TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Discordance : Found Sympathy [NGUAC 2024 Knockout Round]]

I like the pensive atmosphere at the beginning and the piano arpeggios at :19 and the build-up into :44. The drop at :44 is very minimal and stagnant, especially compared to the rich atmosphere earlier in the piece. The production quality in the piece is pretty good overall, but I can tell the strings at 1:11 are getting distorted by the heavy sidechaining, and the mix in general is also a bit quiet. I like the rhythmic content at 1:42 and the transition into the moody breakdown at 2:07. There’s another good sense of build-up into 3:02, but overall this piece never seems like it gets back to the same intensity level as the first 44 seconds. At some point, the piece also could’ve used some more dynamic melodic content. The string refrain is nice, but the contour is also very repetitive within the phrase itself. Still, this piece has some great sound design and neat compositional details like the funky rhythms at 1:12. Fill out the texture a bit more during the body of the piece, and maybe add a bit of polish to the mixing, and this would easily get another point or two from me. Keep at it, TotallyDementedOff! ^_^

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
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
7.75/10

[He's Into Lolicon]

I like the classic early 2000s rock feel at the beginning. The vocals are delivered well - nice conversational tone and articulation - and the lyrics have a good comedic value. The vocals could’ve been mixed a little further up-front, though. It’s hard to make out the lyrics at times, largely because the vocals aren’t staying on top of the texture too well. A little compression and some stricter equalization on the instrumental track might help make them stand out more, but admittedly my own experience with mixing live-recorded guitars is limited, so just be careful not to cut into their frequency range too much. That said, the composition here is really strong. The melodies are dynamic, your guitar skills are excellent, and the entire arrangement flows really nicely. The bridge at 2:01 is really hilarious and self-aware. The vocal layering during the last 20 seconds or so isn’t perfect - it just doesn’t blend very well, and might need to be re-recorded. Otherwise, this is a very well-executed composition. You remind me of @UlfusNG, who made a bunch of similar comedy songs back in the day. Keep at it, TofuTehSurvivor! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.5/1.5
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?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.75/10

TofuTehSurvivor responds:

Noted! Still learning mixing 🤣 thank you for the feedback!

[Strike the Ground [NGUAC 2024]]

I like the catchy four-on-the-floor beat at the beginning. The airy pads at :33 are nice and dreamy, although the piece is pretty slow to progress, and you start overusing the “shake the earth” vocal sample in short order. The drop at 1:32 is catchy, if a bit minimal, and the post-chorus melody at 2:02 is nice as well. The synth at 2:41 sounds a bit harsh in the upper register - maybe you could soften it a bit in the EQ. The mix sounds a bit distorted once the pads come in at 4:42, but overall the production quality of this track is solid. I can hear all the instruments clearly throughout, and the frequencies are generally well-balanced. The second half of this piece in particular could use a lot more variety, though. The riser/faller combo at 4:00 was pretty catchy, but also didn’t really add much to the overarching progression of the piece. More harmonic layering and variety on the main riffs would really take this piece to the next level. Until then, it’s still really catchy and smooth-flowing, with some cool compositional details and decent mixing. Keep at it, TheMagBros! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
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
7/10

[TO THE HEAVEN #2 - break out angeles]

I like the ominous atmosphere at the beginning and the heavily filtered drums. The mix sounds pretty distorted - there’s a lot of reverb in the texture, and the harmonic content doesn’t come through very well. The rhythmic content is really strong, as one would expect of a D’n’B track, and the sound design is cool. The harmonic content could use a bit more depth and variety, but my main problem here is the over-saturated mix. Dialing back the reverb a bit and reining in these volume levels would probably add a point to your score. Some more variety later on would also be appreciated. Still, this is a catchy piece with some creative instrumentation and a smooth progression. Keep at it, swimkop! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
.5/2
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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
5.5/10

[Sly - Touch]

I love the tranquil and upbeat synths at the beginning and the build-up into :26. I think you start to overuse the stop-start transitions and portamentos pretty quickly, though, and overall this piece sounds incomplete. The lead synth also sounds a tad harsh in the upper register - you could potentially soften that a bit with an equalizer. Still, this is a catchy piece with some solid production quality. It just needs a bit more structuring. I’d encourage you to keep working on this - a fully fleshed-out version of this could be a real banger. ^_^

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
.75/1
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

[Fox in the forest]

I like the glitchy riff at the beginning and the crisp drums at :15. The sound design is really cool, but the harmonic content is a bit bland after a while, and the change of meter at 1:06 was a bit jarring. I enjoyed the build-up into 1:31, but the second half of the piece could use a bit more variety vis-a-vis the first half, especially in terms of the chord progression. The final refrain (starting at 1:41) also drags on for a bit too long without much change in the energy level or instrumentation. Overall, this piece is catchy, and the ominous and gritty sound design is cool, but the composition is rather bland, and the arrangement also sounds generic and uninspired. The production quality is solid, though, and I’d encourage you to keep working on this. Make the arrangement a bit looser, with some more depth to the harmonies, and this could be a real banger. Keep at it, ShowCover! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
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
6.75/10

[RennZ - Sea Lights | ft.Synthferatu]

I like the groovy guitar at the beginning. It’s a bit disorienting how the volume levels seem to vary so much chord-to-chord, though. The vocals are really smooth, and also sit really well in the mix, although at times they could use a little more decoration - i.e., reverb and other mixing effects. The lyrics themselves are good too, and I like the added portamento bass at :44. The instrumental track could use some more variety - maybe a breakdown or solo or something at some point. Some more ebb and flow (automation, filtering, etc.) within the phrases would also help create some more variety. That said, I really like the sound design, rhythmic content, and flow of this one. Keep at it, RennZ! ^_^

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
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
8.25/10

[From Afar]

I like the ominous mood at the beginning and the strong sense of ebb-and-flow in the texture during the first 20 seconds or so. The vocaloid at :33 sounds rather realistic, but I can’t decide if the introspective lyrics are deep or just a bit cheesy. The whispered tone to the vocals at 1:20 was haunting, and the growing intensity at 2:12 is especially nice. It’s really impressive how much variety you have in the sound design here. The piece could’ve used a big moment of arrival at the end of the piece, but it never quite gets there. I’m impressed with how flowing and well-varied this track is, but at some point I also wanted to see a climactic section that relieves some of the pent-up tension here. The melodic content and mixing are also good, although at times the snare and kick are a bit soft, like at 1:05. Overall, really solid work here, Pixxlman! Love the atmosphere, sound design, progression, and melodies here. Keep it up! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
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

PixxlMan responds:

Thanks for the thorough review!

[PARTY HATZ! - Captain Obvious]

I like the cute, 8-bit sound design and catchy melodies at the beginning. The mixing and mastering is good overall - love the heavy compression on the bass at :14, although the drums don’t quite come through the mix as much as I would’ve liked. The vocals are really strong, both delivered and produced well. The lyrics have a nostalgic flair, which is played up really well by the melodies, sound design, and samples of children’s voices. The arrangement is a little generic, and the main melody (both in the vocals and in the synths) could use a tad more variety later on in the piece - maybe even a separate “B” melody as a solo before the breakdown at 1:43 would do the trick. Despite my nitpicks, I really like this piece a lot. It’s danceable, well-produced, and thematically really on-brand with itself, if that makes sense. I’m really curious why you titled it “Captain Obvious,” though - spent a bit too long overthinking that one. :’D Keep it up, PARTYHATZ! ^_^

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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9.25/10

PARTYHATZ responds:

"Captain Obvious" is a phrase I'm quite attached to as me and my friends used it a lot in the late 2000s when I was a kid. In my older years "Captain Obvious" sorta morphed into an alias/shorthand for my younger self and a romanticized idea of my youth. To me this song is about trying to surround yourself with things/people from the past in an effort to become a kid again. PARTY HATZ! as a project exists as an outlet for my nostalgic feelings towards that period of time, as well as a bitterness about leaving it behind, which I'm sure comes through in the lyrics xP

Hope this makes sense, I'm still trying to figure most of it out myself haha :3

[Latin Spirit (NGUAC 2024 Knockout Round)]

I like the blissful mood at the beginning and the cute sound design. The mix is a bit quiet and off-balance, though. You could probably use some more compression in the lead instruments and, especially, the drums. The percussion here is very well-written, but it’s often hard to hear all the detail of it during the busier sections of this piece. I would also give a slight boost to the upper-mid tones of the brass in the equalizer. The melodic content here is fantastic, though. Occasionally, the transitions between the different solos are a bit abrupt (like at 1:56), but I really like the “ensemble cast” of melody instruments overall. One thing that could use a bit more variety in this piece is the energy level. It feels like there isn’t a strong sense of overarching direction to the piece, just a succession of highly individualized melodies. You could change that by making a more dramatic build-up into the brass refrain at 2:14, and also by automating the volume levels a bit more. Overall, solid work, PaintedPenguin! This is a catchy piece with some great sound design and a fun, upbeat flair. 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?)
1/1
Composite score
8/10

PaintedPenguin responds:

thanks for the advice, i really appreciate it! :^D