TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Crystalline Fields]

I like the ambiance at the beginning and the eerie texture. The strings sound a bit inauthentic, and there could’ve been a smoother transition into :42. The kick at :42 is a tad heavy, and the open hat at :57 is a tad cliche. I like the production quality and the well-balanced texture, and the sound design reminds me a lot of 2008 Newgrounds. :) The piece is a little slow to progress, and 2 minutes in I still haven’t heard much in the way of dynamic melodic content. The melody at 2:36 is very jumpy, and the melodies before it have pretty predictable rhythms. The melody at 3:28 is really pretty, but I thought the ghostly ambient effects were a little too loud relative to the strings. The grittier instrument at 3:47 is a nice touch, but I think by that point you start to overuse the transitions with the reverse crash. The piece comes together well by the end with the last melodic section, but I think the flow of the piece would complement the languid atmosphere a little more if there were more gradual transitions in this piece. Overall, nice work with the production quality, mood, atmosphere, and rhythmic content. The mixing here is especially good, in fact. Keep it up, EverReverb! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.5/10

AED4 responds:

Thank you for incredibly detailed review once again! I don't know how you manage to mass produce reviews of this quality :p You do raise many good points, especially about the transitions.

[Your Moment]

I like the spacey atmosphere at the beginning and the low strings at :09. The rhythm is a bit square, and there’s a bit too much reverb in the texture imo. Still, I like the haunting mood and the sense of wonder throughout this piece. The one-climax model is hard to pull off, but you do it well here. The production quality holds up well, and you do a great job of channeling the emotion into the climax at 1:38. The melody at 1:38 has a very regular and boring rhythm, though, and I think you could’ve captured the drama better with this piece if the melody was more dynamic, in terms of both pitch and rhythm. Still, nice job with the phrasing, progression, mood, and sound design here. Keep at it, Columbers! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
8/10

Columbers responds:

Thanks for the review and helpful criticism! This track was definitely a bit rushed (a bad habit of mine) but I’m glad I entered the audio competitions again this year.

[Late Night]

I like the cute synth riffs at the beginning and the crisp drums. The piece is a tad slow to progress, but there’s a good sense of climax into :34. The arrangement of the piece feels a bit formulaic, though, with major changes only occurring at 8-bar intervals for most of the piece, and despite the full texture there’s not much harmonic variety or melodic content. I liked the breakdown at 1:59, but it might’ve helped give the piece more shape if you cut out the drums and doubled down on the atmospheric content. There isn’t a lot of dynamism in the composition later in the piece either, and honestly it sounds like a straight copy-paste of the first half, besides the variations at 3:25. I also thought you overused the stop-start transitions, and I would’ve liked to see more gradual transitions, phrasing, and dynamic contrast in this piece. The mixing is solid, although that doesn’t necessarily make up for the bland composition imo. Still, I liked the atmosphere, rhythmic content, and mood of this one. Keep at it, CANDYdisturber! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7/10

CANDYdisturber responds:

Thanks for the review, and I can completely agree with what you said here. Its was much harder to work under the time constraint, and didn't realize this going in. Definitely not my best piece, but it was fun to be a part of the contest nonetheless!

[Pvlstoo (Original Mix)]

The sweeps and lead synth at :02 sound a bit cheesy, but I like the energy and rhythmic content here. The texture is a bit minimal and pizzicato-y. I think you could use a richer atmosphere or more legato pads or melodies. The piece is a bit slow to progress, although the texture is well-balanced and the mix is crisp and clean. The chord progression is a bit cliche in places, and I think you overused the stop-start transitions after a while (like at 2:05). There could be more textural fill and harmonic variety here, and I would’ve liked to see you vary the main melody towards the end as well. The composition is a bit bland overall, though I have no complaints with the mixing or rhythmic content. The sound design, chord progression, and arrangement could be a bit more original, but I’m enjoying the smooth flow and atmosphere of the piece. Overall solid work, Airprogressive! I just wanted to see a bit more ingenuity in the composition here. :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
7.25/10

Airprogressive responds:

Thank you for your detailed review, I will consider your advice for my next tracks.

:)

[Drift]

I like the bass riff at the beginning. There’s a bit of an excess of reverb, although I like the vintage feel of the drums and the synths at :27. The mix is also a little quiet overall, but the production quality holds up pretty well and the texture is well-balanced. You have a good sense of rhythm and harmony, and the melodies at 1:39 are really fun with the pitch-bending and the chromatic motion. I think this piece needed a bit more structural variety, though. It has a sense of continuity between the beat and harmonies, and an atmospheric breakdown or something would really help give it some more shape. Still, I love the jazzy harmonies and quirky mood of this one. Keep at it, YHTFLKC! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
8/10

YHTFLKC responds:

I feel like a lot of my music is rather quiet, like when I listen to other music on Spotify for instance, compared to mine I can hear it over the speakers at work whereas mine I can not. I think I'm gonna try turning up the master volume a little bit before I export next time. Thanks for the feedback, and glad I was able to participate again this year, but now I can go back to making stuff at whatever pace I feel like, lol. Still, looking forward to next year as well, this is always a good time.

[Beside You]

I like the emotional appeal of the beginning. The rhythm and volume automations are a little wonky at around :04; it kinda damaged the flow of an otherwise soothing piece. The glitchy effects are a bit cheesy, and the arrangement is pretty choppy. The piece needs a bit more coherence in the structure, although there is a good sense of direction over time. I like the minimal breakdown at 1:28, although I think I hear some peaking or other distortion at 1:35. I also think the drums could’ve been more prominent in the mix, especially towards the end. Overall, I like the sound design, melodies, and mood of the piece, but I think you really overdid the glitchy breaks and mixing effects. Keep at it, Thomaisho! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
6.25/10

Thomaisho responds:

Ah, I see. Thank you very much for the feedback and score, I appreciate it ^^

[Thalia's Rhythm]

I like the spacey pads and minimal drums. The sound design here is really good, although the progression is a bit slow-paced and there’s a bit too much reverb in the texture. The mood of the piece is very evocative, and this track has a really smooth flow. I think there could be a bit more variety in the instrumental hierarchy of the piece, but 1:22 served as a pleasant breakdown. The percussion sounds a bit harsh in my ears at 1:36, likely because of excessive panning. I think it’s usually a good idea to keep major rhythmic elements like that front-and-center in the mix. Still, the piece is really flowy and soothing, even if the chord progression was a bit cliche at times. The subtle climax at 2:46 with the strings is really nice - great way of hitting the piece home towards the end. The added bass riff at 3:39 was a bit bizarre; sounds like a combination of a traditional and fade-out ending. Overall, great job with the instrumentation, rhythmic content, melodies, and arrangement, though. This piece is a good reason why I often think my structural standards are too strict. Keep it up, shadow-ghost! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.75/10

shadow-ghost responds:

Wait, I could've SWORN I posted a reply to your review already, but... it turns out I didn't? Terribly sorry about that. I just wanted to send a (belated) thank you for the in-depth analysis and commentary; I appreciate it immensely! :) I'm really glad to hear you liked the track, it means a lot.

[The Escape]

I like the catchy beats and harmonies at the beginning. I think there’s way too much reverb in the texture, although the mix holds up pretty well regardless. The ominous synth riff at :38 is pretty sweet, although there’s not a lot of structuring here to satisfy my compositional standards. Overall, this sounds like a great start to a piece, and I’d love to hear the finished product. For the purposes of the NGUAC, it’s a little underwhelming right now as a stand-alone track. Please do PM me if you ever finish this - I’ll leave you a full review. Keep at it, Shabbyjazz! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
0/1
Composite score
5.5/10

CielOuvert responds:

Well for a piece that's mostly unfinished getting a score like this, and the combined ones from other judges, do make me wanna try to finish it.

[N3Ogodus - sunrise]

I like the punchy drums and energy at :04, but the sweep at the beginning sounded a bit undecorated. There are a lot of more creative ways to start a piece. Still, the pulsing low chords at rhythmic content at :04 make this piece really catchy, and I like the sense of climax into :26. Some of the drum samples and arrangement elements of the piece seem a bit cliche, but I like the melody at the drop. The texture could use a bit more harmonic depth at times, and sometimes the mix lacks higher-range frequencies for an extended period of time. The synth riff with the prominent 5th interval at 1:35 was nice, but I think the piece gets pretty repetitive later on. You recycle the same transitions, vocal samples, and melodies a lot, and the minimal texture doesn’t help alleviate that problem. The variations at 2:29 were nice, though. Overall, I like the mixing, rhythmic content, and mood of the piece the most. More variation in the harmonies and originality are what this piece most needs. Keep at it, N3Ogodus! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.25/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.25/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
7/10

N3Ogodus responds:

thanks bro! To be honest I have mixed emotions. Im happy about your positive rating but on the other side im kinda dissapointed with the things that is the song missing. But you are right. I should work harder on that. Thanks for inviting me.