TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Collision Course]

I like the atmosphere at the beginning. Has a bit of an ominous mood. The pads in the background have a bit of a harsh edge - couldn’t hurt to take off a little treble in the equalizer. I like the bass and kick that come in at 1:05 - they add a lot of tension and drive to the piece. It’s very slow to progress, but has a good sense of climax over time. I think that bass is overwhelming the kick a little - I might suggest some sidechaining, or simply stricter equalizing and compression. After the bass and kick cut out at 2:09, the piece loses its sense of direction a bit. I think you need more melodic content - or even simply more moving notes - during the first few minutes of this piece. The pace at which it changes is typically very slow, and when it does change, the transition is very sudden (e.x., 3:28). I also think the mixing is a little strained at around 3:30 and beyond. It’s hard to hear the kick. You might want to scale back the reverb a bit - that could help clean things up. The clap at 4:33 sounds a bit weak - usually claps or snares that play on the off beat in 4/4 should be the loudest instruments of the mix, and this is no exception. The hats there also sounded a bit cliche. Overall, there isn’t a lot of rhythmic variety in this piece at all. There are a lot of straight ⅛ notes between the harmonies and melody lines. I think you need some stronger melodies with more rhythmic variety and directionality. I liked the melody at 6:15, even if it was a little simple and repetitive. Couldn’t hurt to bring it out more in the mix, either. I really don’t think there’s enough material and variety here to justify the piece being over 10 minutes long. At the very least, you should use more dynamics and phrasing to give this piece a little more shape. There was another awkward transition at 7:53, and some dynamics changes or filtering leading up to it could help foreshadow the section with increased energy that follows. Overall, I think your main areas of focus should be cleaning up the mix and consolidating your ideas in the composition to speed up the pace. Keep at it, man.

5/10

[Cameleon Arc-En-Ciel]

The distorted effects at the beginning were a little bizarre, yet at the same time had a very predictable phasing pattern. I think you needed a smoother transition into :08, and a couple of the instruments there sound really harsh - I’d suggest eliminating some of the treble frequencies with an equalizer. The drums were enjoyable, though, and you did a nice job of offering some structural contrast at 1:05. The piece doesn’t have a lot of melodic content at all, and the texture at 1:33 sounds very distorted and indistinct mixing-wise. The drums are really struggling to come through, and the instrumentals are a jarring wall of sound. Some more strict equalizing could really help maintain the gritty quality of the texture without the harsh mixing attributes. The vocals also get a little buried in the background of the unpolished synths. The fade-out ending came across as lazy. There are a lot of contrasting moods here, which I like, and you often have them playing simultaneously, which is cool. The piece has a decent amount of atmosphere, but I think the sound design needs to be shaped a little differently to make sure everything sits nicely in the mix. You definitely scored points for originality, and overall the piece is well-structured and smooth-flowing. Keep at it, man. :)

7/10

etK responds:

Yeah, I have to get better at mastering, and I agree with most of your criticism, thank you for that.
However about the vocals, they're left on the background on purpose, it's shoegaze-influenced, I don't consider the vocals to be a privileged instrument. But yeah again thanks a lot for the support ! :)

[Ayjin - Chillin]

The synths at the beginning sound really harsh and unpolished. I’d suggest removing some of the treble there. I like the atmosphere and most of the other instruments, though. The mix is indeed crisp and clear. The middle section of this piece is a little minimalistic, though, and I think my main problem with the piece is that it needs stronger melodic content. The repetitive riffs at the chorus don’t really satisfy that need, and you don’t vary a lot of the content during the second half of the piece anyway. Still, it’s a really catchy piece with a refreshing, relaxed mood. Keep at it, man. ;)

8.25/10

Armorstick responds:

Thank you for the comprehensive feedback!

[Supercharged]

Some of the synths - but certainly the drums - sound a little generic, but I like the mood and atmosphere at the beginning. The riser at :15 was a little overdone, and didn’t result in a huge climax like I expected it to given its grandeur. I like the melodic content and portamentos, though. The mix is also fairly clean and clear - I like the punchy, gritty synths at the drop. The melodic content at 2:18 is also rather enjoyable. The transition at 3:16 is very sudden, though. If anything, that’s where you need your huge riser thing to come in. Also, be careful not to overdo the panning at 3:35 - it sounds a little harsh in my headphones when it’s so far to one side. The ending was also very sudden and inconclusive. Overall, though, this is an enjoyable piece with some cool melodies. It’s very catchy and well-mastered. Keep at it, man! :)

8/10

[A Deep Sleep]

Interesting texture at the beginning - the synth seemed a little cliche, but at the same time it meshes well with the gritty guitar. There’s quite a bit of dissonance in here, especially at 1:20 or so. Perhaps I would’ve liked to hear a smoother transition into 1:44. The mood and atmosphere here are really cool. I think my main problem with the piece is that it doesn’t have a lot of structural variety. Dynamics, phrasing, and filtering would all help give this piece a little more shape and contrast. I liked the progression and harmony at 3:01, but I think that the entire last third or so of the piece needs a bit more texture - reintroducing the drums at some point might help, or even having the bass play a simple riff at a low volume would suffice. As it is now, the piece felt a little anticlimactic. Overall, the mix is very clean and clear, which is probably your biggest asset in this piece. Keep at it, man! ;)

7.25/10

[Delicate Deephouse]

I like the instrumentation at the beginning. It’s catchy, and the echo/delay effects really help give the piece some atmosphere. The beat that comes in at around :20 is catchy and unique. The piece is a little slow to develop, but the sound design is really cool. I think you needed smoother transitions at 1:19 and 3:56 - some phrasing and maybe a drum fill would help you accomplish that. I also think you needed some stronger melodic content earlier in the piece. The pizzicato-y synth at 2:22 is the first example of a prominent melody I can hear. The piece also has a feeling of continuity without much structural variety - dynamics, phrasing, and filtering could all help give this piece a little more shape. I also enjoyed the melodic content at 3:41. Overall, cool piece. Some parts of the texture feel a bit minimal, but this piece has a great atmosphere and is also super catchy. Keep up the great work! :)

8.75/10

[Phase Cancel]

I like the intensity at the beginning. You have a good sense of rhythm, and the drums feel pretty loud in the mix. The piece has a sense of continuity without much structural variety, though. The energy level is almost constant the entire time, and I would’ve liked to see you experiment more with dynamics, phrasing, and the like. The piece has a really clean and polished sound, though. Everything sits really well in the mix, and there are a lot of cool riffs here. Keep at it, man! :)

8.5/10

TSRBand responds:

Thanks for the detailed review! I'm happy to hear this went over well in the NGADM auditions :) looking forward to coming up with another over the next couple weeks!

[Reality Shift]

I like the rhythm and drive the punchy guitars have at the beginning. The texture feels a little harsh in my headphones, though - perhaps this is a mixing problem? It’s hard for me to tell tbh. The transition at 1:28 was a little rough, although the section after that offered some nice structural relief to contrast the energy and drive of the previous section. The fade-out ending came across as a bit lazy, though. There are a lot of cool ideas here. My main problem with the piece is that it has very little coherence. There are some sections that are repeated, but the near-uniform intensity of the piece throughout really makes it hard to keep the listener grounded in the overarching structural pattern. That’s definitely my main concern, though. There are a lot of neat riffs here. I think you just need to consolidate your ideas a little to add some cohesion to the piece. The emotion, melodies, and drive the piece has is great nevertheless. Keep at it, man!

8.5/10

[A Hero's Return]

I like the sharp strings at the beginning and the energy of the piece. Good sense of climax and apprehension during the first 30 seconds or so. The sweep at :48 felt a little out-of-place here given the orchestral instrumentation. The melodic content here is beautiful, though, especially at 1:14. I think the percussion and strings are struggling to come through the mix during the busier sections of this piece. Perhaps some more equalizing and compression would help. The bass slide at 1:45 is a little cheesy, but overall this is a well-structured, smooth-flowing, and grippingly dramatic piece. It is a bit short, but there’s enough phrasing and dynamic changes to constitute a relatively complex structure here. Nice work! :D

8.75/10

[Tango with the Devil]

I like the sound design and mood. The piece has a good flow and amusing melodic content. The section at 1:56 offered some great structural variety, although I think you could’ve done a lot more with dynamics and phrasing in this piece. The part at 2:58 is really amusing as well, and I like the soft, somewhat somber ending. You could’ve done a bit more with the drums here, just to give the piece a little more drive, but in a way simplicity is an asset for this piece. In some of the busier sections of the piece (such as 2:30), the cymbals had a little trouble coming through the mix, but overall the instruments are very well-balanced. Perhaps the main riff could’ve used a little more variation, too - there are a lot of repeated cadences here. Still, this is strong work. Keep it up! :D

8.5/10

PomicStone responds:

Thank you very much for taking time to rate this. This analysis is very helpful for me to get better :)