TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[It is what it is]

First of all, I love the artsy image of the lyrics in the description. The lyrics themselves are also great. The pensive intro is nice, too - love the atmosphere and the orchestral elements of the sound design.

I can tell you're a talented vocalist, but I wasn't a huge fan of the processing. Sounds very artificial for a piece like this. Also, the delivery feels a bit disjointed, especially when you take a breath between each word of "any moment now." At some point, the articulation on the consonants also starts to wane. "Moment" sounds like "momeh" and the "ck" in "back" are missing. That's a pretty small detail, but I think a more languid quality to the vocals that enunciates each syllable would fit the introspective tone of the piece much better. The vocals at 1:53 are much closer to achieving that languid quality.

That said, the subtle build-up into :56 and the rich bass there are really nice. Love the transition into 2:18 and the mellow breakdown in between. Again, great sense of atmosphere with the full-textured chords here. The piece is phrased really well - there's just a ton of emotion in it. Overall, strong work OVERSCORE! I sure hope to see you back for next year's NGUAC. ^_^

OVERSCORE responds:

Thanks for the feedback, TL! Working on that artistic interpretation of the lyrics was fun and thought-provoking, hope it has the same effect on listeners.

The processing was WAY too much, I absolutely agree— I’m looking forward to having an ACTUAL autotune effect when I get FL Studio later on, bc SunVox is not a great tool for vocal processing. My goal was to kinda stylize it in a way, over-exaggerate it for effect. And I definitely hear the pronunciation issues, you’re right… I’ll definitely keep this in mind when I’m singing, thanks!! As for the loud breathing between some words/lhrases, I actually over-compressed the vocals to bring that out, hoping it would give the song a more desperate edge or something? I don’t have almost ANY experience with vocals, and am very lucky to have such in-depth criticism here, thanks!

Glad you liked the overall structure of the song, I’m definitely loving where my style is going with this mix of orchestral/organic sounds and experimental sound design. I think I can squeeze a LOT more emotion out of it with some practice, and feedback like this helps a lot! Thank you!

[Until We're Dead]

I like the gritty guitar at the beginning and the drums. The vocal delivery is much better here. A few of the notes don't quite get to the pitch they should (like "shreds" at :35 and "skull" at :48), but I can tell you put a lot of effort into it.

The production quality could still use some help. The drums sound pretty indistinct during the vocal passages, and I'm not sure the mics in general are picking up all the detail you want. What's your recording setup like? And how are you processing it in post? Send me a PM and I'll give you some more advice if I can.

Compositionally, the piece is also fairly good. I'd love to hear some more range in the vocal line - the chorus could be transposed up an octave to up the intensity, for example. The bridge at 1:12 is cool, but I would've loved to hear a more ambitious guitar solo or other melody in there. Still, the rhythmic content, transitions, and sound design are all strong here, and I also like the dark, nihilistic lyrics.

But the big victory here is the vocals. They sound WAY better than they did on "Breaker." Keep focusing on adding some emotion to your delivery, and you'll really establish yourself as a strong vocalist. Keep at it, CrabbyXX! ^_^

CrabbyXX responds:

Thanks man. My main goal here was to either do better with the mixing or the vocals, so it's nice to hear I got at least one of those done. I definitely know that I was using the drum machine in Bandlab when I made this because I don't have my own set of drums, and I have to use a cheap adapter I got off of Amazon because I do everything from my phone and for some reason headphones jacks are extinct, so that's why the sound quality kind of sucks, but it's still a valid point, so thanks.

[MORE HYPERPOPPPPP :OOOOO [NGUAC 2025]]

I like the chord progression at the beginning. The pads sound neat, but a bit dry in the mix - could use some more reverb and other effects to add some atmosphere. I wasn’t a huge fan of the grainy quality of the drop at :29. The frantic melodies at :50 are cool, but the transition into 1:08 was pretty sudden, and overall I’d like to hear more harmonic variety here. The second half of the piece especially gets a bit repetitive. The section at 1:08 was also a missed opportunity for a “B” melody or atmospheric bridge or something.

I think you’ve got a solid skeleton for a piece here, but the composition could use some more fleshing out, and I’m honestly not feeling the sound design, especially the staccato-y barrage of high notes that play during the high-octane sections. That said, I am impressed you made this in 2 hours. Another few hours to give the mix some depth and the harmonies some more variety, and I think you’d easily get a couple of points back from me. Keep at it, Zedzy! ^_^

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
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
6.5/10

ZedzyMusic responds:

the transistion out of the drop is SOO BADDD 😭

i tried to fix it, but i couldnt think of anything to fix it besides getting rid of the switch to A=432hz at the drop.

most of my songs are SUPER repetitive, and i am trying to fix that now. maybe i couldve done one drop and something before and after, and put more work into just that. thanks for the review, at the time i've made this, i didnt use reverb as much, which is a shame, because it's a really good effect.

you know what? i'm gonna make another hyperpop song taking as much of your advice in this as i can, and i can send it to you via newgrounds dms or something, and you can tell me what you think! :D

have a good day TaintedLogic Pro X (im super funny) :D

[Neon - NGUAC ENTRY]

I like the tranquil mood at the beginning. The piano melodies at :15 are nice, although for the next minute or so the pacing of the piece is a bit slow. The melodies get a tad repetitive after a while, although I like the understated climax at 1:22. I also like the chromatic motion during the breakdown at 1:53, even though the rhythm is a bit hard-to-follow there at times.

I love the drop at 2:38 - it was a really pleasant surprise that turned the rhythmic paradigm from earlier in the piece on its head. The transition at 3:06 could’ve been a tad smoother, and I also would’ve liked to hear a second major climactic section later in the piece to tie it together. As it is, the outro feels rather dragged-out.

Overall, most of my complaints here are minor, although I think some faster pacing earlier in the piece and some bolder compositional decisions later would really take it to the next level. Still, you’ve put together a compelling, catchy, and well-produced track here, Voytek! Keep at it. ^_^

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
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.25/10

Voytek-Music responds:

Thanks for the review! I understand that it's kinda repetitive (that's why I made the bass drop) and I think that I could have made better if I had more time (I was on holidays for the first week). 😀

[NGUAC - Revenge (2A03+VRC7)]

I like the pensive synth riff at the beginning. I think you overuse the crashes a bit between :15 and :30, and some of the sound design choices in the next minute or so after weren’t my favorite. The synth that first comes in at :52 sounds particularly cheesy, with the built-in filter change half a second after the attack. That said, the piece is quite catchy, with tons of neat rhythmic syncopations. The pacing is a bit slow, with a long time until the first “breakdown” in the beat at 2:37, but the texture is pretty thick and well-varied, which helps me stay engaged. After that, the piece sounds a bit cyclical, with pretty much a straight copy-paste of the arrangement from the first half. The production quality holds up pretty well, but the texture could use a bit more atmosphere (i.e., reverb and other mixing effects) at times, especially on the main melody and synth arpeggios. Also, the drums could use a boost during some of the busier sections - would be great to have them sound a tad punchier during the climactic bits. Still, the piece flows well, has great rhythmic content, and a good amount of variety and narrative appeal within each 2.5-minute loop. Solid work overall! Keep at it, TimeTravelleR54. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
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?)
1/1
Composite score
8.25/10

TimeTravelleR54 responds:

Thank you so much for the feedback :) it will help me to complete this song properly. I'm grateful to have been able to participate this year, and I'm looking forward to next year!

[Beyond The Sky (Demo)]

I like the mellow pads at the beginning and the crisp beats at :11. The piano instrument sounds a bit overly contained in the mix - might help to give it a bit more room to breathe in the equalizer, but it could also be the quality of the VST. Hard to tell. Otherwise, the sound design and production quality are solid, and I also really like the rhythmic content at :11. The breakdown at :55 was good for some structural variety, but drags on for a tad too long. I like the delayed entry of the synth bass at 1:40, and by 2:00 the piece has a nice, upbeat vibe. Compositionally, it still doesn’t quite feel complete, though. Some more dynamic melodic content and a thicker texture during some of the downtempo sections would be welcome to round out this piece some more. There are a lot of great individual compositional ideas, though, and I also really like the evocative mood and, other than the piano towards the beginning, the sound design. Keep at it, PurityStar! ^_^

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
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8/10

PurityStar responds:

thank you! I had to submit what I had due to time constraints but thank you so much for the feedback

[The Chrysanthemum Forest]

I like the mellow piano riff at the beginning and the string drone. Great dramatic flourish into :29, followed by some nice eerie percussion and more mellow piano riffs. The pacing of this piece is actually really great - so much variety in the sound design, but it all flows very smoothly. I really like the crisp guitar at around 1:20 and the quirky synths at 1:48. Love how the piece “resets itself” at 2:07 and follows a similar progression of instrumental hierarchies in the second half, even though it’s not quite the same. The production quality of this piece is also really good. If I had to complain about one thing, it might be that the piece lacks a strong “point of arrival” that ties it together narratively. As loose and creative as the arrangement is, it feels a tad directionless at times. Still, this is one of those rare one-in-a-hundred tracks that completely breaks my rubric. On paper, you haven’t delivered a substantial portion of my criteria (especially in the “structure” category), but I still like this track a LOT. Keep up the great work, PixxlMan! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
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?)
.5/1
Composite score
9.25/10

PixxlMan responds:

Thanks for the thorough review TaintedLogic! Really glad you liked it!

[The Hard Way]

I love the rustic quality of your vocals and the narrative appeal of the lyrics. The mix could use a bit of cleaning up, though. The drums don’t come through the texture very clearly, and the lead guitar also sounds a tad too far back in the mix. The spoken word part at :57 was a tad cheesy, but you really nailed the frantic solo at 1:14 with the slap bass backing. The transition at 1:49 was a bit sudden, but I think that section hits the piece home nicely. Good comedic appeal at the tail end (pun intended).

Overall, I like the vocal delivery, guitar work, and storytelling effort here a lot. I think the arrangement could be a tad less disjointed with some more gradual transitions - at least something small to foreshadow the explosion of energy at 1:14 and “return to earth” at 1:49. The production quality could also use a bit of polishing, and simultaneously the piece could use a bit more atmosphere - maybe some more reverb and chorus effects on the vocals, etc. Still, there are a lot of strong elements of the composition and sound design here, including the airy guitar solo in the middle and soulful vocals. Keep at it, Percentblue! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1/2
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
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8/10

Percentblue responds:

Thank you so much for your awesome and indepth reply. I have a ton of fun with these contests and always learn a lot. Cheers 🍻

[MarkRuff21 - Earth (NGUAC Knockout Round)]

I like the haunting ambiance at the beginning. The cello melody at :14 is lovely, and I like how the rest of the atmosphere slowly bleeds in until around :45. The rhythm is a bit square, and overall the piece feels a bit slow to progress. The rich texture at 1:30 is a treat, but the melody line struggles to sit on top of the mix like I want it to. Maybe some more careful equalization, especially in the bottom end of the frequency range, is in order there.

The piano solo at 2:15 is nice for some structural variety, and the transition back to electronica at 2:45 went over smoothly. I can barely hear the claps at 3:00. The build-up into 3:37 is nice, although I wasn’t a huge fan of the percussion instruments during the drop itself. The drop section is also a bit over-compressed, but I like the reverb automations at 4:30 or so.

The pizzicato-y synth pattern at 4:40 does a nice job of “resetting” the piece, and while I like the beat at 5:07, I think this section drags on for a tad too long. Even with the transitory section at 5:37, the heavy drop at 5:53 was a tad unexpected, and also had some pretty slow pacing and over-repetition. I also think the transition back into the dreamy pads at 6:53 could’ve been smoother and more gradual. That said, the 6:53 section does tie the piece together nicely, and the mellow outro is a nice touch as well.

Overall, I think this piece is harmonically cohesive enough that it could benefit from some faster pacing at times. It doesn’t quite have enough novelty to hold my attention for all of these 9+ minutes, and some sections (especially the first 3 minutes and the middle section from 4:40-6:53) could’ve been shortened substantially. You’ve clearly poured a ton of creative energy into the mixing effects and atmosphere, and it shows: other than the exceptions I’ve mentioned the mix is fairly clean and distinct throughout. The sound design is well-varied and solid. It’s really polishing the arrangement details (smoothing over some rough transitions, better channeling the energy through pacing, etc.) that could really take this piece to the next level. Still, congratulations on a momentous accomplishment in this piece, Mark! Keep at it. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
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
8/10

MarkRuff21 responds:

AAA THANK YOU!! As always, your feedback is appreciated! <3

[LLDD (NGUAC Knockout Round 2025 Submission) (Feat. Skambo)]

I like the catchy beat at the beginning. The kick has a bit too much treble for my tastes, but once the other elements of the sound design come in it doesn’t bother me as much. The texture is still pretty minimal for most of the piece, although the production quality is very strong. The vocals start getting rather repetitive by around the 1-minute mark, and in general the sound design, harmonic progression, and arrangement are all a bit generic. I especially think there’s some potential to do more with the harmonic content of this. The piece is missing a lot of treble-range tones much of the time - even some mid-range pads or something would help this track sound more well-balanced. Later in the piece, some more variety on the main riffs would also have been a welcome source of variety, especially during the minimal drops. Overall, you’re clearly a talented producer - the mix is super loud and clean, and the rhythmic content and sound design are solid. But compositionally, this piece could’ve been a lot bolder. Keep at it, Joe! ^_^

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
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
7.25/10

JoeStasi responds:

Thank you for your feedback Andrew I always appreciate it! <3