TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Stargazer]

I like the smooth guitar riffs at the beginning. The transitions between the phrases could’ve been a bit more fluid, though - it seems like there’s an extended, awkward pause at :24 and then some overlapping recordings at :51 (or maybe just an early cutoff). The harmonic content gets pretty repetitive after a while, but I’m enjoying the subtle variations, like the chromatic line at 1:08 and the shorter note lengths at 2:08. The texture could’ve used some more fill at times. The occasional string swells were nice, but some drums or even a consistent drone would’ve helped fill out the soundscape a bit. I like the transition at 2:50, although at that point it might’ve been nice to have a more emphatic or variational final refrain to hit the piece home. Still, this is a really cute-but-minimal piece with a fun, organic sound design, smooth progression, and pleasing compositional details. A bit of a bolder approach to the composition would’ve been welcome, but I’m beginning to think the laid-back vibe here hews closer to your style. :) Keep at it, Thomastique! ^_^

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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.5/10

Thomastique responds:

Thank you! I appreciate the feedback 😁😁

[Amazona NGUAC 2020]

I like the atmospheric fade-in at the beginning and the energetic flair at :07. The echo-y synths and heavy filtering towards the end of phrases give the piece a bit of a wonky flow, and the harmonic content is rather minimal, but it’s still really catchy and the reverb helps fill out the texture. Some aspects of the sound design are pretty generic, notably the drums, and the piece is often rather slow to progress. I like the stripped-down approach you took to the section starting at 1:57 - I wasn’t expecting that, admittedly. There isn’t a lot of melodic content in the piece, and I think the atmospheric bit at 2:25 would’ve been a great place for that, although the bird sound effects were some nice substitutes. There’s a great sense of climax into 3:47, and the texture feels especially well-balanced and full thereafter. The piece is still missing some more memorable melodic content, and despite the smooth transitions and rich atmosphere I think you could’ve done a lot more with this piece compositionally. Still, the production quality is solid and I enjoyed the return to the more energetic, bass-heavy bit of earlier at 5:42. Overall, strong work! Keep at it, TerraNation! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
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
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8/10

TerraNation responds:

Yes iknow what i have done wrong and right on this song and i will be fixed for final release of it, I normaly take mutch mutch more time to work on my tracks short limit time for contest is abit hard to make something very very solid.

But i let you know when i finish this with a final touch and it will be even better.

[Nebulous - Paranoia (NGUAC 2020 | R3)]

I like the cutesy melodies at the beginning. The skipping beats at :16 threw me off a bit, and the “reset” at :27 was rather abrupt. The gritty, minimal drop at :53 works pretty well, but lasts a bit too long for my tastes. That said, the second iteration of that section (1:34) with the creepy vocal drone in the background at least brought some variety. I think you could’ve made better use of the treble range of the frequency spectrum throughout this piece, although the experimental flair of this piece does help keep things amusing. The sound design and production quality are both strong, and the rhythmic content is rather creative throughout. Overall, the arrangement seems a bit choppy at times between the gritty drop sections and the blissful synth riff at 3:44 (and other places), and the piece lacks a sense of resolve without a more well-integrated relationship between the two. Still, this is a neat track thematically (girl saying “don’t be afraid” actually gave me nightmares) with some strong mixing and mastering and engaging instrumentation. Keep it up, ShockblastDeluxe! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
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
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
8/10

[Happy people want to dance]

I like the quirky pads at the beginning and the build-up into :20. The white noise is a little heavy at :21, and the mix feels a little strained underneath all the reverb and compression there and at :41. The transition at 1:02 was pretty neat, and I’m enjoying the melodies and sound design there too. The filter on the main pads could’ve used some variation at some point, but I like the minimal approach you took to the re-intro and the build-up back into 2:19. The melodic variations at 2:19 are nice, but the instrument playing them sounded a bit generic. I’ll also note that the drums didn’t quite pop in the mix like I wanted them to here. Still, the catchy rhythmic content and blissful melodies are both plusses, and the cool transitions and other compositional details helped make up for the somewhat generic arrangement. Keep at it, Retrize! :)

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
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.5/10

[Remembering the Fallen]

I like the emotional quality at the beginning. You’ve done a great job of playing up the somber mood in this piece, like with the descending line in the melody at :18. The entrance of the violin at :38 is absolutely haunting, and the somewhat predictable phrase pattern (i.e., every other measure has a significant number of moving notes) helps channel the emotion further. The percussion at 1:14 sounds a bit flat, but I’m liking the call-and-response action at 1:34 and the trumpet solo shortly thereafter. The piece comes together rather well by 2:20, and I think it was also a good choice to return to a more minimal piano line for the coda. Part of me would’ve liked the mix to be a bit fuller-sounding at times, or for the final climax to be a bit more of a point of arrival, but at the end of the day it’s hard to find fault with the solemn and languid tone of the piece. Probably your strongest work yet, Potato-stick! These are some truly moving melodies.

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.5/1.5
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
9.75/10

potato-stick responds:

Thank you for the incredible feedback and for taking the time to deeply listen to understand my artistic intentions! I agree that my percussion is a bit lacking. I am scoping out some percussion libraries to buy on Black Friday so I finally have more than the fairly limited options that Nucleus offers. I will make sure to take your advice and apply it towards future works :)

[NaNo - Happy pluck]

I like the quirky risers at the beginning and the cutesy, tranquil synths. The sound design and production quality are both really strong here, and the vocals at :45 work well. The refrain at :47 is catchy and cathartic, but the melody line sounds a bit strained in the mix, almost like it takes a backseat to the pads. The chord progression is a little cliche, but the melodies help keep me engaged, like at 1:36. The transition at 2:09 was a little bizarre, perhaps because of the bare texture during the transitory moment (it actually happens again at 2:33). The cheery pads during the outro were a nice touch too. Overall, solid piece! Some of the arrangement details are a bit generic, but the mixing is really good, and you’ve won me over with the upbeat melodies and catchy rhythmic content. Keep it up, NaNoOficcial! ^_^

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
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.75/10

[Be Gay Do Crime]

I like the quirky synths at the beginning and the pensive atmosphere. The percussion at :15 isn’t quite as strong in the mix as I wanted it to be, and there’s a bit of dissonance in the texture at :45. I like the spacey bridge with the guitar melodies at 1:05 or so, but by 1:14 the mix sounds pretty distorted again, although the combination of the creative beats and the ominous atmosphere works well. I might’ve liked to see you introduce some novel harmonic content at some point, as the piece was lacking an overarching sense of direction, but I like the quirky string line at the end. Overall, the mix feels a bit strained here, and perhaps that warrants getting a little stricter with your use of reverb and filtering. That said, the sound design and mood are really evocative and neat. Keep at it, Mooke! ^_^

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
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
7.75/10

zybor responds:

Thank you for your kind words :)

[10 Pieces of Bread]

I like the cutesy oom-pah action at the beginning and the string melodies. Sounds like the beginning of a musical - I envision the quieter parts go along with the dialogue, and then there’s a lot of choreography that goes with the busier parts. I also like the rather granular structure of the piece, with similar-sounding string melodies repeating in relatively short succession and fun “diversions” in between. Admittedly, the more sultry and melancholic part at 1:25 threw me off a bit, but by 1:50 I’m sold on the wild melodrama of the piece’s arrangement. Still, it’s a nice touch to return to some version of the main melody at 2:08. I might’ve liked to hear a more creative conclusion than the repetition of the “oom-pahs” at the end, but perhaps it’s meant to be a loop. I also might’ve liked to see you do a bit more with the drums at some point. Still, super fun piece overall! It’s a bit difficult to imagine as a stand-alone piece at times, but the colorful sound design and catchy motifs make it easy to envision a piece of media (musical, video game, or otherwise) to go along with it. Oh, and the mixing is fantastic. Strong work, Michael! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
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
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
9.25/10

[A Journeys End [NGUAC 2020 Final]]

I like the feeling of suspense at the beginning between the tremolo and the emotional piano chords. The piece is a little slow to progress at first, but there’s a good injection of energy at 1:05, and the crisp percussion and majestic melodies thereafter help move things along nicely. The melodies at 1:10 could’ve been a little more dynamic and memorable imo, but you did a good job of channeling the emotional quality of the piece with the return to the furtive, taciturn part at 1:57. Since so much of this piece is so minimal in texture, I would’ve liked to see a little more humanization at times. For example, the piano chords at 2:21 feel a bit square rhythmically, although I recognize the descending line thereafter has some nice little “anti-quantization” details going on. I’d also push you to do even more with dynamics, especially within the quiet sections. The ending was a bit cheesy, and I sort of expected the piece to end at 3:21 upon hearing it for the first time, although it does give a nice sense of resolve to a piece that otherwise has a subtle note of tension in the string drones. Overall, stellar work with the sound design, atmosphere, progression, and mixing. Despite my nitpicking on some of the compositional details, you really told a story with this piece (or, at least the end of one). Keep it up, Lazerwing! ^_^

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
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.75/10

[Ataraxia]

I like the plucked synths at the beginning. The pause at :13 threw me off of the flow a bit, but the beats at :14 are super catchy and refreshing. The combination of the airy lead at :27 and the hard-hitting bass are great, although the chord progression is a bit cliche. The texture also feels like it’s missing some mid-range instruments, although the mix is rather clean and crisp. I like the cutesy riff and delicious hi-hats you introduce during the bridge at 1:55 and the subsequent variations on the bass at 2:10. There are a lot of fun rhythmic details in this piece, which help keep things engaging despite the minimalism at certain points. I would’ve liked to hear a little more variation on the refrain the second time around (at 2:37), and overall the melodic content in this piece could’ve been a bit more dynamic and memorable. Still, I really enjoy the sound design, rhythmic content, mastering, atmosphere, and progression of this one. Keep at it, Lagiarathalos! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.75/10