TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[F-777 - Flower Bazooka]

I like the bright synths and filtering at the beginning. The crashes sounded a little too heavy to me, and there were elements of the mix that seemed a bit over-compressed, but I’m liking the sense of build into :44 and the blissful melodies. The post-chorus at 1:07 is also really nice. The chord progression is pretty generic, although the energy, melodies, and fun sound design help keep things interesting. Once again, you did a good job with the build-up to the drop at 2:34, although I wish there was a bit more variation in the main melodies there the second time around. I also liked the rhythmic content during the outro. Overall, strong work with the melodies, sound design, production, and atmosphere. I would’ve appreciated a little more variety and originality in the harmonies in arrangement, but at the end of the day there’s a good reason why you’re one of the most well-respected musicians on Newgrounds. Keep up the good work, F-777! ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
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
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
9/10

F-777 responds:

This has got to be the best most accurate review iv ever received.
Thank you so much for your time! I will take these notes :DD.
(and awwwww thank you for the Newgrounds musician comment. But i do give credit to just being on this site for so long XD)

Stay awesome!!!

[Arise and Fight]

I like the warm strings at the beginning. I think there are more creative ways of beginning a piece than that subtle fade-in, but at least it fits the character of the track here. The piece is also a little slow to progress, but I like the vocals at :36 and the sense of climax into 1:05. The horns were a nice touch, too, and the increased energy at 1:10 was really nice. You left a lot of space for contrast here, which is nice. The bell sample at 1:22 sounds a bit clunky. Perhaps it could be equalized or modified differently to remove some of the jittery “aftertaste” it has? That said, I like the brass melodies at 1:41 a lot, although I would’ve preferred a more gradual build into a climactic section like that. There’s a great feeling of catharsis when the strings come in at 2:15, and overall the composition here comes together really well. During the last section, I wish the string harmonies came through the mix a bit better, but overall the production quality is solid here as well. Nice job with maximizing the emotional quality of this piece, AceMantra! I think the sound design and inspiring mood here are my favorite elements of it. Keep up the good work. ^_^

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
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
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
9.25/10

AceMantra responds:

Hey, thank you so much for the in depth review! I know you had a lot to cover and still more to come.

Cheers!

[Glowing Beach]

I like the quirky, distorted synths at the beginning, although I think the drums at :10 are a little over-compressed, especially the clap. The harmonies come together well by :30 or so, but the short-lived piano riff at :21 confused me a bit as to the direction of this piece. There are a lot of different compositional ideas here, joined by jarring, sudden transitions. The arrangement overall sounds really choppy, and while I like the mood and harmonies overall, the sound design can be a tad cheesy at times and the composition feels very thrown-together. The sudden ending doesn’t help with that concept, either. Overall, this is a good start. You’ve got a number of fun harmonic ideas here, but you needed a stronger sense of flow and direction in the texture in order for this to feel like a cohesive piece. Keep at it, HoneyNutCheerios! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
6/10

TheOGGriper responds:

Thank you, I truly appreciate the feedback

[Mary Anne]

Really cute sound design and feel-good lyrics here. The chord progression seems a tad generic, but the additional backing vocals at :53 were a nice touch. The lower-register vocals at 1:25 sounded like they would make a great breakdown/bridge, but then the piece ended. I think it’s worth your while to try to flesh out the texture a little more here. The overall structure of the piece is pretty flat, and I think it could use some more dynamic contrast, phrasing, and maybe an escalation of intensity (guitar solo?) at some point. I also think the lead vocals are quite as strong as I want them to be in the mix. Some more compression and other mixing effects might do the trick there. Overall, I love the thematic content of the piece, the sound design, and the vocals. You could’ve done a little more with the progression and arrangement here, though. Keep at it, JackBliss! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8/10

jackbliss responds:

Wow thanks for the great detailed review :)

[AIM - Runnin' Loose]

I like the grouchy bass at the beginning and the ominous-sound chord progression and sound design. There’s a good sense of build into :37, and despite the minimal texture, the quirky instruments keep things engaging. The bass is a tad heavy, and overall the texture feels a little bottom-heavy, with not a lot of frequencies in the mid-high range. I kept waiting for the texture to develop a little more, but instead you devolve into this minimalistic, contained-sounding beat at 1:18. I still like the sound design and compositional details, but the harmonies are pretty underwhelming in this piece. The production quality is also strong, despite my complaints about the bass-heavy mix. There’s a bit of a sudden transition at 2:26, but the atmosphere during that section is pretty nice. The racecar sound effect was a nice touch, too, and I like how you chop it up at around the 3-minute mark. This track has some really fun rhythmic ideas, but I also think you needed a bit more fill in the texture sometimes to keep me engaged. The effects are top-notch, but the harmonic aspects of the piece are very bland, and the piece doesn’t have a strong sense of climax, resolve, or conclusion by the end. I’m pretty torn about this piece because it has a lot of potential with the atmosphere and synths, but the execution on the composition wasn’t quite there for me. Even some sort of melodic bridge and a little more emotion towards the end would win you back a lot of these points. Until then, I’d encourage you to keep working on this piece. Provocative stuff here, SroSocial! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
7.75/10

sro responds:

Thanks for the critique my guy. You're definitely right my structure and textures are lacking big time. I've recently been working more on improving them and I gotta say it makes a HUGE difference.

[MUSH]

I like the bass guitar near the beginning and the dreamy pads that come in shortly thereafter. The drum samples sound a bit cheesy, dry, and sometimes harsh in the mix, though. The hi-hats and static-y claps were too loud, and probably needed a little more equalization to remove the higher-pitched tones. The entire texture is also pretty dry, meaning it needs more mixing effects like reverb, delay, etc. I also think the quirky guitar sample you used wasn’t the best for making into the most melodic instrument of the song. This piece is missing a lot of high-mid frequencies in general, and most elements of the texture sound pretty staccato-y and thin. It’s not a bad beat, but I wanted to see you flesh out the composition more here and add some harmonic depth to this piece. There are also some moments that seem pretty atonal here between the bass and lead guitar. The composition has very little shape and structural contrast, and the energy/volume/intensity levels are pretty much constant throughout the piece. Overall, I like the quirky mood, instruments, and rhythmic content here. I just think the composition and arrangement is a bit underwhelming, and the mix too thin to keep me very engaged. Keep at it, GrimJimmy! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
.75/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
4.75/10

GrimJimmy responds:

Hey thanks, TaintedLogic! I appreciate your honest critique.
I'll try to make a better one next time around.

[Sunset MotorBork]

I like the smooth guitars at the beginning and the harmonic content. The roll at :12 is really sweet, and the picked bass at :16 is really groovy. The clap at :16 sounds really generic, but I like the rhythmic content and drums otherwise. There’s a solid sense of progression by around :30, and overall this piece has a solid sense of direction and build. Smooth transition into the dreamier section at :49, too. I really liked the sound design, atmosphere, and composition here. That said, I wanted to see you do a lot more with this piece, structurally speaking. I felt like it needed a greater sense of climax and resolve over time, and fleshing out the composition more would help in that regard. This piece is super short right now, but I love the mood, sound design, and atmosphere. Keep it up, James! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
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?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.75/10

Jumbs responds:

I’ll take everything into consideration. Thank you so much! It really means a lot :)

[smøl]

The distorted ambiance at the beginning sounds really nice, and despite the relatively slow pace of progression here, I’m really enjoying the sound design, including the warm pads at :29 and the reverberated hi-hats towards the beginning. The intro is very dragged-out, and I was itching for a few more moving notes by around the 1-minute mark. The texture is pretty thin, albeit well-balanced. I like the bass and the quirky atmosphere at around 1:30. The bells at 1:57 are nice, and the (banjo?) in the background adds some value to the texture as well. As always, the production quality is top-notch here, although the snail’s pace of the progression is pretty torturous tbh. There’s a distinct underlying tension to this piece, and I would’ve liked to hear some broader sense of resolve in the texture earlier. That said, I like how you juxtapose some contrasting moods in the texture at once. The cute bells sound really bright and even uplifting, while many of the background phasing synths are downright creepy. It seems that the bells win by around 3:56, with the cascade of chimes at the 4-minute mark adding to the dreamy vibe. This section serves as a nice breakdown for what is already a very chill piece overall. As much as I love chill-out tracks, I can’t help but feel like you could’ve done more to show off some of your compositional talents here, Skye. The piece starts coming together well when the banjo comes back at 5:42. That said, I’m not sure the sudden ending fits the character of the piece very well. Overall, I like the arrangement of this piece, I just wish there was a little more contrast in the dynamics and energy level. Still, you won me over with the mood, sound design, and clean production here. Keep up the good work, SkyeWint! ^_^

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
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.25/10

SkyeWint responds:

Hey there!

Appreciate the review. The flat energy level was actually one of the main points of this piece, primarily inspired by the artist Chrome Sparks. It's meant to be very progressive and gradual, slowly tipping its hand over time. Something you can space out to. I know that's not impressive in the style of something for NGADM, but it was my most recent track I've finished so I thought it was pretty appropriate!

[Ásum - Black Dog [Dance/Dubstep]]

I like the catchy synths and rhythmic content at the beginning. The drums are pretty overpowering, especially early in the piece when there isn’t much else going on in the texture. The mix is overall pretty strong, but you may have used a tad too much reverb. The melodic content at :55 is cool, and I like the sound design in this piece a lot. I think it’s missing a climactic melodic section or drop, though. It has a strong sense of continuity and flow, but not a lot of shape in the composition. The breakdown at 1:53 was good for some structural contrast, but after that you don’t do a lot with the harmonic development in this piece. The section from 2:11 to the end feels relatively bland and thin-textured, which was a pretty big disappointment to be honest. The piece doesn’t really come together to resolve some of the underlying tension, or at least offer an emotional height and/or moment of catharsis. The riser at 3:38 was a little melodramatic, and didn’t really lead much of anywhere. The synth at 4:17 sounded both unnecessary and harsh in the mix. Overall, you nailed the production quality, mood, atmosphere, and sound design, but the composition was a bit lacking, especially towards the end. Keep at it, DarkInRed! :)

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
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?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.75/10

DarkInRed responds:

Thanks for review!