TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[First Flight]

I liked the feeling of stillness and mystery at the beginning. I liked the instruments you used, and (as you've made clear in the description) this piece really tells a story. I admire your sense of harmony and progression, and the melodies are beautiful. Considering this piece is only 2 minutes long, I thought it could've progressed a bit faster during the first 45 seconds or so. Still, you develop this piece very well structurally, and it's very flowy and smooth. I love the almost medieval vibes instilled by the melody instrument at :47. I thought 1:20 was quite a timely reappearance of the piano from the intro. Despite the large degree of variation crammed into 2 minutes, you still managed to make it coherent enough. I will say that I thought the ending was a bit underwhelming, but perhaps that's a personal grievance more than anything. The mixing is pretty good - I can hear everything clearly. The texture is well-balanced and full. I love how you've managed to cram so many different moods - mystery, furtiveness, adventure, excitement, passion, fatigue, sheer thrill, etc. - into just 2 minutes. Overall, this is clearly fantastic work. Again, I think my favorite attribute of this piece is that it clearly tells a story to the reader. Excellent job, Ylmir! ;D

9.25/10

Ylmir responds:

Thanks a lot for your detailed review ! To be honest, the fact that the introduction is that long compared to the rest, and the ending a bit rushed of the track (although I did want it to end quietly and on a positive note) is most probably because of the lack of time I had. I restarted my project about 4 days before the deadline, and I actually spent two days getting the second section right. With so little time left, I almost had to sum up all the ideas I had for this track after the 1:34 mark, and a small part got completely wiped out from the project. Actually, I'm already happy I've been able to deliver something in time xD
There is something positive about it though. I usually tend to repeat myself a lot, and build around a single idea or two. But with the deadline approaching, "summing it up" really forced me to add a lot of variation, and maybe it contributed to get the piece much more lively, especially since the piece conveys a positive mood.

Thank you again for your analysis ! :)

[NGAUC Finals!]

In my opinion the fade-in technique is a little lazy as an approach to intros. That said, I thought the synths and beats were refreshing and cool. The melodies are innovative without being all-over-the-place, although I did think they could've been a bit more up-front in the mix. The minimalistic drop at :48 seemed a bit out-of-place, although admittedly it did sound pretty unique and creative. Still, this piece starts to have some serious coherence problems at 1:30. That melody might've functioned well as a breakdown later on in the piece, but you need to keep the listener structurally grounded and 1:30 was a step in the wrong direction IMO. I can discern some repeated sections, such as 2:24, but I think you could've done more to tie this piece together structurally. Otherwise, it's kind of confusing to listen to and/or seems to lack direction. I also thought that the ending of this piece didn't sound conclusive enough. This is a really original soundscape you've got here, and I really admire your sense of harmony. The production quality is also very good. However, I want you to think more about the way you structure your pieces. A casual listener should be able to discern the basic structural components of your piece, and the energy/emotion/drama of the piece should be channeled by structural changes. This is why the verse/chorus-based structure works so well in pop. The artist creates contrast between the verse and the chorus so that the emotion-driven intensity of the chorus gives the listener a sort of "high," which the verse then resets so it can happen again. However, I can't discern a repeated chorus in this piece, and the one repeated section that's easy to discern (:48) almost feels like a bridge or breakdown. I'm not saying you have to conform to the verse-chorus structure, but I want you to realize that the structures of most songs are relatively simple and easy-to-follow. You can (and should) vary several aspects of your song's texture between different choruses or verses, but with this piece I honestly found it hard to tell where you wanted the emotional highs and lows to occur for the listener. I've spent enough time talking about that, though. Overall, this is a cool piece that just needs a lot more structural consideration IMO. I'd encourage you to keep working on it (after the contest, of course). It has a lot of potential. I love a lot of the synths and textures here. ;)

7.5/10

TimerClock14 responds:

Thanks for this! I've honestly never been strong at the actual structure of my songs and it's one of my weakest areas as a composer; so this gives me a lot of direction in where I should look to improve.

[An Alternate Solution]

I love the warm pads at the beginning. It kind of has an organic, almost bright sound, yet at the same time the sweeps at :15 work beautifully. The percussion is a bit dry. I think some reverb might've helped enhance the atmospheric vibe you created here. I think you need a stronger transition at :46, and perhaps at 1:02 as well. You have these cool swells, like at 1:16, but they don't really lead much of anywhere. The progression to this piece is cool, albeit a little slow-paced. You have a full texture and a really unique soundscape here, which I love. I will say that I think you could've heightened the drama/emotion a lot more. You seem to be creating a sort of "after the storm" affect at 3:07, yet you never quite hit a concrete arrival point IMO. I could understand the argument that the emotional height of the piece is 2:19, but I still felt like you could've done more to contribute to the cathartic mood there. The production seems solid. It's a cool piece. You definitely didn't disappoint. You just didn't necessarily go as all-out as I was expecting. There are a few sections - like 1:02 to 1:30 - that seem a bit structurally flat and could use more phrasing to, again, heighten the emotion. Add more phrasing/dynamic contrast here, and this'll be a really solid piece, my friend. Keep up the good work. ;D

8/10

OmegaP responds:

Thanks for the review TaintedLogic! I will take everything that you said into consideration. You are right when you say I did not go all out. I really just wanted a solid piece , but maybe that was not the best idea. Anyways, again thanks for taking the time!

[After Rain]

It's short, but I like the mood. You combine the instruments here really well. Almost sounds Far Eastern in a way. It's a cool melody, but I think you could've done a lot more with this. Also, it ends a little suddenly. I think you should've played up the atmospheric nature of this piece by increasing the reverb. That way, you could've used an echo Ping-Pong effect or something at the end to just let the sound melt away. As it is now, it just sort of stops abruptly. Anyway, overall I like it, and I hope I'll be hearing more from you soon, DjGubkafish. ;D

[~ Decay ~]

I love all the reverb and echo effects you put on here. They really enhance the mood IMO. While I liked the progression, I think (and I'm sure you know) that you could've done a lot more with this. You got the mood across really well, and I like the atmospheric vibes, though. It loops well, too. Looking forward to the album, man! Keep at it. ;)

larrynachos responds:

Almost 2 months late, but finally, a reply!

I'm glad you liked it, TL! I definitely could have done more with this, but at the time I was almost sick of composing music, so I just wanted to make something short and sweet.

Thanks!

[Infinite Realms EP Sampler]

Awesome! I love the space you leave for climax at the beginning, and the distortion at around :25. "Eclipse" had a really cool mood about it. I love the guitar at 1:10 too. "Time Warp" had more of an atmospheric vibe, which I also think is a valued deviation from your traditional style. The vocal samples also added a lot to that piece. Loved the dark sense of mystery in "Alternate Reality," and the arpeggios later on added a lot to that mood too. The drop at 3:12 was really cool. The mixing is really good across all of these tracks too. It seems like you have a lot of variety across tracks within the EP, at least as far as mood, but I think you could've tried using a wider variety of instruments and textures. I loved the synths at 4:15. "Blood Moon" also has a really edgy, cool mood to it. "Final Frontier" sounds a lot like your classic style, DM. ;) I'm really excited for this EP! You've clearly put a lot of work into it. Nice job, guys! ^^

[Let it Out]

I like the sense of adventure this has. Interesting combination with the bass and the dreamy pads. I kind of wish you had built up a bit more to the drop at :45. I think you needed a stronger transition there. Your mixing has improved a lot in the past few months, but I think the bass was a bit too loud. You could've done a lot more with this piece. It gets really repetitive by the end, even if there are a few structural changes here and there. Overall, I like it, but I think it needed more of a sense of direction. Some more melodic content could help you establish that direction. Either way, keep at it, LN. ;)

larrynachos responds:

With this song, I was trying something new. To me, the bass isn't too loud. I've recently taking a liking to powerful bass that rumbles my headphones and massages my ears.

I do have to agree with you on the structural parts though. I didn't really build up to the drop, and it is kinda repetitive.

Thanks for the review!

[Overcome]

"Outrageously catchy" --> This, I can confirm! I really like the progression of this piece, especially around :30 - :45, and the lounge jazzy vibes at :47 (and other places) added a lot to the piece. As usual, the mixing is really good. I thought that the kick could've been just a bit stronger at times, but that's a pretty tiny detail. Obviously, these are engrossing melodies, and I love the arpeggios at 2:38 (and other places). This piece has a really cool energy about it that you've really highlighted in a lot of your recent tracks. I love it! Keep up the great work, Johnfn. ;D Looking forward to hearing your NGADM track. ^^

johnfn responds:

Just wait until you hear my NGADM piece its EVEN CATCHIER HA HA HA HA HA

[Radiant Palace]

I like the heroic and adventuresome vibe this has. It's definitely fitting for a videogame - full of variety and little riffs that really make it great. It could've used some stronger transitional content IMO, especially at :37 and 1:15. It's coherent enough without being overly repetitive. It has a full texture and a well-built atmosphere to it. It's also structurally pleasing, although the ending was a bit sudden. Are you intending to loop it? Overall, this is a cool piece. Keep up the good work, man! ;D

carhondalet responds:

Thanks for the review, I found it very helpful! When you say stronger do you mean adding more interesting melodies or more instruments? I was intending to loop it for a game although I'm not exactly how or if that can be done in FLStudio but I suppose I could make a proper ending seeing as it presented as a standalone song here. Thanks again for your input man! :D