SkyeWint's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Another Day]

Hello.

The Good:
-Whoah what, chiptune? Certainly wasn't expecting that. Gotta say, I like it!
-Liking the panning a lot, it sounds really cool.
-The 8-bit FX is really classy and well-done.
-Main melody is really pretty darn awesome.
-Ending FX is really awesome, I particularly like the winding-down at 2:40. Resonance?

The Not-So-Good:
-The little drum break at 0:05 seems to be executed in a way that sounds out-of-time, though it does land directly on the beat.
-The kick drum has some high-pitched sound which doesn't sound too good.
-During the main melody, also often playing with the kick is a high-pitched instrument playing a bit of a tune - it's a tad annoying, and the pitches are difficult to make out.
-It seems like the section at 1:41 is intended to be a break before one last reiteration of the melody. Instead, there's an outro beginning at 2:00 which takes another 40 seconds to run out.
-This is mixed kinda overly loudly, I have my headphones at about 4% and it's still painfully compressed. Loudness war is noooooooooo.

Overall: Score of 8.3/10. This is a pretty cool chiptune. Biggest issues were the annoying high frequencies and the overcompression. I did particularly like all the 8-bit FX, it was really awesome.

[Real Life Absurdities]

Hello.

The Good:
-...oh fuck this is probably the most original piece this round. All the effects are absolutely absurd, very fitting of the title.
-The combination of synths with the obviously soundfont-quality orchestral instruments are just absolutely hilarious. It's like you're saying "Oh, I know these instruments aren't good quality. I DON'T CARE I'LL USE THEM HOW I WANT :D"
-Composition is out of this world. It's hilarious and also absurd, making it fit the title almost perfectly. The harmonies are spectacular, and the overall format is wonderful as well.

The Not-So-Good:
-The drumline does get a tad bit boring when it's the same kick-snare-kick-snare pattern constantly with a few minor fills.
-There's a little bit of mixing mud, unfortunately. Some of the effects are drowned out, even panned. Some of the instruments are also a bit buried such as the piano on the right side at about 0:44.
-The little gliss on the trumpet at 1:00 is getting a bit TOO cheesy, unfortunately.

Overall: Score of 9.7/10. This is very near perfect, you're once again getting the highest score this round from me. Fix up your little issues, and you'll have your 10/10 from me. Then you will win 42 internets, because I NEVER EVER EVER give 10/10s in contests. Do it. Make what will be arguably the best song on NG.

steampianist responds:

Haha perfection is subjective and therefore imperfect :) im happy I got a 9.7 and that is enough for me

when I was composing I had one thought in my mind and thats the essence of chaos of how one thing can be multiple things. Your review is so contradicting from step. You say the production is a little muddy but step says its crystal clear thus becoming two things at once and I find this contradiction so pretty! Like a sunflower in the harsh winter. I have a thing for contradictions like the bible, politics and religion, yanderes,beauty, and life in fact all things in life is a harmonious contradiction its just like bach's fugue! Hehehe

... Errr just realized I sounded a lttile weird

Anyways thanks for the review your constructive criticisms is always valued

[Mystical Mountain]

Hello.

The Good:
-Well, this is VERY film-score-y. It would work excellently for a film trailer or similar.
-The section at 1:04 is very beautiful, it really fits the 'mountain' feeling. This section actually reminds me a lot of a game called Secret of Mana, though obviously since it's a SNES game it had far worse-quality instruments.
-Transitions are excellent. Instruments are excellent, mixing is excellent aside from one area.

The Not-So-Good:
-Honestly, the only major complaint I have for this is that none of the sections are really related to each other. This is a film score more than a standalone piece. Generally it's not a good thing if I have to play "Where's Waldo?" with the motif... and then still don't find one.
-Towards the end the mixing gets very stressed and somewhat muddy. It feels like there's clipping at around 3:32 onward until 3:45.

Overall: Score of 8.4/10. Very very good piece, well-developed, still sounds a lot more like generic cinematic than it could. If you introduced a motif (or preferrably two), the biggest problem with this would vanish and would probably push it into the 9 range. That said, another recommendation is to look for unique ways to use instruments - try using a full range of pizzicato strings for a pseudo-pitched delay effect, or an organ for quick chord stabs, almost like a pluck.

[Whiteout]

Hello.

The Good:
-Nice effect at the beginning and fading in of other instruments. The one in my left ear sounds as if it's actually coming out of the wind as part of the wind.
-No mixing issues I can hear.
-Main melodies and backgrounds are very nice, I like them quite a bit.

The Not-So-Good:
-While this does have a decent compositional format, it's honestly just... too short. There's not enough in there.
-The introduction of about 30 seconds is a tad long considering the piece in its entirety is a minute and a half long.
-You know I don't particularly like deliberately-lower-quality instruments, and if this is a stylistic choice whatever I won't take off for it.
-The bassline and drumline stay essentially the same for the entire piece.

Overall: Score of 6/10. This is basically just too short and has a repeating background for what there is, I'm not sure what else I can say.

SourJovis responds:

Thanks for your review again. Did you hear "L Kano's Fighting Show S2"? It's the second version of "Ling Kano's Fighting Show" that I made for NGADM13 round 2 but with much of the points you made in your comment changed. I think it's quite an improvement. Thank you again for the comments.

As for this song, I won't do that again. The "Not-So-Good" points explain why I didn't get a higher score than I did, but personally I don't think they would improve the song. As a matter of fact I'm quite happy with it as it is. The quality of the instruments, the shortness, the minimalistic accompaniment that stays largely the same throughout, all of that is part of the style and mood I wanted to achieve, so it stays that way.

All in all this song did much better than I expected I must say. I wanted to make some sort of an statement here, but I'm glad you still liked it that much. It only has 0.17 points lower than my entry for the first round, even though I spend the entire 2 weeks on that one, it was 3.13 times as long and I thought that one would do a lot better than it did.

Still not sure what would be the best song to get a high score in a competition. Neither do I know how much I should actually think about that, instead of just making music I feel like.

[Lying to a Stranger]

Hello.

The Good:
-So many cool sounds and so much interesting sound design. Makes for a unique listen.

The Not-So-Good:
-Bit of mud between the bassy sounds and the actual bass. Some of the effects also cause more lack of clarity.
-God, you're going to get this so much - there's not much compositional effort in here at all. It's almost entirely in the bass, everything else is pretty much one-shot effects or phrases. Something more to latch onto would be awesome. Also, less repetition in the background would be awesome.

Overall: Score of 7.4/10. Man, I wish there was more I could say on this so I didn't look like I was just arbitrarily assigning a number to it. Honestly though, there's not much to say. I can't really get into nitpicky issues until these general problems are cleared up, and they're causing some big issues - mainly the lack of composition. Considering your round 2 piece, I KNOW you can do far better than this.

[Ablixa]

Hi. Oops, forgot to post this at first.

The Good:
-Those are some super neat-o effects. Nice sound design.
-Some really cool parts where almost all sound is removed for a sudden hit.
-If that lead melody is really a snare that's pretty darn sweet.

The Not-So-Good:
-This sounds kinda empty, it feels like it's missing a background.
-Clipping issues at 1:42.

Overall: Score of 8.5/10. Holy crap, I really liked this. At first I didn't due to the emptiness, but it's really unique. Awesome sound design. The main thing I would have liked is some better background atmosphere.

[Lazy Island Daze]

._. I'm sorry. I completely failed. Here's the right review that belongs to you.

The Good:
-I love bagpipes so much. The introduction to this is pretty darn nice.
-Break at 1:21 sounds pretty sweet, I like it a lot. Why is this not longer.
-Clean mixing is clean and good.
-Are these all played live? If so, MAJOR congratulations for you there.

The Not-So-Good:
-The sudden hit at 0:12 was a bit harsh, there could have been a bit of a reverse kick buildup to decrease the sudden-ness.
-The bells at 0:38 have a lot of overtones, it doesn't sound like a particularly good recording. Same goes for the later iterations of it.
-By 1 minute in, I'm wondering if you're going change that background at all. This is basically a repeated riff with some various soloings in the background.
-The bagpipe drone, as much as I like it, definitely needs to have some changes. :v
-The ending is somewhat meh, it's not the worst I've heard, just sudden and more of a fadeout than anything.

Overall: Score of 6.5/10. You gained 1.5 points for having it all sound like live instruments. Otherwise, this piece suffers the most from the repetition. Approximately 4/5 of the piece is the same background, which causes it to be very boring in the end.

[Steam's Wonderful Contraptions]

Hi. Considering you won with the highest score out of any participant I think it's fair to say you didn't win just out of luck.

The Good:
-Those random effect samples are so hilarious and awesome.
-I'm surprised you managed to make Edirol sound good, I guess this is what happens when you use it for something it's not intended for as much.
-Certainly has the dance vibe you said you wanted to get across.
-The various bits of extra percussion you use rhythmically are spectacular.
-Overall composition is great, it really fits the title and feels funky as heck.
-Transition at 2:21 is spectacular, I love it. :D

The Not-So-Good:
-I think the transition at about 0:14 is a tad bit awkward.
-Sometimes with all the effects, other effects get buried such as around a minute and 30 seconds, the percussion in the background is very buried and is more just background noise. Similar happens to some background arpeggios at about 2:13.
-The ending is slightly off-putting with the awkwardly off-key steam whistle. Not sure if that's intentional or not.

Overall: Score of 9.5/10. This is just so quirky and awesome, it fits your title beautifully. All the various effects just add to it, the only thing I really think you need to work on (before getting really nitpicky) is your mixing. Don't bury the awesome effects that you have. :c

steampianist responds:

I think I may have gotten a little bit carried away with the whislte hahaha its my own recorded sample I got too happy with it

Thank you for this helpful review.

[Main Title Heroes]

Hi.

The Good:
-The piano at the beginning is pretty darn nice, it has a great feel to it in the way it switches the harmony. The pad in the background just makes things better.
-I like your attention to detail in the staccato strings as well as the drum's snare, changing the sample a bit for more intensity. I particularly like the attention to detail in the piano at about 2:10

The Not-So-Good:
-I feel like the drumset is completely out of place here. It doesn't feel right.
-The transition at 2:16 is honestly one of the worst I've heard this NGADM. It's very sudden, doesn't fit, and sounds like you just spliced two different pieces together.
-The second half of this is far worse than the first half. It furthermore has little to no relation with the first half except for the piano and drumset toward the end. Beyond that, the mixing and realism are both inferior.
-The ending is very disappointing as well, I feel you could have 'completed' the piece in a much better way.

Overall: Score of 6.4/10. The second half of this simply fell on its face and took out a point and a half. The other problems are extremely minor by comparison.

[Cthulhu Surfaces]

Hi. I love Cthulu, he's a beautiful tentacle-y thing.

The Good:
-Oh man those strings right at the beginning. That is niiiiiiiiice. Really sets the mood well. Me gusta!
-The bass in the first section is extremely well-done.
-At 0:46 it's VERY obvious what your main theme is (or should be), it sounds very nice.
-The section at about 1:26 is very very tasty. :) It's extremely well-put-together.
-2:21 sounds amazing. The atmosphere is really great.

The Not-So-Good:
-Your transitions are fairly rough, they often just 'end' one section and begin another without really actually transitioning except by a few of the same effects which really don't work. You can't just throw a timpani or cymbal roll in there and call it perfectly good.
-You know what I said about 0:46 and a main theme? Why the hell does it only reappear at the very end? >:( More overall compositional technique please.

Overall: Score of 9/10. Despite the flaws I mentioned, this is extremely impressive to me. Your composition for individual sections is spectacular, and your command of atmospheres is impressive. Good job!

headphoamz responds:

Hey Skye! Thanks for a great review. Understand where you're coming from on the main theme. Really happy you enjoyed it as much as you did, though :3