TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[MrO- Hurricane(Remastered)]

I like the synths and mood you established at the beginning. The groove at :31 was cool, and you definitely left a lot of room for climax. It flowed nicely, but I think you overused some of the transitions. Also, it's pretty minimalistic and repetitive. You need to harmonize more and vary your riffs more. Repeating the same riffs with different instruments does not count as variation. The beats and transitions are cool, but it needs some degree of verse-chorus sort of play-off. It also ends pretty suddenly. It has great potential with the mood and instruments and all, but you need to keep me entertained a little more. Start thinking about dynamic contrast and complex structural elements like breakdowns, bridges, etc. The mixing isn't bad, though. Also, I understand that you may not have intended for it to be very melodic, but, even so, it's more than worth it to harmonize a little more and add contrast with rhythms, dynamics, etc. Overall, it's a bit lack-luster, but with great potential. Keep up the good work, Mrobeymenow. ;)

6/10

Mrobeymenow responds:

Thanks for the help! I appreciate it. I'll definitely be using your advice with my next song. Thanks a ton!

[Skies of Corneria]

Interesting mood and structure, but those percussion samples weren't very good quality in my opinion. The hits needed some reverb and other effects to make them more effective at channeling the energy, and they were overused a lot, along with that crash sample around 1:40. I didn't like the instruments so much. A good friend of mine once told me that the quality of instruments is one of the most important things in a remix. I'm inclined to disagree, but there wasn't much else going on in this piece that was able to keep my attention, unfortunately. The transition at 1:25 (and some others) was very sudden, although I appreciate the attempt at creating more contrast. Still, I think you needed a crash there to make it more smooth-flowing (you could always move a few (or a LOT) from that one bit at 1:35 that uses them so much that it completely distorts all of the other instruments). Sorry if this seems like a bitterly negative review, but I can't exactly give you points for originality either. Please work on the transitions, mixing, and getting better quality instruments, to start. You never need limiters or compressors on the master channel, which I think may be part of your problem. You could also use some reverb to smooth out the transitions a bit. PM me if you have questions about the previous two sentences. At the very least, I'll compliment you on the harmonizing and melodies, assuming some of that was your original content. I also thought many of the percussion's rhythms were cool, but they often needed to be put in a different context or with different instruments in order to be effective. Sorry to be so negative, again, but you have potential and plenty of time. I'd like to hear some more of your original content, as it's often hard to judge someone based on a remix. If there's another piece of yours you want me to review, shoot me a PM. As for now, a strongly suggest you try to improve this piece if you can. You can only get better, and just how good you get is directly related to how good you want to get! Don't give up, MissVirus. Keep on making music, and you'll be much improved within no time! Also, you're a lot better than I was when I was 15 - believe me. ;)

4/10

TheNGVirus responds:

thank you so much! i get what you're saying about some parts, but i'm not really getting some other parts. i'll PM you about it. also i'll PM you for other songs that need reviews

[Inner Dialog]

I like the ominous mood and distorted drums. It could've progressed faster imo, and it was a bit minimalistic, but nonetheless you kept my attention until it started to pick up around 1:30. It has a very apprehensive mood to it which I like. The structure is interesting. The combination of the mechanical-sounding drums and the very emotional piano and pads actually works hauntingly well. I love the sense of climax throughout the piece, but for the sake of keep the listener's attention, I think you could've done a lot more to heighten the contrast. I think it needs a huge, riveting solo during the last minute or so that just hits it home, y'know? Otherwise, it kind of is just a repetitive ambient track that would be good for the background of a videogame...which, now that I think about it, isn't bad at all! Still, this piece showed a lot of potential with the beautiful instruments and ominous theme, yet it didn't really capitalize on that to its fullest extent. Also, the ending was a little sudden. Some more structuring and dynamic contrast would've helped this piece a LOT. Still, this is solid work. Keep at it, Lexahergon! ;D

7.5/10

LexRodent responds:

Great feedback and useful suggestions man.
This song was made originally as an experiment to add music to a movie scene. That explains some things about this piece's "nature" , I'll try to implement some of this ideas to improve.

[Home of dwarves (NGMTr3)]

The combination of the pads, organ, and drums were really cool. It is a bit simplistic, but the progression is interesting. I like how you make it very climactic using both the drums and the atmospheric instruments. The melodic development is admirable, and you have a good sense of harmonies and structuring. The ending bothers me though. It's not very creative - I'd even go so far as to call it lazy - and it doesn't do the piece justice. I know it's hard to have a conclusive ending to an atmospheric piece, but maybe you could make it loop. Maybe you could play around with the filters so as to tone it down (as in a fade-out), and then end with a big, decisive snare instead (that's also hard to pull off in an atmospheric piece, though, as it's a bit sudden). Overall, though, I like it. Simple, yet satisfying. Keep up the good work, Jernemies. ;D

8/10

Jernemies responds:

Hey, thank you :)
Yes, that ending is likely the laziest by me -just having a simple drum track used earlier in play made a surprising deal of difference! Thank you for the suggestion, but I don't think I'm going to pull it off. Not my style, and also just as jarringly off-theme (though certainly not as lazy!)

[Elusive Truths]

I like the quirky piano and progression. The piano really led the piece on in this one. Definitely has a good sense of direction about it. That said, I think the piano needs more rhythmic variation. I also don't like how the strings at 1:20 have this sort of pulsing nature to them...kind of sounds too punchy for a rather calming piece. You combined the calming and energetic vibes well, though. Sounds like I'm flying high above a futuristic cityscape. Creating imagery like that is always good. By the end, though, the fast-paced rhythm that's going in the piano for almost the whole piece is starting to bother me. I wish you would've shaken it up a bit at the end, or even in a break-down section. You channel emotion and energy really well in this piece, though, Blacklawn. It's very upbeat, fun, and catchy. I like your instruments and moods. It's smooth-flowing and well-structured, even if it does lack some dynamic contrast and relief from the repetitive rhythms. The ending seemed fitting, though. Anyway, keep up the good work, Blacklawn! ;D

8.5/10

[The Night Song]

It's pretty! I feel like you were going for a calm and soothing mood at the beginning, and I don't think the instrument you used helped you that much there. Sorry to nitpick, but it's a little high-pitched and even harsh-sounding at times. That said, the melodic and harmonic content in this piece is excellent. I love the way the parts compliment each other. You've managed to make a coherent piece with few instruments/dynamic contrast, etc. but yet is constantly varied and very entertaining. It takes on a much more energetic vibe later on, but I think you should try to do more with that contrast by making the beginning very soft, delicate, and light. You should play around more with the filters/attack there. The one thing that REALLY bothered me about this piece, though, was the ending. It's simply too sudden and not very conclusive, which is ironic because you kind of dragged out the break-down before the ending a LOT. The coda, in my view, starts at 2:28. Then, there's 30+ seconds of repetition to an otherwise rather fast-paced piece. Doesn't seem fitting if you ask me. I would keep the last part short and sweet, maybe 8 measures tops, and finish it off with a last, triumphant chord that covers all of the parts. I've been tough on you, though. This is good! A lot of these complaints are tiny details, because, if you ask me, the details really stand out in a piece that's so...bare. However, it's bareness also makes it very beautiful. Good job! Keep it up, Bardash! ;D

8.5/10

Bardash responds:

Thank you for taking the time to review my composition. I appreciate your thoughts and comments.

[Ghost Train remastered]

I love the creepy mood and instruments. The reverb on the brass really adds the ultimate spooky touch! It's like a circus gone wrong. I love pieces that put images in your head, and this one did that for me. The bones at 1:05 were a nice touch, btw. It's a piece with some real character, Azhthar. Excellent work! The structure was good, although I think you could've led into some of the transitory moments better. For example, I think 1:45 comes on a little suddenly. You could crescendo into it, or maybe add a pick-up note with the horn again or something. Also, the variations at 2:14 were good, especially with that ride (no pun intended). 2:27 added an excellent touch to the character of the piece...like it's the carnival, completely abandoned, 50 years later. It also made this very conclusive. The ending was simply fantastic. Overall, I love the melodic and harmonic content, and it's clearly a very creative and fun piece. I just have so few complaints...you, sir, are an EXTREMELY UNDERRATED ARTIST! Bravo and encore! :D

9.5/10

[A Friends Party]

It seemed very minimalistic in the beginning, but it was very climactic. I'm not sure I liked how distorted and repetitive it was. It progresses really slowly, and doesn't really have a recognizable structure IMO. The repetitive synth lines almost get annoying after a while, and the vocal samples really didn't add much IMO. I actually really liked what you did with those filters at around 2:52 and onward, though. It added necessary relief to the relative madness of the first 2 minutes or so. This middle part is very minimalistic, but I think it's my favorite part of the piece. I must compliment you, also, on the way you communicated the mood in this one. I can imagine exactly what this party would be like. The part at 4:37 with the stops wasn't bad. It added an interesting and even humorous sort of relief to the piece as well. It is very repetitive, though, and doesn't need to be 5.5 minutes long. The ending was lazy IMO, and I think you need to tweak the structure a bit so that it has more of a direction to it (besides when you have the build-ups going on). It's catchy, and I liked the synths you used. You just have to offer a bit more contrast to the madness in more creative ways. I think it has potential, but please consider 1. cutting down the length, 2. making it less busy and harsh-sounding and 3. thinking more about the DIRECTION the piece is going in. It's entertaining, at least. Keep at it, Athanatos. ;)

[Hornet]

I like the robotic-sounding synths and beats. It's catchy, but also relaxing for at least the first minute or so. It progresses rather slowly, and is quite minimalistic/simplistic. I would've liked to see a bit more fill at times. I liked the climactic nature of it into 1:59. The drop was pretty cool. I'm personally a fan of the "storm before the calm" approach. ;) The "whirring" effect at 2:32 was nice. I think you overused the portamento effect on the pads at around 3:20, though. It's an interesting piece, but my main problem with it is that it doesn't really do a lot with harmonies: that's an area you could use to really take this piece to the next level. It also really didn't need to be 6 minutes long, as it struggled to keep my attention for that long given the repetition/minimalism. The ending could've been more creative, too. I think this would've made a nice loop, though. Also, more dynamic contrast would've been appreciated. The mixing wasn't that bad, but it's hard to mess up mixing when you have so little instruments playing at once. I've been very tough on you in this review, though. It's a catchy piece with some cool synths and effects, smooth-flowing and well-structured. I also really enjoyed the rather ominous and apprehensive mood throughout. I'll give you that much. Keep at it, man! ;D

7.5/10

aCreator responds:

Thank you very much for this Review! And I also want to thank you for making such a contest possible! :)
I was also taught by somebody else that this song lacked in harmonies. So I'm really happy that somebody else also thinks so.
I think one reason why it is so minimalistic is because I first had the drop and then I tried to "quickly" make something that fits around this drop and that rarely ends well ^^. There's also the fact that when you work long hours on piece that at some time everything you do will sound ok. Now I also think that this track is way to long and minimalistic...
And finally yes... Mixing is really something I have to work more on. It's something really important and I don't pay enough attention to it. Thanks for reminding me of that!
And I will keep at it!!!

[Dark light]

I like the progression and simplicity. That guitar at :36 sounds a little harsh, though. It also sounds a bit muddy with the strings in the background. Once you learn more about mixing and mastering, that'll be fixed. Try bringing out different pitches in some instruments more than others in the Parametric EQ (press F9 in FL Studio. Right click one of the inserts > link selected channels > to this track. An instrument should show up (it's highlighted in the Step Sequencer). Then, on the right-hand side of the window, click the drop-down arrow next to the numbered tabs, then click "Parametric EQ 2." You're welcome.) You should also get rid of all the tones below 200 hertz. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, just PM me, btw. Also, I think there were some slight balance issues. For example, I thought the beat at :55 was a little too loud, and overshadowed the rather impressive melodic content a bit. Overall, though, I'm extremely impressed with the structuring, transitions, and harmonies. The ending bothered me a bit, though - it just cut off so suddenly. I think it works very well as a loop, though. For your first time, this is a fantastic piece, though. Do you know how bad my first piece was?! Keep up the good work! :D

7.5/10

0661 responds:

Hey man thanks for your rewiew ! I'm realy amazed how everyone is so positive in this community :D
Thank you for your advice about linkinkg channels and EQ2 it helped a lot already, tried to play with it and it sounds better indeed. I just have a slight problem since I use headphones, and believe those are not a real representation of how songs sound like through speakers. but hey payday is getting near xD
I am glad you liked it,constructively criticised,helped a lot and took time to write this reweiw.Hope I'll pass through the next round *fingers crossed* :D

Best regards from Croatia,
Ozren