TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Wakka Wakka]

I really like the smooth, languid feel of the texture and the oom-pah bass line. The little breakdown section at 1:02 is a nice touch, and the goofy character of the piece really puts an image in my mind. Sounds like the soundtrack for a fast-paced circus-themed flash game. It's a little repetitive, and the arrangement could be more creative, but I'm sure that's an intentional mark of loyalty to the genre. Keep it up, SFW! ^^

sleepFacingWest responds:

Thanks! Arrangement-wise I actually just started running out of ideas. I kind of jammed the kitchen sink in there and then ran out of steam. What sorts of things would you think of?

[Repair Me]

I like the dreamy synths at the beginning - kinda reminds me of "Nobody" until the heavy drums and wobbly bass come in. The riff at :40 is really groovy, and the rhythmic elements of this piece are great. The breakdown at 1:01 has some really nice harmonies and a smooth texture, and I like how it's immediately contrasted with the harder-hitting elements at 1:20. The percussion at the very end of phrases during the last 8 measures or so (2:07 onward) is especially nice. Definitely good for a video game in its own right. Keep it up, ConnorGrail! ^^

ConnorGrail responds:

The comparison with nobody is fair, I han't even noticed that! Glad you enjoyed the groove, since this was a fairly quick track I just tried to focus on fitting a good amount of jam into a small package :)

[Planeteer Reaction]

I love the electric piano and catchy percussion. It has a really dreamy and jazzy quality. Some of the rhythmic synths don't always work for me, notably the conspicuous perc that plays for almost the entire piece (and re-enters at 2:23). Once the more atmospheric sections came in, that instrument sounded a tad out-of-place. I really like the strings at 2:35 and the sense of flow to the whole thing, though. It comes together really well between the melodies at around 3:15 and the fittingly tranquil ending. Nice work overall, Bryan! Looking forward to getting around to reviewing your other recent tracks. ^^

sleepFacingWest responds:

You leave really good and thoughtful reviews! These suggestions are very helpful. Thank you!

[Spring Chicken]

I like the sing-songy vibe and old-school instrumentation. Sounds very Hollywood indeed. The mixing is rather good, so I think your hard work paid off on that front. It does get a tad repetitive for my tastes, but I still really appreciate the intricacy of the orchestration. The cutesy ending is also super nice. I can totally see this going into the soundtrack of one of those videogames where you dress up characters and then have to do their makeup/hair/nails with great precision. :) Keep up the good work, SFW! ^^

sleepFacingWest responds:

Thanks! I agree with you, but the repetitive structure is unfortunately hard baked into the project demands. A lot of the tracks I'm doing these days are for a stock music library which is an interesting challenge and I've learned a lot. In order to be usable, the track needs to instantly elicit a familiar genre and emotion, and needs to pretty much stay there the whole time. While shifts in tone, theme, instrumentation, etc would make a better piece of standalone music, it would force an emotional change that likely won't coincide with whatever is happening on screen. Likewise, custom sound design also makes for a more unique/individualized product, but becomes too niche for general score use. It's weird...the unique artistic stuff that is fun to listen to gets more attention, but the flat and sometimes schlocky stuff gets more use. My current employer prefers schlocky. As a composer who can find both worlds interesting, challenging, and fulfilling for different reasons, it's difficult to figure out which way to lean. In the end, I really just want more work.

[Zo]

I like the tempo automations right off the bat and the fun, jazzy feel. Excellent sense of atmosphere too. The drum patterns and sound design are awesome, and the jittery lead at :45 sounds ghostly in a way. I like the burst of intensity at 1:25 and the crisp beats that follow. The emotional height there is glorious, and the transition into the tranquil, pensive conclusion was beautiful as well. You really told a story with this one, 1f1. If I had to complain about something in the entire piece, it might be that the echo effect at 3:16 felt a tad out-of-place. Otherwise, this track is as excellent as it is diverse. Keep up the good work! ^_^

Onefin responds:

yo TL!

this is funny actually bc i had a feeling you'd be on the fence about this one because it has the verse-chorus-verse structure that you disliked in some of my earlier pieces

i appear to have been wrong about that though

[Amber]

I like the contained, groovy sound at the beginning and the tape-shifting noises in between that and the cutesy beat at :15. The mix is really clean, and the sound design has a really funky and refreshing vibe. I like the melodic flair that comes later on (at around :45), and the post-chorus instrument that sounds like whistling (:55). The breakdown at 1:20 was also really cute, and the rhythmic variations at 1:45 work well to provide a bit of a burst of energy. The organic-sounding drums is a nice touch here in an otherwise very electronic-sounding piece. I think the texture often has a lot of staccato-y elements, but that doesn't bother me too much because the melodies are pretty smooth and the flow of the piece is still solid. Overall, not much to complain about here! Strong work, 8-bitheroes. ^^

8-bitheroes responds:

Thanks very much for taking the time to leave some excellent feedback :)

[Time In a Bottle (Cover, Jim Croce)]

Lovely to see you posting again, Ceevro! I like the smooth, soulful guitar at the beginning. The vocals are good, but sometimes they were a little weak in the mix relative to the guitars. The piece has a really nice flow, and I like how before every vocal entrance there's a slight anticipatory pause. The slightly darker, pensive vibe after the last verse is a nice touch too. The composition is fairly simple, and part of me wishes you tried to add more onto it vis-a-vis the original, but regardless you guys are clearly talented guitarists. Hope to see more of you around the Grounds soon! ^^

Ceevro responds:

Dude, if you had any idea how tricky this is to perform as a duet...I'm amazed at how well my brother did at this...his guitar skillz are amazing, but he does it for himself...no interest in performing or recording at all. Sometimes I wish I could be like him. He just gives zero fucks about the outside world. I was honoured that he recorded this, entirely because he knew I wanted to. I doubt he's ever even pulled the page to see how it sounded. There's something inspirational in that.

[Moonflower, I: Bloom]

I like the sense of wonder and majesty at the beginning. The reverb is really heavy, but that adds to the mystery and divinity of the piece. The delicate stringed instruments in the background at :45 sound amazing. I also like the slightly darker tone of the piece by 1:15 or so. The piece certainly comes full-circle by the end, but it still sounds a tad ambivalent, as if the flower shed its petals as quickly as they had once opened. Either way, haunting work here, Miyo. ^^

Miyolophone responds:

i'm really glad your takeaway was "haunting." a lot of people have told me that this one sounds peaceful or happy but i personally think it's quite sad & full of longing

thank you for the many perceptive reviews. they are all very kind and accurate and i appreciate them

[After Hours (2020 Remix)]

I like the filtering at the beginning, but the vocals could certainly blend a little better. It might help if there were some more compression/chorus effects to make them sound thicker. Still, I like the instrumental palette and sense of build into 1:05. The piece has a full texture throughout and a pleasing verse-refrain structure. The contained sound at the breakdown at 2:30 was a nice touch, and helped add some structural contrast to a piece that had a pretty consistent energy level otherwise. You definitely capitalized on that setup too with the additional backing vocals and flair of the last refrain at 3:00. Nice work overall, Time0ff! ^_^

Time0ff responds:

Thank you Tainted!

[LE - Overworld 2]

I like the minimal percussion at the beginning and the airy flutes that come in shortly after. The warm strings and chromatic motion in the harmonies at around :45 are both really nice. The texture is a bit thin for my tastes for a lot of the piece, and sometimes I wish the piece was a bit more flowing to match the tranquil mood. The transitions in this piece often seem a little rushed, especially 4:30. That said, the sound design is top-notch, and there's a lot of variety in the soundscape to keep things interesting. I especially like the haunting violins at 2:30-ish, and the soothing counterpoint from 3:00-4:30 or so probably constitutes my favorite part of the piece. You did a nice job of making the ending sound conclusive without overselling it - a fittingly mild-mannered conclusion to a very tranquil and lovely piece. Nice work, Samulis! I should really check out more of your recent stuff. ^_^

samulis responds:

Thanks TL! I'm glad you gave it a listen, and enjoyed it. :)

As game underscore, it was not possible to make it too active/full in texture or else it would wear the player's ears after a short time. I also tend towards smaller ensembles these days, just a consequence of growing up I guess, haha.

4:30 isn't a transition, it's a 'response' to the 'question' posed in the previous horn phrase. The transition out of that section is at 4:46.

0:33, 3:06, and 4:48 are all the same material, just with more elaborate orchestrations each time, by the way. The material between those sections are the contrasting portions of the 'rondo'.