TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[AIM - The Search]

---Official AIM review---

I like the airy sound effects at the beginning and the smooth E-piano. The mix is pretty quiet, albeit clear. I’m guessing you had trouble getting enough sound out of those crackling effects to balance the other instruments, but regardless I think some more volume level manipulation may have been in order. The piece is very calming, and the melodic content at 1:32 is beautiful despite a relatively inauthentic instrument. I like how the texture thickens at 1:58. The crackling effects get slightly busier at 2:38 or so, which I thought was a really nice touch. The slight variations on the melody at 3:37 are also quite welcome. I feel as though there’s little to complain about for the first 5 minutes or so of the piece besides the quiet mix and slow progression. The atmosphere is absolutely gorgeous, and the well-balanced texture is both thick and engaging. When the drums enter at 4:43, they succeed in adding more energy and drive, but they also take over the mix a bit too much imo. The busy kick felt a little too sub-bassy for the piece, and the transition at 5:22 was very sudden. You have several sudden transitions in the piece, but 5:22 stuck out to me as the starkest one. The sudden change in 5:27 with the addition of the synths was also a bit jarring. I think it was certainly a bold compositional choice to introduce such a contrasting sound design element this late in the piece, and after the second listen it still sounds a bit off to me. Overall, you’ve clearly displayed a strong sense of melody, harmony, phrasing, and atmosphere construction. The arrangement of the piece is not a plus for me, and the pacing feels a bit wonky between the drone-like 5 minutes and the one-two punch of the drum-heavy and synth sections later on. Production quality is strong overall, and the instrumentation was quite tasteful despite the arguably out-of-place synth. Keep it up, Ectisity!

8.75/10

[To Save You]

---Official AIM review---

I like the emotion at the beginning and the suspenseful mood. Build-up into :35 was really drawn-out, but eventually worth the wait. The rich texture at :35 was great, although I think the transition at :48 could’ve been smoother. The harmonic pace is very fast for the most part, but you guys really told a story with this one. The singing violin at 1:45 was a highlight for me. You guys have paid a lot of attention to the details, and it shows. The production quality is amazingly high here. I also like the more apprehensive tone of 2:03. The build-up at 2:21 really lost its momentum with the extended pause. That said, the brass and percussion were nice additions to the texture in the subsequent sections. You’ve showed off quite an amazing sense of harmony and melody, and there is a fair bit of cohesion in the melodic content to appease sticklers like me. That said, 3:32 is another instance where the extended pause (as well as the addition of new effects) dismantle the flow. I was led to believe that you were taking the piece in a different direction, but 6 long seconds later you come up with a final melodic flourish that is quite harmonically connected to the adjacent section at 3:15. The piano section at 3:54 was a nice touch that really grounded the emotional appeal of the piece, even if it was quite a reversal from the fast pacing of earlier. Overall, this is clearly strong work. Musicality and production are both top-notch. A couple compositional details here and there constitute the entirety of my complaints. Keep up the great work, guys!

9.25/10

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

||| Hey there! LSD here, did you get the email I sent a while ago? Your inbox was full at the time, so I just wanted to make sure you don't think I ignored your message or something :'D
Anyway, back to the piece. |||

Thanks for the detailed perspective!

We discussed your review, and felt we wanted to address few remarks.

"I think the transition at :48 could’ve been smoother."

"The build-up at 2:21 really lost its momentum with the extended pause. That said, the brass and percussion were nice additions to the texture in the subsequent sections."

&

"That said, 3:32 is another instance where the extended pause (as well as the addition of new effects) dismantle the flow."

We just wanted to make sure that you considered that this is the AIM, and that the piece is not a standalone work. Maybe you reacted to something that musically just didn't work for you! Either way, here's how we think about it:

For us, the transition at 0:48 represents the start of panel 4, in the artwork. That's where the girl is shocked (thus the rough transition) about what stands before her. Then, gradually in that panel, you see she isn't exactly scared. That's why the piece (this time more slowly) transitions into something more heartwarming; because of the empathy the girl is willing to show even to a being that looks that scary.

The part before 2:21 is a dark one, because it's starting to become clear that the girl is being hurt by helping the other character. The section after that brief pause symbolizes her determination in her sacrifice (it's not clear if she dies, but either way it's not easy on her). That is why the transition builds a stark contrast, showing that her determination wins over her pain.

As for 3:32, there is indeed an extended pause (which can be a great tool in music). For one, we don't feel it's a bad thing if the listener is surprised by the piece, and doesn't always hear what they expect, as you mentioned. Basically, the pause represents the transition between the penultimate panel, and the very final panel. As you can see in the story, the frame disappears from around the characters, and there's somewhat of a leap in the story to the next frame. That's why we feel the transition couldn't be more appropriate in the music. It comes right before everything is tied back together. The piano after that, symbolizes the bittersweetness that arises from the sacrifice, contrasted with the hope and potential the girl has given the other character.

If you listen to those transitions with that in mind, do you feel that they fit any better? We'd be stoked to hear your thoughts!

Thanks for the detailed breakdown in general. It's always fun to see how different people react to different parts :D

P.S. How, how can you possibly keep up with so many competitions and reviews? :VVVVVVVV

[AIM - Hurricane]

---Official AIM review---

The distorted guitars and bass blend really well together. You have a pretty good sense of harmony, too. Unfortunately, the rhythm is really hard to follow for most of the piece. I suspect you used some sort of MIDI function to record this and then didn’t quantize the piece properly. It’s really worth making sure that the underlying rhythm of the piece is consistent. If you want there to be an ebb and flow to the pace of the piece, usually tempo automations are a better way to accomplish that. I also think that the piece didn’t have any discernible harmonic framework. There are isolated riffs and sections that sound harmonically succinct, but overall this piece has a very loose, meandering structure that’s quite jarring. Obviously, over-repetition isn’t a good thing, but I think you have the opposite problem here. There’s just very little content that keeps the listener grounded in common themes, riffs, melodies, or effects. For your next piece, I’d suggest choosing a chord progression of no more than 4 chords, and then laying out harmonies on top of that. That way, your piece will probably have more cohesion. Then you can create variety with more sophisticated techniques, like dynamic contrast, phrasing, and automation. Sorry if this review isn’t very reassuring. You have a good foundation in harmony and sound design. All of these isolated sections just make the piece sound really disjointed and sometimes arrhythmic. Hope that helps. Keep at it, Rockossss!

4.5/10

rockossss responds:

Rhodes stage piano. No guitar.

[AIM - Foreseeing Melody]

---Official AIM review---

The synth at the beginning is really cool. Has a really experimental, wave-like vibe. The portamentos and glitchiness is cool too. Beginning at around :20, there’s noticeable distortion in the mix. I think you need to be careful about the volume levels here. You might consider using limiters for certain instruments, or simply lowering the volume of those instruments in the mixer. The atmosphere is great, but the harsh distortions significantly detract from my enjoyment of the piece. The texture is really well-balanced and clear, though. I appreciate the influx of energy at :53 brought about by the drums. The composition is strong overall. Not very dynamic harmonically, but the quirky instruments and experimental sound design are big pluses. It’s really a shame that there’s so much clipping in this piece, because it’s a pretty easy fix and otherwise I really like this track. Most digital audio workstations have some sort of peak flow meter that you can monitor during playback, and it’ll tell you if there’s distortion going on because the stereo is overwhelmed. If you have more questions, please PM me. This is a necessary fix. Overall, though, the composition, atmosphere, and sound design are all great. Keep at it, Demon1000!

8/10

[AIM || Beyond There]

---Official AIM review---

I like the cute, pensive synth at the beginning. The bright piano at :15 and atmosphere help too. One thing that bothered me about the progression is that there are a lot of sudden jumps in pitch among several of the instruments (:12, :28, etc.). The bass drone at :30 was a nice touch, but overall the progression seems a bit drawn-out. There’s a build-up into :29 that doesn’t really lead anywhere, and then the energetic beat at :58 kinda comes out of nowhere. I think the drums at :58 have way too much reverb that makes the mix sound pretty muddy and indistinct. The section at 1:35 served as a bridge pretty well, but overall it seems like you wanted to go in several different directions with this piece at once. The texture is largely made up of arpeggios and chords for most of the piece, and when you do have notable melodic content (like at 2:05), I think it’s not as prominent as it could be vis-a-vis the arpeggios and synth harmonies. Nice job making the piece come full circle at 2:53/3:05, although once again the transitions are a little weak there. Still, I’ve been tough on you in this review. The mood, atmosphere, sound design, and harmonic elements of the piece are all pretty strong. The arrangement of the piece just needs a little more thought, and the mixing could use some cleaning up. Keep at it, RabidAutopsy!

7/10

EldritchAutopsy responds:

Dont sweat it, Im actually more grateful for the brutal honesty.

Thanks for taking the time to look at and review my entry. I agree with all the points you made in your review and I'll take it all into heavy consideration going here on for all my pieces.

[AIM - ICU (When Things Start To Get Melt)]

---Official AIM review---

Catchy guitar riff at the beginning. The panning is a little strong for my tastes. Undoubtedly, it helps the clarity of the mix, but the heavy one-sidedness of it becomes a bit grating, even if just for the short intro section. The melodic content of the vocals is good, but I couldn’t help but feel like the inauthentic nature of the vocals detracted from the piece, especially since it was paired with relatively organic-sounding instrumentation otherwise. The lyrical themes of the piece made it really engaging, but I also think that there was opportunity for a little more creativity with the lyrics. For example, “feels so good and feels so bad” isn’t very descriptive or particular. As for the production quality, it’s quite clear overall. I think the drums could’ve been a tad stronger at times, especially during the refrain, but the instruments generally blend well together. As for the composition, I think my main concern is that the piece has a sense of uniform energy and texture throughout. At some point, I would’ve liked to see a little more shape and contrast in intensity, perhaps with a bridge, solo, or breakdown. You have a good sense of melody, harmony, and rhythm, though. Overall, nice job with the production, progression, catchiness, and emotion. Some more structural variety would be nice, but really I think a rebranding of the vocals/instrumentation would help this piece out the most. Keep at it, Biyaonibakasan!

7.75/10

biyaonibakasan responds:

Thanks for the response!! I'll keep in mind with the helpful advice!! I was thinking of cover this myself!! Again Thanks! :D

[AIM - The Dragon War]

---Official AIM review---

Beautiful vocals at the beginning. I love the energy of the strings. Brass at :20 has a nice bite to it as well. The percussion was quite starkly in the background at around :25, which struck me as odd, but the choir at :39 is a really nice touch. I like the call-and-response action between the choir and the brass. Nice harmonic shift at 1:05. Good job with the build-up into 1:10. The underlying progression is quite repetitive for most of the piece, but you have so much variety along other parameters (volume, instrumentation, etc.) that it hardly bothers me. Also, the solo vocalist sounds a bit processed. I approve of the solo string at 2:16 - that frantic line really helps channel the energy going into the final section at 2:31. This piece has a constant sense of energy, but within that there’s still a lot of structural variety. Excellent job with the phrasing and dynamics. Your mixing and mastering has improved considerably since last year, and besides the rather subdued percussion early in the piece I couldn’t detect any balance issues. You’ve truly used the instrumentation and production to their fullest effect in support of your always-excellent composition skills. Excellent work, CloakedSoup!

9.5/10

CloakedSoup responds:

Thanks for the review! One of my goals when writing this was to see how long I could repeat a four chord progression before it got too boring. I hope that I accomplished that to some degree! It's nice to see my production skills slowly getting better and better, that has always been the thing I've struggled with the most, and hopefully I'm getting closer and closer to having a truly professional sound!

[AIM - Knighty Knight]

---Official AIM review---

I like the mood and melodic content at the beginning. The dark percussion at :23 is a nice touch. The instrumentation is not very authentic, which is especially obvious when the choir comes in. You have a great sense of harmony and progression, though. The call-and-response vibe between the bells/choir and the main theme (at the beginning and other places) has a really satisfying effect. I also appreciate when you break away from that framework at 1:24. The horns at 1:45 sound a bit harsh, and the piece does sound a tad repetitive by the end. Overall, my main complaints are with the production quality, not the composition. After a time, the percussion sounds really indistinct, and at various points the main theme and other elements also get a little buried in the mix. The mix is also pretty quiet as it is. Perhaps some more compression and equalization would help you clean up the mastering. It’s also possible you’re using an excess of reverb, especially on the percussion. Don’t be afraid to give the drums a little bit of gain in the compressor. Usually you want the drums to be the loudest instrument in the mix, even in an orchestral piece like this. You’re clearly a talented composer, but I think you should focus on using production tools to really bring out a clean, balanced, and full sound to your tracks. Overall strong work! Very catchy piece with a strong harmonic theme. Keep it up, Spcialist! :)

8.25/10

NativeNiles responds:

Thx for you review. Honestly, I've been only using Finale Print Music 2010, Roland Edirol Orchestra and a very old Wave Studio program, so, that explains why my production is poorly done. I never really looked in to production aspect of music creation, I really just make music for the fun of it. I completely agree on your assessment on the end part becoming a bit repetitive, I just ran out of time to come up with a better ending. Thx for your review.

[AIM - Junkyard Kidz]

---Official AIM review---

I like the filtering work with the drums at the beginning and the groovy, mid-range bass. The melody that comes in at :17 is really cute. I love the retro video game vibes I’m getting from this. I think the drums could’ve been a bit stronger, though, especially in the first 50 seconds or so. The mixing and mastering are really strong. Clean, loud, and distinct sound. The texture doesn’t have a lot of legato elements, which begins to wear on me after a while. You could get a fuller, richer sound out of the piece even by incorporating some sort of pad or drone. I also think you overuse the stop-start transitions a bit (1:20, :45, 1:55, etc.). The piece has several different moments of minimalism as a result, which is also something I don’t think you want to overuse. That said, the mood, instrumentation, melodies, and mixing are all really enjoyable in this piece. While the piece does have a lot of variety, I commend you for incorporating enough repetition towards the end to make the piece seem cohesive overall. Overall really strong work, despite my nitpicking. Keep up the good work, Blarrgensnorf!

9.25/10

[[AIM] Felix Zophar - Hold On Longer]

---Official AIM review---

Catchy piece. I think the rhythm is a bit hard to follow before the beat comes in, but despite still being a bit generic, I think you did a better job with the sound design here than in the last piece I reviewed. Those quirky pads are pretty cool, and I like the filtering work you did on them at around 1:09. Nice job leading into 1:21, although I thought the transition at :30 could’ve been a little smoother. The drums are stronger this time, too. The snare sounds fuller and better balanced. There were several parts of the piece that were pretty minimalistic, although I like the automations with the pads, and I thought it worked well when the build-up in the filtering effects “reset” itself, like at 2:38. The piece feels really repetitive by around 3:30, especially with the chord progression and the thin melody synth. I don’t think you added much new content during the second half at all. The texture might need more fill, and the drum pattern especially lacks creativity. Similar to your last piece, the track ends abruptly after the final refrain. I still admire your sense of melody and harmony, though, and I think the mixing and mastering were a fair bit stronger here. That may be partly due to the minimalism, but you also had a nice sub-bass to fill in the texture a bit for this piece. Overall solid work, but it didn’t need to be 5 minutes long and/or this structurally repetitive. Keep at it, Zophar!

7.5/10

P.S.: I made a mistake in scoring your first track. Should be an 8/10, not 7.5. :)

FelixZophar responds:

Again, thanks for the long review. I still use a mobile DAW. And it's a lot harder to make good stuff on! Yeah, I think it should have been shorter too! Thanks man!