TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Akasha]

Woah. Harsh sound design at the beginning. Sounds a little grating, but the rhythm by :16 is really creative. The progression is a bit lopsided, by which I mean it doesn't have a clear directionality to it. The experimental sound design is impressive, but my personal tastes require a more cohesive structure and clear harmonic framework. Given that the piece is so short, I think the current content you have in here would function quite well as instrumental breaks to relieve a more grounded structural form. That said, I can certainly see why it's getting so much attention from the NGUAC judges and/or community. The strong production definitely enhances the punchiness of the rhythm, the gritty sound design, and the haphazard nature of the progression. Keep at it, Pusga!

[The Kiratose]

I like the progression at the beginning. The dense texture at :08 is really fun. The strings sound a tad harsh in the mix, though - lot of high-pitched tones. I like the frantic synth arpeggios and loud mix, too. I think the melodies at around the 1-minute mark were a little hard-to-follow, and the piece has a couple minimalistic sections that don't really fit well into the rest of the fabric of the piece, most notably 1:24. You did a good job of keeping the vaguely creepy vibe embedded in the harmonic framework, though. The ending seemed a bit rushed/lazy. The piece doesn't even fade out all the way before the end cuts off. Despite the almost-too-fast pacing and compositional complaints I have, this is a really fun piece that seems suitable for a videogame. Keep at it, Alphysans! :)

[Asher Postman - Going to the Sun (ft. Annelisa Franklin) AtRysk Remix]

I like the chill atmosphere and vocals at the beginning. Mastering is rather strong too. Nice sense of build-up into 1:12. The drop there was nice too - good pacing especially. The somewhat generic instrumentation and arrangement detract from the piece a bit, though. That said, you’re clearly a talented producer. Everything sounds clean, loud, and distinct in the mix. There’s the perfect amount of reverb, and the drums are crisp and clear. Very feel-good sort of piece. Well-structured and flowy too.

Sorry we had to disqualify you. I hope there are no hard feelings. It's a good track, but it simply doesn't fit our criteria for originality (and maybe not the site's either).

Good luck with your future projects, man.

AtRysk responds:

No hard feelings. Thanks for the feedback!

[Cutting Corners]

The reverse crash at the beginning felt a bit forceful compared with the calming mood of the rest of the piece. Beautiful sound design and melodies, though, even if the piano melody sounded a tad square rhythmically. I like the ongoing sense of directionality in the texture until 1:06. The stop-start transition has a nice sense of drama about it, but I still thought it was a bit abrupt. Nice work with the progression otherwise. You know how to give the composition of your tracks an ebb and flow really well. The final climactic section at around 2:35 is super great. I think the lower string line could've come through the mix a little clearer at 2:40, but otherwise I didn't notice any huge problems with the mastering here. My biggest compositional complaint is that there's a lot of transitory/build-up content without much cathartic/emotional height content. Perhaps that's merely typical of cinematic tracks, though. Overall really strong work here! You really sold the drama with this one. Good luck in the ADM, AceMantra. ^_^

AceMantra responds:

Thanks for the input and kind words, TL! I totally agree with all of your points. I meant to make the transitions a little smoother, but I ran out of time as usual. But it's finished and that's what matters.

Thanks again, and good luck to you as well. :)

[TeslaX - Celestial Abyss]

Woah. I like the punchy texture at :06. The piece kinda throws you right into the middle of the action, though. Would be nice if there were more of a proper intro. I really like the instrumentation and drive the piece has. The orchestral sub-theme was nicely integrated into the electronic texture, too. The drop at 1:07 is really cool. Reminds me a lot of Xtrullor and Helixix's work, actually. The transition to the breakdown at 1:57 was really strong. You've really maximized the dynamic range of this piece - it's impressive. The vocal samples at 3:22 also function well, even if you hadn't introduced any similar elements earlier in the piece. The final climax works well to add some finality and resolve to the piece. The spacey percussion "slam" kind of effect at 4:17 was a nice touch, too. I think my favorite element of the piece is the production. Everything just sounds so crisp, loud, and distinct throughout. You did a great job with this piece, Tesla! Epic sound. Good luck in the ADM! ^_^

[stardust [NGADM Round 1]]

I like the chill mood at the beginning and the sharp snaps on the off-beats for the first 30 seconds or so. The balance seems a bit off to me, though. The chord progression/bass are really heavy, and the melodic content doesn't really shine through the mix that well during the refrain. Then, the breakdown at :59 comes on really suddenly. A subtle filter doesn't really cut it as a transition in my eyes. I like the more gradual sense of climax into the next refrain, though. Overall, the production quality is really strong here, and the mix has a lot of top end that sounds really good (those crisp hi-hats, soaring synth arpeggios, etc.). The sudden transitions, lack of originality in the composition, and balance issues just detract from my enjoyment of all these positive elements, unfortunately. And then the outro sounded pretty ominous, which didn't really fit the character of the rest of the piece imo. Overall, I'd say that you're clearly a talented producer, but I can tell that the piece is rushed. Good luck in the ADM, though! Keep at it, N1NJA-Official. :^)

N1NJA-Official responds:

Thanks for the feedback! Yeah, I didn't really have a single cohesive idea throughout, coupled with stress to finish and cpu issues with playback from too much layering. A lot of the fine details were glossed over like you mentioned.

[On Go]

The tempo automations with that synth at the beginning are really cool. Bongos are also cool. I love the swells with the pads, too (first the big one at :05 and then the smaller ones starting at :22). The piece is really catchy, albeit a little slow-paced. The melodic content at :54 is super funky and refreshing. The sound effect at 1:01 sounded a little harsh, but overall that entire refrain is really creative rhythmically and pleasing harmonically. The dreamier melodic content that starts at around 1:30 is a quite welcome shift in the overall texture/flavor of the piece. The breakdown at 2:38 is also a great element of the progression. Despite the slow pacing of the piece, there's a ton of structural variety and ebb and flow in the composition. The jazzy chords at around the 4-minute mark serve you well. The final refrain really comes together nicely. This piece takes me on a journey, 1f1n1ty. Great work! Probably the strongest composition I've heard for this year's NGADM so far, at the very least of an electronic track for sure. By all means, keep it up! And good luck in the ADM. ^_^

[Day and Night]

Woah! You've been active in a bunch of music contests recently, huh? I like the crickets at the beginning and the cute melodies at :07. The more foreboding mood at :12 is cool, too. The sound design (especially the percussion samples) are really cool with this one, even if they sound a tad atonal at times. The violin once again is beautiful, and the piece has a lot of ebb and flow in the composition, which is nice. My main complaint here is that the piece is too short, really. :) I can totally see this as a video game level in some cutesy platformer with a "lost in the woods, discovering a hidden world" sort of theme. Piece really puts an image in my head. Keep up the good work, BO!

[A Naïve Admirer]

Ah! Can't believe I forgot to review the final product. I like the blissful melodic and the swells in energy that occur on a call-and-response basis. The waltz-like vibe of the piece is really nice. The transition at :41 is a tad sudden, but I've warmed up to the note lengths on the dramatic strikes at around the 1-minute mark. The mix is quite clean, if a bit quiet. The orchestral samples in the piece are quite good. I especially like the violin at around 1:40 (and other places, of course, but that section stands out because the violin is so exposed). The modulation at 2:05 was also really well-done, given the trill before it. The subito piano at 2:22 sounds really cool, too. I think your idea of what the song is about fits the character of the piece perfectly. Beautiful work, BO! Good luck in the ADM. ^_^

[Quixotic (Original Mix)]

I like the mysterious intro, and the hard-hitting texture at :17 predicates the rest of the piece quite well. The mastering is so loud and punchy - truly a treat. The piece takes a little while to develop, but at the drop at 1:31 it feels really climactic and cathartic. The vocal samples are a bit overused after a while, but this piece maintains a great punchiness and drive. I would've liked to hear some more harmonic depth at times, although I commend you for keeping things interesting with the tempo automation at 2:30. The structural variety at 2:53 was quite welcome. I like that jittery bass synth at 3:28 a lot. After a time, the sound design has so much variety (and the piece is so long) that it lost an element of cohesion imo. The last 20 seconds or so have a lot of jarring changes in the texture too, and I don't think they did a great job of wrapping up the piece. I'd rather see you try to consolidate some of your ideas and expand on them, rather than spread the thematic content of this piece too thin with a lot of fleeting riffs and ideas. Still, the production, sound design, and atmosphere are all impressive. Keep at it, Kaixo!

KaixoMusic responds:

Thanks for the review :D