TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Looking Out]

Are those amen break samples? :D They actually work pretty well in the context of this piece, especially since you chopped them up. I like the eerie atmosphere and fat sub-bass at :12. The piece is a bit slow to progress beyond that, but the filtering at :45 is cool, and the dreamy mid-range pads at :48 are a nice addition to the texture. The chiptune-y synth at 1:00 caught me a bit off guard, but I’m really digging how they jive with the gritty pads at 1:36. The thin, frantic vocals at 2:01 are great as well, and the stop-start transition at 2:26 led really nicely into the re-integration of those vocals into the earlier beat you had playing. The transition at 2:48 was a bit abrupt, and I wasn’t a huge fan of when you made an already-minimal piece even more minimal at around 3:00. Overall, this is a really catchy piece with some neat sound design and solid progression. The piece is frequently lacing in mid-range frequencies and harmonic content, and I think you could’ve done more to create variety here besides introducing new instruments later on in the piece. Still, you won me over with some of the flashier riffs here, like at 1:36 and 2:01. The production quality is top-notch here, btw. Keep at it, BassClefff! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
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
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
7.75/10

[HO+HO+NH2]

Honestly, I wasn’t a huge fan of the distorted texture - very harsh and grating sound design here, honestly. The beats are catchy, although there isn’t a lot of harmonic content to keep me grounded structurally. The transition at 1:06 is cool, although some of the other ones are pretty abrupt. The spacey atmosphere at 1:41 is nice, but given the pacing of the rest of the piece I think that section drags on for a tad too long. Overall, I think you’ve made an experimental piece with a jarring texture that doesn’t really display the variety of compositional skills we’re looking for at the NGADM. The rhythmic content is good, and a lot of the sound design details are creative and engaging, but, quite frankly, to get a decent score on most of the categories in my judging rubric, you needed to rein in some of these volume levels and do more with harmonies. Sorry! If you have other stuff that’s more tonal, feel free to send me a PM, and I’m happy to given you some more feedback. Cheers.

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
0/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.25/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
0/1
Composite score
3.5/10

[Universal Pulse]

I like the dreamy synth riffs at the beginning, and the eerie harmonies that come in shortly thereafter. The progression is a bit slow-paced, but by the time the crisp drums and guitars come in at :43, I’m starting to feel the groove more. The reverb on the drums is a bit heavy for my tastes, and the snare sample sounds a tad thin and high-pitched too. The chord progression and arrangement of the piece are a bit generic. I really like the way the piece slowly builds up to 1:25, although the synth melody there was a tad cheesy and generic-sounding. I also wasn’t a huge fan of the pulsating pads at 2:00 - they were a little disorienting at first, and also have too much reverb IMO. I like how you stripped away the beat at 2:25, and then immediately offered some contrast in the energy level with the killer guitar solo at 2:40. You transitioned well back into the refrain at 3:16, although I might’ve liked to hear a little more variety on some of those main riffs and melodies the second time around. Still, the piece comes together well by the end, and the mix holds up well despite the busy texture there. Overall, despite my complaints with the instrumentation and compositional details, you’ve clearly displayed your strong production, melody-writing, and progression skills here. Keep at it, Barbier! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.25/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.25/10

BarbierDoesMusic responds:

Hey, thanks for the feedback! Yeah, at this point I was still getting the hang of using my virtual instruments, also the lack of time due to my personal challenge of posting a song per week to train more my music making skills. Still, I'm really glad you liked it (specially the guitar solo, it also was my fav part to make :D).

Welp, it sucks that I didn't get to the competition this year, but will shoot for the next, as well as the NGUAC to see what happens. Thanks for the opportunity and for checking out!! ^^

[Fistula]

I like the crisp guitar riff at the beginning and the dissonant harmonies. The drums at :13 are mixed very strangely, with not a lot of room for the kick or snare, but a relatively prominent hat/crash. The echo-y, sighing riff at :25 is pretty nice, and blends in well with the rest of the texture. The arrangement of the piece feels a tad formulaic, with different instruments regularly added and subtracted, but little in the way of variety in the harmonic framework or otherwise. I would’ve liked to see you flesh out the structure a bit more, and create a bit more ebb and flow in the composition within a given phrase/section. Otherwise, this piece has a lot of enjoyable individual elements, from the rhythmic syncopations to the echo-y guitar melodies. Keep at it, BALDORF! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
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?)
.25/1
Composite score
6.25/10

[Avixel - Nexus]

I like the emotional appeal of the piano at the beginning. The smooth, muted bass and acoustic drum kit work well too, and the subtle wah-wah guitar riff is a nice addition to the texture. Other than that, the composition is a bit underwhelming here. The piece has a very repetitive and general harmonic framework, and despite the neat sound design, the way the frequencies are balanced in the mix doesn’t really show off the instruments very well. For example, the piano chords at :19 are a lot louder than the funky guitar riff, and I think it should be the other way around based on which one is more dynamic and interesting. Some more dynamic melodies or solos also would’ve been welcome at some point - jazz is known for giving each of its harmonic instruments a big chance to shine. Overall, I hope you’ll keep working on this piece. It has a lot of potential, but I want to see a bit more risk-taking with the composition and a more well-rounded production first. Keep at it, Avixel! :)

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
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
6/10

[Velum]

I like the smooth synth guitar riff at the beginning and the dreamy arpeggios that come in shortly thereafter. There’s a LOT of reverb in the texture for my tastes, but as far as I can tell it doesn’t distort the mix too much. The breathy, chopped vocals at :52 are nice, and the rhythmic content in the bass during the drop is another big plus. Later on in the drop, I think you overdid it with the short, staccato-y notes (like at 1:32), which disrupted the flow of the piece a bit in my opinion. I’m enjoying the breakdown section and the gradual build-up back into 2:33, although I think you could’ve done more to create variety in the second drop relative to the first one. I’ll also say that, despite the neat sound design and crisp and clear mix, the arrangement of the piece is a tad generic, and I would’ve liked to hear some more melodic content at some point. Still, you nailed the production quality, atmosphere, and progression of this one. Keep at it, Auphinity! ^_^

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

[Krazi Thingz]

There are a lot of catchy beats and fun synth riffs here. I’m not a huge fan of some of your instruments, though - the clap at :11 is pretty generic-sounding and unpolished, for example. I like the frantic bass line and shimmering pads, but some of the other instruments in here sound very harsh and grating, like the one at 1:17.

A bigger problem is some of the abrupt transitions, like at :22 and 1:06. The main riff (1:28) gets a tad repetitive after a while, but it also doesn’t seem very interconnected with some of the other riffs, like the shimmering pads at 2:01. The result is that the arrangement of the piece feels very disjointed, and is mostly held together by the meandering bass line and popcorn snare. I’m going to challenge you to make a piece where, at moments of transition, you keep at least one or two of the harmonic instruments (i.e., not drums or bass) playing the same pattern on both sides of the transition. That should make your transitions smoother, or otherwise force you to make transitions more gradual and less jarring.

Otherwise, the production quality is pretty good, and the composition could stand to be a tad less repetitive. My main concern is the transitions/arrangement. Other than that, this piece is catchy and has a fun, quirky mood that helps keep me engaged. Keep at it, Athos! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
6/10

[Calamity]

I like the strings at the beginning and the crisp drums and slow-paced guitar riffs that come in shortly thereafter. The smooth, dreamy riff at 1:05 is great, and I love the melodic content at 1:20 as well. The production quality here is very strong, with a loud, clear mix and well-balanced frequencies. Some of your transitions are a tad abrupt, notably the one leading into the breakdown at 1:44 and again at 3:44. That said, I like the strings during the breakdown, which adds a nice cinematic flair to the piece. The injection of energy at 2:40 was a welcome change, and the choir was a nice addition to the texture as well. I might’ve even held out the choir’s notes a bit longer, just to solidify the intensity. You once again took the piece in a different direction at 3:44 with the brass - I’m beginning to think the arrangement of this piece is a tad disjointed, and a big part of that is the sudden transitions I mentioned earlier. That said, you nailed the sound design, melodies, and mixing here. It’s a catchy and energetic piece that commands a lot of attention with its flair for the dramatic. Keep at it, Aterr! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
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?)
.5/1
Composite score
8.75/10

[madness if it was an upbeat video game bossfight?]

I like the catchy synth riffs at the beginning. The attack on the lead synths sounds a tad too strong, especially on the downbeats. The mix is pretty clean, although a lot of the harmonies, including the bass line, are very quiet. The piece is also pretty repetitive after a while, but I liked when you stripped away the beat at :52 and let the harmonies shine a bit more. The solo at 1:17 was a good idea, but the rhythm of it is a little hard to follow at times. The final refrain at 1:44 helps tie the piece together nicely, although sometimes during that last minute or so you have the individual synth riffs tripping over each other a bit. One of the main riffs at 2:05 comes to mind - its re-entry there felt a bit forced. I’ll also say that some of the higher-pitched synths sounded a bit harsh in the mix. I’d suggest taking off a bit of treble in the EQ for some of them. The drums are a bit thin at times, especially during the busier sections, and could use some more reverb. The glitchy effect during the last few seconds of the piece is really cool, though. Overall, I like the blissful mood, energy, and melodies, although the sound design wasn’t my favorite and the mix is too top-heavy and could use some cleaning up around the edges. Still, this is a very catchy and memorable piece. Keep at it, Aszon! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.25/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7/10

[I Get It]

I like the heavy, echo-y percussion at the beginning and the way it fades out right as the vocals come in. The vocals are really smooth and expressive, but they also feel a tad bare - a little more reverb early on might’ve been welcome. That said, the emotional quality of that part is appealing, and when the heavier guitars that come in at :31 I really like the direction the piece is taking.

I was a little confused, however, when you switched up the texture again at :46. It seems like that part is supposed to be the refrain of the piece, but it’s also a big step back in terms of intensity. I also think that instead of using the echo effects at :46 and 1:01, you’d be better off holding out the note longer, as the echoes add an element of artificiality that seems to go against the raw and bare-bones approach to the vocal mixing up to that point.

The post-chorus at 1:16 seemed to be a tad uninspired, with a single chord taking up most of the mix. The echo-y, strummed chord at 1:31 and the more frantic, fingered guitar line at 1:46 also constitute a shake-up from the previous instrumental tracks. I’m starting to think you need to consolidate some of your ideas here and focus more on the cohesion of the track over creating variety.

I really like the extended solo at 2:32, although the drums get a little buried in the mix there. The third refrain at 3:08 has the pedal note and, later, the return of the fingered riff, which I think the first and second refrains might’ve also benefited from. You did a good job creating variety later in the piece here, especially with the more passionate vocal lines during the refrain, but I think that came at the expense of having a fairly disjointed structure earlier on.

Overall, there’s a lot to like with the compositional elements and sound design here. I think you tried to do a bit too much with the arrangement of the piece, but otherwise you’re approaching a professional quality with the production, vocals, and guitar recordings. Keep it up, Art! ^_^

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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.25/10