TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Tankmen's Hotrod]

I like the gritty texture at the beginning - sounds like the Devil is sharpening his pitchfork. The guitar riff at :08 is a bit muddy and indistinct - I can’t tell if the recording quality is bad, or you tried to add distortion or other mixing effects, but either way it could be a lot sharper. The orchestral sample at :23 feels a bit out-of-place, and then the distortion and indistinction on the second round of guitar riffs at :28 is even worse. Admittedly, I’m a little confused about what’s going on here. Which of the sounds I’m hearing are samples. Which were recorded. Which were manipulated in your DAW and which are fairly “raw.” Either way, it doesn’t really sound like a cohesive or structurally complete piece yet. Sorry. I think integrating the gritty synths at the beginning with the guitar riffs might make for a compelling grunge track, but first the guitars should definitely be re-recorded or otherwise polished up in your DAW. Seriously, please let me know how the different elements of this piece came together so I can offer you some more constructive advice. But for now, keep at it, VoV! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
3/10

VilestOfVile responds:

I think the same thing about it, actually. No need to apologize, criticism is what I'm always looking for :3
Yes, samples were used and I think this one could've been better. I'm currently in the middle of saving for FL studio because fuck Bandlab.

[song for ethan to rampage through the streets and slaughter people]

I like how the intro goes right into this climactic build-up. The synth guitar at :10 sounds a bit thin, and probably could’ve been given a bit more space in the mix. The rhythmic content and creepy atmosphere (especially with the strings at :53) are great, although the build-up into 1:14 ended up being a bit of an anti-climax, which was a little disappointing. The fat bass at 1:36 was a bit surprising, but in retrospect it fits in with the rest of the sound design here well. The way you made it sound like a door creaking open at 1:36 is so cool. Overall, the texture is pretty minimal and bottom-heavy here, but you nailed the creepy mood and you channel the cinematic energy of the piece very well. I still would’ve liked to hear a fuller soundscape and more melodic content at some point, but I won’t complain too much. Don’t want Ethan to rampage in my direction next. :) Keep at it, Vidu! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.5/10

[Stell]

I like the quirky synths at the beginning. The beat at :25 is a bit dry - I felt like this piece needed an injection of energy after a while, but the drums aren’t doing that for me. The melody at :51 is nice - sounds pretty introspective in a way. I would’ve liked to see you do more to fill out the atmosphere - reverb and other mixing details, perhaps. By 1:18, the texture of this piece is coming together nicely, but the arrangement still feels a bit formulaic. That is, the texture shifts every 8 bars or so, but within those 8 bars there’s not much of a sense of ebb and flow. I like the dreamy bridge at 1:42 - I like how the synth melody is very jumpy, covering a wide frequency range. The rest of the piece is pretty repetitive, though, and could’ve used some variation vis a vis the first refrain at 1:18. Still, I like the pensive mood, sound design, and mixing here overall. This sounds like a piece that would be in the background of a documentary on outer space from the 80s. :D Keep at it, Veenomn! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.5/10

[Doll Bals]

I like the eerie atmosphere at the beginning and the cutesy sound design of the waltzy section at :06. The flute solo at :26 is really nice, and you transition seamlessly back into the minimal waltzy string pattern at :49. It’s a pretty simple piece, yet whimsical. I would’ve liked to see you do more with the progression, fleshing out the composition into a fuller narrative. At times, the piece is also pretty minimal, and I’m also not sure how to make sense of the dark piano chords at the beginning in light of the cutesy mood for the rest of the piece. I understand that this was made to pair with an animation, but as a stand-alone piece it could use some more harmonic depth and variety. The production quality is good, although the flute melodies could use a bit of a boost just to stay above the strings. Still, this is a charming piece with good sound design, melodies, and progression. Keep at it, guys! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
8/10

[deconstructing the human ego]

I like the nature sound effects at the beginning - they contrast very heavily with the eerie, distorted atmosphere at :12. The distortion also overwhelms the part at :25, and it’s very hard to make out the vocals clearly. Part of the problem might be that there was a lot of reverb in the texture, but frankly I just wanted to see you dial back the distortion and rein in some of these volume levels. The whole stop-start structure of the vocal phrases also didn’t really work for me - it just made the arrangement feel disjointed. The choppy fluttering effect on the vocals at 1:57 is pretty cool, and I like a lot of the other compositional details here, from the dreamy pianos and synths to the rich atmosphere (minus the distortion). But then there are the atonal, distorted parts where I can barely discern any harmonic content at all, like at 3:10. I just - don’t think that sort of section really helps you advance the narrative aspect of your piece at all. Sorry. For what it’s worth, choppy arrangement aside, I really like aspects of the composition and sound design here. But I also think that limiting the distortion and clipping would be a relatively easy fix that would sell me a lot better on this piece. Keep at it, Vai5000! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
5/10

[When I Dream of You / あなたの夢を見るとき]

I like the cutesy lead synth at the beginning and the melodic content. The rolled hi-hats and “B” melody at :25 are really nice, but admittedly I would’ve liked to hear some more drums in the texture to add some energy and drive to this piece during the first minute or so. And then when they finally come in at 1:18, they’re very thin and minimal. Part of it might be that they need a boost in the mix, but I think it’s mostly the samples themselves. I also would’ve liked to see you fill out the atmosphere of the piece a bit more, either with reverb, pads, or other harmonies. The sweep into 2:40 is nice for a change - most of the other phrase endings here are stop-start transitions, which can get old quickly IMO. I appreciated the layered harmonies at 3:50 - the texture feels a bit busy that way, but it’s certainly better to be a little too bold than not bold enough close to the end of the song. :) Overall, I really like the sound design, mixing, and melodies here. The arrangement felt a tad formulaic at times, though, and I still think the composition could have a stronger sense of ebb and flow here. Still, hard to go wrong with the upbeat mood and cutesy, memorable melodies. Keep at it, V1ZION! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8/10

[Supermarket Troubles]

I like the waltzy meter and airy synth riff at the beginning. The harmonies at :13 are a bit dissonant, though, and there’s a bit too much reverb in the texture here to keep all of the instruments sounding crisp and distinct from each other in the mix. The beat at :21 is catchy, and I also like the eerie pads at 1:03. There are a lot of ideas here that are good on their own, but I think the problem is that they often clash pretty hard when you pair them with the other riffs. I’d suggest the following: try writing out a series of chords in a single track on your music production program, and then use those chords to write all of the other parts for each instrument. As long as the original chords sounded good, and you make sure that all of the notes that are playing together at a given time are in the corresponding chord, it should be a good way of constructing a harmonic framework that sounds more congruous and tonal. Feel free to PM me when you try this out, and I can give you some more feedback.

And to be clear, there’s a lot to like with this piece, “Supermarket Troubles.” You clearly have a good sense of rhythm and progression, and it also has a fun, creepy atmosphere throughout. But the clashing harmonies are a big issue for me - a little dissonance is fine, but dissonance in music is kinda like curse words: when you use them sparingly, they have the biggest impact. :)

Keep at it, UnderFlood! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
.75/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
4/10

[Mechanical Uprising]

Ah, nothing like a good uprising. I like the dreamy synth arpeggios at the beginning and the bass that gradually fades in until :30. The distorted atmospheric synth at :31 is pretty neat, although by :38 the texture sounds a little too bottom-heavy and the clap is seriously weak in the mix. The crisp beats and rhythmic syncopations at 1:02 are nice, but also don’t introduce much novel harmonic content or dynamic melodies or anything. The prominent hi-hats at 1:41 are nice, but otherwise the compositional details and gritty, mid-range bass at 2:04 don’t do enough to add variety and a strong sense of direction to the piece later on. Overall, the sound design and production quality are both quite strong here, but the composition feels a bit bland and underwhelming. I’d encourage you to keep working on this piece - with a well-chosen lead and maybe a bit of a boost to the upper-mids in the mix, this would be a real banger. Also, I really like the atmospheric outro here, the way the reverb sneaks up on you like an ocean wave as you have your back turned. Yeah. Keep at it, Ultimatepalmtree! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.5/10

[Good Trip]

I like the retro vocal samples at the beginning, but the transition at :14 threw me off a bit. I guess I was expecting more of an extended intro. Some of the synths here are a bit cheesy and generic, but the beat is catchy, and the sound design certainly adds to the air of mystery in the piece. The piece is a bit slow to progress after a while, although I do like the added harmonies at 1:03. The mix could’ve been a tad sharper and louder, perhaps with some more compression on the drums and some stricter equalization/filtering of the low-register frequencies in the harmonic instruments. Otherwise, the piece sounds pretty repetitive and stale after a while. The energy level, instrumental hierarchy, and harmonic framework are nearly constant throughout the piece, and the vocal samples only do so much to add variety. I would’ve liked to see an extended atmospheric bridge or climactic solo at some point. That said, the texture is nice and full for most of the piece, and the rhythmic content and atmosphere are both enjoyable. Overall, it’s a solid piece that just needs some more polish on the mix and a stronger sense of ebb and flow in the composition. Keep at it, Ukatz! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
7/10

[Collar]

I like the atmosphere at the beginning and the jazzy organ-sounding thing at :03. The drums are a bit soft in the mix throughout the piece, and could use some more compression. The transition at :29 really throws me off - you replaced a rich atmospheric, and pensive texture for a minimal and cheesy one. The jazzy atmosphere and bass blend well together at :48, but I think you may have been better off just layering the bass on top of the rest of the atmosphere at :29 as opposed to giving it its own interlude. The transition into the section with the new bass line at 1:20 was smoother, although having two competing bass lines at 1:25 probably wasn’t the best idea. Each would stand out more if you transposed one of them up an octave or two.

The bass riff at 1:44 is catchy, but also doesn’t seem very interconnected with the texture that came beforehand. The entire mix is especially bottom-heavy during this section (until 2:55), and could use some upper-mid-range harmonies to balance out the competing bass lines. The re-intro at 3:12 is a bit drab, and at this point in the song I would’ve liked to see you shake up the harmonic framework or even introduce a new instrument or melody, just for variety. Instead, the entire second half of the piece seems to be content that I’ve already heard earlier, or at least doesn’t do much to give the track a sense of overarching narrative or progression.

Overall, there are a lot of good isolated ideas here, from the groovy bass riffs to the rich atmospheric textures to the jazzy harmonies early on. You clearly have a good sense of rhythm and melody. Now I just want to see you integrate the different harmonic ideas in this piece into more of a cohesive whole, while creating more variety in the energy level and sound palette to maintain interest over a long 6.5 minutes. It’s doable, and I’d encourage you to keep working on this piece. Also, a relatively easy fix is slapping a compressor on those drums and using the gain knob and maybe a little reverb on the snare to ensure that they pop through the mix throughout the piece. Feel free to send me a PM after you incorporate the judges’ feedback, and I’ll leave you another review. Keep at it, TVP06! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
.75/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
5.75/10

TVP06 responds:

Thanks, I'll keep your advice in mind as I was planning on fixing up Collar sometime due to its rushed nature.