TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Black Clad Warriors]

I like the guitar riffs at the beginning. Has a calming vibe, yet at the same time an edginess that grows on the piece with time. By the 1-minute mark, I'm really getting more of the intensity. I thought 1:12 was pretty much a non-transition that needed a bit more smoothing. Interesting how you bring in the more processed-sounding drums at 1:35. Like all your tracks, the piece has an underlying flow with a lot of changes in energy creating variety. The production quality is solid. It seems like you often introduce and remove instruments from the texture without warning, which can feel jarring at times. That might be something to work on. Otherwise, it's an enjoyable piece with quite a lot of shape. Keep up the good work, I0ta!

zybor responds:

shit i forgot you reviewed this one. :O im so sorry

thanks

[Lightyears from Home]

I like the emotion at the beginning and the pacing. I really enjoyed the string swells once they started coming in. The phrasing throughout is gorgeous. This is the right kind of simplicity in music, my friend. There's a ton of variety - you really told a story with this one, even if you compromised a bit on the cohesiveness of the piece as a result. The melody at 2:15 is probably my favorite part of the piece. It's just absolutely haunting. I was also glad to hear such a climactic section at 3:10 as well. You've really capitalized on the emotional quality of the piece with the dynamic range of the piece.

"Hope I didn't butcher it too much with my horrible piano performance!" --> Nonsense! Don't be so humble, Dan. This is incredible work! Looking forward to hearing more from you soon. :)

Danman87 responds:

Thanks so much for the in depth review! I actually needed multiple attempts to properly get the piano parts right, which is why I don't consider it much of a good performance. Super happy you liked it though, this one was a lot of fun to do! :)

[Gargantua]

I like the cheesy synths and frantic drums. The high-frequency harmonic riffs (like at :44) really add a lot to the texture. The drop at 1:02 was pretty good, albeit a little repetitive. The mix is pretty loud and clear, although I think you could've softened some of the high-register tones at times. One thing I really like about the piece is how flowy it is. Even though you have a fair amount of variety overall, it's still really carefully structured and progresses quite smoothly. Nice work!

Sylux03 responds:

Yey! Thanks for listening!

[Horizons]

I like the angry bass and the 80s-style synths and drums. I think the mix could be a tad tighter - drums didn't quite pop like I wanted them to, and the bass gets pretty buried in the mix at around 1:30. The mix was loud and the texture was very full, though. I also appreciated it when you stripped away the drums at around 1:45 to add some structural variety. The main melodic theme (at 2:59, and other places) is nice, but it might've needed a bit more variation after a while, especially in a relatively long piece such as this. The piece also sounds pretty uniform in intensity and energy for most of it, which unfortunately means my engagement level kinda fades after a time. The fade-out ending didn't help in that regard. Overall, I think the instrumentation, mood, atmosphere, and melodic content are all huge pluses. A little more shape and dynamism in the composition would be welcome, as well as a tighter mix. Keep at it, Pr0tagonist! :)

larrynachos responds:

Yeah... I was having some trouble with the drums because they were a single plugin and not separate samples. Sidechaining reacted with the whole kit, creating that kinda sloppy effect. I really wasn't sure how to deal with it, so I just lowered the volume and bass boosted the drums to give the kick some prominence.

Definitely screwed up the flow of this one. Just kept it loud and intense the whole time. My main focus was trying to give the melodies some variety, but I definitely should have paid more attention to the structure and pacing. Thanks for the review TL! I appreciate it!

[Leer of Doom]

I love the ominous mood at the beginning. The subtle pause at :11 is a nice touch. Drums are nice and crisp, and the mix is loud and clear. I like the more mellow section at :50. Organ synth at :54 was cool, and the melodic riff at 1:05 is pretty great too. The build-up into 1:51 was a little drawn-out and broken up, but I think my main complaint is with the superfluous 2-second transitory section at 1:48. After an already very dynamic build-up, that section seemed more confusing than anything else to me. I guess I was also a little thrown-off by the sudden injection of so many new harmonic elements at 1:51. It's a fitting bridge in a lot of ways, but I suppose at that point in the piece I was expecting a final refrain that was a little more in-line with some of the other themes and riffs of the piece. At the same time, I applaud the way you created variety across the piece as a whole. Saving the most dramatic and, in many ways, most melodic section for last is probably smart. Maybe I just didn't listen closely enough, but I think I would've liked to see some of the riffs featured in the last minute foreshadowed a bit more earlier in the piece. Obviously, you intended 1:51 to be punchy and jarring to some extent, but the transition there didn't quite work for me somehow. Anyway, I'm rambling about tiny compositional details. Overall, really strong work with the production, sound design, atmosphere, and thematic elements. Keep up the good work, Spadezer! ^_^

Spadezer responds:

Aw thanks for the review. Would have been nice for the Chips Compo lol but better late than never. Glad you like it.

:)

[Love Never Ending]

I love the warm strings at the beginning. Has a great cinematic vibe, and the build-up into :35 was really nice. You're really tugging at my heartstrings by the time the soft piano starts at :38. Seems like a lot of the piece is quite transitory rather than producing cathartic content, but that's probably my only complaint. Of course, the cathartic content starts coming at the cello solo, and there's a great sense of energy coursing through the texture after that. The texture is so rich and lovely towards the end. Strong sense of emotion and storytelling with this one. Keep up the great work, Jon!

Bosa responds:

Thank you so much! :):):)

Such a positive and in depth review, thank you!

[C'mon]

Stimulating work. Mix is clear. Very quirky sound design. The "k-k-k-k-come on!" vocals instigate a bit more energy than the rest of the piece could back up. Atmosphere and mood are really cool, especially when those ghostly synths start sneaking in there at around 1:15. Overall, the composition was a bit too experimental for my tastes, and the vocals get a little tired after a while. I would've liked to hear a bit more melodic content or dynamism. Maybe that's just my judging-mode self talking, though. It's a fun piece. Seems like you explore quite a variety of genres, Jacob. I'll check out more of your work soon. Keep at it! ;)

Jacob responds:

Oh, it's all terrible. But I do like to play around!
I was trying to get the "C'mon" to pull me out of the comparatively ambient background, sort of like the feeling of your name being called while daydreaming.
I want to play with that concept more, see if I can make it more effective. It'd probably help to take time to create a dream-state, eventually bringing in a voice (preferably more present and hi-fi) to abruptly pull you out, either to supplant a climax, or after the piece has concluded. Could be cool!
Thanks for the review. You always have great feedback.