TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Neon]

I like the smooth synths and atmosphere at :11, but the vocal sample at the beginning sounds a tad generic and unnecessary. The piece is pretty slow to progress, but the texture is well-balanced and the ascending synth arpeggios in the background add a lot to the piece. I wasn’t a huge fan of your drum samples at :51. The kick has a bit too much treble for my tastes, and the snare is pretty cliche and thin-sounding. The production quality is indeed good, although I think the composition is a bit underwhelming, especially during the first half. I liked the more prominent bass line at 2:18, and the bright stabs at 2:38. That said, the piece is missing some dynamic melodic content and harmonic variety. Despite the lovely atmosphere and fun sound design, I think the composition is pretty bland and flat overall. I’d suggest you keep working on this piece, though. It would change a lot if you simply added a more engaging melody towards the end. Keep at it, quantumdylan! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
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

quantumdylan responds:

Thank you so much for such a well thought out critique, it means a lot to me. I'm definitely going to take this to heart when I come back to the mix post NGADM.

And yeah, I think this was one of the weakest of the three synthwavey tracks I'd been experimenting with, but it seemed to be the safer option for auditioning and the like. I'm still learning how to make these sort of tracks and good critique is incredibly helpful!

Thanks again, you rock!

[Vivendi Somnium]

I like the soothing atmosphere at the beginning and the crisp drums that come in shortly thereafter. The piece is a little slow to progress, though, and the mix is very quiet. Nice job with the sound design and ambiance, and you had me intrigued regarding the direction of the piece after the quiet section at :56. The piece has a great sense of fluidity, but it also could use a little more structural contrast, especially towards the end. I would’ve loved to hear the atmospheric coalesce into some kind of climactic melodic section, but instead the texture just gradually fades away without any sense of conclusion and resolve. Overall, the sound design, texture, and emotional qualities of the piece are beautiful, and you could really have a top-notch piece here if you flesh out the composition a bit more. Keep at it, SentientZero! :)

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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.75/10

[Warriors]

I like the pensive mood at the beginning and the rich chords at :11. The frantic synth lines and drums at :34 have a nice, punchy feel, and despite the heavy compression the mix sounds pretty well-balanced and clean. The re-intro at 2:03 leaves a lot of room for climax and contrast, although the harmonic content during the second half of the piece starts to get pretty repetitive. I’m really enjoying the frantic drums at around 3:10, and the build-up to the second drop was well done. That said, I would’ve liked to hear some more variation during the drop the second time around, and overall I think you missed an opportunity to do more with the composition here. Still, nice work with the mixing and mastering, sound design, atmosphere, and rhythmic content. Keep at it, Khora! :)

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

[If You'd Only Listened For A While]

I love the eerie atmosphere at the beginning. One of the snares sounds like it comes in just a tad too late on the 2nd hit of its pattern, but that could very well be intentional. I think the ambiance at :14 is a tad too loud, and I’d like to hear more of the drums in the texture, relatively speaking. The vocals are good, despite the over-saturated harmonies, and the piece has a nice sense of fluidity. I like the harmonic shifts at 1:47, but after that the piece sounds much more melancholy, and it would’ve been nice to hear some more climactic content in the texture thereafter, whether via another vocal phrase, guitar solo, or something else. Overall, this piece has a haunting atmosphere, mood, and sound design, and the vocal content is refreshing and adds considerably to the texture. The composition could use a little more shape and contrast, though, and the production could be balanced a bit better in favor of the rhythm section and vocals. Keep it up, RedSoul92! :)

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
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
8.75/10

[Illusion of Time]

I like the ominous atmosphere at the beginning and the sense of anticipation at :08. The additional drums at :27 help fill out the texture, although the pace of progression here is pretty slow. The melodic content at 1:13 is really refreshing, and the production quality here is rather strong. The prominence of the atmospheric content at 1:45 is nice, although I think the piece could use more structural variety in general. It has a sense of underlying tension and continuity. At some point, I wanted that tension to come to a head and the illusion to be revealed in a more dramatic way. Instead, despite the cool solos and beautiful atmosphere, I’m not sure you maximized the emotional appeal of this track. The section at 3:36 definitely helps hit the piece home, but it doesn’t necessarily resolve the tension-filled atmosphere, which remains the underbelly of the solos until the very end. Still, I deeply admire your guitar skills, production quality, and sound design here. Keep up the good work, MintyFreshThoughts! ^_^

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

VortexVisionz responds:

Thanks for the review! I can agree with everything pointed out. I’m still in the early stage of learning music production, but all things considered I still manage to make some decent tracks. Many thanks!

[Peaches~!]

The beat at the beginning is catchy, although the bass instrument sounds a bit unpolished and indistinct, and could use some cleaning up in the mix. The rhythmic content is catchy, and I’m enjoying the progression despite the odd sudden transition or two. The melodic section at 1:13 feels really cathartic, and there’s a pleasant sense of atmosphere given the synth arpeggios here. The mix is a tad quiet throughout, and I you could’ve done more creative work with the drums at times. I like how you isolated that one melodic synth at 2:46, but the pause at 2:53 was a bit awkward, and the additional drum beat at 2:56 before the last melodic section came in at 3:02 seemed a bit unnecessary. Overall, the composition comes together well at the end, but the gritty bass line at 3:39 and the somewhat sudden ending seemed a bit forced in. Still, nice work with the sound design, atmosphere, rhythmic content, and melodies. Keep at it, Rukyyy! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
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
7.5/10

[Threshold Species]

I like the haunting vocals and the rich chords. The texture could use some more mixing effects to give the composition a stronger sense of atmosphere. The laughing at :43 was a nice touch, and I like the bright pads and bass at :53. The progression of the piece is a bit slow-paced at times, but the full texture and gloomy sound design help keep things engaging. I also like the melancholic strings at 1:50. The ending doesn’t feel particularly conclusive, but overall the piece seems well-structured given the thematic aims of it. You took a lot of compositional risks with this piece between the minimal instrumental palette and unconventional structuring, but I think this track is both beautiful and incredibly evocative. Strong work overall, GoldenSHour! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
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
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9.25/10

[Melocity]

I like the fun sound design and frantic synth riffs here. There were times when I wanted the drums to be more prominent in the texture and also more creative instrumentation-wise, but the harmonies and plentiful melodic content keep things engaging here. I think you could’ve fleshed out the composition a little more and offered the listener some more structural contrast, but the piece seems rather fitting for a fast-paced video game, after all. Overall, strong work with the production quality, melodies, flow, sound design, and rhythmic content. I’d love to hear a full-length version of this track, but for now it has a fair amount of variety for such a short piece. Keep at it, PSiMetronome! :)

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

[Odyssey]

I like the anticipatory string riffs at the beginning and the frantic energy and tension underlying the piece. The percussion helps fill out the texture nicely, and the melodic content at :40 is a nice change-of-pace after the intense beginning. The progression is a bit slow-paced until 1:34, but I like when the texture gets richer and fuller there. The breakdown at 2:05 was strong, and had some pleasing atmospheric components in the percussion and ascending synth lines. The production quality is strong here too, although occasionally there’s a tad too much reverb in the texture, and the mix overall is pretty quiet. The outro at 3:29 could’ve been a bit more creative, but overall I like the progression here too. Strong work overall, especially with the sound design, harmonic content, and atmosphere. Keep it up, SirQuebi! ^_^

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

Quebi responds:

All I can say is wow. While I do think you're being pretty generous in some areas, it's really heartening to see how much I've improved over the past 2 years. Thank you