TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[mistmurk + 3MBER - Utopia]

I like the spacious mix and synths. The snare sample wasn't my favorite, though. The progression is a little slow, but the vocal samples at around 1:05 set the mood nicely. Good job with the atmosphere and sound design here. I'm liking the sense of climax into 2:12. Could've used some stronger melodic content throughout, especially earlier in the piece. The transition at 2:47 seemed a bit jarring, but overall the piece has a nice flow and shape. Mastering is probably my favorite element of the piece. Everything just sounds really clean, and you do a good job of using the whole frequency range for most of the piece. Structure felt a little dragged-out, but the atmosphere makes up for that. Overall solid work, guys. ;)

[HEY! [Glitch Hop]]

I like the blissful mood and melodies. The lead might have a tad too much treble, but overall the frequencies are really well-balanced in the piece. The chopped vocals at :37 were well-done, and I like the sense of climax into 1:10. The chord progression is a little cliche, and the first minute or so does seem a tad dragged out, but the upbeat vibe of the piece is really engrossing. The melodies during the breakdown at 2:10 were enjoyable, and the production quality is really strong. The variations on the melody at 3:12 are really refreshing, although the piece is a tad repetitive overall. I liked the tempo automations at the very end, and the piece comes together really well. This is a really strong track, guys! Keep up the good work. ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.75/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9.25/10

Zelgeon responds:

Thanks for the review! In the updated version of this track we've fixed many things, we made sure to lower the high end of the leads. What do you mean with "the first minute or so does seem a tad dragged out"?
We made the song repetitive on purpose because we wanted to make a really catchy song this time :D
That thing at the final wasn't automations, it was made manually in the piano roll! ;)

Thanks for not disqualifying us again c:

_Adrián, Zelgeon member #2/2

[Shell]

I like the distorted puttering at the beginning and the tranquil guitar at :06. The vocals are powerful, but a little too dry. I’d suggest using some more reverb and chorus effects. The lyrics themselves are also rather powerful and entertaining. I think you would’ve been well-advised to add a little more to the instrumentation, though - it lacks variety and direction until around the 2-minute mark, and could use some drums, bass, and other harmonies to give it some more drive and contrast. I like the new direction the piece is taking by around 2:47, but at the same time I think you could’ve integrated the two halves of this piece a little better. Your production quality has improved a lot since last year, but I still wish the drums and acoustic guitar came through a little clearer at 3:33. The solo at the end was very well done - intense, soulful, and climactic. Overall, this is really strong work. I love the energy and the 90s rock vibe. Despite the slow pace and dry vocals, the piece comes together well. Keep it up, Verbicidemusic. ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.5/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9/10

[Every Photon, 100 Times a Second]

I like the tranquil, organic vibe at the beginning. By :30, the piece has a very warm and soothing texture, and a great sense of progression and climax. The rhythmic elements at :58 are really strong, and the instruments blend extremely well. The simple melodies in the bell/triangle are extremely effective. The oscillating instrument at 1:53 with the pitch bends is also quite amusing - almost sounds like an emergency alarm in slow motion. The dissonances at 2:18 work really well as a transition, and by 3:00 had I just broken out in a huge grin. Writing this on the 14th, I can all but guarantee you a top-3 spot. This piece is fantastic. It has an engrossing mood and atmosphere, clever sound design, strong production quality, and some extremely inventive quirks. Fantastic work! This might be the best NGUAC piece I’ve heard since the tryouts phase. By all means, keep it up, SleepFacingWest! :D  

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
2/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
1/1
Composite score
10/10

[True Thing]

I like the groovy vibe - sounds like a cheesy 80s dance track. :)  The progression is also enjoyable, but it could use some more prominent melodic content earlier in the piece. I like the breakdown at 2:05 - it offers some nice structural variety. I also enjoyed the melodic development you offered at 3:12. This piece is really catchy and refreshing, if a bit generic instrumentation-wise. I also thought the kick could come through the mix a bit clearer during some of the busier sections. Overall, it’s a really catchy and fun piece, though. Keep at it, PolarTrance. ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
2/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.5/10

[Lyra]

I like the soothing mood at the beginning. You may have overdone the reverb a bit, but the instrumentation was great, especially the strings and percussion. The melodic content at :58 is great, too. I was a little thrown off by the entry of the drums at around 1:10, though - they just didn’t fit the character of the piece so far very well IMO. The snare sounds especially generic, processed, and maybe too loud as well. The percussion at around 2:45 fits the rest of the sound design much better. Still, you’ve absolutely nailed the atmosphere, and the victorious/blissful mood was rather enjoyable as well. I love the little phrasing detail at 3:37, too, and the trumpet solo at the very end was a great touch. Overall, this is a very strong piece, both compositionally and mixing-wise. Keep up the great work, PianoreGD! ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
2/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9.5/10

Tennon responds:

Wow that was beyond my expectations! I thought I failed this song lol. I strong agree with the fact that the snare is really bad, next time I will probably make a new snare that sounds not too distorted!

[Alter Ego (Part 2)]

I like the cinematic vibe at the beginning. The vocals were a nice touch, and the strings create a lot of drive and anticipation. At :24, I think the strings could sound a bit more distinct in the mix, though. Still, the percussion is crisp and loud, which is a good sign that the mixing is strong overall. The piece lacks some direction until around 1:20, though. For a cinematic piece, there’s not a ton of phrasing and shape. The piece was very suspenseful without offering much in the way of emotional heights. At 1:38, that powerful brass melody really takes a back seat. That’s a missed opportunity to really let loose the tension that’s been present for the entire piece so far. The section at 2:53 sounded more like a climax than anything else, but you still could’ve done a better job of building up to it using dynamics and phrasing rather than simply layering instruments on top of each other and having an occasionally sweep or crash. I think the sound design and mixing are really strong here, but the composition needs a lot more flavor and shape to hit it home. Keep at it, Omson! ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
.75/1
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8/10

[astrEnfant]

I like the ominous vibe at :05 and the atmospheric flair. The piece has a really engaging cinematic vibe. The sound design is great, and the part at :42 feels really climactic. The guitar entrance at 1:02 caught me off guard a bit (not because it was a rough transition, but because the guitar wasn’t really an obvious choice given the instrumentation up to that point). I also thought the drums were a bit generic, and the pacing of the piece is very fast. You don’t have to change up the texture every 10-15 seconds in order to generate enough variety. Also, the mini-bridges with the high-pitched bells (like at 2:11) got a bit overused after a while. There are a lot of good ideas here. The melodies are fantastic. The mixing is super clean and clear. You’ve varied the energy levels a lot, and I appreciate it. BUT the composition feels extremely patched-together and incoherent. I’d highly encourage you to put more effort in the future into keeping the listener grounded in a (slightly) more predictable and repetitive structure. All these rapid changes in the texture is jarring for the listener, and consolidating your ideas and slowing down the pacing would help a lot. Don’t be afraid of a little more repetition! That said, overall I enjoyed the piece a lot. Keep at it, Miyolophone. ;)   

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.75/10

Miyolophone responds:

Thanks for the review TL! I admit your criticism about coherence comes as a surprise to me, since I actually worked super hard this time on making my melodies repeat as frequently as some might in more typical electronic genres, but this time it seems texture was my downfall, so definitely a fair point. Perhaps I went a little crazy on generating new material— funny how writing more music can actually make it less enjoyable— as is typical for me in my quest to never be boring, so in the future I'll try not to go overboard on that sort of thing.
(also I will regret the electric guitar until the day I die)
Thanks again!

[Finale]

I like the warm texture at the beginning. It’s a little slow to progress, but I love the phrasing in the pads. The lead at :53 was a nice touch, but I’m not sure the high-pitched arpeggios complement the texture very well. Overall, the mix is pretty clean, but I think the composition is a little underwhelming. The chord progression is pretty cliche, and the rest of the harmony parts are heavily grounded in that progression. The pause at 2:03 was a little sudden and awkward, but I appreciated your attempt at structural variety and emotion with the piano at 2:06. There’s also another rough transition at 4:04, and overall not a lot of new material in the second half of the piece to keep me engaged. The sound design is probably my favorite element of the piece, but overall the piece needs a little more textural fill in places and some more substantial melodic content. I was also impressed with the mixing, though. Keep at it, Madze. ;)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/2
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
.75/1
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the above elements interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.25/10