Everratic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[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

[Joy Ride [NGADM Round 3]]

NGADM Round 3 Review

This sounds so nostalgic and blissful. The composition is sublime. The melodies, solos, counterlines, and bass lines are fantastic. I can sense a lot of passion written into each line. I like how the drums contribute to the composition rather than simply being a rhythmic bed. The track is very unique despite some resemblance to video game styles, and once again, you crafted a distinctive, memorable melody.

The structure is solid, and there’s a lot of excellent variation in instrumentation and melody, with some solos and melodic breaks. I do however feel that the track can get tiring after a few listens because of how centered it seems around a single theme. As far as I can tell, there isn’t a distinctive B theme to provide some contrast and break from the A theme. I believe a solid B theme that explores some different territory would make the track more engaging and replayable.

I know you’ve expressed some concern about your mixing in the past. I believe you made a lot of good decisions in this mix on an individual track level, but one problem I found is overall frequency buildup between 400hz to 1khz and some resonances around 2khz. By cutting or compressing these areas, and affecting the track’s tonal balance, some important elements of the mix, like the drums, should feel more prominent, like in the example I shared on Discord. I suggest using multiband compression on the bass to stabilize it, and a subtle instance on the master or drum bus to control the high end spikes from elements like cymbals. I also found a slight cut on the master around 150hz to improve clarity in the low end; you can use a narrow band to not affect the snare at 200hz.

It's always a delight to listen to your music. Good luck in the remaining rounds!

trixelbit responds:

Thank you so much for the indepth and technical feedback! Honestly they have been incredibly helpful in my growth this competition and as a music maker in general.

You catch so many things I would have missed even after a 100 listens. That ear for detail really is impressive!

I can't wait to revisit these tracks and apply your feedback as well as try implementing it this round as well!

As always, thank you for the feedback and I'm glad you enjoyed this work!

[Dread {Pt.1}]

This is amazing! Now that I completed a campaign I can appreciate it more :D

AceMantra responds:

I'm happy you found a new appreciation for it! There's something just awesome about finishing a campaign. Maybe bittersweet, too, but still fun!

[Could've been something Neat...]

I don't know what the outcome will be, but either way, I'm glad you participated this year and hope to see you active in other events :) This kind of writer's block is common in competitions and is nothing to feel bad about.

Best of luck!

EppuJoloZ responds:

It was definitely a fun ride while it lasted! I'm still dissapointed in myself because this was a big underdeliver – but sometimes life just goes like that :D Thank you for the kind words, Everratic~

[Lordant - Echo]

It turns out I am your NGADM reviewer – it must have been switched since my last review.

I love the atmosphere from the very beginning. The sound design gives me a fantasy feeling, almost like the Divinity Original Sin II soundtrack. I like the use of the plucky instruments. The mix has good depth and use of delay, reverb, and panning, and the drums are mixed excellently.

The structure is conceptually solid and the transitions are all smooth. As I understand it, there’s an intro that sets the scene, an A section that feels like it’s building up to a climax until it settles down and transitions to a darker B section, then there’s a transitional section that builds into a climax based on the A theme. This could have worked very well, but I feel that the climax is not reaching its full potential. The main problem I hear is that the melody doesn’t have ideal projection and breathing room; it’s not prominent enough in the mix, while the plucks and hi hats demand a lot of attention. It also feels a little too similar to the first A section, but with a little more intensity. Modulating to another key could have been a nice idea here to enhance the emotional impact and freshen the sound.

While the mix is solid, I have some minor feedback:
- The plucks seem to have a delay with a lot of high frequencies, which gets fatiguing and can make the room feel smaller.
- The orchestral instruments feel a little thin and small-room-sounding. A plugin like SP2016 or simply changing the mic positions can fix this quickly.
- I think you did a good job with EQing overall, but I think some more mud can be removed from the mids of some of the orchestral instruments for greater clarity, and some highs can be cut from the plucks.

Your track took my mind to a lively fantasy world that seems to have a deep story behind it. I enjoyed this a lot!

Lordant responds:

Thanks a lot for feedback, I really appreciate it! Glad you enjoyed the track :3

You understood the structure pretty well and I agree with your point about the climax, I'll do a revamp for this song later and try to improve it. Not sure about modulating, though. By the way, I didn't plan to use any orchestral instruments at all, it was a late addition when the A section idea came to my mind. So, there isn't much work done with the room setting and orchestration. Same with plucks, I will tweak the effects and try to make the sound more subtle.

[I Feel It Too ft. Plasmarift]

The track feels very amusing, with the loving dialogue and quirky sounds. The sound design is well-done; the synths in the more drum and bass sections have nice movement and texture, and I like the big snare sound. Despite the appearance of a dynamically flat track, there is plenty of variation to keep it fresh and interesting.

Some minor mixing comments:
- I think reducing some high mids from the piano can potentially help provide some more separation from the synths and help it sit more comfortably in the mix.
- The vocals feel a little too close considering the atmosphere and nature of the track. Removing some more low and high end and adding more early reflections can help it feel more “spiritual”
- The hi hats feel a little raw and can possibly be tamed to have a less “white noise” sound quality

Quarl responds:

Thank you Everratic for your review, much love :D

[Life Anew [NGADM]]

The song is so energetic and full of life that it really reflects the robot’s excitement to live life anew. There’s so much ear candy and interesting things going in the background, in addition to the awesome melodies, lyrics, and solos. There’s plenty of variety and dynamic contrast that the track is always engaging and easy to relisten to. What I like most of all is the distinctiveness of the track; you developed a unique style that sounds like it can be used throughout a piece of media in an iconic fashion.

The production is solid in that I can hear everything and there’s no harshness or irritation. The heavy use of reverb contributes to the lively character of the track. I think you may be able to get a more “open” sound through adjustments. I’m going to make some suggestions based on what I’m hearing and some playing around with the track in my DAW, and you can try them and see if they help.
- Use EQ filters on the reverb send, one at around 350hz for the low end and one at around 5-6k hz for the high end. With a side-channel EQ, add a -2db bell cut at around 350hz. This can help produce a cleaner reverb more focused on the higher mids.
- On the master, with a side-channel EQ, try cutting a bit around 350hz and maybe boost up to .5db on the high mids.
- I think giving the track a slightly warmer tonal balance can help the vocals tremendously, without adjusting anything on the vocal channel. You can try making the hi hats and snares a little quieter or roll off a very small amount of the high end. Saturation can help take the edge off them.
- I think the bass can be more tamed. If you open an EQ and see that the bass’ fundamental frequency area is jumping around from note to note, you can use a dynamic EQ or multiband compressor to help it occupy just one area. You can also potentially cut out some mids if it’s not vital to the sound.
- You can use plugins like Gullfoss and Soothe 2 to get a smoother, wider-feeling sound in a way that’s not realistically achievable manually. But note that they can easily hurt the mix in some cases by overcompressing essential dynamics or bringing out unwanted frequencies.

I’m very impressed by what you achieved here and am excited for your next track!

trixelbit responds:

When I saw this review, it was like Christmas!
I can't express how much I appreciate the details you dived into with this!

One major thing that stumped me was trying to achieve a wide sound. Reverb was the only tool I'm my mind to achieve that, but yet still didn't feel quite right. So your plugin suggestions 100% open up uncharted avenues!

Thanks for the technical mix recommendations, I will be revisiting this track again soon and applying these changes. It's probably simple, but the reverb EQing is something I've never even thought to do and would have prevent previous battles against messy sounding reverbs.

The most I desired from this comp was to learn and grow as a composer, and I think this has been immensely helpful to that end.

Thank you again for your time and effort in this feedback! It has been in depth, song specfic and with actionable points of improvement. Can't wait to apply this info in future music!

[Equivocal]

Your playing is magnificent. I love the left hand textures and melodic responses. The use of dynamics makes the piece very engaging and enhances the expression of the melody.

The reverb sounds amazing. I wish I could visit the theoretical hall where this piano is :D

Equivocal is an interesting title. Maybe it's just me, but my interpretation of the composition is that it represents the beauty of the night, with its moonlight glow.

Solacitude responds:

I'm very glad you find the reverb nice enough to be worthy of mention!
I think you know very well how many hours I've put into crafting a better sound quality in the past couple days, and past couple months for that matter. ;)
Dynamics are an important aspect of piano, and many other instruments. It gives such a great tool to express ourselves with a wider range of emotions. I'm glad you noticed! It's so easy to miss on all the subtlety that playing with dynamics can bring. It is one of the things that brings music to life.

Thank you again for the back and forth in DM, it really helped guide me towards more specifics areas that were problematic. Now I can say I'm more satisfied than ever about the result! It will impact all of my creations so it holds a lot of weight in the balance.

If this piece inspires you the beauty of the night with its moonlight glow, and another it's the epic untold stories of forgotten heroes, for someone else it's a sad and nostalgic piece. I think it's testament of the equivocal nature of it :) I also like the title in the sense that it doesn't align the listener's expectation, it's a quite neutral, but full of meaning word. One of the best things about music, is that it can be appropriated in so many ways, unique to each one of us based on our own life experiences, thoughts, feelings, etc. in the end the creator's motives and thoughts matter less in a listening perspective, than how the listeners are moved by it in their own respective way. It's always a pleasure to me to get to know how people are inspired by my music.

Thank you for the nice words and review!

[A Little Help Goes a Long Way]

I feel like I'm watching a cute, animated movie where an entire village comes together to throw a surprise party for someone. I'm blown away by the extent to which the composition feels like it's reflecting the actions of nonexistent characters over different scenes - how do you do it? The instrumentation is so charming, and I love the addition of uke and ocarina. The orchestration in the final section is excellent.

My main gripe is with the very end. The resolution feels rushed, as well as the fade to silence.

Mixing comments:
- The glockenspiel sounds a little clicky at times.
- The snare gets lost in the mix, fading in and out
- I think some high mids can be cut from the strings, and this can help the snare
- The loud staccato strings make the right side of the mix feel very heavy, as the melody on the left is relatively quiet. I think you can potentially get a more engaging mix by moving the viola? to the left side - and reverse the stereo so it sounds natural.

Kassich responds:

Thank you for reviewing and judging! Always fun to participate in these events!

[The Ocean is So Near - NGADM]

This composition resonates with me on such a deep level that I can't remember the last time I felt like this from a piece of music. It reminds me of my fondest memories and my longing to have those experiences again. It's incredible how well you captured that feeling.

The structure is phenomenal. The softer sections feel reflective and wistful, and the louder sections feel cathartic, empowered by the strong dynamic and textural contrasts.

In the second climax, I like the addition of the piccolo, but it’s a bit distracting because of how much it sticks out in the mix, and it doesn't seem like the most important line. The arrangement is excellent overall, but at times like 3:30, I hear some instruments being masked. I think there might be too much going on in the mid register.

The production and midi quality don’t meet today’s standards, unfortunately. I know you expressed interest in investing in quality sample libraries. With your level of talent and skill, I think it’s well worth it. Not only will you get more realistic samples, but it will be much easier to create an engaging atmosphere and simulate a real space like a concert hall. You can always ask questions about this in the orchestral group! If you improve your production even slightly, I think you'll have a significantly better chance of making it to the final rounds next time.

Fox4567 responds:

Dude, thank you so much. I’m so glad to hear you connected with my music and I’ll for sure stick around in the orchestral group.