SkyeWint's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Encapsulation]

Hi. I'm going to nitpick the hell out of this because there are few major things to comment on. Be warned, there will be no mercy at all. Period.

The Good:
-Intro is nice, I like that kinda little glitchy sound along with the background ambiance. Definitely not Omnisphere there right? c:
-Plenty of little details everywhere such as the little subtle drum fills in the intro.
-The buildup to 0:46 is niiiiice, the release there is great too.
-I still love those bitcrushed high-hats starting at 0:46.
-The two main melodies are very good, very nice-sounding and soothing overall, even in the 'epic' zone.
-White noise sweep leading up to 1:20 is very nice.
-I particularly like the synth arp at 1:26.
-I love the little reversed mechanical groan-like noises at about 1:52-2:05. Would they happen to be filtered bass drums?
-The overall flow of the piece is wonderful. Two nice rises and falls. Classic.
-2:50 I've said this before, but DAT CHOIR BE SEXY.
-Transitions are fine. As I said, the buildup and releases are good, the overall flow is wonderful, and the transitions get in the way not at all.
-The final climax isn't TOO short IMO, though it is a bit on the short side.
-All those effects, you really brought in the motherload this time. Where the hell did you get all of those.
-The ending is nice, I'm glad you finally brought back that piano riff.

The Not-So-Good:
-Unfortunately, by 0:46 that hit is getting a tad bit overused, awesome as it is. Also by about 0:46, it would have been lovely if there were some melodic development. Y'know, not just the atmosphere (as nice as it is).
-The release on the Cryogenic Freeze pad is a tad quick and sharp at 0:51-0:54 for my tastes. It just dies VERY quickly. After that, I do like how it builds up in the background. However, it would have been nice if the release were extended a little bit.
-There is very little melodic development at all. While I understand that this is meant to be more ambient, that doesn't mean there can't be melodic and thematic development. Ambient is NOT solely about atmosphere.
-The electronic synth that comes in at 1:08 gets off-key in the background at 1:18.
-YOU USED THE EFFECT AGAIN AT 1:20 AND 1:42. Effects are nice, but one thing to remember is not to go overboard with them.
-In the climaxes, the mixing sometimes overpowers other elements, such as the bitcrushed high-hats during 1:20-1:42. They're fairly underneath the rest of the mix, only barely coming out mainly when they're allowed into the high end of the chat.
-I also notice about the synth arp which I said I like (at 1:26 and other places) that it has a bit of a lead-in sound, which almost sounds like a mistake.
-Stop using that effect everywhere. You're using it like you used to use cymbal rolls. Just. Stahp.
-The spiccato strings at 2:05-2:25 sound very quantized and inhuman.
-Now for something I don't normally say - more advanced composition theory. The melodies from about 2:05-2:50 are disconnected from the other parts of the music. They are simply filler - lead-ins for the rest. Before that, there was a decrease in tension which works. However, beyond 2:05 there should be *something*.
-johnfn is absolutely right. In the second climax there's even more drowning-out of other instruments, particularly the bass. But overall, the mix is just plain stressed and I can barely hear any of the effects and stuff. You say I have a muddy mix sometimes where instruments are drowned out, but holy crap man. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black!

Overall: Great ideas, spectacular ambiance and atmosphere, flow is spot-on. On the other hand, there are some mixing problems, you obtained a replacement for your cymbal roll, and there's extremely little melodic development. As far as I can hear, there are precisely two points where each main melody is played, and the rest of it is filler as far as composition goes. You did a spectacular job, but you CAN do better. Ecosystem was far more impressive in terms of composition, though when it comes to atmosphere and effects it loses by far.

Good luck!

Step responds:

Ugh my god I wrote a massive, massive response to this, but it didn't post and now I lost it! x_x

Basically, my main points were:

1.) THANK YOU for the enormous review. This is seriously helpful, and just like with johnfn I nearly fell off my chair when I saw this.
2.) Yup that intro glitch effect is Omnispheah!
3.) Those 1:52 things are all Omnisphere's work!
4.) All those effects are Vengeance and Omnisphere playing together in beautiful harmony :3.
5.) I'm glad you like that ending. Two people said it was lame and others - including you - said it was a great way to end the track. Controversy controversy controversy.
6.) YEAH SAY HELLO TO MY REPLACEMENT FOR CYMBAL ROLLS MUAHAHAHA.
7.) 0:51's release is pretty sharp, you're right. Would be cooler if I kept it ringing a little more.
8.) The off-key things I can't quite hear because my musical ear suuuucks.
9.) You're right about the melodic development. I thought that having each main melody repeated twice was good enough, and didn't bother developing them more, although in hindsight some more development would have been nice.
10.) The quantized spiccato strings are totally Echo's fault :3.
11.) The melodies from 1:52 to 2:50 are all Echo's work. I suppose it's the risk of doing collaborations - sometimes the result may turn into a conflict of ideas.
12.) The thing about the elements being drowned out in the second climax is that it really is quite intentional. Reason being, there are like over 20 sounds playing in there (minus drums). We've got the foreground strings, two background strings samples, the pad-with-the-small-release, the distorted-bass-drum-thing, two arps, a foreground choir, a background male choir, a background female choir, a guitar playing bass notes, a square pluck playing three syncopated notes at the beginning of each bar, the bass, the piano, the glitch effect used at the beginning and various other miscellaneous effects.
It's impossible for me to be able to make each element clear, but Echo gave me such a big buildup I had to give it a massive sound. I went for a "throw in as many sounds as possible that contribute to the overall sound" rather than "throw in a bunch of sounds and make each one clear". The only few I wanted to be actually clear in the second climax are the kick, snare, bass, foreground choir, foreground strings and to an extent the piano. Apart from that, I wanted everything else to just contribute to the atmosphere, even if it's done indirectly and in an unclear manner. The bass was a bit drowned out which was my fault though. Also I wanted everything in the first climax to be clear so I have no excuse for that. x_x

So yeah I've responded to pretty much every major point here. Thanks a LOT for such a wonderfully detailed and helpful review! I'm too busy right now to spend time fixing stuff in here, but your review and johnfn really gives me every reason to make an extended version of this with everything fixed and more melodic development.

THANKS THANKS THANKS.

[Waterfall City Tower]

HELLO FRIEND. I THINK THAT FOR NO PARTICULAR REASON I SHALL TYPE THIS REVIEW IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS.

THE GOOD:
-VERY UNORTHODOX INTRODUCTION.
-I LOVE THE SYTRUS PAD AT 0:14 AND ONWARD. I HAVE USED IT MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE PAST BECAUSE OF ITS GOOD-NESS.
-THE BASS iS QUITE GOOD AS WELL. IT HAS A DECIDEDLY SEXY LIQUID SOUND TO IT.
-THE GUITAR-LIKE SOUND YOU'VE USED ALSO SOUNDS QUITE NICE. I LIKE IT. DID YOU PLAY IT YOURSELF AS A REAL GUITAR?
-THE PERCUSSION IS EXTREMELY SEXY. I LIKE THE GLITCHINESS YOU HAVE DISPLAYED SKILL IN.

THE NOT-SO-GOOD:
-UNFORTUNATELY, THE INTRODUCTION ALSO ISN'T THE BEST. THE GLITCHES AT 0:03 ARE A TAD AWKWARD AND DON'T WORK THAT WELL. THIS COMMENT ABOUT THE GLITCHES APPLY EVERY TIME THEY APPEAR AS WELL. I DO UNDERSTAND HOW IT CAN BE DIFFICULT TO MAKE THEM THOUGH, SO CREDIT FOR THAT.
-THERE IS A LOT OF OFF-KEY MELODY IN THIS, SUCH AS AT 0:36.
-SOME OF THE MIXING/MASTERING COULD USE SOME WORK STILL. IT HAS SOME CLIPPING, THOUGH NOT MUCH, AND A BIT OF MUDDINESS, THOUGH THAT IS VERY SMALL.
-THE OUTRO IS NOT THE BEST, I WOULD SAY. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE TO HAVE A BIT MORE CONCLUSION.

OVERALL: THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST UNIQUE PIECES OF MUSIC I HAVE HEARD. UNFORTUNATELY, THE OFF-KEY PARTS KILL IT THE MOST AND CAUSE MY ENJOYMENT TO BE MINIMIZED GREATLY. GOOD LUCK.

alternativesolution responds:

Well, capital letters certainly make your review stand out, no? That may be the reason!

So! The only unintentionally off-key part is with the classical guitar during the middle section (yes, I recorded it live). I kept it mainly because not every note is good enough to be in key, and if it sounds close enough, no note shall be abandoned! :O Plus it adds a hint of imperfection I don't mind adding in my songs every now and then. I will keep your suggestions in mind.
Everything else is completely intentional. I'm sorry the tunes killed it for you, though! >_<

I don't think I should extend my ending, since it would probably get too drawn out. I have to agree with you on the intro, however - actually I had to recreate it from it's original pattern, since I accidentally deleted it... and I couldn't remember how I did it >_> So I just worked with what I could at that point! And...sexy percussion and bass is good, so thanks ^^ And for the helpful feedback, of course!

[A Conversation wtih Saul]

Um...

I don't normally like to have to post something like this, but isn't this exactly the same as the WIP version? I just went through a one-to-one check, and there's no audible difference as far as I can tell.

.

Besides that this is a pretty darn awesome jazz track. I really enjoyed it. ^_^ A tad short though, which is pretty much the only reason I'm not giving it above a 4/5.

deadlyfishes responds:

It was for a film cue hence the short duration, there are some very slight mastering fixes here. Most of my work is for some sort of media so from time to time you will run into these unconventional forms because of that. I did try to make an effort to make it somewhat standout as a standalone tune, but yeah, I wish I could go back someday and expand a bit. Thanks for dropping by!

[Sensations]

Must. Review. Now.

The Good:
-The piano playing at the beginning is fairly good, I like how you change the velocity to make it a bit more realistic. Either that or you're playing the arpeggios in with a midi keyboard, but I doubt that because of the perfect rhythm.
-There's no clipping in your mix, which is pretty darn nice. No clipping distortion is pretty good.
-The deep bassy strings at about 1:45 sounds really awesome, there's a great "thump" along with the gong which hits very well.
-I like the use of 12/8 time. I normally use it, though it's more for cool grooves.
-Composition is fine. Nice simple ABA with a few variations that make it more dramatic. Nothing wrong there aside from the ending.

The Not-So-Good:
-The instant the strings came in, the backing piano arpeggios just died behind them. This happened with the melody soon as well.
-Those horns sound so cheesy, it's VERY obvious they're fake.
-Everything gets very muddy at about 2:35 as well. Even with no clipping, all the instruments should be clear and not be buried.
-Please don't just cut out in the middle of a melody on the ending. x.x At least have a resolving note or chord.

Overall: It seems like you've got mastering down, but you need to have a good mix as well! Composition-wise, I don't have too much to comment on. You've definitely got the cinematic feel down (you can put it in that category now!).

That's all I've got for you. You've definitely improved - the mix is the biggest issue right now. :) Good luck!

[The Genocide (alternate)]

Hey there, thought I may as well make another review. Going to just review in relation to the previous review, so I'll say the improvements and anything else that still needs work which I either didn't notice for my first review, forgot about, or just was lazy and didn't include for some reason. ^_^

The Good:
-The initial hit at 0:25 is so much better - less painful on the ears.
-I can hear the tones of the bass a lot better, there are very few places where it sounds off-key now, and in those it does still at least keep the 'motion' so I can know where it's headed.
-Transition at 1:53-1:57 isn't painful anymore either. VERY nice fix on it. Still sounds sexy like the original without the massive overload.
-

The Not-So-Good:
-At about 0:15 the mix starts to feel really overcrowded. I'm not sure if the distortion there is intentional or not though.
-Still not that happy with 1:13-1:15.
-At 1:30-1:46, the pad is drowning out pretty much everything else, particularly the snare and the... bass. Just goes to show how much treble and how little bass the bass has. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing, just ironic. (oh yeah, the same thing happens at 2:35)
-For some reason, after 2:03, I noticed that the bass is pretty much drowned out by everything else but mainly that high treble thing. This also happens toward the beginning after 0:25, but for some reason that wasn't as noticeable.
-Hm... the ending is better, but still not quite... enough. I'm not sure exactly how to describe it, but it still sounds more 'unintentional'. This time it's more like "Oh right I need to end the song at some point. -throw in ending-". If there were a bit more of a leadup to it with an effect, or some variations in the rest of the piece, that would help drastically. Also yeah still not a fan of the looping of a pattern three times. :<

Overall: Much improved as far as I'm concerned. I have to say, this is quite an awesome way to say "thanks for the comments"! Maybe I'll take a hint and try to do that at some point.

SourJovis responds:

On no. Now I have to change it again. No that doesn't matter. If I want to change anything I have to do it right. Thanks for the feedback again. I made a new new mix.

The overcrowded thing and distortion was intentional. It had to become more and more distorted and cacophonic, until the white noise sweep takes over. I'll leave it like that.

I removed the break at 1:13 altogether.

The bass has quite some treble, and that's what you can identify the tones by. But it actually has a lot of bass as well. It's just that the lead synth (I think that's the one you meant with pad) also has a lot of low end. I removed that now, that should make room for the bass and drums. I also gave the bass more bass (but not too much or it gets messy with the base drum).

The main reason why it is more noticeable that the bass is drowned out is that all instruments in this mix have more bass than in the previous (except for the main kick (there are two kicks in this song)). Also the bass is more of a support instrument at those parts, and the high treble thing is the lead, so I think it's not too bad if the lead drowns out the bass. Priorities.

I like the ending. Originally I wanted to pitch the ending up an octave. That way it would be more clear the song was nearing the end. I thought it'd be too cheesy though, and I had already done it in my previous song (Fuzzy the Robot Bee). I'll leave the ending as it is for now.

Other changes I've made are: I gave it even more bass. Made the high hat slightly less loud. Put distortion on the strings and orchestra hits because I miss it there after removing so much distortion and compression.

Usually I don't change a song every time I get feedback. It's not always a smart thing to do either. It only makes a song better if you know what the people mean with their comments and if you agree. Sometimes it's not worth the time and effort either, and it's just better to move on, and save the comments for your next song.

I don't think I will do anything about this song for a while.

[Violin Fight (Arr.)]

Hello.

The Good:
-Your instrument quality is good as befitting EWQL instruments.
-I like how you moved the violin part from the original into cellos and added some extra melodies to the piece.

The Not-So-Good:
-Until about halfway through the piece, it doesn't appear to have much of any relation to the original piece.
-The transition at 1:21 is somewhat poorly executed, and the ending section once again has little in common with the original.

Overall: Score of 8/10. A short review for short time spent making this, neh? Biggest problem was the lack of relation with the original.

samulis responds:

It's an arrangement, not a cover, my silly friend. :P

The first half is actually following the chords of the piece loosely. I wanted to introduce the idea of the piece a bit before jumping into the epic segment so the listener wouldn't be worn out too fast by too much epicness for too long. I was aiming to make something almost completely new from her piece... not a transcription with changed instruments... and yeah, my transition was pretty sloppy.

Thanks for the short review as always, always good to hear another view!
-Samulis

[Four Brave Champions (CS)]

Hello.

The Good:
-Well, this is certainly a creative interpretation of it.
-Good usage of the main melody as a background.
-Tempo changes are really natural, and your transitions are all good.

The Not-So-Good:
-Your instrument quality is pretty darn low and it seriously hurts just about everything.
-The ending is an obvious cut-and-paste of the beginning.

Overall: Score of 8/10. Biggest problem is instrument quality. I don't really have much else I can say about this, the composition was excellent but the instrument quality killed it.

[SD and L (cover)]

Hello.

The Good:
-I like the overall atmosphere you have built up in the beginning.
-The guitar is well-played as far as I can tell.
-Oh man, the atmosphere in the second cover is very nice. At first it seems almost like a mad scientist's laboratory.

The Not-So-Good:
-Not much original composition in the first cover.
-The drums in the second cover seem to be fairly random.
-No real endings to either of them, and the final little bit at the end seems somewhat uninspired and unfitting.

Overall: 6/10 on the first part, 8/10 on the second, so score of 7/10 overall. The biggest problem was that both covers weren't mixed, the other largest problem was a lack of a real ending for both.

alternativesolution responds:

I agree, I only changed the melody of the strings and some barely noticeable parts in the melody of the guitar. I am really glad you like the atmosphere in the second cover :3 When listeners can imagine something like that after listening to my music, well..it's kind of a huge compliment.

Everything in the drums was on purpose, but now as I listen again, it might not have sounded so random if I had made the track longer, so they would appear again later.
As for the endings, with the first one I tried to lead it into the second cover (guess that kinda failed!), but I know I could have done better if I started this whole thing earlier. *smacks forehead* Yeah, I suppose it's the same reason for the end of the second cover as well. I wanted to extend it, but you know, the whole time thing.

Anyway, thank you for your helpful review!