TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Autumn Girl]

I like the mellow guitar at the beginning. The kick is very heavy for a piece with such a tranquil mood at first. I like the high-energy section at :37, and how you intersperse the rhythmic and melodic elements there. The change in the meter at 1:00 is a bit clumsy - some of the drum patterns there might need to be re-recorded - and the transition at 1:10 is pretty abrupt. I like how you slow down slightly at 1:41, though - it was a nice, subtle way of foreshadowing the breakdown at 1:44. Overall, the frantic guitar riffs and sound design here are really enjoyable, and the mixing is solid, but the arrangement feels a bit disjointed, and lacks a strong sense of overarching direction. Some smoother, more gradual transitions might help in that regard, and also more distinction between the high-energy sections. Still, this piece has some killer rhythmic content and a great, engrossing mood. Keep at it, itskosama! ^_^

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?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.25/10

itskosama responds:

Thank you! It was a blast participating in this!

I'll definitely practice on those transitions! I also really enjoyed time constraint of the event! It was really good on getting me going to make something! Super grateful to everyone! 

[Keep Them Coming! (NGUAC Knockout Round)]

I like the ghostly synth riff at the beginning and the Old West-inspired harmonic content. The melodies are killer here, although at times the mix is a bit muddy in the lower frequency range. It’s often hard to make out the contour of the bass line, and at around :50 the cute synth arpeggios in the background are also a little buried. The bridge at 1:07 where you strip the beat away was a nice change-of-pace, and you transition smoothly back into the busier texture at 1:38. The second half of the piece seems like nearly a straight copy-paste of the first to me, which leaves some room for some more variety in the melodic contour and phrasing. That said, the loop is very smooth, including at the end, and there’s a lot of fun phrasing and ebb-and-flow within the 98-second loop itself, so it doesn’t bother me too much. One thing that really impresses me about this piece is how much you rely on what I call “melodic transitions,” where you’re using an entire harmonic phrase to smooth over a major transitory moment (example: 1:24 to 1:38) instead of just a sweep, riser, drum fill, reverse crash, or other cliched sound in electronic music. Melodic transitions are a very advanced composition skill to have, my friend, and you absolutely nailed the ones in here. Overall, I like this piece a lot. It has some top-tier sound design and composition. Keep at it, Interloping! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
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
9.25/10

Interloping responds:

I think one of my favorite parts of participating in these events is seeing how you break down my work and let me know what I'm doing right and wrong, I'm glad that you picked up on the amount of effort that I have put into my melodic transitions, as most of my time and effort, if not put into the drums and diversifying them, is how my scales flow with each other in such a way that matches the overall tone of the piece. I really wish I could convey the sounds that I hear in my head onto FL studio in such a way that I could let the world hear them, but that will only come with time. I was worried about the volume of the baseline providing too much gain because it is specifically a slap bass sound font, and if it's too loud it almost sounds like a percussive instrument that drowns out the drums. That being said, I wasn't sure how to make it blend in such a way that it wouldn't just become noise. I'll try to keep this in mind for my next piece, should I actually contribute one, because I have no idea if I can pull something out of my ass that was nearly as great as this piece was :P

Maybe, just maybe, I will have another submission ready before the deadline. If not, just know how grateful I am not only for your open-hearted criticisms, honest opinions, and most importantly the opportunity to be front paged as a result, and showcase that I am absolutely capable of moving outside of my comfort zone and composing in the sound font that breaks the barriers of square wave.

Thank you so much for giving me an opportunity to prove myself in this community, and I look forward to next year when I have more knowledge of FL studio!

[Geekum - Laced]

I like the flashy synths and catchy beats at the beginning. The rhythmic content and sound design are really solid here, but the composition could use a bit more structuring. The production quality is also really solid, although at times the atmosphere could’ve been a bit more filled out, with some reverb on the clap for example. Some vocals or other more dynamic melodic content would really take this piece to the next level, and the arrangement could use some more fleshing out as well. Until then, I’m still scoring this high for instrumentation, mood and atmosphere, mixing, and catchiness. Keep at it, Geekum! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
7.25/10

[(NGAUC '24 KO Round) Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, and Nitrogen]

I like the echo-y guitar at the beginning and the crisp drums and smooth bass at :21. The phased synths in the background were a nice touch, too. Love the injection of energy at :43 and the call-and-response action between the chaotic melodic patterns and the groovy bass riffs. The mix seems to have a really strong high-pass filter on it, although overall the production quality is very good here. The arrangement of the piece is a bit hard-to-follow at times, with a lot of fairly sudden transitions and twists and turns, like 2:00, but the sound design and rhythmic patterns tie everything together nicely. The piece could also use a stronger sense of an overarching direction at times, with a longer solo or other moment of arrival and climax. The atmospheric bridge at 3:09 helps scratch that itch a bit, and I like how it transitions so smoothly into the re-intro at 3:36. Really helps bring the piece full-circle. Overall, this is really strong work, FourTHat3! I love the sound design, melodies, variety, and creative compositional details. Keep up the good work! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
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?)
.75/1
Composite score
9.25/10

[Dry]

I like how you fooled me into thinking this was in 3/4 at the beginning. The thick bass and beats are nice sound design choices, but the texture could use a lot more fill for most of this piece, and the harmonic content simply needs more variety. The piece is very slow to progress, although the echo-y pads and high-pitched rhythmic pattern that come in at 1:02 are pretty cool. Once you add the 2nd note of that tonic chord at 2:06 it really captures my attention, and the piece really picks up in intensity from there. The drums struggle a bit to stay on top of the mix by around 2:40 - some stricter equalization in the low-end frequency range might help resolve that. I like the re-intro at 4:07 and how it’s interspersed with some echoes of the busier section shortly before. Otherwise, the piece is pretty repetitive towards the end, and lacks a strong moment of climax to hit it home, despite the build-up into 5:09. Overall, this is a catchy piece with some cool sound design and some decent mixing, but the composition needs much more depth and variety to score well on my rubric. I’d encourage you to keep working on this, though - the ominous mood and gritty synths are really captivating. Keep at it, FireJoJoBoy! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.75/2
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
5.5/10

[Deep Down]

I like the upbeat mood at the beginning. The melodies and sound design are also nice, and the minimal, airy section at :30 was a pleasant surprise. The post-chorus/drop at :47 is catchy, but also needs some more fill in the texture and probably some more harmonic depth as well. The breakdown at 1:18 has a nice emotional appeal to it, and the variations at 1:48 and the more stop-start transition there was a neat idea. The composition still feels a bit bland in places here, though. I think some vocals or a more dynamic melody would really take this track to the next level. That said, the mixing is solid, the instrumentation is tasteful, and the rhythmic content is catchy. Keep at it, Farmobus! ^_^

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
.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
7/10

[melting into goo]

Ooo…love me some 3/4. The E-piano and synth melodies are really nice instrument choices, although the rhythmic content is a bit square. The clock ticking and bass help balance out the texture well. At first the beat at :38 caught me off guard, but in retrospect it was a good way of transitioning to a new meter. The melody at 1:02 is cute, although the extended drum fill at 1:21 is a bit jarring. It just disrupts the flow of the piece a lot, just when it felt like it had a strong sense of direction for the first time. In general, my main concern with the piece is probably the lack of narrative appeal it has. There’s a lot of variation in the riffs later on, but with so many jarring transitions in between, they just don’t feel like they’re part of a cohesive whole. More gradual transitions that foreshadow the harmonic and instrumental changes in advance would help smooth out the arrangement of the piece a little more. I also found the section at 2:28 a bit dissonant and clunky - it might help to space the notes of the low-end chords a bit further apart in pitch. The part at 3:07 sounds absolutely lovely, but also feels out-of-place amidst some of the other riffs in the piece. Overall, there are a lot of good individual ideas here, with some great instrument selection and solid mixing. But the structure sounds a bit choppy and thrown-together - fix that, and this easily gets an additional point or two from me. Baller title, by the way. Keep at it, Ellietonin! ^_^

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
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7/10

[-Before You Go- [HQ VER.]]

I like the upbeat mood at the beginning. The strings at :16 sound a bit inauthentic, but otherwise the sound design has a bright tone that fits the harmonic content. The texture starts to come together nicely by :30, and I like how the piece continues building up in intensity until the drop at 1:15. The harmonic content gets repetitive pretty quickly, but you did a good job of varying the instruments, and the mixing is solid as well. The breakdown at 1:46 has a nice emotional appeal, and I like the injection of energy at 1:59 as well. This piece is very smooth-flowing overall, with well-crafted transitions and a strong sense of direction throughout. I would’ve liked to see way more variety in the second half, though - secondary melodies, variations in the harmonic content, etc. The arrangement (including the key change at 3:15) and sound design are also pretty generic. Still, you’re clearly a talented producer with a good sense of progression and harmony, and this is a catchy and fun piece. Keep at it, DJDannyTV! ^_^

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
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.5/10

ImSmoothie responds:

I really appreciate your comments!!
I am going to take all these things into consideration from now on :)
Thanks for accepting me in the elimination round!!!!
I'm already happy to have made it this far <3
Best of luck for everyone who made it to the finals!!

[dekiru - crystalline (NGUAC24)]

I like the thick pads at the beginning and dark, quirky chords. The piece is a bit slow to progress at first, and :48 doesn’t quite feel like the big “moment of arrival” that it could’ve been - in other words, the build-up to :48 is a bit underwhelming. The sound design at :48 is cool, but the texture also sounds pretty minimal. The mix is crisp and loud, though. The transition into 1:36 was a bit sudden. The flute riff at 1:56 was a great idea - I really like the tranquil and evocative sound it has there. After that, the rest of the piece was a bit repetitive and, once again, lacking in harmonic depth. I also would’ve appreciated some more variation in the drop the second time around.

Overall, this is a catchy piece with some neat instrumentation. It just needs a bit more shape (gradual transitions, strong sense of overarching direction, etc.) and fill in the texture to round it out a bit more. Keep at it, Dekiru! ^_^

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
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
6.75/10

[Waves upon Moonrise (NGUAC Knockout 2024)]

I like the airy synths at the beginning and bass-y kick at :31. The mix is a little quiet, but otherwise well-balanced and clean. The melodies at :52 are really nice, and the piece flows really nicely into the secondary melodies at 1:55 or so. It’s around that time that the drums struggle to pop through the mix, though - make sure you’ve turned up the ratio on the compressor up to 4:1 or 5:1 on that kit. As much as I like the sound design in this piece, I also feel like it could’ve had a bit more range. The synths kinda sound like they’re all from the same sample pack in my mind. The compositional details here do help keep things interesting, though - the bass slide and stop-start transition at 3:38 was fun. The piece was still missing a big refrain or climax to really hit it home towards the end, though. Overall, the atmosphere, melodies, and instrumentation are really enjoyable here, but the mixing could use a tad more polish and the composition could’ve been a tad bolder at times. Still, this was an enjoyable and evocative piece, DefectiveSmile! Keep it up. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
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
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
7.5/10