TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Equilibria - Blood Moon (Infinite Realms)]

Yeah, I'm really behind on my reviews now, huh? So let's fix that!

First of all, I love the heavy, slow piano section at the beginning. The arpeggios at around :20 really helped you transition effectively into the more intense bits too. I think you probably could've used some more drums and bass in the first minute or so, though, just to add more substance in an otherwise relatively bare soundscape. I loved the energetic bass at 1:55, though. I think that the drums were not as strong as they could've been, especially around 2:30 where the bass has a monopoly on the mix. That said, your mastering is as good as ever. I love the little mini-guitar riffs that start popping in at around 3:20, but I thought you needed a smoother transition into them. I also thought the gradual fade-out of the guitar solo at around 4:30 was pretty anti-climactic and unnatural-sounding. My biggest complaint, though, is probably the balance. You really highlight certain elements of your mix more than others, but it seems a little out-of-place sometimes. For example, the guitar is clearly hi-jacking the mix throughout the last couple of minutes, most notably during the last minute. Yet around 6:30, as you're winding down the track, I feel like it should have a darker, quieter, more furtive feel about it, yet it's as loud and in-your-face as ever until the very last note. Overall, however, this is a cool track, and I'm glad you're expanding your horizons by using some different samples (i.e., the guitar). Until next time, DM. ;D

Dylnmatrix responds:

Thanks for the review, man!

A lot of the gripes you have with this track I do have to agree and disagree with. A lot of the odd things about the track, like the solo fade out and keeping it in your face throughout the whole track, were really just artistic choices that we preferred over others. Though the balance thing, totally agree with. It was really hard to find the balance in the track that would also translate well in the master, as it was a little more balanced before I started mastering and, with the handicap I had mastering the track (headphones only, no monitors), I ended up tipping the scales a little more than I wanted.

[Hiatus]

Hmm...ironic how I skipped this piece in my initial binge-review of your new tracks. I like the wet, spacious claps and the quirky synths at :26. It reminds me a bit of "Lucid" in that it's sort of minimalistic, yet super catchy, melodic, and moody. I love your hi-hat work here. I thought the transition at 1:17 could've been led up to a bit more effectively. That crash only superficially makes it flow better. The male vocals (like at 2:41) later on also added a lot to the piece. I thought you could've done a bit more with the rhythm of the melody at times, but overall it's a really cool track. I'm really impressed that this only took you 5 hours to make, albeit a little disappointed at the ending (or lack thereof). Overall, though, this is a really cool track. Keep up the good work, Lockyn! ^^

Lockyn responds:

I guess you took a...

Hiatus

on reviewing this one initially. :P Glad you saw the similar style, was going for it for sure. Ending needs work as always, but I was happy with it doing it in one session. Cheers mate :)

[happy WIP]

It's about time I catch up on the rest of your fall tracks. This is cool, catchy and upbeat. Definitely has some potential. I might challenge you to do a little more with your beats, though. Some hi-hats or other percussion would add a lot to this piece. You have a great sense of melody, and it shows here. ;)

Lockyn responds:

Yeah I'll see where this goes to. Might not be for a while though. Cheers!

[Detious & Lockyn - Allure]

I love the atmospheric intro. There's a lot of space for contrast here. The mixing and mastering is top-notch, and I love all the frantic synths and well-balanced frequency range. One of my favorite elements of the track is how much space you left at times. The pacing from 2:03 to the drop at around 2:25 is awesome. I'm not a huge fan of heavy dubstep, but you blend the drop in so well with the floaty, lighter sections that it really comes together well IMO. I love the vocal samples you guys used around 3:15 - 3:30. It's truly a huge accomplishment to pull off the sheer variety of instruments you have here. Having three drops in a song is a bit unconventional, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but I still felt like the piece dragged on for a bit too long. The ending left me with a lot to think about too. XD Overall, this is really admirable work though. Well worth the hundreds of hours. ;D Keep up the great work, you two! ^^

[Skybound]

I liked the airy, bright synths and sense of climax at the beginning. It could've used a bit more rhythmic variation early on though. I'll also say that it progresses pretty slowly in general. I like the mood and instruments. The drop at 2:15 was cool, yet also a bit underwhelming IMO. In fact, I thought 3:15 might've even functioned better as an emotional height, but you didn't really seem to portray it that way given the scale of your various build-ups (if you catch my drift). The mixing and mastering here is top-notch, as is typical among your tracks. It's well-structured and smooth-flowing. You have an excellent relaxed and flowing aesthetic here, yet at the same time it's very energetic and engaging. You did a better job at winding down the ending this time, although there was this random heavy percussion hit at 7:00 that seemed a little out-of-place. Also, I think it was a great idea to make an album for your fans. That's great! I'll check it out right now. I remember when I first reviewed your WIP for "Sequence." It must've been years ago now, though...anyway, I'm looking forward to your future work! Enjoy your Thanksgiving. ;D

Lockyn responds:

Thank you as always for the lengthy reviews TL, always makes my day. :) Hope you enjoy the album! I do agree with your points, the track definitely was longer than it needed to be and some transitions were awkward but I hope the feels made up for it. Cheers!

[Abandoning the Past]

Given the genre, the intro was a little unexpected, although I did enjoy a taste of your more orchestral work that you used to make. The transition into :38 was pretty cool. I'll admit I've grown quite fond of your punchy, mid-range snares. The arpeggios at 1:36 had a really soothing, flowy vibe, but then you sort of cut them short to make way for this drum fill or something, which sort of threw me off. I will say that I really liked the exotic themes it had. It sounds like some sort of Middle Eastern-inspired track. The mixing is awesome as usual, and I never doubted for a second that you composed the whole thing. ;) Also, the ending here is a lot better than in the last piece I reviewed IMO because you really scaled back the energy towards the end and focused on the atmosphere. Insta-faved and downloaded. I applaud your efforts, sir...which is awkward because I'm sitting alone in my room in the middle of the night. Anyway, hope to hear from you soon! ^^

[Infinity + 1]

Gosh darn it, man. Don't you know arithmetic operations involving infinity just yield infinity? Wait, of course you do. You're, like, super smart and stuff. My bad.

Anyway, this is a really cool track. I love the furtive mood at the beginning and the synths. The melodies are catchy and cool. Appropriate amount of reverb too. Perhaps it progresses a bit slowly until around 1:10, but it was well worth the wait. You just kinda have these awesome solos coming out of nowhere all the time, even in the breakdown at 2:08, and I'm loving it! Sure, it's not the best for coherence purposes, but overall I thought you tied it together pretty well. Classic "Light Up"-style modulation at 3:18. I'm not sure the coda felt as, well, conclusive as I'd have liked it to. The ending itself was fine, but things didn't really ever seem to be winding down, y'know? Overall, though, great work. I continue to admire your work from afar (i.e., Maine), even if I save all my binge-reviews and downloads for when I'm back home from school. I'm looking forward to your future tracks, but in the meantime enjoy your Thanksgiving! :D

[Wonderful Things]

Okay, so I just up and decided "well, crap...I've gotten really behind on all my reviews. I'm going to binge-review every single damn track LunacyEcho has posted in the last 3 months." And then it's just kinda this one, super-short track. Guess they don't call it #JuniorYear for nuthin'. Anyway, I like the cute mood and synths. It's well-balanced frequency-wise, and has a pleasant, uplifting tone to it. I think your mixing has improved a lot since early in the summer or so btw. Obviously, the piece is structurally a little underwhelming, but it could've made a great loop if you had gone the extra mile (i.e., 2 minutes of work). It is in fact quite fitting for a videogame, so please don't feel so self-conscious about "stuffing" your songs into that category. Also, I somehow have some time this weekend if you want to hang on Cockatrice (Thanksgiving is good; I like Thanksgiving), so shoot me a PM if you get the chance. I hope to see some more work from you soon, LE, but if not I hope your studies are at least going well. ;D

LunacyEcho responds:

Welp >< Guess I underestimated how busy I would be this year :D

=> mixing =>

Thanks so much! It's definitely an area that I'm proud of improving in :P

=> structurally =>

I would argue that the piece isn't *that* loopable because it begins with a filtered intro? But I can definitely see what you mean. :P Looping would also help it fit more into the video game genre! Duly noted.

=> Cockatrice =>

Ah man, I'm real sorry for not responding to this earlier. I remember seeing it after quickly checking Newgrounds, making a mental note to re-read it later. Next thing you know, a month went by >< Sorry about that! But school is now all but over for the rest of the year, so at least there's that! :D

Thanks for the review! And thanks a lot for staying with me all this time :P

[A Noisy Sundae]

During the first split second, there was this distorted, frantic, and almost arrhythmic bass that I thought was a bit out-of-place. After that, though, the lighter tone it had until around :27 was super cool. While this obviously isn't a structurally complete piece, I can appreciate the darker direction you started to take it in towards the end. The loop isn't perfect again (or maybe it's my computer?) but the end of the loop at least partially justifies that distorted bass riff I was talking about at the beginning. I also think the track would've been more engaging if the drums were stronger. After all, that's theoretically half of what makes it a drum and bass track, no? However, I am glad you're exploring different genres a bit. Looking forward to reviewing (most of) the rest of your new-ish tracks later this week! ;)

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Once again, this isn't an original of mine, as it's part of the NGDIC2 :p
And unfortunately, my sound design and mix on this one is rushed too. The percussion should definitely be louder, and I'd switch some intruments out. But I couldn't thouch the melodies or structure.

As for the loop, I don't even recall if this is perfect or not, as Newgrounds (at least on my system) has started messing loops up for me, by placing a short cut/silence before a restart. I'll need to check on another computer before I'll know if the fault lies with Newgrounds, or with my system.

I'll look forward to your reviews! I'll review your track eventually too (whatever that means), but first, I owe johnfn some reviews, as well as a long and super delayed response. I really have too many projects and left over stuff that I'm slacking behind on, to even be able to properly keep up with it XD
Next year, I think I'll stay a lot calmer than this year, but we'll see. Thanks again dude!