Step's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Time to Fly - NGADM]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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Another round, another charming VGM tune! You know, contrary to what garlagan said in his review, I don't quite think your style is very original, but in a way that's what I love about it. You've nailed a style that's not done to death in modern times and is still very familiar and nostalgia-inducing, and like in your Round 1 track, it gives this loads of charm and enjoyability. Most of this is coming in the sounds you use, which, while sounding a little harsh at times, synergise SO well with each other. The acid bass, the delayed hypersaw, the laser sound effects, the synth brass, the chimes, the vibrato, the snare-heavy drum patterns... at the risk of sounding like Apple, it just WORKS.

Now that group stages are over I'm able to directly compare competitors with their opponents, and I feel like it's especially viable to do so with you and garlagan since I think it's an easily comparable matchup where each submission has noticeable faults and strengths. In the composition department, I have to admit I think yours takes the cake by a bit. The melodies all sound inspired like in your audition and are structured wonderfully. Your rhythms are probably my favourite aspect of the composition though. You accentuate your rhythms with loads of drum hits and it's just a blast to listen to.

My only issue is kind of similar to the one I had in your Round 1 track. It's the mix. Due to the fact that the frequencies often clash in the lower half of the spectrum, it again gets a little ear-stressing. I don't think the problem is NEARLY as present here because, to my delight, you took my advice and added more dynamic sections, like 1:15 and 3:12. Still, you need to work on making the mix less muddy and cluttered! This is what's giving garlagan an edge, and in a genre where production is so important, I'm afraid it's enough of an edge for me to give him a higher score!

Anyway, the mix isn't bad by any means. It's just a little muddy during the busier sections. Whatever the case, I am starting to get really partial to your music! Good job with this.

SCORE: 8.6/10

Spadezer responds:

Thanks for the excellent review. I love hearing that you enjoy my tracks and I love the detailed feedback that you give. One day I'll nail down the mixing stuff, and I feel silly that my last track didn't have much dynamic range (I should know better).

But other than that I love that what I can take away with this is the possibility of winning over another fan through my music. I'm glad you like it and I'm glad to hear a 8.6 out of you (although I was aiming for a 9). And now that I look back on it, I guess I really like to stress out on the composition more so than the mixing.

Be awesome, be more awesome, and repeat.

[Forever striving]

So I finally got around to reviewing this! Being your NGADM contest audition, I suppose I can use this review to try and address why you didn't make it in, although let me make it clear from now that I do think you deserved a spot in the competition. I in fact did vote for you if I remember correctly. In that light, I'm probably not the best judge to get a review from, since I'm sure it'd be a lot more helpful to get opinions from the judges who didn't vote for you.

Overall your amount of votes from the judges was JUST short of enough to land you a spot in the contest. To make matters even closer, when InYourDreams had to step out, it was a toss between an even smaller amount of people, including LunacyEcho and you. So yeah, just to give you an idea how close it actually was (yes I am desperately trying to get you to stop bugging me about it and yes I know you won't stop that easily :3).

But yeah, that aside, time to talk about the track. In my personal notes that I wrote for each audition, I commended you on your composition and percussion, but had "sounds formulaic" written down. My opinion on that is still unchanged - your melody and harmony is still pretty damn good, your rock drums add a very welcomed energetic and exciting flair to the track and yes, unfortunately it does sound fairly formulaic. Let me be a bit more specific.

I actually don't agree with LunyAlex on the progression - I don't think it's that great (unless he was talking about the CHORD progression which is pretty sweet). The way the track progresses is actually one of the main reasons why I think it sounds formulaic. Almost every four bars you introduce one or two new elements, and there's very little buildup or suitable anticipation for any of the new melodic elements you introduce, save for maybe the staccato strings that start fading in around 40 seconds into the track, and come on, that's just a bland fade-in.

That and the lack of variety in your chord progression give this track kind of an artificial and formulaic structure and sound. It's like I can imagine the FL Studio patterns playing in my head when I hear this, and I shouldn't be imagining that. I should be imagining the picture you paint with this track and the emotions you convey, not piano rolls and step sequencers, if you get what I mean!

The structure of this track and its progression is simply too linear. I want to hear more meaningful buildups beyond fade-ins, I want to hear contrasts, foreshadowing, call-and-response, subtle little intricacies that take many listens to notice... things like that. It's not about me hating on a more simple, minimalist approach, but I feel like a larger degree of unpredictability, dynamics and versatility would elevate this track immensely.

Also, I hate to constantly send you Denny Schneidemesser music and I bet you're sick of him now (BUT YOU SHOULDN'T BE BECAUSE HE'S AWESOME)... but yeah I think this track of his could serve as GREAT inspiration for music of this genre:
http://youtu.be/3RwJl4aq_CI
It's a similar approach to your track - it tries to sound hopeful, expressive and even has some subtle rock drums at one point. The difference is, it has a much less linear structure, has BUCKETLOADS of sweet call-and-response between instruments, and swells/dies down much more naturally. Something to work on!

Now I mean it wouldn't be a full review if I just complain about what this track could improve in. There are some things which you actually do really well in this, which actually led me to voting for your audition in the NGADM. Your melodies, harmonies, layers of different instruments playing different passages, accompaniment (especially of the percussive kind) and overall balance of different instruments are all on point! While I think you could've been a bit more ambitious and brave with your instrument choice (some woodwinds would've been nice), your instrumentation is good too. While the issue I've talked about for most of the review is present and does hurt the enjoyment factor of this piece, there are tons of redeeming factors. It's a huuuge improvement from the last track I reviewed from you, Despondency!

So yeah, those are my honest thoughts about it. Keep up the good work man, and I wish you luck in your journey to become an ORCHESTRAL PRO.

8/10
4/5

lemon42 responds:

Hello, and thanks for taking the time! <3

I was actually looking forward to your opinion specifically. I've shown you things in the past and really wanted to know how much I had improved since. It sucks I didn't pass, but welp! That only means I need to work more. I'm sure I'll make it next year (if I'm not busy moving for my studies)! And we both know that's not enough to make meh staph >:D

I completely agree. It is very formulaic in the sense it follows a very linear and predictable progression. I learned most of my music through electronic styles and they all follow very similar patterns. I discovered orchestral just recently, and I'm in love with it! I often get frustrated at how I can't make them seem as natural as some other people. But hey, I'm learning! Every piece I compose allows me to experiment even further and get closer to my goal.

The chord progression is fairly simple, I wanted to try and find different ways to make it progress but had a bit of trouble, so I stayed on the safe side with this one. The chord progression repeats itself way too much. I'm still learning how to vary those, chords are definitely one of my weaknesses. I totally get what you mean, I can see it too. I'm aware it's a big issue I have in a lot of my songs, but then again, still learning! Thanks for the link by the way, I will definitely have a listen, and not just one! :D

There is actually a flute in there, but it's mastered very low, perhaps a tad too subtle? I do agree I need to add more woodwinds in general though. I think I'm a bit scared of them, even though I shouldn't! But I'm learning to use them and every time I add more variety, it's super interesting~

In any case, I'm glad you still managed to enjoy it despite it's flaws! I will most definitely keep working. I want to make more, more, more! I'm really excited for what's to come. Thank you so much for your review, I appreciate it immensely!

Thanks! :'D

[Future]

This is an NGADM Round 1 Review.

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I undoubtedly consider you one of the most underrated artists this year. I mean, 39 fans (well, make that 40 with me included) and you make music like this? It's a disgrace! One thing that both your audition and this has is particularly warm and vibrant chords. 1:09's pad adds this wonderfully deep atmosphere with those thick chords which I think is this track's trademark. The chords themselves are good too, composition-wise! I was a little disappointed to hear that the chords you played at 1:09 were the same as the chords you played with the plucked bass synth at the beginning of the track, but hey, it's a good progression! Your sounds are all pretty sweet with the exception of a few which I'll mention later, and your production value/sound design is commendable! Good work.

Now, I first off pretty much agree with midimachine on everything he said, apart from the points about the structure which didn't bother me as much (but I would've definitely liked some more unique sections). So first off, the intro is very bland. It doesn't do the track much justice to have that generic bass synth play at the start, followed by a plain-sounding arp and an anticlimactic buildup/drop. I'm also not a huge fan of your snare. At 0:42 you use this really dry and bland snare and I guess the more clap-like snare in the climaxes is better but nothing like the ground shaker you had in your audition. And the ending... not impressed I'm afraid! It certainly came off sounding like a cop-out and made the track sound somewhat unfinished.

This is almost a carbon copy of midi's review, but yeah I definitely agree with all that he said. This is otherwise a very well-made electronic track with very thick and lush chords and good production. Nice one.

SCORE: 8.5/10

Pandasticality responds:

thank you for the creative criticism, when reading midimachines review i just expected him to say ´wow you suck´ or something like that since the review was a bit harsh, but since you guys have been doing this for far longer than i have most likely, i take the criticism and tips with open arms.
thank you!
- Pandasticality

[No Time Left]

Well, this is actually quite a bit better than I expected! Judging from a standpoint where I'm aware that you're new to this genre, I'm positively surprised. Even if you weren't new to this genre, I would still consider this a solid track with a well-crafted atmosphere, great choice of sounds and a fantastic mood. So yes, all in all, certainly not bad at all!

You kick things off with a very good intro. The static and subtle radio effects sell it for me. I would be even more impressed if you did it all yourself rather than slicing up a free sound effect or something, but nevertheless I think you did a great job with it. The choir sits atop your bassy soundscape very nicely, and everything cooperates to create a pretty intense yet restrained and low-key mood. The little atmospheric effects like the one at 1:43 are just the BOMB by the way! I'm actually interested in where you got those sounds from, since they're sweet.

After the great progression from the intro we're treated to mostly atmospheric fluff, which leads me to a point that other reviews have also mentioned. I too was hoping for something a little more noteworthy in the track, whether a new dynamic section, a melody-driven section, a change in style or in key, etc. I mean, even to put in the background of a film/game I would find this a bit too uneventful. I mean, what you've got here is actually considerably well-made, but as Jacob pointed out there's plenty of room left to explore without needing to turn it into some epic trailer score.

Another thing I noticed is something which MIGHT have come from your electronic music roots. You seem to reuse certain patterns and sounds a lot. For instance, the synth at 1:10 - every two bars it plays the exact same pattern, just in a different pitch, and 2:30's synth and the electric guitar suffer the exact same issue. On top of that, 1:46's motif (which is awesome by the way) is played ad nauseam throughout the rest of the track.

My point is, while this isn't traditional orchestral and has a lot of other electronic elements and even an electric guitar, I still believe that it should sound organic and with subtle changes in the patterns used to build your atmosphere. On the plus side, you do have a lot of different patterns layered together, and some nifty atmospheric effects as mentioned earlier, which do help, but with a static chord progression and such a large repetition of patterns, I'm afraid it falls somewhat short of organic and does get pretty repetitive as MirgilCando pointed out.

Something which certainly doesn't fall short is the production though. Everything is tastefully mixed and balanced well, apart from the guitar which I think could sit at the back a little more. I actually don't think you need to turn its volume down per se, but just nudging out some of its high frequencies and maybe giving it a few more lows to compensate would make it penetrate the mix a little less and sit neatly in the background (which is, in all honesty, where it should be, since it doesn't play anything particularly profound to warrant it being upfront and heard in the foreground).

While I do think you could've put a little more effort into the variation of this track, your mood, atmosphere and choice of sounds are simply on point, and you've made a pretty damn solid cinematic track! Great job.

8/10
4/5

Chemiqals responds:

Thank you for the review Step! I really appreciate it! I'm so glad you enjoyed it despite its flaws!

Haha yeah, the radio effect was fun. I didn't create the sounds. I just created the patterns, length of the effects, and of course the mixing. Each effect was a separate sound, but it certainly wasn't some crazy feat of ingenuity on my part. =P

I used Cinematic Guitars 2, Evolve Mutations 2, and some Spitfire libraries for most of the atmospheric stuff! I probably went through a hundred different sounds in each library to get the right combinations so I'm really happy you liked the atmosphere of the song! =)

I think I'm partly just making excuses for myself. I know I can do better when it comes to the tone and the pace of the song. I really need to study more music theory and learn a lot of the basics still. I do almost everything by ear and while I think I've gotten better over the past year, I still have a lot to learn. I still don't fully grasp what makes a good chord progression or how to effectively change keys... stuff like that. Which may be ok for some electronic genres... but it's a lot more noticeable here, I think. You can certainly see it in my reuse of certain patterns. I tried to add some variety with the choir and the drums, but I feel like I'm too scared to change things up lest I mess everything up, haha.

I'm quite surprised that I've been complimented on my production as much as I have been! Thank you for that! I feel like I'm getting better when it comes to mixing, but I do wish that I could attribute that more to skill than playing it by ear. The production on this song could be a complete accident, haha. That's another field where I could do with some tutorials!

Anyway, thanks again for the detailed review! I means a lot to me! I'm gonna take my time with my next cinematic song. Watch a ton of tutorials and not cut any corners. Hopefully I can make something that will at the very least, show improvement on my end! ^_^

[Defeatist No More]

This is an NGADM Round 1 Review.

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You know, in some ways this reminds me of your audition. It's very heavy and has a slow, lumbering pace and rhythm which helps you really digest the sonic enormity of the track you've presented. That's definitely a highly positive aspect of the track. The upfront and aggressive synths, huge drums, and bucketloads of reverb and delay (1:28's an example) give the atmosphere a very clear sense of largeness, which ups the memorability factor of this track tenfold. Complementing all that is a pretty solid structure, good transitions and a suitable intro/ending. So yeah, all in all, decent work with all of that stuff I mentioned.

Now, to be honest I'm finding some trouble looking for redeeming factors in this track. Midimachine said it all; this track has an extremely stressed mix. The amount of compression/limiting you threw in there made the track sound too bouncy and loud, and I was desperately wishing for some momentary relief from the crazy loudness halfway through the track. Some of the sounds you used are fairly agreeable, but most of them are simply unpleasant. You used a similar style of synths for your audition Megalith, but while over there the aggression from your synths worked with the whole idea of the track, here they blare so loudly that they end up sounding crass and harsh to the ears. Additionally, I agree with midimachine that none of your melodic content is particularly good (which is a shame because I enjoyed your melody in Megalith).

A bit of a disappointment I'm afraid! Still, thanks for taking part.

SCORE: 7/10

Reali-tGlitch responds:

Yup, I fucked up with the mastering on this one. I am letting it be a lesson ,really.

[Save your brother]

This is an NGADM Round 1 Review.

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This is another one of those contest submissions that has great amounts of potential but due to a plethora of issues, that potential isn't fully realised. Why do I think it has potential to be something greater? Well, some of the ideas over here are excellent. For instance, the staccato string passages in the intro are awesome and instantly set the intense mood with ease. Some of the melodies are pretty well-written to boot! One of my favourite aspects of this submission would have to be the contrasts. Abrupt or not, the contrast you created with the transition at 1:28 was simply brilliant. It plays familiar melodic content but with the gentle touch of a piano, which provides a pretty riveting listening experience when played right after the exciting section before it. You build up once more, provide a similar contrast at 2:29, and the piece explodes at 2:46 with another effective contrast. I feel like you could've put more effort into building up tension from 2:29 - 2:46 so the introduction of the climax right after it won't sound so arbitrary, but otherwise that was a really fun idea.

Good ideas have to be paired with good execution, and sadly this is not the case over here. The mix is simply terrible. Everything sounds very unprocessed - there's a significant lack of reverb, and frequencies are clashing together like no tomorrow, especially in the mid range! This gives your track a very rushed and unprofessional kind of sound which does not do justice to the creative ideas and concepts presented throughout the piece. The lack of reverb sticks out like a sore thumb at bits where the piano plays on its own, and conversely the need for EQing shows during the climaxes where everything sounds cluttered and undefined. So yeah, this track needs its mix redone in my opinion. On lesser notes, the humanisation isn't quite there. This is apparent during the quicker passages played by the staccato strings (0:00) and the piano (1:45). Those sound very mechanical and could do with some velocity editing and subtle shifts in timing to make them sound more natural. Finally, the ending is a bit of a bummer. Fading it out wasn't very satisfying!

I might have been too generous with my score, but I'm actually very fond of the ideas in this track. It's the execution that's not quite there. Hope this review helped!

SCORE: 7.9/10

Guylee responds:

Dear Step,

First I have to say what a pleasure it is to have You writing a review for me. Second, I do agree with You completely about the bad mixing, EQ and whatnot about the whole thing. I do have to work very hard to learn how to properly execute my ideas, and I guess this will come in time. I must thank You a lot for doing this detailed review for me, as I hope it will help me realize my next piece.

Thank You very much! :)

p.s. no tweaking or EQ-ing was done on this one. Everything is un-edited, so your critique was spot on.

[Cracked Pavement]

This is an NGADM Round 1 Review.

--

ChronoNomad! Just like I said to johnfn, I missed reviewing your music, since not only is each piece of yours a memorable and highly enjoyable listen with rock-solid composition, but your review responses are always really insightful and a pleasure to read! Anyway, I'm here to talk about the music and that is precisely what I will do. This has to have some of my favourite melody, harmony, and voicing/instrumentation work from you. Your sense of composition is simply astounding. Particular things I enjoyed would be how effortlessly you share the responsibility of carrying the melody around various instruments in a call-and-response fashion, the breathtaking melody at 0:50 and its flowing continuation at 1:01 and then again at 1:12, and the transition up to 0:50. The glissando on the piano in that particular transition was a truly brilliant touch. You can tell the song is reaching a high point there with the excitement offered from the cymbal rolls, and then you let all that tension go with a beautifully-placed glissando into your wonderful melody.

I've said it countless times before and I'll say it again. You are in dire need of better samples. I mean, if I had the money to spare, I would buy something like East/West VSTs for precisely three NGADM competitors - you, Troisnyx and Nimble. The sample quality just isn't there I'm afraid. It would be, in my opinion, unjust to lower your score simply for you not having better quality samples, but I do think you could have done more with your samples. Pardon the comparison, but if you'll listen to Nimble's track, while it has far more mixing issues than yours does (I'd say your mix is actually quite fine!), it simply uses poor samples better than yours does. Yours comes off as sounding pretty MIDI-like (especially in the less complex sections like the intro), and while Nimble's isn't perfect, it contains very convincing and natural trills, articulations and grace notes, which did wonders to humanisation. It's a leap I wish your track took. Apart from that, this is sadly too short! The ending was approached pretty well (although I would've liked more of a ritardando at the end and a longer final note), but it ended up sounding premature since just as the track was really hitting the spot, you finished it!

This has to be my longest Round 1 review! Had a lot to say. Anyway, it's been a pleasure having you on the 2014 NGADM and thanks for the spectacular listen.

SCORE: 8.4/10

ChronoNomad responds:

I'm honestly more than a bit surprised that this particular piece has been so widely accepted and done as well as it has. Even though I frequently enjoy traversing over, around, and through genre barriers on a regular basis, this still feels like a pretty big departure from what I'm generally known for doing. The other issue, which you actually addressed as being a bit problematic, is the overall length of the track. Due to extremely severe constraints upon my time, I just didn't have the chance to flesh this out as much as I would have liked. Nevertheless, considering what I had to work with, I'm actually pretty happy with the way this came out in most aspects. All the parts that I'm completely in love with are the touches that impressed you the most, and that is both reassuring and just plain validates my decision to enter the NGADM in the first place.

I had a strong feeling that Troisnyx's beautiful musical offering would own the round, and - rather unsurprisingly - I was right! Frankly, I'm as happy for her as I would be for myself, and I don't even feel as though I lost even though I didn't win. I've got a lot of truly amazing things going on in my life right now, so there's nothing to complain about! My cup runneth over. ^__^

On another interesting note, it's actually kind of fortuitous that I didn't make it past this round since my main computer, the one with FL Studio and all my assets, decided to have a complete system failure over the past few days. The machine I'm on right now is old and slow, so attempting to install the tools and successfully make music would undoubtedly be an insufferable trial that would almost certainly end in disaster. I don't have much to say about the quality of my samples at this time since it's basically all been said before; it is what it is...for now. My funds (such as they are) currently go toward high priority areas of an even more long-term and life-altering variety. I am content. Also excited and more than a bit freaked out. But hey, that's what upcoming nuptials do to a bloke! ;D

So, in conclusion, you already know how much I appreciate the heck out of your reviews, but it always bears repeating: thank you for so much glorious feedback! You excel at offering up insight and criticism in a positive light. I really didn't want to have to turn down the offer from yourself and Echo to be a judge, and maybe I'll be able to make up for it during next year's competition. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to give the appropriate amount of time and effort to the job, and considering how much exhaustive time and effort goes into planning a wedding ceremony, reception, and honeymoon...I stand by my decision 100%!

Thank you for another unforgettable NGADM. Did I mention that I'm composing the music for when my bride walks down the aisle? So much to do. So little time. Life is an adventure! I love it. It has most assuredly been my pleasure, and I am overjoyed that you are able to enjoy a little piece of my heart and soul set to music. Excelsior!

[XS - Sanctuary (NGADM14)]

This is an NGADM Round 1 Review.

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Let me start off by saying that DAMN that's a nice intro. The atmosphere, the smooth synths with the subtle bitcrushing, that awesome motif... it's all nailed, man. I loved hearing the intro and it set high expectations for the track. In the production department, I can gladly confirm that those expectations were sufficiently met. While I would've liked to hear some more interesting sound design for sure, what you've got here is mixed very tastefully. The staccato strings are bright, snappy and clear, the drums (snare in particular) are earcandy, and the pads offer a spectacular, warm sound to the piece, to the point where I would've personally given them even more love in the track if I were the one making this. So yeah, while I expected a little more in terms of out-of-the-norm sound design, if you get what I mean, you've got a super clean mix with lovely sounds.

When it comes to composition, however, the aforementioned expectations weren't quite reached I'm afraid. Don't get me wrong, SOME of your composition is great, really! The motif you introduce at the beginning which is played at various other points during the track was a spectacular idea and has decently interesting chord changes. That being said, most of the other melodic content is lacking and simply sounds uninspired to me (starting from 0:57). Not to mention, the instrumentation you use during the sections is very bland to listen to. I mean if you had an actual violin playing with more articulation than just staccato I might enjoy parts like 0:57 but as they are now I just long for them to finish. Some transitions, such as 0:57, are abrupt, and a lot of the buildups aren't very satisfying and end up sounding anticlimactic. Lastly, the track did overstay its welcome in my opinion. I wasn't as invested towards the end as I was during the first two thirds or so, even if you introduce a pretty nice high synth at the end. Great way to end the track though!

Despite everything negative I mentioned, it's a strong submission no doubt! Good job; hope to see you once again next year if we do another.

SCORE: 8.3/10

Jimmypig responds:

That's a brillaint review, thanks for everything! I agree with everything you said here too and this track will go into the "to be finished" pile (which, let's be honest, it'll probably never come out of). But the fact that what I thought was good was and vice versa means I can work on those other parts.

Of course I'll be back! GL for the rest of the contest!