TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Threnody for Innocence]

Good God. First of all, I deeply admire your majestic title, there. Clearly this holds a lot of personal meaning for you, too...wow. To be honest, I wasn't such a huge fan of the string sample toward the beginning, especially when it hits some of those high notes during the first 1.5 minutes. I'll also mention that I think you needed a little more spacing between the movements instead of just leaping onwards (although this is a relatively small detail). The piece does have some amazing harmonies and progressions, though, and I can see it's well-inspired. As with a lot of your pieces (yes, I'm talking to you, LSD), it's a little hard to follow the structure sometimes, but I think it could make a great soundtrack for a dramatic silent film or something. I think you did a good job of giving the piece a change-of-pace at around 6:32, which made that part with the lower strings really stand out. It almost served like a bridge in that way. The very end with the high, thin, and wispy-sounding piano also stood out. You captured either innocence (or grief, or both) there perfectly. Small detail: I am of the strong opinion that the scoop-up scale at 8:21 does not fit with the light, slow, and raw emotional vibe of the coda. Sorry. Nevertheless, this is a valiant effort, and I admire your determination to make a piece for the competition that means something to each of you, without being obsessed with winning. Keep up the good work! ;D

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Hey, dude! Good to see you around. Things sure are busy around Christmas, huh? I still have your PM to respond to. I hope I'll be able to get to that by the start of the new year. I also have like 3 of your tracks left to review, as always XD

Yeah, I think out of all the tracks I've made, this one holds the most personal meaning to me. There are some other ones that come close though.

I would actually like to remake this track with better samples, and better automation. This 9 minute track was made in a hurry, after all. I disagree about the arrangement needing much change, personally. But that is because I have a clear story in my mind when it comes to this piece. You know how movie tracks follow the movement of the film? This is kind of like that, even if it has different movements. We never intended to write this piece like we would any pop formula; I think that people with a good imagination can easily visualize a story of their own while listening to this. The different names for the movements give a hint to how I imagine things though :D

"it's a little hard to follow the structure sometimes"

I plead guilty XD (As would dem0, I'm pretty sure).
That said, I don't think this is the kind of piece that needs to have a clear structure. I feel that music like this is something someone could just listen to, and lose themselves in the piece. It doesn't matter if they can or can't predict the next move based on the structure, to me at least.

I'm glad you like 6:32! After that climatic section before it, I wanted there to be something less heavy, while reintroducing an old theme from earlier in the piece. Also, it had to be like this for the "story" I imagine to take place.

Innocence, grief, adaption, moving on. I feel like all of that and much more is covered in the emotional spectrum of this track.

Hmm, I didn't think that 8:21 was so distracting. It was actually something I just happened to play in the moment; this is just one take, after all. But I figured it was soft enough not to be distracting, and there was still a while until the very end, so I though it was fine. That said, I guess I can understand where you are coming from. I don't know if I'd call it a coda though, as it's basically just a repeat of the very beginning. Unless you just mean "coda", like "ending", which I guess is another way the word is occasionally used.

Thanks a lot for reviewing this. And Merry Christmas!

[duality]

It's time I review this top-rated song of yours. ;) Cool synths and echo/reverb effects. I thought the rhythm pre-30 seconds in was a little hard to follow. You probably needed that beat at :32 to come in earlier and tie it together. Obviously, that minimalistic funky breakdown at 1:34 was awesome. It instantly grabbed my attention and provided some much-needed structural relief. Also, I see you're employing modulation a lot more recently *cough* 2:06 *cough*. The loop is very smooth, and I'm impressed that you made this in 2 hours. The mixing is solid (as always), and all the melodies are just...scrumptious. Keep up the good work and Merry Christmas, you Ludum Darer, you!

johnfn responds:

Thanks TheLogic6! I find the melodies in this song particularly delicious! ^_^

[Wubber]

I liked the reverb you incorporated in there occasionally. It's pretty minimalistic, though, and progresses rather slowly. You took in an interesting direction after the first minute or so. Pretty quirky mood started developing at around 1:15. The beats are pretty cool, but I think you need some more melodic content to really sell this piece. It also cuts off a little suddenly at the end. Overall, lot of potential here man! Keep at it. ;)

FimmerZrei responds:

Thanks man #blessup

[Psybot - pixel]

Wow! Never thought I'd see your name in my feed again...This is pretty cool! It's a little minimalistic, lacking in fill for much of the first 40 seconds or so. I like the melodic content at around the 1-minute mark, though. I wish some of the transitions were a little more melodic or interesting. The dry and dull breaks at 1:30 don't really flow all that well into the fuller, more heavily textured melodies at 1:40. I did like the instruments and mood, though, and I think your mixing and mastering skills have improved since I last heard your music. Perhaps the snare could've used a bit more bite, just to add some flair. Otherwise, I like this piece a lot and I hope it means you'll be posting a bit more! Also, I'm ashamed to admit that I accidentally voted "1" in my excitement when I meant to click on your user page. This is quality content! Keep up the good work, Psybot. ;)

Psybot responds:

Thanks man. I have been losing a lot of my experience since I haven't made anything lately.
But I am positive and think that I will get the hang if it soon :)

[Seal's Art Class "Theme"]

I liked the instruments and the mood. Unfortunately, the beat here isn't very steady, and I don't think it was intentional because a steady beat would really give this piece a nice flow. I would suggest working with a metronome (you can easily download one onto your phone) next time so you can keep the piece at an even tempo, as I assume you recorded it. And if you didn't record it, it's also a relatively easy fix to make sure the frequencies are lined up with the bar lines in whatever Digital Audio Workstation you're using. The loop also isn't perfect, and the piece is a little repetitive and dry. Some drums or bass could really help add some more texture to this track. This piece has some great potential, though. I like the melody and progression a lot. Keep at it, man. ;)

Megacharlie responds:

Thanks :D

Oh yeah it was on the computer XD

[Press Start]

I like the heavy guitar and how that meshes with the pensive synth arpeggios. It has a really interesting mood - apprehensive and then blissful. I will say that the synth arps got buried in the mix later on, though. The ending was cool, and I'm sure it would work really well as the title music for a videogame. The instruments and atmosphere are great, though. Keep up the good work. ;)

SourJovis responds:

Thank you. Glad you liked it.
- Nice description of the song.
- There are a lot of instruments in this mix, so it's difficult to make them all stand out, but I believe the reason you say the arpeggios are drowned out is because there isn't as much of them as you think. The synth arpeggio loop stops at 0:23. After that there's just the ocasional arpeggio that each lasts for only about 1 to 2 seconds. They are at 0:27, 0:37, 0:41, 0:47 and 0:51. On top of that the start and end notes are the softest so it's hard to tell when they begin exactly, but all things considedered I think you can hear them fairly well.
- I will keep it up ;)

[Remix - Fading Dream (LucidShadowDreamer)]

Hmm...as a huge fan of LSD's music myself, I should probably check this out. I love the emotion and soundscape here. I understand that this is a remix, but I think the quality of instruments you've contributed really adds a lot to the piece. It has a warm, grand, and cinematic sound. Nice work!

Ylmir responds:

Thanks a lot ! Actually, the source material was pretty awesome already, and although this was all MIDI, it was easy to see how to orchestrate it. I maybe messed up a little bit with the reverbs (especially on the strings), but it still makes me smile when i hear it into my playlists. :)

[Things That I Would Change Feat. Hayden Reed (Dubstep)[Remix]]

I love the instruments and mood. You've created a very full and engaging texture here. The sense of climax at around :45 on was great, and that first drop was well-paced without being too heavy. The vocals clearly add a lot to the piece, and I like how you've chopped them up in places (2:48, for example). This is a well-structured and smooth-flowing piece. The mood is great too - it has this triumphant feel to it, even if the lyrics seemed sort of rueful (as evidenced by the title). The song dragged on for a little long, but I thought the tempo fit the song very well. I would regard this as a great accomplishment, Trunotfals. It can be such a privilege and a challenge to work with vocals, and you put this track together really well. Keep up the great work! ^^

trunotfals responds:

Thank you I'm glad you enjoyed it so much! I don't typically delve into dubstep too much as to me it takes a lot more effort; Balancing, blending, sound design etc.. But I really liked this remake and I learned a lot from it. I like what you said about the triumphant feel that almost clashes with the lyrics. One could say that you should triumph over lost lovers and be happy alone rather than stress over the past. "guess that we were wrong for eachother!! OH WELL" :D Thank you for your feedback Tainted!!!

[Unsung Hero]

So I see you've won the NGADM. Congratulations! Now it's time to see why...yup, I see why. Rock and orchestral were meant to be together and you've proven it, guys. It has a great sense of flow to it, and some pretty cool pacing about it too. I love all the melodic riffs, like at around 1:40, and the mixing and mastering is simply top-notch. It has a very intricate structure that really tells a story. The mood is excellent - alternating between victorious, reflective, anticipatory, and several others. If I had to complain about anything, it might be that the intricate structure makes it a little hard to follow all the ups and downs of the piece sometimes. Also, the ending was a bit abrupt. I suppose I expected it to wind down a bit more before the end. Overall, though, this is quite admirable work, and you'll probably see some more reviews on your other NGADM tracks from me in the coming weeks... ;)

bassfiddlejones responds:

Thank you friend! I always appreciate your reviews, and thanks for following along through the contest!

[~SW~ Thurm ins_wa_]

I love the furtive vibe at the beginning. It progresses pretty slowly, yet still has an engaging atmospheric quality about it. I love how you snuck in some rather luscious and memorable melodies here and there too. The mixing and mastering is quite good as usual, btw. Your sound palette is always really engaging and cool. It's well-structured and smooth-flowing, too. Just a super-fun piece. Also, I may be wrong but it sounds to me like this piece is in 7/4. I'm not sure I'll be able to find all the 4/4 bars, though...at least not before I've listened to it a few more times. ;) Keep up the good work, Skye!

SkyeWint responds:

7/4 it is!

Thanks for the review, TL! I've gotten to really appreciate your reviews recently. :)