Everratic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[AIM 2025 - Rallying Cry of the Dragonslayer]

I'd love to fight a dragon with this music in the background!

I like that you didn't take a more typical approach to dragon combat music. This style makes me think there's a deep lore behind the dragon, and fighting it is an ancient tradition for those seeking honor and glory.

The motif and melodies are catchy, and there's a healthy amount of variation so it doesn't get stale.

The drumming is amazing. There's so much to enjoy with the layering, textures, and rhythms.

This is a very strong submission. I hope the judges don't take off points for the length, because it certainly feels like a complete track to me.

Albe responds:

Thanks a lot for the feedback!!! I honestly completely forgot about the length rule but I still do want to comply with the rules so over the next days I'm gonna be updating this song with an intro that fills the gap and reaches the minimum required length. I'm really glad you liked it

["𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓪𝓷𝓭𝓼 𝓫𝓮𝓷𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱 𝓾𝓼" (NGCS3)]

I like the rhythms and sound design!

3manonMusic responds:

Thank you so much!

[Cirrus]

This is really beautiful!!

The only thing I'd change is the chimes sample - it feels too close-recorded.

50Steaks responds:

Unfortunately muse sounds didn’t have a specific sample for the mark tree (not chimes technically). So it just came straight from MS basic just like the “kazoo” which you can hear after the silent part. I suppose I could’ve EQ’d it to make it sound a little less harsh, but that probably wouldn’t have helped much. Regardless, thanks for listening!

[Polar Drift (w/ X3ll3n) [NGMC 2025]]

Wow, this is probably the best electronic song I heard on Newgrounds in years <3 I love the sound design and lead vibrato.

Snikio responds:

Really?! I'm so glad to hear that. Thank you so much!

[Smash Into Pieces - Valhalla [Benji-G Remix]]

This is really enjoyable!

Benji-G responds:

Thank you Everratic!

[Voice of the Fallen (NGVGMC)]

Although you misunderstood the assignment, I think you successfully made a lot of useful video game music! Many of these sections can be extended into full video game tracks and fit the intended setting quite well. I like how you musically linked the sections together, creating a continuous experience through diverse scenes and settings.

As someone who enjoys 90s games, I appreciate the use of soundfonts even though they don't sound realistic to modern ears. The one instrument that bothered me is the violin because it sounds more timbrally realistic than everything else so it exacerbates the fakeness of it.

The arrangement is pretty solid throughout. I like that some sections feel sparser and some feel fuller, depending on the intended mood of the setting. In the 1:17 section, the melody is nice, but I think you could let that voice rest more between melodic phrases and use another instrument for counterlines. The drumming is pretty good, but it can benefit from more fill transitions, and the snare in the battle section feels too loud.

Thanks for participating!

Interloping responds:

Im just glad you liked it, really. I spent minimal time on this because the holiday season for me is always a busy/stressful one. I would have loved to do more tweaking when it was relevant, but I have only been able to open FL studio as of the last few days

The hardest part was making a sound for the sewers, or making the two battle tracks sound different from one-another somehow while using the same progression

All of the drums are mapped out by hand, so Im glad you like them. I use a standard DAC kit from one of the soundfonts I use

[Taken | Voice Of The Fallen]

This is a nice cinematic depiction of the scene! I feel the motif and general vibe captures the feeling of hope well. The setting of the story is mostly gloomy, but the scene where Corvin is empowered by the spirits gives hope to the oppressed, and it's great how you focused on that feeling.

I like how clean the mix is, and the brightness of the drums and strings. You did a good job with the sound design and atmosphere too!

At 2:42, it sounds like there's supposed to be a huge climax, but the momentum suddenly stops because the arrangement lacks bass, the dynamics are flat, and the drum rhythm is relaxed and doing its own thing. It feels like an interlude in the battle section, but the execution of it doesn't really work for me. In this kind of situation, the orchestra could benefit from dynamic swells, going from soft to loud, some movement in the texture, like woodwind or harp runs, and percussion that accents the swells.

I like the outro. It reinforced that hopeful vibe and has a satisfying ending :)

Overall, I think you did a good job conceptualizing the track and there's a lot to like with the atmosphere and sound design. The orchestration can be improved, but this is a good start considering it's new to you. Keep it up!

[like the blade you fell upon / efflorescence]

This is beautiful! I'm impressed by how well the composition carries the weight of the cutscene. The instrumentation is simple yet brilliant. The gritty low strings gives it an Elden Ring vibe, the setting of which inspired this story. The high octave violin legato with the piano adds a magical infusion to the sound palette. I like the use of reverb throughout.

Areas to improve:
- I feel the track is figuratively missing a conductor to adjust the dynamics and tempo to maximize the expressiveness. It's important to try to mimic this affect in virtual mockups to the extent possible.
- I like and appreciate the minimal nature of the composition, but sometimes it feels a little too bare, especially in the :52 section. If there were real strings, it might sound fine, but sometimes midi mockups benefit from a little extra sound design to mask the virtual qualities.

[The tale of Sir Corvin]

You captured the weight of the scene and battle well. I like how the themes convey a sense of uncertainty and danger. The section at :42 is so beautiful and sparkly. I think the piano being the sole instrument has some interesting effects: the world feels more spiritual, and it feels like we’re following Corvin’s perception of events rather than seeing the scene from an outside perspective.

I think you could have been more adventurous with the battle section, but I do like the darkness of it, which contrasts nicely with the :42 section.

The first melody seems like it could possibly be Corvin’s theme, and the melody at 2:08 seems like it could possibly be a main theme for the entire soundtrack. Nice job if that was the intention! The introduction of the last theme made me wish the track was a minute longer :)

The piano sounds a little muffled to me. If I had to guess, it’s likely from the low-mids of the close mic. Otherwise, the mix sounds pleasant and polished, with a clean low end!

Thanks for choosing my challenge!

Solacitude responds:

I'm glad by the way you perceived this piece, since I was imagining the whole scene in "first person" during the composition process, which fits with your description.

I changed my mind a couple times during the 2 months period, ended up having to complete the piece in the last couple days, I had many ideas that I was not yet comfortable enough playing to put in the final version, which would probably enhance especially variations of the battle section.

Maybe I should continue to work on it and include some of these ideas. And extend the last theme, which was one of the first inspirations I had for a theme, that I didn't expand on as much as I could have, but felt it was fitting well for an ending that opens the door for a main theme out of the scene related to the challenge. I'm happy you feel like it could be the main theme for the entire soundtrack since it's how I perceive it as well! :D
(I might add 1 or 2 minutes with this theme's variation, I'll let you know if I do and update this piece! )

The piano is a new VST that came with a keyboard I got recently. It has no control over individual mics, but I love the sound of it! I've updated the mix since my first upload, I use a parallel compression and I think at first I was not compressing the low end enough, it was affecting low/mid clarity at some points especially when hitting low notes harder. I'll try more/different approaches to fine tune this VST to make sure it sounds as good as it can!

It was interesting working on a piece with specific imagery in mind, not something I'm used to, I'm glad you appreciate my work! Thanks for hosting this challenge, and for the review!

[Windy]

NGADM Round 3 Review

The composition is heartfelt and beautiful. It feels like it’s stream-of-consciousness style, taking the listener on a journey through one’s thoughts and struggles. I admire your ability to compose for piano in a way that deeply resonates with human emotions; it’s not an easy feat. It also seems that you’re not afraid to show yourself through your music, which makes it much more interesting to listen to. The composition style reminds me of great composers like Chopin and Liszt while being distinct enough to be recognized as your work.

You did an excellent job at varying the themes and creating distinct sections. I do think you can go even further with utilizing the full piano register and timbral and dynamic ranges; sometimes it helps to slightly exaggerate shifts in texture and tone. The composition feels a little too tonally consistent over the five-minute duration for my taste.

I have a comment on the mix, but it’s a bit tricky because I don’t know what your mic set up is and how you already EQd them, so take this with a grain of salt. I sense that one of the closer mics might have a bit too much frequency content between 350 to 1k, and a slight cut might help the reverb and higher register notes shine more. But otherwise, the mix is really solid! I particularly enjoy the soft-blur texture of some of the lower dynamic left-hand arpeggios.

It's remarkable how far you’ve come after some setbacks and how much you’ve improved in a short time! Good luck with the rest of the contest!

Solacitude responds:

Most parts included in the final mix come from moments that I happened to be recording while reaching a kind of meditative state of mind. It's how I manage to create the most authentic mindful musical expressions that I can. It's not always what is wanted, but most of the times when I'm "in the zone" I tend to play in a romantic style. I also think the more I manage to connect to the subconscious, the more the music produced can connect with people listening. I'm really glad when it does! I know that I'm far from Chopin and Liszt level, but they are composers that I really like and they sure have an influence on how I play. Romantic music influenced my style a lot. I'm quite flattered that this piece reminds you of them!

It was in my thoughts that 5 minutes of C# might be too much, but then also thought that the chromatic elements would compensate, creating a little disturbance in the perceived root, and alternating between C#min natural to harmonic, and quick pass through C#Maj. I recorded some variations with more than accidental key changes as well as higher register that I didn't keep in the final mix. I was feeling like I was losing consistency, the darker vibe, so I kept them out. Maybe in a future version, adding a "Takeoff" chapter so the wind is put to good use instead of just blowing out things, we could fly gracefully into it! Would also maybe make it sound more like an actual rhapsody. :)

I get what you say for the mix. I didn't update yet, but I've cut a bit in this range on the close mic, and added a bit of lower freq, making some tests. It was the first upload with this piano sound so I'm very glad you appreciate the mix quality! It was making me a tiny bit anxious haha!

Getting to the round of 4, and the appreciation of what I create, it's way beyond my expectations! I was getting into these contests pretty much to get feedbacks and improve where I can, not thinking about the podium at all. It was not in my thoughts all along, but now that we're there! I own nothing that is proposed in the prize pool, so I'm quite happy about that!! Added to all the positives that already came out of it. It's convincing my inner voice more and more, that distributing my music is worth it! This inner voice can be stubborn, perfectionist, doubtful. It feels good when it gets tamed a little bit.

It's been quite an adventure since the beginning! I'm very glad of the results so far! You also helped a lot with your tips to get back on the boat! Thank you again!! :D