TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[I]

Quirky synth at the beginning. I think it drags on for a bit too long, and the entry of the strings at :21 is not only sudden but also shifts the mood of the piece considerably. That said, the strings do blend pretty well with the synth at the beginning, and I like the new, warmer-sounding texture. Progression here is seriously slow, though. The transition at 1:05 also didn’t work for me. I think it would’ve been more effective if you had created a more distinct sense of build-up over the first minute of the piece. The pads totally dominate the texture during the refrain, and the re-intro at 1:50 doesn’t contribute much to the directionality of the piece imo. I really like the atmosphere at 1:58, and the percussion there is nice and crisp. There’s a serious slow-down in the pacing at 2:20, and I don’t think that downtempo section leads very logically into the final refrain at 2:52. You certainly gave the last minute or so of the piece a climactic and conclusive edge, but I think it would’ve been more effective if you had a more gradual build-up. The piece in general doesn’t have a ton of strong melodic content either, and when it does have melodic riffs (at 3:20 or so, for example), they’re a bit buried in the texture by the strong pads. Overall, I think your main priorities going forward should be the transitions, melodic content, and maybe the instrumentation. I was confused about the mood of the piece between the eerie-sounding synth at the beginning and the blissful refrains. I’ve been tough on you during this review, but I think the mixing and mastering here is quite good, and you clearly have a good sense of harmony too. Keep at it, Red65!

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
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
7/10

Red65 responds:

thanks for the feedback.

//red

[Outcast]

The intro, while a simple fade-in concept, was effective. I like the cute synths and the sweeps. The build-up beginning at :33 was a nice touch, and I enjoyed the refrain. I think there’s more room for stronger melodic content. I don’t really consider arpeggios melodic content. While the mix is really loud, it sounds both over-compressed and a tad indistinct at times. I’d suggest trying to rely more on equalizing than compression to make your mastering sound clear and well-balanced. I think the other main flaw with this piece is that there’s not a lot of variety between the first and second half. The two refrains sound very similar, and the underlying harmonic framework of the piece never really changes. That said, the ritardando at the end was a good idea. I think your composition skills are pretty strong overall, and it’s great that your mix, while not perfect, sounds so loud and full. Other than that, the instrumentation and arrangement of the piece are a tad generic. Overall, solid work with the build-ups, atmosphere, and volume levels. Keep at it, NoobGameYT!

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
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
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.75/10

NoobGameYT responds:

Thank you so much, it was really fun and I can't wait to join the N G U A C next time :)

[Used to Be]

Majestic riff at the beginning. Sounds a bit thin, but once the rest of the texture fills in it’s a really nice touch in that upper register. The beat is nice and crisp, too. You clearly have a good sense of harmony and progression. The piece feels really dry, though. I think there’s a ton of potential for this piece to have a gorgeous, lush atmosphere. Everything about the sound design has a great emotional appeal, except the only thing missing was the reverb/delay effects that would’ve actually given it that atmospheric touch. Otherwise, the composition here is seriously vanilla. Very little sense of progression or growth over these 2.5 minutes. This piece is both repetitive and harmonically stagnant, unfortunately. Overall, I think with a bit more variety in the moving notes and a more generous approach to the mastering effects, this piece could be an ambient beauty with the perfect amount of punch. Right now, the composition’s just a tad underwhelming. Keep at it, KnockVoltage!

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
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
6.25/10

KnockVoltage responds:

Thanks for the feedback

[You'll Get Yours]

I like the organic sound at the beginning. Starting the intro off with a shaker was a good idea. You have a really nice voice. It blends really well with the low-register guitar riffs. There aren’t a lot of higher-pitched tones in the first half of the piece or so. That might be an potential area for filling out the texture a little more if appropriate. I really like the lyrics themselves too. Great use of rhyme scheme and thematic content. I like how the texture begins to pick up at 1:23. The piece really starts coming together only in the second half or so, between the energy at 1:40 and the solo at 1:49. That was a risky move compositionally, but I think it totally paid off. The result is that the track feels really repetitive and also serves as a narrative form, with the grand conclusion “you’ll get yours and I’ll get mine” only coming to light at the end. Usually, I have reservations about pieces that only have one main climax as a focal point (because they often lack dynamism otherwise), but the progression here is curated really well. My main complaints here are that the piece is pretty repetitive harmonically, and that the texture could’ve been filled out a little more early on in the piece. Still, the mix is both loud and clear, the sound design is really good, and the passion is self-evident. Super strong work here, dude2312. By all means, keep it up! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
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?)
1/1
Composite score
9.5/10

dude2312 responds:

Oh, my! TaintedLogic, it is an honor to have such a good review by you. Thank you, I always welcome feedback with open arms. I liked the fact that you think it is passionate, I really do try to put my best to it. I am barely starting to record on my own room, I try to do my best. Once again, thank you so much.

[Yugoslavia 1982]

I like the angry, staccato bass sounds. A lot of the effects here are really cool, like the twittering sound at :08. Nice rhythmic work with the hi-hats too. As for the reverb-heavy crash-equivalent at :15, I think you overdid it a bit. It just consumes the texture for the couple seconds after it comes in. The dark mood and brass hits here are pretty cool, but I think my main complaint with this piece is that it’s lacking compositionally. Far from being a structurally complete piece, it only has one engaging moment of climax with the brass melody at :46 before a hurried, lazy fade-out. Rhythmic, staccato elements dominate the texture, and the harmonic framework is not sufficiently fleshed out for my tastes. Is the track bad? Certainly not. Have you earned a scout? Yes. But I wanted to see you do a lot more with the composition here. Keep at it, Chickenizer!

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.75/2
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
6/10

Chickenizer responds:

Hi TaintedLogic, thank you for listening and the comprehensive, constructive feedback!

Excuse Mode ON: I only had an hour to make this, and so decided that the best course of action would be to spontaneously synthesize a synthwave soundtrack cue (hence the fade-out at the end, where it would supposedly loop back should it play with some visual media like a video game).

But, excuses aside, I should have definitely worked on that one longer. And I too think that the structure is the one aspect of the track that is hurting it the most.

Also, I really don't think I should've cut so much lows on the brass. D'oh.

Still, I'm glad you found value in this – I should really call it by it's name – sketch.

I'm glad I earned my place for a scout! So if we are both scouts, tell me, when do we start selling cookies? Just kidding. :)

Cheers!

[Winner Track (Original Mix)]

Smooth track. A little generic in its arrangement and harmonic progression, but the drops are fun and the sound design is pretty cool. Mix is super loud and clean, if a little over-compressed. There also aren't a ton of high-pitched frequencies, which leaves the balance kinda bottom-heavy. Some stuff might need a high-pass. Well-structured and smooth-flowing, though. Definitely fits a niche mood. Keep at it, Kaixo!

KaixoMusic responds:

s t o p t a k i n g t h i s t r a c k s e r i o u s l y p l e a s e xD

[凍傷 "Frostbite"]

Chill riff at the beginning. Kick drum is a little heavy, though, and kinda hijacks the mix. I like the VGM-ish effects and progression. Nice work with the hi-hats, too. I guess I would've liked a little more variety on the main riff, and maybe some melodic content to give the piece more directionality. Fade-out ending came off as a bit lazy, but the production quality is really strong overall. Keep at it, DreamEater!

DreamEater responds:

Thank you very much for your feedback Taintedlogic, I greatly appreciate it.

[Shredageddon]

Catchy stuff at the beginning. I like the build-up into :30, and the heavy bass that follows is nice and gritty without being overly harsh-sounding. Rhythmic content here is a huge plus, and the production quality is quite strong. Piece is well-structured, too. My main criticism is that there's very little harmonic depth to the piece. Almost all of the elements of the texture at a given time serve a mostly rhythmic purpose, and in general the piece just lacks a sense of storytelling or directionality. That said, I can tell that you're a talented producer, and the vocal samples later on helped keep things engaging. Keep at it, BoomKitty!

BoomKitty responds:

Thanks man! I appreciate the in depth review and your criticisms are definitely valid. This track is a break-away from my more recent melodic stuff. It's meant to be short, sweet, and heavy AF

[M11]

I like the feel-good vibe of the piece and the funky guitars. Progression could've been fleshed out a little more, but the melodic content at :24 is really groovy. Production is decent, too - drums were nice and crisp, and the texture fills out nicely by the end. Now it just needs to be structurally complete. :) Keep at it, RaceTTar!

RaceTTar responds:

thanks!