TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Aquapump (Sonic 3 Hydrocity Remix)]

This is extremely catchy and intense. You use panning, reverb, and harmonic space really well. The mixing and mastering are superb here. The piece has a sort of continuous energy with little dynamic contrast or structural relief, though. I loved the solos at 2:28, but I thought you could’ve used a bridge or breakdown somewhere in there to create a sense of climax and contrast leading into the solos. I love how you develop the melodies at 2:48, especially after you repeated that same melody at least 3 times earlier in the piece. Obviously, this is a fantastic piece overall. Perhaps you could have varied it a bit more from the original, but you still brought the fresh perspective of a new genre to the piece. Still, this is an engaging, fun, and catchy track with loud and clear mastering. Keep up the good work! ;D

9/10

[Aiearih (Piano)]

I like the tranquil mood at the beginning. It has great emotional depth to it. This piece is very flowing and majestic, although there were a couple of small moments when you interrupted that flow by not holding out notes long enough, such as 1:03, 1:55, etc. You did a great job of creating structural contrast here, too, as exemplified by 3:04, which followed a much more energetic section. Perhaps on a less serious note, I’m very curious about the title of this piece. It evokes a person’s name, although I was unable to find its meaning on the internet. Does it hold some special significance for you? I’ve always admired improv in general, though. It’s captivating to me that people can come up with such beautiful music as they play it. I thought this piece had a lot of space to it as well. For example, 5:29 and other little moments that let the piece breathe a lot between some very smooth-flowing sections. The piece also has a great narrative feel to it. If I had to complain about something, it might be that at times you seem to use block chords or excessively muddy notes (9:53, 11:43, 1:27, etc.) that make the piece a bit crunchy and disallow you to use the entire harmonic space that you could’ve to give this piece a nice, full texture all the time. Perhaps it’s just that you need to think more carefully about which notes you’re giving the most emphasis to. For example, the bass notes are a little overpowering at 12:46, even though it’s clear you were going for some drama there to contrast with the tranquil section that follows at 13:15. Also, even though this is an improv, I would’ve liked to see you try to maintain at least some common sense of theme. Coherence is just as relevant to 17-minute-long tracks as it is to 3-minute-long ones, although you do tie the various themes of this piece together very well in general. The piece doesn’t have much sense of climax at the end, but perhaps you make up for that with the emotion at 16:05. Overall, this is very enjoyable work. You’ve exemplified how to use minimalism and simple instrumentation right, my friend. Keep up the good work. ;D

9/10

pftq responds:

Thanks! Appreciate the in depth review. My live playing with chords is not as proficient as I'd want it to be, but much of what occurred in the piece compositionally is intentional and how you end up feeling as a result of them is what I was going for, including the interruptions in flow. The lack of repetition of some theme is more or less exactly what the traveler feels on the journey (and this song can be said to be written from that first person perspective rather than a third person observer) - that as you go further and further, you never really quite find a single identity, becoming a different person with every new place you encounter with no real linkage to the last, with only yourself ever really knowing the full journey and having few occasions to reflect (which is represented by the very rare occasions a theme does resurface). The only commonality is the feel, which remains largely the same, a bit reversed in that rather than a single theme being changed it's many themes over the course of the song with a hint of familiarity. It's like a person changing over time but upon meeting them you can't help feeling you still know that person amidst all the change they went through. Aiearih is just Hiraeia backwards.

[Heart of the East]

I like the sense of atmosphere at the beginning. The bird sounds and crickets fit the tranquil tone of the piece well. It’s a little slow to develop, but by the time those warm strings come in at around :50, there’s a captivating mood to this piece. Nice job offering some structural relief at 1:34, too. You have a great sense of tonality and harmony. The balance and mixing are also pretty strong here. I love how the Far East-sounding plucked strings support the woodwinds at 1:34. The piece has an excellent sense of climax at 2:03. You’ve done an excellent job with melodic development here, as well as maximizing the emotion through dynamic contrast and the like. If I had to complain about something mastering-wise, it’s probably that the plucked strings are fighting to stay afloat at 2:03. Compositionally, you might’ve been able to do more with the percussion besides using it to channel the energy through transitional content...but that’s a tiny detail. Overall, this is a fantastic piece. You did a great job of making it come full-circle, too, even though there’s a ton of variety in this piece. The instrumentation is superb, the melodies are engrossing, and it has a great sense of full texture and flow. For God’s sake, keep up the great work! ;D

10/10

[Lightning vs. Future(Mash Up)]

I liked the atmosphere at the beginning. At :14, the tranquility of the piano contrasts nicely with that mid-range synth making the wubs. There’s a lot of tension here with little sense of climax or direction until 1:09. I think you could’ve done a better job of phrasing the first minute or so to keep things interesting. Over 90 seconds is a long time to go before the first drop, after all, especially when your piece is fewer than 3 minutes long. I enjoyed the structural contrast you offered at 2:06 with the calm, smooth orchestral instruments. I don’t think the added effects at 2:33 were necessary. It sounds like you interrupted what really should’ve been a 4-minute-long track with a thunder clap and then cut it off suddenly. It’s usually a good idea to have at least 2 climactic sections in your piece, as this structure allows you to develop melodic ideas further. Perhaps this isn’t a structurally complete piece in that regard. Still, I enjoyed the mixing and mastering, which were both solid throughout. If you flesh out the composition of the piece a bit more, with some stronger melodic sections and variety in a second drop, this would be a top-tier piece. Until then, keep at it, man. ;)

7.5/10

[Tau]

I like the atmosphere and mood at the beginning. You transition well into the more energetic section at :24, although perhaps I would’ve kept a pad underneath the rhythmic chord patterns at :14 just to keep it nice and flowy. It’s a little slow to progress, and the transition at 1:36 is a little subtle given how heavy the following section is. That said, your mixing and mastering are both very solid. This piece has a nice ebb and flow of energy, but little in the way of structural variety. I would’ve liked to see some sort of breakdown or bridge section with some stronger melodic content. The beat is exotic and creative and fits the tone of the piece very well. The ending is jarringly sudden, though, and I don’t think this piece would be a good candidate for a loop, either. Overall, this is solid work. Even though this is an ambient track, I would’ve liked to hear some more memorable melodies. I also thought you could’ve done more with phrasing or dynamic contrast to maximize the dramatic and cinematic vibe of the piece. Keep at it, man. ;)

8.25/10

[Scenic Ride]

I like the groovy synth patterns and upbeat mood. The song is mastered very loudly and has a great atmosphere about it. I enjoyed the melodies at :28, but I thought you could’ve done more with the rhythm there. The section at :51 offers a good sense of structural relief, and you do a great job of building back up to a full texture from there. The melodies were a little too quiet at 1:14, though, and the bass is perhaps too loud throughout the piece. The piece has an amazing smoothness and flow to it, and the echo at the end seemed more than appropriate. I supposed I would’ve liked to see more of a memorable melody in there, though. The melodies as they are a bit too frantic and arpeggiated to stick in my mind as they are, I think. Perhaps you could have emphasized such a melody by playing the dreamy pad at 1:26 by itself during some sort of breakdown section. Even so, I suppose the fast pace of this piece renders your melodic decisions fitting. The moodiness of this piece is definitely my favorite part. It’s catchy and energetic, yet has a breathtaking atmosphere. Keep up the great work, Noisysundae! :D

9.5/10

Noisysundae responds:

Can't say that much about the bass. Some prefer it at this amount, others don't. And possibly because it's mostly constant notes, opposite of those complex bass melodies I usually make. Another bad thing is that I can't trust my ears when listening to the bass. If you have time to listen to 'Bittersweet', you'll see that the bass there is a lot lighter. :P

Perhaps it's the detuned saw that makes this piece too frantic as you described. That's also why I don't consider this a liquid DnB.

Other than that, I agree to every point you've made. It's quite a dilemma for me when I'm gonna make atmospheric music but not sure if some parts should have more melodies in it. Glad to see you loved this sundae. You faved it, yay!

[Arise From the Dust]

I like the instrumentation and atmosphere. It’s very moody and tranquil. I like your transition into :38. It has a great sense of climax into 1:02, but doesn’t quite reach the huge cathartic moment I was expecting. It seems like you have some percussion going on in the background at 1:30, but it simply doesn’t poke its head through this relatively cloudy mix. I would’ve compressed those drums a lot and also adjusted the volume levels. I can barely hear the drums at 1:58 either, and they still sound a bit indistinct at 2:10. The drama and emotion here is great. Compositionally, this piece is very enjoyable, although I’d caution you about using a little too much variety because this piece loses an element of coherence after a while. Still, bringing out the drums more could’ve enhanced the drama further here, and this was one of your few missed opportunities. This is especially unfortunate because otherwise the mastering was rather clean and clear. Perhaps I’m beating a dead horse here, though. I love the full texture and I admire your sense of tonality and harmony. The instrumentation is excellent and, once again, the sweeping contrast between the moody intro and intense cinematic “body” of this track was superb. Admirable work! Keep it up, man. ;)

8.75/10

[Tower of the Angels]

I like the emotion and chord progression at the beginning. It’s a little slow to develop, but I liked the arpeggios at :43, which gave the piece a bit of a bright tone. I seriously think you should’ve brought out the arpeggios more, in fact, because they get buried under the mix a bit, and by 1:25 I can barely hear them. The mood and atmosphere are great here, but there is very little melodic content. The piece wouldn’t make a bad loop if you had set it up that way, but unfortunately the ending cuts off suddenly and jarringly. Unfortunately, I don’t really regard this as a structurally complete piece. There’s very little sense of structural ebb and flow, dynamic contrast, or melodic development that usually make music (but especially cinematic music) so captivating in general. You could’ve done a lot more with this. I wanted to see roaring brass melodies, more phrasing with the strings, and at least some more sense of structural variety. Instead, I got a 2-minute-long repetitive videogame loop for a dungeon level that barely functions as a stand-alone piece. It just feels like one long build-up stretched over 2 minutes, and even then you could have done more with the dynamics for dramatic effect. I’d suggest fleshing this piece out with some full-length structuring, phrasing, more melodic content, and more variety. Do this, and you’re well on your way in the epic film composing category, my friend. Until then, keep working at it. ;)

6.25/10