TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[My Life]

I like the retro vibe and the instrumentation, even if the schmoozy strings and synths were a bit cheesy. Some of the lyrics are a little cliche - you went a little overboard on setting up the wistful aspect of the piece, and also used a lot of generic phrases like “trials and tribulations,” even the title itself: “life’s a bitch.” That said, once you started talking about the violence the narrator was exposed to and/or took part in, it was easier to get into the song. You really start to tell a story with the lyrics in the verses, which is always a plus. I thought the gun FX at 1:25 was a good idea, but it ended up sounded really harsh in the mix the way you incorporated it - it probably just needed to be equalized differently. Still, I’m enjoying the nice, full texture you have throughout the piece. I also thought the piece got a bit repetitive by the end, and the echo effect at the end came across as a bit lazy and cliched. You also could’ve used a breakdown or bridge somewhere in there to add some shape and structural relief to the piece. It has a smooth sense of continuity as it is, but I wanted to see you interrupt that pattern after a while and leave some more space for contrast. Overall, this is admirable work. The harmonies and mastering are strong, and I enjoyed the vocals overall. I think you lost the most points for lacking originality and variety in the texture. Keep at it, guys! ;)

8.5/10  

[Never To Have Love]

I wasn’t really a fan of the robotic vocal sample at the beginning - feels a little out-of-place given the acoustic vibe of the rest of the piece, and also takes the emotion out of the lyrics. Still, I like the minimal guitars at :13. The pacing of the vocals thereafter is really fitting to the melancholy vibe of the piece, and the vocals blend really well. I also like the lyrics a lot - very down-to-earth and relatable. After a while, the minimalism wore on me a bit. I think you need some drums and bass to give the piece some more punch and drive. I also thought you needed to enunciate some of the consonants better - like “taKe” at 2:07. Overall, I really like the mood, and the production quality is also quite strong. The mix is dry, though, and the composition is pretty underwhelming. I’d encourage you to keep working on this! Keep at it, StealthyNine. ;)

8.5/10

[Great Commune Of Planet Earth]

I like the smooth, ambient vibe at the beginning. Right off the bat, the sound design is really cool, and the texture seems very anticipatory. The progression is really interesting, but for the first couple of minutes the only strong melodic elements come in short bursts (like at 1:28). Something about the piece seems robotic in a way. It has an underlying rhythmic pattern that reminds me of toys/decorations bouncing up and down in a Disney amusement ride. The piece has a sense of continuity without much change in the textural fill or dynamics over long stretches of time, which may be dangerous because it makes it hard for the listener to stay engaged. The ending is a bit abrupt, too. Really beautiful atmosphere and instrumentation here, though. The production quality is also quite strong. I commend you for making such a unique and quirky piece. Keep at it, SnowTeddy! ;)

8.75/10

[Market Day (KindLing A0S1)]

I liked the pensive mood at the beginning, and the percussion was a nice touch. Good use of reverb and progression. The texture is rich and has a great sense of drive about it, even without much in the way of drums or bass. The sound design is really strong. I think the melodies at 1:12 are a little too loud, and it’s also easy to tell that the string sample there is fake because of it’s slow attack. Overall, the production quality here is really strong, and I liked the tempo automations at 1:50. The bell sound at 2:06 was a little harsh-sounding - you may want to take some treble off of it in an equalizer. Still, I appreciated the tranquility, which offered some great structural relief from the earlier energetic section. The texture changes drastically at 2:32 and again at 2:55 - the piece doesn’t have a ton of structural cohesion, so I’d be careful about trying to cram too many melodic ideas into one piece. That said, the piece comes together nicely with the return of the powerful string solos. Overall, the composition here is absolutely fantastic. The slight balance issues during the string sections were the only things that actively bothered me. Keep up the great work, Miyolophone! ;)

9.75/10

Miyolophone responds:

(ahhhhh the attack was all the way down stupid viola sample)
Thanks TL for the feedback and obscenely high score! Like I said to johnfn, I'll make sure to treat my melodies and textures with respect and dignity instead of just tossing them around next time ;)

[Minty Bite Vol. 2 - Negative Space]

I like the smooth, organic vibe at the beginning. Nice and spacious mix, too. I wish you had done a bit more with the instrumentation here, but I like the flowing arpeggiated part at the 1-minute mark. Given that this is a solo instrument piece, I also think you could’ve done a bit more with dynamics and phrasing. The texture has a little more space by around 2:15, but it wasn’t quite enough to mask the effects of 3 minutes of otherwise near-constant energy level. I also didn’t think the piece sounded particularly conclusive by the end. In fact, you just seemed to be arriving at a moment of tension in the piece when it ended. Overall, this is admirable and entertaining work. You’re clearly a talented guitarist - it just needed a little more effort on the composition. Keep at it, MintyFreshThoughts! ;)

8.25/10

[Sensor]

I like the pensive mood at the beginning. The pacing is a little slow, but the (vox?) effect at :30 was really cool, and I’m enjoying the sense of climax into :53 (even if it died back down again). Nice use of phrasing and reverb, and the sub-bass was cool too. By around 1:20, I’m really itching for some melodic content, though. The intro just really didn’t need to drag on for this long. It finally feels like there’s some sort of direction to it at the 2-minute mark. The production quality is really strong throughout, and you do a good job of using the entire frequency range. My main problem with it is that you could’ve done a lot more with the composition. There are no prominent melodies or lead riffs that capture my attention. It’s a really cool progressive piece with a killer atmosphere, but it just needs more variety and structuring to make it as a stand-alone piece. Keep at it, Jassummisko! ;)

8/10

[Snapshot]

I like the atmosphere at the beginning. The piece has a great dreamy vibe for the first 30 seconds, and then the melody at :32 really hits home the smooth sense of bliss that the intro set up. Some of the synths may have been a bit generic, especially the chords at 1:21. That said, I really enjoyed the drop at 1:34. The sub-bass was a nice touch, and I love what you did with the filtering on those pads at around 2:05. The thin texture at 3:04 was a little unexpected, but by the end this piece feels really victorious and cathartic. I love the mood, atmosphere, melodies, and progression here. The theme of the photograph is really well done, too. Keep up the great work, EtzerGD! ;)

9.5/10

EtzerGD responds:

Thank you so much! Appreciate the review and the hours of time you must spend on these contests <3

[Writer's Block Anthem]

I like the chord progression and the vocals. Sometimes your enunciation on the consonants isn’t quite there (“write” at :06 sounds like “wry,” and “void” at 2:11 sounds like “voy”). At :20, the kick is a little weak, although I like the layered vocals a lot, and the saxophone solo at :35 was a nice touch. The hip-hop inspired hi-hats were a nice addition to the texture, too. The vocals get really buried in the mix at 2:25, though. I also think the piece needs more structuring - there are a lot of stop-start and sudden transitions, like 1:43 and 2:16. Overall, I commend you for trying something out that was outside of your usual style. The piece has a lot of strengths - it’s catchy and fun, topical, and the sound design is really strong. Keep at it, Ectisity. ;)

8/10   

[Zyzyx - Screw Physics]

I like the bouncy, upbeat vibe at the beginning. The melodic content is great, even though some of the synths sound a bit generic. The drop is really refreshing and smooth. The production quality is also rather strong, and you do a good job of using the entire frequency range throughout. I also like the breakdown section at 2:34 a lot - you have a decent amount of structural relief in this piece, even if the pacing is pretty fast. I thought the transition at 3:08 was a bit rough, and the ending is also a bit abrupt, but overall this piece is really flowing. Overall, really strong work here! Keep it up, DJ-zyzyx! ;)

9.5/10

[Jacques Melissa - Screw everything]

This is a catchy and fun piece. I think the first problem I noticed is that the texture sounds very thin - for example, at :09 the instrumental could just use a lot more fill. The mastering is actually pretty strong, but I think you could’ve used some pads or denser harmonies to eliminate some of the minimalism that pervades a lot of this piece. The piece is very repetitive after a while, and the comedic value of it doesn’t exactly convince me to take it seriously as a stand-alone composition. It also has an abrupt ending and, while the theme and mood are amusing, the instrumental doesn’t actually have a lot of moving notes. Overall, I liked it. I laughed. I had a good time. But I think you need to do a lot more with the composition in order to get full credit in the “melody/harmony/texture” category. Keep at it, Djhoneyb. ;)

7.5/10

Jakki responds:

thanks for the criticism! I'll keep your points in mind when I am doing more songs.

Also glad you laughed haha, it's supposed to have a little comical value, but certainly it isn't totally a joke song.

Cheers