TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[City of Rust and Vines]

I like the dark, mechanical mood at the beginning, although the progression is a bit bizarre. The strings were lacking on attack, and the sound design certainly has a couple of quirks. I like the chopped vocals at :33 a lot, though. I wasn’t a huge fan of the drums at 1:08 - the snare sounds a little thin, whereas the kick has a bit too much treble IMO. The panning at 1:55 is a nice touch. I do like the mechanical texture here, although I think it could’ve helped you to break it down at some point. The cultic back-up vocals and clock-like percussion gets a little old after a while. By the time the refrain comes back for the 3rd time, I’m also convinced that you need to vary that melody a little more. I understand that the premise of the piece is that it’s supposed to sound robotic, but I think you still need a little more shape to the piece along such parameters as dynamics, energy levels, etc. There also seemed to be some clipping or distortion at a couple of sections of the piece, notably at around 4:40 and other more minimal parts. Overall, you’ve taken a lot of risks here with the sound design and composition, and I commend you for that. I think you could’ve pulled this off better if it had a little more variety and shape. The mixing is generally solid, though, which is a huge plus. Keep at it, Lowpolyexception. ;)

7.75/10  

lowpolyexception responds:

I am programmed to love

[Victory (Original Mix)]

The chord progression at the beginning is interesting, and by :15 I’m enjoying the full texture. I think the drums might need a bit more compression - the kick is struggling to come through the mix a bit, and the hats seem to be getting a little distorted by the other instruments at times. The anti-climax at :58 didn’t help the slow pacing of the piece very much, but the piece does flow well. As for the instrumentation, I think there are a couple of generic samples in here - the clap at 2:01, several of the synths, etc. I think you also need some stronger melodic content here - the repetitive layered harmonies at 2:01 don’t quite cut it IMO. The piece also gets very repetitive after a while, and definitely didn’t need to be over 7 minutes long. The mood and atmosphere of the piece are good, but the composition is pretty weak. Keep at it, LordJabeebus. :)

5/10

LJTLegendaryL responds:

Thanks for the feedback ^^, this is probably one of the mostly helpful ones I have recieved

[ERA'S ISLAND- MARIO AND YOSHI TRIBUTE]

I like the sample at the beginning, but I think it faded out a little too quickly for its own good. This is really picky, but cutting it off instead of letting the reverb finish the work of dispersing the sound made it feel restricted instead of cathartic. I wasn’t a huge fan of your bass instrument, either. I think it has a bit too much treble and attack, whereas a smoother sound would better complement the mood of the piece. The progression isn’t bad, but the piece is pretty minimalistic throughout. Instead of letting reverb fill out the texture for you, I’d suggest layering more harmonies or chords onto it. The melodic content here is tasteful, though - I especially like the melody at 1:44. After a while, the piece gets pretty repetitive, and I would’ve liked to see you vary the main melody and other riffs towards the end at the very least. The ending also cuts off suddenly, as if you intended to loop it. Overall, it’s a cute and blissful piece that’s a little lack-luster on the composition side. I’d encourage you to work on giving your tracks a little more shape by including more dynamic contrast, phrasing, or filtering. Keep at it, LLCALIREP. :)

6.25/10

LLCALIREP responds:

Thank you :) will take your advice

[Entry]

I like the pensive mood at the beginning and the beat that comes in shortly after. I think the piano sample sounds pretty generic - I might be wrong, but I’m pretty sure that’s FL Keys. The progression of this piece isn’t bad, and you do a good job of using the entire frequency range throughout. I think it might need some more structural variety, because right now it has a bit of a dull sense of continuity. Stripping away the beat at some point could really help give this piece more shape, for example. I also think that the high-pitched synth at 1:06 doesn’t have a lot of clarity in the mix - the notes just sound a bit indistinct. It might be that you went a little overboard on the reverb, or that you should be more careful about how you equalize other instruments in the treble range. You have a good sense of harmony and flow, but there’s not a lot of strong melodic content here - most of it is fleeting and minimal. I do like the production quality overall, and the mood and atmosphere are both amusing. My main issue here is that the composition is pretty underwhelming. I’d encourage you to flesh out the structure and also provide some stronger melodies. Keep at it, KnockVoltage! :)

7/10

KnockVoltage responds:

Thanks a lot for all of the advice. You nailed the piano as being FL Keys. That's usually my go to when I get stuck on melodies/chords. I'll try to move away from that as I get better at composing. Melodic composition has always been one of my biggest issues, which is one of the reasons I ended up moving towards beats instead of songs. I'll go for stronger melodies and more structure in the next round. Thanks again

[[DJKB] Hiding In The Dark]

The chord progression is a little cliche, but I like the quirky lead. The progression is a little slow, and I don’t think the anti-climax at 1:04 helped give this piece a sense of direction very much. The minimalism was wearing on me after a while, and the vocals at 1:20 seemed a little monotonic and lacked passion. I like the drop at 2:01, but I also think the drums got really lost in the mix there. I think you need to do some more careful equalizing and compression to clean up the production quality. The new harmony line you introduce at 2:33 really overpowers the melody, and that same instrument sounds really harsh at 3:09, which you can also fix with more careful equalization. Toning down the reverb a tad might also help add clarity to the mix. I would’ve liked to hear you add some more variety later in the piece, whether in the vocals, melodies, or otherwise. This also doesn’t make a smooth loop. Still, my biggest problem with the piece is the mixing and mastering. Please look into using equalizers - you can use them to eliminate the frequencies that interfere with each other, like when a melody and chords (for example) both have similar frequency ranges. A lot of distortion comes from the lower range, so it’s really important to eliminate the tones below around 150 Hertz in everything except the bass and kick. You can also remove some of the treble tones on your melody synths to make them sound smoother and less in-your-face. Still, there are a lot of good things about this piece. I like the atmosphere and mood a lot - it has a spooky sense of apprehension throughout. Keep at it, Kbenitezlugo13. ;)

6.25/10

AlmightyDJKB responds:

Thanks a lot,

I know that I really suck at equallizing and volume which is my only weakness, that and lack of ideas.

Thanks for the advice and I'm very happy getting thourough critisism, which for me is hard to get.

I really hope you consider in having me for the next round. If not, then that's ok it was fun.

[Our Silence]

I like the slow pace and ambience at the beginning. The distorted vocals are cool. I might’ve taken a bit more treble off of the guitar and vocals with an equalizer, just to keep it from sounding too harsh. The drums sound a bit generic, but the texture is really cool and unique. I guess my main problem with the piece is that it doesn’t have much structural variety - sounds almost uniformly energetic throughout. I think you mixed a big opportunity to maximize the emotion there. The ending is pretty abrupt, too, almost like you meant for it to loop. Still, killer atmosphere and sound design. Going forward, I just need to see you give your track a little more structuring. Keep at it, Joey! ;)

7.5/10

Joey4Track responds:

Thank you! Yes, this is actually a track from about 4 years ago, I entered it into the NGUAC as an afterthought really, as I never have done one of the contests before. But I do agree with your criticisms and the track I will do for the knock-out round is going to have a lot more energy put into it. Thanks again :)

[It's Not Easy]

I like the melodic content at :16 a lot. I think the percussion could use a bit more clarity - maybe some compression and more careful equalizing could help. I think you overuse the transition with the “crash” effect (like at :33), but you clearly have a good sense of harmony. There are a lot of staccato sounds in the mix, though - some pads might help smooth that out and add to the texture. You might also want to consider adding some more reverb to enhance the texture. I think the section at 1:35 was a cool idea, if a bit cheesy. The piece has a cutesy and fun vibe overall. Perhaps the composition is a bit underwhelming - it could certainly use some more shape (dynamic contrast, phrasing, filtering, etc.). The piece is also lacking on originality a bit, but overall you’ve demonstrated that you have pretty strong compositional skills, and I think all the frequencies are well-balanced in the mix here. Keep at it, JigglypuffClient. :)

7/10

JigglypuffClient responds:

Yeah, its difficult to make something that hits all points with such limited programs I use, but I can agree with almost all of things you said. Thank you

[Cheerful and Happy]

The beat at the beginning really establishes some energy and drive here. I think the hat has a bit too much sustain on it - feels like its bleeding into the next beat a bit too much for its own good. Many of the instruments, including the first synth bass that comes in at around :10 and the hats are a little generic. By :50 or so, the kick is getting really lost in the mix. I think you need to equalize those synths more carefully so they don’t have any interfering tones with the kick, especially with the low frequencies. Compressing the drums in general also would help. I liked the melodies at 1:46, but I think the transition into 1:46 is a bit sudden, especially since it seems to take the piece in a bit of a different direction. I liked your use of modulation at 2:38, but at the same time I think the piece drags on for a bit too long and the modulation exacerbated that idea. Those melodies definitely didn’t have to last for over 2 minute (from 1:46 to 4:00). You tried to create more variety later in the piece, but the transitions at 4:32 and 4:52 are just a little too sudden. Overall, though, I think my biggest problem with the piece is that it’s very cliche - whether you’re considering the chord progression, instruments, drum patterns, etc. I know that the best way to get comfortable making music when you’re first starting out is to imitate what works in other music. But I think you’re past that point now. I’d strongly advise that you try to use more nuanced and innovative approach to sound design, mood and atmosphere, as well as when creating the structure of a song. You’ve got a good start with some other elements, though - there are some strong melodies here, and overall it’s a catchy piece. Keep at it, Jeansowaty. :)

4.5/10  

Jeansowaty responds:

Thank you for the nice review, I'll think about it ;) Also, believe it or not, but it's always like that that I start off with a nice idea but then as I progress through it it just goes worse and worse, I start losing ideas, I get bored, distracted...

[Spoopy House]

The creepy mood is cool. I think a lot of the synths are a little generic, and the drums could’ve been stronger. For example, the snare that first comes in at :02 would aid a lot more to the creepiness here if it was a bit crisper and punchier, which you can accomplish with some more careful equalizing and compression. The drums sound very distorted throughout much of this piece. I also think that, for the first 1.5 minutes or so, the piece doesn’t have much of a strong sense of direction - little dynamics or phrasing, filtering, changes in texture, etc. Giving the piece some more shape and structure within phrases could really help you maximize the effect of the creepy mood here. I liked your idea for the drop at 1:36, but the product is very muddy and unpolished. Equalizers will be your best friend - stripping away low frequencies in everything except the bass and kick will give your mix some clarity, and taking away some of the treble tones in the white noise at 1:36 will prevent your piece from sounding overly harsh. I’d also suggest using some reverb to make your piece sound fuller and richer when you have fewer instruments playing. One thing I did appreciate with this piece is the subtle ways you varied both the verses and the drops. I think you could’ve had some smoother transitions, though, at 3:56 for example. The ending also cuts off a little suddenly. Still, I think my biggest problem with the piece is the production quality. Please do some research on equalizers and compressors in whatever DAW you use, and you’re well on your way to making more professional-sounding mixes. :)  Keep at it, HJFod!

5.25/10

HJfod responds:

Thank you for the review! Yeah, I really need to look into equalizers and stuff, it's just I'm fairly new to FL Studio and just actually making my music into reality overall. :DD

[Hidden | Surreal]

I like the ominous synths at the beginning. At :32, it seems like the kick is getting a little distorted by the sub-bass. You can fix that with sidechaining, or at least minimize the effect with some more careful equalizing if you don’t want the unnatural sound that comes with sidechaining. That said, I did enjoy the melodic content during the first minute and a half or so, although you did go quite a long time without varying the texture much at all. The transition at 1:32 didn’t quite work from me - that drum fill is not an effective way to move towards a complete change in the harmonic structure of the piece. Without much knowledge of music theory, it can be hard to make such transitions, but I’d encourage you to include some of the same instruments or harmonies on both sides of a transition in order to keep the listener grounded. The same goes for 2:22. Overall, there’s also quite a lot of minimalism in the piece, and I think you could’ve done more to use the entire frequency range as much as possible, especially the higher end. The melodies could also use some more variation, and the instruments are a little generic. I’ve been tough on you in this review, but I think the main thing you should focus on moving forward is drawing harmonic connections between distinct sections of your piece. The part at 1:34 and the rest of the piece could very well be two different pieces - smoothing over that transition and giving the piece some cohesion will gain you back a lot of points in the “structure and variety” category. Keep at it, Hidden-Hub. :)

6.25/10

Hidden-Hub responds:

Thanks for the review! I will consider this feedback when making my next piece. I haven't been in the music industry for a lot of time, and another important thing is that I don't have access to a lot of music creating software (I use GarageBand), so a couple of the points you mentioned will probably improve when I'll get something else like FL Studio. Once again, thanks for the review and I'll consider these points when making my next piece. :)