Everratic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Sora's Song]

It's beautiful! Congratulations.

[Tomorrow]

The sound design is fantastic! I'm glad you didn't make the track overly loud, which seems to be common for this type of music.

[AIM 2020 - Acrylic Mornings]

I really like the choice of chords throughout the track. You effectively created chord progressions that portray both blissful innocence and awe without without straying from the still nature of a painting, and this was done by frequently juxtaposing the tonic chord with chords that portray a variety of contrasting moods.

I like the lack of resolution. It helps establish the piece as one that embodies the painting rather than one that tells a story beyond it.

1:34 could be an apt moment for a climax. The satisfying chord here could be further emphasized with additional instrumentation.

I think the mix has too many low-mids and each instrument sounds like it could benefit from a lot of EQing. The strings sound thin, especially relative to the wide piano. I think ideally the piano should feel more buoyant in such a track,

Gl in the contest! I'm not sure if I'll enter this year.

Albe responds:

Thanks man! Glad you liked the composition. And yeah, after all these years I still have a lot of flaws with mixing and mastering (almost as if I never nail a correct mix everytime), so big thank you for pointing it all out, I'll have that in mind. I'm sure I'll get it correct someday lol
GL to you too in case you enter!

[AIM -Dream Island-]

I really like the percussion, unexpected transitions, and the effects on the leads. Gl in the contest!

Preds responds:

Thank you man! Means a lot :)

[Lucid]

I'm glad to hear more of your music after all this time!

This is unusual, but my favorite section is the post-climax; the sudden, unexpected mood change is heartwarming, and then there's another unexpected mood shift at 4:08 that effectively represents the return to reality. The track does an excellent job at telling the story you envisioned.

My only criticism is that the percussion feels too minimal in the context of what sounds like a medium-sized orchestra. I think the climax falls slightly short of its full emotional potential due to a lack of strong percussion, especially high-end percussion.

Step responds:

I'm incredibly glad you're able to pick up on the story I was trying to tell. Like... completely over the moon. Haha.

That's a very interesting point about the percussion. I'm usually pretty heavy on percussion in my orchestral pieces and I actually tried to exercise some restraint in this one, but in hindsight I completely agree that some high-end percussion at least during the last climax would've really sealed the deal.

Thanks a lot for the great review!

[Fantastic Journey]

I love the lively orchestration. You achieved a full, warm sound. The selection of chords is wonderful, and it really shines during the sustain sections. I like the build ups to the busy sections; you did a great job at creating a dynamic structure. I think you achieved a good balance between the feelings of awe and exuberance, which are dominant throughout the piece.

I think much of the song's liveliness is thanks to the excellent composition and instrumentation, but I believe you can go even further by meticulously finetuning the automation on expression, vibrato, etc.

Although the mix is good in that I can hear everything well enough, I wish the melodic lines were more prominent or in-focus. I think the mix could benefit from having a slightly greater hierarchy.

I enjoyed this a lot, and I can imagine this being used in a game trailer.

[Spring Begins to Bloom]

This is wonderful. I love the climax and outro. I had to lower my volume a lot so I think i'ts a bit too loud, but it's not really a problem.

Albe responds:

Thank you so much!! Sorry for the loudness, I will try to have more control over the volume in my mix next time, but I'm really glad you liked it

[Returning Home]

This is fantastic! It reminds me of the music in famous Disney movies.

Deemo-R responds:

Thank you so much! It goes without saying that I love and grew up with that stuff, so it's always nice to hear comparisons made! I'd love to have the creativity to make something so iconic :D

[Last Light]

I really like the strings arrangement, the powerful percussion, and the post-chorus chord progression change. You successfully avoided making the song sound cheesy, which isn’t easy with this style; I think if you had access to an orchestra and vocalist, the song’s emotional appeal would be significantly higher. This is my favorite song of yours :D

CloakedSoup responds:

Thanks! While I wouldn't say I'm the worst vocalist, I'm not exactly a professional. I literally finished writing some of the lyrics before recording them like 5 hours ago too. ;D

[Wolfhome]

I like the chord progression and selection of instruments - though some vsts could be much better. Although the woodwind-sounding instrument does sound expressive at first, I think the variation of expression isn't sufficient, so it loses its appeal quickly. I think the climax could have been much more powerful if you changed up the melody - I didn't like the juxtaposition of the slow melody with the more intense background lines; this was the perfect opportunity to make the melody go crazy imo. Otherwise, I think you did a good job with the pacing and transitions. The oboe sounds very fake compared to everything else, I would have left it out. I enjoyed this piece overall and found it to be very relaxing. I'm hiding the score to avoid potentially over-influencing the judges.

Baumarius responds:

Thanks for the feedback! I think I fixed the oboe section (it's not there anymore), but I don't have enough time tonight to flesh out the climax and the expression/melody of the duduk. I'll do that after the competition... and hopefully it'll be live when I do :D

I'm glad you enjoyed this song!