pattern at :11. The snare at :44 is a little loud compared to the synths, and the texture of the piece remains quite minimal throughout. You have a good sense of harmony and progression, but the composition felt a little underdeveloped here. Some stronger melodic content or some more dynamic harmonic elements would help this piece out a lot. That said, I admire your sense of atmosphere, and the production quality here is really strong. Keep at it, BigTWONeli! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
6/10

BigTWONeli responds:

This is the most in depth form of criticism I’ve ever gotten, and I love it! Thanks man I really appreciate the thoroughness

[ur way]

I like the ominous tone and vocal samples at the beginning. The beat itself is really catchy, although I think you overuse that riser effect (:50, other places) a bit. To keep me engaged, I would’ve liked to hear some more melodic content or other strong foregrounded elements (a rap, dynamic pad line, etc.). Right now, the harmonic aspects of the piece are seriously lacking, and otherwise the piece ends up sounding a tad repetitive and stale. The production quality, sound design, and rhythmic content are all great, but you didn’t quite do enough here to show me that you have the well-rounded compositional skills needed to thrive in this competition. Still, you’re a talented beatmaker. I’d encourage you to find a vocalist to work with. Keep at it, Bat-man187! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.75/2
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?)
.5/1
Composite score
6/10

[Waves]

I like the pensive and atmospheric tone at the beginning. The sub-bass at :14 is a nice touch, and the mix is really loud. The 8-bit percussion fits the texture of the piece well, but also sounds like it’s ducking under the arpeggios at times. The piece is slow to progress, but the atmosphere is pretty engrossing, and there’s a nice sense of build-up into 1:50. The melodies at 1:50 are nice, and the little swells during the more mellow parts of this piece (2:26-2:30, for example), are a really advanced compositional tool that I love to see you use so liberally here. The transition at 3:45 threw me off a bit - it’s a very sudden change in the tone and pacing of the piece. The grand descending effect that starts around 4:40 sounds a tad harsh at times, but even the more jarring aspects of this last third of the piece have a lot of musicality and flair to them. Really unique and fun piece overall, Azuretone. My one major complaint here is that the mastering could be tighter earlier on when the texture is relatively busy. It might help to give the volume levels a bit more breathing room and use some more EQ’ing and/or stereo widening to keep the drums and synths in distinct slots in the mix. Still, you nailed the melodies, atmosphere, and sound design of this one. Keep up the good work, Azuretone! ^_^

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

[Misham Studio - Apollo Justice Remake]

I like the prominent bass, 6/8 meter, and ghostly pads in the background. The texture is quite minimal, and there were times I thought you could use more reverb or other mixing effects to fill it out a bit. The trumpet at :28 sounds a bit inauthentic, and its square rhythms seem a bit bland compared to the funky texture of most of the rest of the piece. There’s an underlying sense of apprehension in this piece that doesn’t really ever get resolved in my opinion. I also would’ve appreciated if you did more to make this piece your own - maybe some harmonic variety the last time the trumpet came in, or an unexpected melodic flair at some point? Overall, you nailed the atmosphere and production, and the sound design also hits the spot, but the composition is a tad bland. Bolder melodies and a more dynamic arrangement would easily add a point or two to your score. That said, it’s nice to see some stylistically authentic jazz in the NGUAC this year. Keep at it, Azurenite! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
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?)
.25/1
Composite score
7/10

[Stratosphere]

I like the glitchy synths at the beginning. The kick drum and hat in particular are way too heavy, though, and the excessive reverb doesn’t help too much. I think you overdid the distortion after a while. The texture sounds really harsh. Meanwhile, the piece doesn’t have a strong sense of development in the harmonic department. The rhythmic content and a lot of the sound design is creative, but stylistically it’s a bit too experimental to come together well for me. I think a lot of my complaints here are a pretty easy fix. Dialing back the mixing effects alone would probably get you another 1-2 points from me. Filling out the harmonies and creating some more structural variety would be next steps after that. That said, the instrumentation and rhythmic elements are strong here. Keep at it, Axova! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
0/1
Composite score
4.5/10

[Then I'll Just Save Everybody Again]

The frantic arpeggios at the beginning are a little hard to follow, but the atmosphere and sound design are nice. There’s a good sense of climax into :31, but the bass there is a bit too loud. The panning on that lead synth at :57 is cool, but it also sounds like the mix is getting a bit overwhelmed there because the kick doesn’t come through super well. The modulation at 1:30 was a little unexpected, as are the ones at 2:00 and 2:11. Sometimes the arrangement of this piece is a little too choppy for its own good. I think you tried to pack too many narrative shifts into 8 minutes - the result is that the structure is a bit jarring, and it’s hard to follow the overarching flow of it. As a general rule, there should be very few times in your piece where you have a sudden transition that completely switches out the instrumental palette for a different one. It’s disorienting to the listener, especially when you hadn’t previously introduced the content on the “after” side of the transition. I think 4:52 is actually one of the most disorienting parts - the tone, key, and pacing of the piece change all at once, whereas at least the previous 5 minutes all had a consistently high energy. Don’t get me wrong - finding a balance between creating enough variety and having a cohesive final product is one of the hardest aspects of making music in my opinion. But this piece tilts the scale way too far towards the variety side in my opinion. That said, the production quality is pretty solid, and you clearly have a good sense of melody and harmony. I also enjoyed the atmospheric elements of the piece. The sound design could be a tad more interesting at times - that piano sample is a bit overused considering how generic it sounds. Still, I can tell you put a ton of work into this piece. All you need to do earn another 1 or 2 points out of 10 from me is consolidate your ideas a bit and smooth over the choppy progression. That’s easier said than done, I know, but you’re already off to a strong start on a lot of the other elements of a top-tier track - mixing, atmosphere, melody writing, sound design. Keep at it, aRho! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7/10

[Fly Away]

I like the atmospheric fade-in at the beginning and the bright pads and piano. The chord progression is a bit cliche, but the production quality is great, and I’m digging the upbeat mood and energy. There’s a great sense of build-up into :47, and the melodies there are nice too. The drums are a tad over-compressed, and the melodies feel like they could’ve been a tad more dynamic after a while, both in terms of melodic contour and rhythm. The atmospheric breakdown was a nice touch, but the arrangement of the piece is also pretty generic. I also would’ve liked to see a second refrain that was more distinct from the first one, just to give the piece a stronger sense of overarching development and storytelling. I think what really has me sold on this piece is the atmosphere and emotion - the piece sounds not just happy but also triumphant, like it’s coming at the conclusion of a grand adventure. And while I’ve been critical of some of the compositional details here, the sound design, mixing and mastering, and harmonic content are all quite strong. Keep at it, Aquilyzer! :)

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
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8/10

[STARGIF (Audio)]

I like the cutesy synths at the beginning. The pads at :13 sound a little unpolished, but I like the stringed instrument and 8-bit synth bass that come in shortly thereafter. The texture changes pretty rapidly at 1:00. I think some sort of drum pattern or sweep/crash to help smooth over those transitions would be welcome. When the drums do come in at 1:20, they’re a little too quiet to have a major driving impact on the texture. That said, you clearly have a good sense of harmony and progression. The mix is a tad quiet, and the texture seems pretty devoid of effects like reverb and compression at times, which could be a major area of exploration for you going forward. Reverb in particular could help smooth over some of the rough transitions here and make the cutoff of the string melodies (like at 1:59) sound more natural. Compositionally, though, the piece is already strong and has a good emotional appeal between the nostalgic-sounding string melodies and cutesy synth arpeggios. Keep at it, Anonymous-Banonymous! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.25/10