TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[NGADM 2017 Auditions Podcast]

Thanks for the shout-out! Good to see you're getting the word out. The background music was beautiful, btw. I should really check out more of your music. Well-produced podcast, though. Your accent reminds me of Jenna Marbles. :)

ChronoNomad responds:

Had to Google Jenna Marbles, and what do you know--we were both born in Rochester, NY! Not sure if that means anything, but I did think it was an interesting little factoid. I usually pick up the regional accent fairly quickly, and I've been all over. Of course I can also sound "more professional" with less of an accent, but this was meant to be more on the easygoing side.

I'm happy to hear that you enjoyed the music and found the podcast to be well-produced. And I figured it was high time to give credit where credit is due! This just seemed like a really good way to do it.

To be completely honest, the recording session was a pretty quick and dirty single-take affair. Mixing in the background music took longer. Thanks for leaving a review! :D

[AIM - Chris, the Boat and the Tormented Sea]

I like the flowy vibe and bright tone. The mood changes a lot from chord to chord, which adds a lot of tension to the piece. It seems to have a very uplifting direction at around the 2-minute mark. The marked pause at 3:00 was a bit jarring, and I'm not quite sure of the purpose it served in context. The structure of the mini-phrases in the piece gets a little repetitive, and I would've loved to see you open it up a little more after a while, but the mood of the piece is what really ties it together IMO. It could even make a decent loop. The music really breathes despite the structural repetition. Keep up the good work, LSD! ;)

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Leave it to you to call my piano music flowy ;)
I kid, though, since obv this if anything is one of those flowy tracks. Quite intentionally so, considering how much the sea tends to flow ^___^
I did indeed intend for the mood to be ambiguous and quickly changing, once again, kind of liek the ocean :D
I'm not sure I would call the point at 2 minutes uplifting, but more like someone bravely facing a challenge; not sure exactly what I'd call that, since it isn't pure bravery :V
I know what I feel better than I can describe it in words xD

The 3 minute mark is the silent cruelty of the sea, while you desperately struggle, with nobody around to help; a sudden realization that maybe things won't work out.

I didn't want to diverge too much from the style of the piece, since that is pretty much all it is, along with some good chord choices. This is also, naturally, because it fits my interpretation of the art better. Thanks a lot for the review, TL (#Fearless Squirrel)!

[Soulflight]

I like the rich texture at the beginning. It has a very relaxed mood, and I like the wonky pads at around 1:10. The melody at 2:24 is super catchy and has an easy-going, almost cascading vibe. The part at 3:54 was another highlight - it was a new injection of energy into the piece that served it well in context. It seems like you're using a different drum kit than you used to, btw, which I approve of. The piece was a little long, but it still kept me engaged. Well-structured, smooth-flowing, and well-mastered track overall. I absolutely love that major 2nd riff you sprinkle into the background at various places, 5:55 for example. The ending has an especially bright feel to it as well. Keep up the good work, Lockyn!

Lockyn responds:

Hey TL, definitely always look forward to your reviews. Thanks for the love and support as always! Cheers and I'm glad you enjoyed :)

[3xOsc Party]

Really amusing concept. My favorite elements of it are probably the portamentos and the tempo. Sounds like a clown just got home from work and starts doing acid. XD The chords probably made me think of something circus-y. Well done. If there's any way I can convince you to make a full piece out of this, I would. ^^

EnNinja responds:

Thanks man. I might maybe finish it sometime in the future xD

[Incursus]

I like the synths at the beginning and the filtering effects that create a mini-climax into :07. The piece was a little slow to develop, but the stop-starts at :30 ruined the flow for me a bit. I would suggest adding some reverb to smooth it over a bit there. It sounded like the piece was building towards something around the 1-minute mark, but you didn't exactly release the tension. I like the tempo automation at around 1:30. I was craving some more melodic content by around the 2-minute mark, but it never really came. It seems like you have a couple of cycles in this piece where you skip right over a drop/refrain and go from a build-up to a breakdown immediately. I think the structure would be a lot more effective with an emotional height in there somewhere. Your build-ups are also fairly drawn out, especially the one from around 3:10 - 4:30. It's just a little excessive, and once again only leads to a chill chordal section. This piece is very long and has a lot of tension that never quite resolves. I like the style of this piece, but I think you should think more about the composition next time; cycles of tension and release are really effective in music, but you need some more release for it to work here. I also thought the piano at the end sounded really fake, and the ending itself wasn't that conclusive. Sorry to be so harsh on you, though. It's a bit of an experimental piece, but it certainly conveys some neat moods and has a cool unpolished aesthetic. Keep at it, man! ;)

stegosaurus responds:

Thank you for the very in-depth review, in some areas this track turned out quite rough, since this was my first time trying to produce industrial music. It's interesting seeing the critique with the piano, since my intention was to sort of mess with the uncanny valley with it. I do certainly agree that the composition was kinda lacking on this piece, since my main focus was the sound design. Thanks for the review, and I'll have something a bit more polished for this year's NGADM.

[REALITY GLITCH AUTOMATON]

Fantastic piece, Johnfn. Catchy, well-mastered, awesome melodies, and cool modulations (like at :45). The mechanical whirring effect (like at :52) gets me every time. ^^ My only complaint is that the kick could've been a little stronger. Otherwise, it's well-structured and flows very well. There's plenty of variety here to keep me engaged throughout, and I love the variations on the melody towards the end (~3:10). Thanks again for hosting the Chip contest! I very much plan on doing the second one too. :) I knew that this was your piece almost instantly, btw. Trademark Johnfn ending too. XD Keep it up!

johnfn responds:

Haha, yeah, I don't think anyone identified it faster than you did. Props. I really should diversify my lead style ;-)

Glad you liked it :)

(And thanks for the double review!!)

[They Taught Us To Dream]

Fantastic piece, my friend. The bright piano sound offers some excellent contrast to the gritty synth breaks later in the piece. The mood and atmosphere are superb too. It might be a little slow to develop at times, but I love the breaks at 2:36. You have an excellent sense of rhythm. I really appreciate that you brought it full-circle with the piano riff at the end. Mixing and mastering are solid throughout too. Keep up the great work, man!

DEM0NW0LF responds:

Thanks for the review !

[BrightSide]

NEW AUDIO FROM LUNACYECHO? Haven't seen that notification in a while. I like the mood and energy here. The drums are especially good, I think. They sound pretty organic, but they mesh really well with the electronic instruments here. The melodies at 1:04 are great, as are the ones at 1:35. There's actually a lot of melodic content here. I think the melody at 2:08 needed to come through the mix a little more, whereas I might've toned down the high-pass a bit on those pads, or otherwise transposed them down an octave. That way, it opens up the mix more to cover a broader frequency range and also help the melody stand out. Still, this piece is seriously good. Well-structured, smooth-flowing, and quite thematic, I might add. Hope to see more of your work soon, LE. ;D

LunacyEcho responds:

Great to hear from you, TL! One of the things I've missed about uploading audio to Newgrounds is seeing your religiously written comments on everything. :D :D

Let's see if I can still remember how to respond...

=> drums =>

Yeah, I used an acoustic drum kit as a part of the funk section of the genre mash. I was also surprised by how good they sounded with the synths! :)

=> melodies =>

I'm actually super proud of some of the melodies in this song! Especially the second theme, which enters at 2:08.

=> mix =>

Hah, my headphones are a little short on treble. :P I should probably factor that in when mixing, lol. I've definitely been keeping the broad frequency range in mind; in fact, I'm also kinda proud of how I mixed and edited the bass in this song.

Thanks for the review, TL! Hope to hear more music from you soon, and I look forward to competing in future Chips with you. ;)