Step's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[The Ice Queen's Palace]

Doesn't sound like much is going on over here...

Until you turn the volume up...

I hadn't heard the melodies, not because they were non-existent, but because the volume was so low. Then, I turned the volume up and I heard really nice melodies. In short, you really need to increase the volume of this. The instruments were an interesting choice, and fit a lot with what you were going for. This sounds a lot like a soundtrack to some fantasy game.

The transitions were OK, nothing too special, but not bad. The structure wasn't that good since this did feel quite random. You should introduce a fixed chorus which plays a few times in the song. I quite liked the intro, but the ending was strange, since it felt as if it was unfinished.

Overall, it's a nice song, but what mainly put your score down was the volume of the song. Other than that, good job.
8/10
4/5

-Review Request Club-

sarias responds:

I dont agree with you on the structure, but thanks for the review non the less

[Welcome to W0RLD]

Nice!

Wow, this is so fun to listen to. Keep up the great work, it's really well done!

The melodies sound familiar, but that doesn't matter, because they sound so great. They're very catchy and happy, plus they fit with the song in general very well. This needs more alternate melodies though. Instruments were an 8-bit wonder, never had 8-bit instruments sounded so awesome.

Transitions were fine, and there were some good buildups in the song. One problem though: the rythm change at 1:25 was a good idea, but came in too suddenly with a rough transition, so you should follow Haggard's idea of the fading beats. Good song structure, but the first buildup kept going on a bit too long IMO. Variety needs working on a little here too, since this does get quite repetitive, with only one melody. As for the intro and outro, they both were fine, and this looped really well too.

The drums were perfect for 8-bit with really nice beats, and were just the right loudness. May I ask which VST/Drum Kit you used for those 8-bit drums? They sound amazing.

Overall, I really enjoyed this song. Keep up the amazing work, looks like you're good at Industrial AND 8-bit too! Good job!
9/10
5/5

-Review Request Club-

PuffballsUnited responds:

There's a comment about that transition again. I guess it really was too fast. I used 3xOsc for the instruments annnnd.... Chaos Stomper for the beats. I think that's what they'd be called anyway.

[No Parking]

Wow!

This is just so amazing. I really don't know why, but somehow I really really enjoyed this. Good job!

I'll start with the melodies. They sound quite unique, and even though they're not exceptionally catchy, they fit so well together and sound great. Some melodies sound really good, especially the ones at around 1:11 and 1:55. The bass was OK, but I think it needs more variety.

What impressed me the most over here were the instruments. So much variety, and each instrument sounds so great. The bells impressed me quite a lot over here, and the saws were cool as well. Good job with the instruments, they were great.

Excellent transitions, the melodies flowed excellently together with many drum rolls and stuff to switch from one melody to another. A lot of instruments were introduced with buildups as well, and that impressed me quite a lot too. Really good song structure too, and even though this song is quite long, it still didn't get repetitive at all.

Nice intro, sightly on the generic side, but well done anyway. Good transition from the intro to the main melody too. The ending was a fade ending, and although fade endings don't often come out well, this did and I can't imagine hearing it end, so the fade was a superb idea.

The drums were awesome, I have nothing to complain about in them. They had good buildups, drum rolls, excellent samples and beats, plus they were varied enough not to get boring. Excellent job with the drums. Loved the reverbed kick as well.

This is a really cool song, with very few defects. I don't see why this didn't get any top 5 or top 30, it's so well done. Keep up the great work, you rock at producing! :D.
10/10
5/5
Download.

-Review Request Club-

sumguy720 responds:

Yay! Thank you!
I've gotten close, but this doesn't have enough weight to withstand the weekly Tuesday night zero bombings! It's okay, I don't intend to get famous or powerful and rule the world or anything, I just like making noise.
I'm very happy with the things you pointed out. Some of my goals in this were: 1. To not make it too repetitive, 2. To vary the percussion more than I usually do, 3. To practice my buildups and transitions, so I'm glad to hear that you liked these parts. I also worked for a long time trying to get the instruments to share the soundspace well, this has many many hours of mastering and tweaking behind it-- Nobody has noticed before!

I can't really imagine hearing it end either. Maybe when I'm on my deathbed I'll write an ending to all my music.

I will take these elements and continue to practice them in my music.
Thank you again.

[Asinine Display of Faith]

We should invent the Heavy Industrial genre now :P

This is really cool, and I enjoyed it a lot even though this genre never impresses me too much.

The melodies were OK, and I quite enjoyed the guitar solo you did. This is quite glitchy in general too, which is OK with me. The guitar sounded very real... it probably is, and the vocals were really cool too. Could be more understandable, but sung really well, with some awesome effects put into them. My favourite part was definitely at 0:14, glitch and vocals never sounded so good.

The transitions were very good, and melodies flowed really well. I liked the guitar string scratch (or whatever it's called, I'm not an expert at this kind of stuff) you did at 0:26 and at the beginning too. I also liked the transition to the guitar solo. Great song structure and variety too. The intro was really glitchy and awesome (seriously, how much glitch can a guy put on his vocals? :P) but the ending was much too abrupt. You should make this song longer to maybe 2:00-3:00, and then try and give it a better ending.

The drums were very varied with really really good samples, and they fit really well with the song. I only wish they were a little louder. Oh, and did you make the drums yourself or were they premade? They sound really professional.

Good song in general, I really enjoyed it. Glitch, industrial and heavy metal; strangest genre combination I've ever heard. I'd never imagine it to be done this well either. Practically, the main problem over here is the length of the song, because other than that, this should've made it to the top 5. Keep it up!
9/10
5/5

-Review Request Club-

nihilisticeq responds:

The drums were amen breakesque loops that I glitched. I just used a glitch vst because I really have no idea how to make electronic music, I usually only make metal.

[FFX_Battle_Theme [Box-Killa]]

Nice remix!

Good job. Quite an original idea: turning a boss theme into a mellow ambientish song, plus you succeeded really well over here.

I didn't play FFX yet so I didn't hear the original, but I know how final fantasy boss themes are, and they're so action packed. I'm impressed that you managed to turn something like that into such a relaxing song. Good job. Choice of instruments was great as well. My only concern over here is the variety of instruments. It feels like it's missing something right now, and I think that it's best to add more instruments. An addition of a piano would be a good start.

The transitions were great, with smooth flowing melodies throughout the song. I'd suggest more drum transitions though, like drum rolls and stuff. Good song structure with awesome variety as well and many alternate melodies to stop the song from getting boring. Nice intro, and good way to introduce the drums, but as for the ending, instead of a fade, IMO the song would be better off as a loop, since fade endings very rarely sound too good.

The drums were so-so. Beats were excellent, so was variety and the drums were never introduced too suddenly, but I don't think they fit too well with the song. The kick was a little too hard, snare sort of stood out in the song and was too abrupt, plus I think there needs to be more samples.

It's a good remix, making me want to hear the original. You've got a great idea, but I just wish for variety of instruments, variety of drum samples which fit with the song and a better ending. Other than those, keep up the good work!
9/10
5/5

-Review Request Club-

Box-Killa responds:

yeah, the only problem tho is that the bass drum makes the song sound really whole. Without it it feels kinda empty.

[LB + Song of Storms Remix]

LOL, REVIEW MAH AUDIOZ!! KTHXBAI

'Nuff said. Haha, joking :P. Definitely not enough said... Anyway, I really enjoy the original Song of the Storms, and I'll say the same about this remix. Really nice job!

You don't usually hear remixes with added notes in them, and this had a nice amount of new notes in it, which sounded really well done, and makes me wish they had done them in the original. The instruments were excellent quality as well. May I ask where you got those strings? They sounded really awesome. I think you could've used the flute more here, and maybe added more instruments, since the variety of instruments is nothing too special. I'd suggest some pizzicato strings playing instead of the piano in some parts, and maybe some brass.

Oh, and a problem regarding the piano. It seemed a little to plain, and not that smooth, even though it fit really well with the song. I think you should add a slight bit of reverb to it or use a different sample, since it seems a little bland as it is now.

Good use of sound effects, although as Darklight said, the rain sounded like water coming out from a tap. Also, you could add more sound effects, like wind. (if you need some good weather sound effects, you can send me a PM ;) ). I think you should add some more effects in some parts in the middle of the song, instead of limiting yourself to the intro and outro of the song for the effects. Wind is usually really good to mix with the main melodies.

The transitions were just like they should be: smooth and with a lot of variety to them. The different notes you added definitely did some really good transitions, especially in the strings melodies. Good variety as well, even for a four minute song, and it didn't get that repetitive, although variety of background accompaniment would make it sound better and much less repetitive.

Loved the intro, it had a good mix of sound effects, and although, like I said, the rain didn't sound too well, the thunder was extraordinary and started the song excellently. The ending was quite abrupt, but still, there was a good transition to the final note, and the sound effects after made up for the abruptness. What I'd do if I had to change it is add a final ending note with the strings along with a chord with the piano, and the the note fades away, while the sound effects fade in.

The orchestral drums were really great with fantastic samples. What I'd ask for is more drums spread out in the song, since they felt a little random being tossed in here and there randomly in the song. Maybe give some fixed drum beat that plays in certain parts of the song, and alternate beats in other parts. Also, a gong would be cool here. Still, amazing job with the timpanis, and the cymbal was amazing.

This is a really good remix, and I'm not only saying that because I enjoy the original. You gave a lot of your own touches to it, added really good drums, and used some really amazing instruments which I have no idea how you made them sound so good. Yes, this does have some defects, but the advantages definitely make up for it. Keep up the amazing work, oh supreme remixer! :D. Oh... man, 897 characters left :P.
10/10
5/5
Download.

-Review Request Club-

Lublub194 responds:

Epic review good sir.

I don't think I'll respond to all points, so sorry for that in advance.

I tend to lack reverb. Haha, but this one does have reverb. It's just mild.

Most remixes I do aren't really remixes, but rather remakes. This time I wanted to throw in my own notes. Make it truly a remix, and I'm glad everyone has appreciated the notes I chose.

I've thought about putting the rain throughout the whole song, yet, I'm not sure if I want to or not. I kinda like it to rain only on some parts. I actually got the sound effects from a youtube video, and everyone there thought they sounded good, haha. So I don't see why everyone thinks it sounds like tap.

Anyways, the drums were placed every 3 measures. Maybe that's why you felt they were random. Because most of the time people go by 4 measures. It's a long story why I went with 3, but it's what I went with. Haha.

I'm glad you appreciated the remix, very glad! Hope I can impress more people in the future! Thanks for the review!

- Lubz

[NGStyle_DNB_Menu]

Please!...

...Continue it! This is really well done, and I enjoyed it a lot. Nice idea to it as well.

The melodies are just excellent, and are so epic. There weren't really any alternate melodies though, so if you could fix that, it'd sound much better. The main instrument did get a slight bit annoying, since high-pitched saw waves playing for a whole 40 seconds over and over again did get a little annoying. Background melodies were saws as well... What I'm trying to say is, vary a little, don't keep to supersaws all the time. Still, the saws are excellent in themselves, even though they were slightly overused. The pitch bending on that instrument in the background was very cool too.

The transitions and interludes in this song were great, and I didn't notice that many defects regarding the transitions. Loved the reverse kick you used to move from the intro to the more laid back part at around 0:11. Great song structure too, I like how the first part was fast-paced and it moved to a slower part with a slower pace of drums, and even though this is just the same melody repeated again and again with no alternate melodies, this wasn't repetiitve, because of the variety of the drums and melodies in the background, so good job with that. The intro had some superb sidechaining, and this looped pretty well too. I'd suggest adding a drum roll for the last few seconds of the song, since even though it's a good loop, the drums sort of came in too suddenly when it looped.

The drums were really good, and as SessileNomad said, the snare was so awesome-sounding. The variety of drum samples is really great too, and the drum beats are amazing. Good job on the drums, they were perfect.

Overall, a great and useful loop, and I don't see why it shouldn't star in the latest flash game menu, since it's really cool. Just work on adding some alternate melodies, fixing the loop a little, and nore variety of synths, but other than that, this loop is brilliant. Hey, ya know what? This just gave me an idea: The NG Theme in DnB... Wow, that'd be awesome :D. Well, whatever, nice job in general, keep up the great work!
9/10
5/5

-Review Request Club-

Flash-MX responds:

Very comprehensive and useful review, thank you!
And thanks everyone else from the Review Club, definitely an advantage to making music,
I will most likely be finishing this song too,
Later all!

[awesome windows song remix]

You chose a great song to remix...

...but the remix itself needs much more work. Its a nice remix, and the only one I've seen for this song so far, although it does feel quite empty.

This is a remix, so I can't credit you for the melodies, although the instruments, I can, and they are very, very nice. I don't really notice any XP sounds over here as you mentioned in the review below, though (and I did 3 XP songs of my own, so I kind of know what I'm talking about... sorta... :P) but the most important thing is that the instruments here really rock. The main instrument had a really cool vibe to it, and the delayed saw synth gave a nice touch to the song. Just lay down on that screeching at the beginning O_o, I honestly have no clue why you put it there.

Now, onto the negatives... The transitions didn't impress me much at all. There were a lot of parts in the song were there were large amounts of (almost) silence to transit from one melody to another, for example, at 0:45 - the drums there were barely heard and it sounded like silence. Also, new instruments weren't introduced well, and didn't fit well with the flow of the song. for example, at 0:32, that new instrument was introduced much too suddenly, and even the saw wave didn't come in that smoothly either.

Also, this kind of felt, well... empty. A little problem you have when you compose songs is that you almost never make more than one instrument play melodies at the same time. I recall that in the original, there were up to about 3 melodies or even more playing at the same time. Try and make more melodies play together, maybe add your own slower melodies in the background, and experiment with different harmonizing, adding some more fullness and depth in the background.

When it comes to the intro and outro, they weren't really that bad. The ending was fine, even though it think that you could've added a slower delay to the last note and leave it echo a little more (right now it sounds like a loop), but apart from that, it was fine. The intro, as stated before, was very annoying with that screeching effect; you really should remove it. Add nicer effects instead, like sweeps and stuff, making some effects yourself with Sytrus (Blackhole12 made that Sytrus guide, which I believe you're familiar with, so you could use that ;) ).

Drums are a big disappointment in this song. Firstly, they were very quiet, and you quickly lose track of them in the song because the melodies cover them up, and secondly, the samples were nothing too special (look here for great free drum samples, and a LOT of them [remove spaces] : http://www.darkbeats.com/sampleswap/ ). If you made them louder and used better samples, you'll find transitions like the one at 2:01, come out much better, plus they add a lot of fullness to songs.

I really enjoy listening to the original one, and unfortunately expected more in this. You have the instruments perfected, but the overall structure needs work. Make more melodies play together, with maybe some harmonized ambient melodies playing chords in the background, improve those drums by making them louder and using better samples, give the song more depth with some better effects, work on some transitions, and please, remove that screeching sound X(.
5/10
3/5

-Review Request Club-

mikkim responds:

only three things in this song weren't windows, and that was the drums(which might have been windows) and the saw-wave, which is why I didn't make any background effects. and also the screeching sound was a failed attempt to copy the bass at the start of the song, but I failed at it, even though I'm sure I set the settings to the same he did, so the mistake was probably that the sample changed between vista and xp. Thanks for telling me where to get good (at least I hope it's good.) drum samples as well, because I never had any good sample to use.

[~BH~ Aurora Theory]

This is the Perfection Theory!

Man, this song needs so much more exposure than just 21 votes and 2 reviews so far. This needs a top 5, just like all your other songs. It's just so amazing. Definitely one of your best work, an amazing improvement from the original.

As said in the review on the WiP, the melodies are really, really catchy. I wouldn't even change a note in them if I had to go through them. The alternate melody of the piano was very catchy, and so were all the other melodies. The instruments are really amazing too. I suppose you made them yourself, didn't you? Well, no matter, they are just so epic. Loved the instrument that plays at around 2:16 at its loudest, and keeps playing till around 2:32. The piano was really good too, with the type of melody that will not exit your head no matter how hard you try to get it out. Choir voices in the background were really cool too (seriously though, do all of your songs have choirs in them? :P), and in all, the instruments and melodies here are a perfect combination.

Oh, and the usual, transitions and interludes were very professionally done. What impressed me most though was how well you introduced new instruments, especially the cool sounding one, which had a great transition to it at 2:14, and I couldn't find one transition which didn't sound smooth.

And now, I'll move up to the buildups, which by the way, were really brilliant. The gradual buildup at the beginning was perfect, and really, really excellent job on that buildup at 1:21, it was just so awesome. Reverbed kick was fantastically done too. In all, that buildup is BY FAR one of the BEST I've heard, no kidding. The melody you did in the buildup was great too.

The intro was excellent, since if you started it with just piano only, it wouldn't have been as smooth as this. It had a really nice-sounding effect to it too. As for the ending, it was amazing as well, with a good drum roll to give the ending that importance it needed, but if I were to go through this song, the only thing I would change would be the loudness of that drum roll. It just felt a little too quiet and needs more importance than all the other drums. Other than that, this song qualifies for perfection.

The drums, as usual, are very varied, and fit really well with the song, and had OK samples. The reverbed kick and the snare were my favourites from all the samples. The buildups on the drums were superb as well, and the drum beats were excellent. In general, the drums were pretty quiet, but I think that if you made them any louder, they'd start to become annoying and interfere with the song, so you should keep them just as loud as they are now.

I don't really need to summarize what I said in this review, the only word you need for a summary of this song is 'Flawless'. You honestly never stop to amaze. It's impossible for you to ever submit a song which I give less than a 5/5 in, and which doesn't deserve top rankings here on Newgrounds. IMO, you're the best artist ever to enter NG, keep up the great work, you're not an expert at making music, you're THE expert. Amazing job!! Phew... long review O_o. 892 characters left, hehe :D
10/10
5/5
Download.
Fav'd.

-Review Request Club-

ErikMcClure responds:

All the synths were made by me, yes.

I do particularly like the job i did on the transitions in this song. I'm not usually that good at transitions so I don't know what changed :P

I love choir because its one of the most effective fillers I can get. Similar to how the piano is the most effective melodic instrument.

One of these days your going to get bored of giving me such ridiculously high praise :P

Thanks :D

[Big Red - Ain't No Sunshine]

Whoa... All from your mouth?

Now that's impressive. I honestly thought those were samples using a DAW in the background :P. I was about to say 'Whoa, where'd he get those great samples from' until I saw your response to Fro's review XP. Great job!

I liked the vocals, and they were sung really well. I didn't listen to the original (I know, I live under a rock) so I can't compare it to this one, but this one is really great. I just think they need to be a little louder. Also, this does need a bit more of a background melody to it, too.

The drums... sorry, the drum 'noises', were really excellent. Nothing to complain about here, they were really varied, and fit excellently with the song. Loved the transition at 1:23, as well.

It's a really great song, which sounds really well done. Practically, the only thing which bothered me was the loudness of the vocals. Definitely keep up the great work!
10/10
5/5
Sorry, no download. This may sound really wierd but I don't really like songs with lyrics in them.

-Review Request Club-

BigRed responds:

I'll re-record it and just hum the melody, then you'll love it! haha
Thanks for the review.