TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Memento]

Absolutely haunting beauty. The emotional appeal of the strings and piano at the beginning is amazing, and the melodic content is really good. The sense of climax as the piece goes on is subtle but quite powerful. Then the first real cathartic moment of the track at 1:25 really capitalizes on the emotional set-up at the beginning. I also really like the solo at 2:05 - sounds like it was some sort of Celtic instrument too. The rhythm of the percussion at 2:45 is a little hard-to-follow, but I really like the injection of energy at 2:48. It ties the piece together really nicely. This track really puts an image in my head - of cameras panning through a gorgeous mountain expanse to find a lonely rural home and a young heart that is just as lonely. By the end, I think the protagonist learns to balance the humbleness instilled in him by an isolated youth with the confidence of having the world open up to him for the first time. The piece really did put all those images in my head, guys. Utterly fantastic work. I will be rooting for you in future rounds. By all means, keep it up! :')

[in time // rewind]

I like the airy guitar guitar and breathy vocals at the beginning. The mixing is really loud and clear, and the bouncy piano at :20 is great. Nice job with the drums too. Super catchy content, and the breakdown at 1:07 is a nice change-of-pace. The harmonic elements are a tad repetitive after a while, but I appreciate the variations at 2:07 and the glitchiness. The panning was a little strong at times, especially at around 2:35, where there was little else in the texture to justify the heavy panning of the vocals. I really liked the part at 3:31. That's when the piece finally starts to come together imo. I think my main complaint here is the lack of harmonic variety. The piece is a little long to not have much of a change in the underlying harmonic framework. Otherwise, stellar piece, Johnfn! Jazzy chord at the end is a plus too. ^_^ Good luck in the ADM. ;)

[32 North 120 East]

I like the tranquil strings at the beginning and the eastern-sounding instrumentation. The melodic content is beautiful, and the percussion (while used sparingly) is a nice touch. The progression is a bit slow, but the mix is nice, clear, and well-balanced (if a bit quiet). The drum roll at the 2-minute mark was a nice detail. Great sense of tranquility and atmosphere, though. The climactic bit at 2:51 is a huge highlight, naturally. Up to that point, I would've liked to see a bit more variety in the texture, though. Instrumentation and mood are huge highlights here, and the mix gives the piece a really full, lush sound. The flute solo towards the end is beautiful too, and serves as a proper coda. Overall really nice work as always! Good luck in the ADM. ^_^

[Saruz - Violin Master]

Hey man. I'm not judging your group, but I've heard this track is pretty stellar from the other judges. I was not disappointed. The violin is beautiful, and you integrate so well with the heavy breaks. The piece is well-structured and smooth-flowing, and has a great amount of structural variety, too. The frantic solo at 2:03 was probably my favorite part of the piece. This track has a ton of melodic content and dynamic contrast, and overall the production, sound design, and composition are all very strong. You talk about how you're unsatisfied with the quiet mix, but I think that's a negligible detail in the context of such amazing musicianship. The only thing that's really worth complaining about imo is the abrupt ending. You really sold the drama with this piece. Keep up the great work!

Saruz responds:

wow, thank you for all of these nice words! I personally didn't expect that this thing will get such attention, although this is definitely the best one I have ever created. and well, I think there are many more revelant technical details to work at though, 'cause I always compare my work to reference tracks and it doesn't sound fully satisfying yet. But I have big bunch of time to achieve this, actually this is only the second year of my music production. thanks once again!

[Origins]

Catchy piece. The drum samples at the beginning sound a little generic, but I'm really loving melodic content at :17. The climax into :44 is great, and the refrain there is really cathartic. The panning is a bit heavy at times, but the production quality is really clean overall. Well-structured and smooth-flowing content too. I appreciated the structural variety offered by the breakdown in the middle, and the climax into the second refrain was well-done. I wish you had varied the melody a tad more the second time around, and the ending is a tad abrupt. Otherwise, not much to complain about here. I can totally tell you were influenced by EnV, too! Keep up the good work, Sylux03, and gl in the ADM! ^_^

Sylux03 responds:

THANK YOU SO MUCH! OMG <3

[Frigice (Topaz Version)]

Good to hear from you, TV! I like the groovy dance pads and automations/filtering into :30. Smooth flow and progression. The hi-hats at the 1-minute mark or so are really quiet. Nice sense of climax into 1:30. The melodic content there was quite enjoyable. Kick could've been a little stronger there. Overall, the mix is really loud and pretty well-balanced. I think the pads are taking up a bit too much room after a while. Overall, it's a really catchy track with some cool sound design. Might function better as a longer piece with a couple of verse/refrain cycles. Looking forward to hearing the rest of the stuff from the album! ^_^

TeraVex responds:

Thanks man! Always look forward to your reviews!

[Chords Dance]

I like the smooth strings at the beginning and the bright mood that becomes more prominent at :17 or so. Instrumentation is lovely, if a bit inauthentic. The hurried swell at :52 works really well to channel the energy, even if the harmonies around there (:53-1:01 or so) sound a bit clashing. The panning was a little strong for my tastes; I think the mix emphasized clarity a lot more than blending. The composition has a lot of ebb and flow to it, and the final emotional height (3:10) ties the piece together really well. Beautiful work overall. Good luck in the ADM! ^_^

AzulJazz responds:

Thx so much TaintedLogic

[breaking glass]

I love the pensive mood at the beginning. Sounds vaguely apprehensive, too. Nice job with the emotional strings at :27. Despite the convincingly organic texture, the electronic elements that start fading in at around :48 don't feel out-of-place. The sense of climax over the course of the first half of the piece is really strong. Atmosphere of the piece is really good, and the punchy bass at the ends of phrases has a nice, dark inevitability to it. Some of the more dynamic-sounding riffs (like at 2:15) are quite welcome in the texture, but I guess my main complaint is that you could've done a tad more to thicken the harmonic depth of the piece at its climax. I'm not always a fan of the compositional elements of your tracks, Sequenced, but you did a great job here of providing some shape and dynamic contrast. Keep up the good work and gl in the ADM!

Sequenced responds:

oof.

[LumpyLand]

Solid start! I like the hard-hitting mid-range bass and punchy drums. Mixing seems strong, too. Now you just need to flesh out the structure! I want to hear more of those vocal samples and a complete couple of build-up/chorus/post-chorus cycles. I'm envisioning this as a post-chorus, actually. Keep at it, man!