Everratic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[NGADM 2017 Round of 64 Podcast]

You're an entertaining speaker. and I enjoyed the podcast. I'm looking forward to hearing the upcoming tracks, and reading the judges' reviews, which I learned a lot from in previous years. I'll miss Step's reviews though :(

ChronoNomad responds:

Thanks, BlueOceans! I'm glad that you enjoyed listening. It's also great to hear that you're going to keep up with the NGADM, and I want you to know that I was personally rooting for you. Sticking with your first track may have been a better choice, but hey--who knows? That's the risk of changing tracks midstream.

We all miss Step and his unbelievably in-depth reviews! I did try to convince him to actually enter the contest this year, but he's just way too busy. Such is life.

[Far Light]

The intro was too repetitive, and it evoked the hatred that was buried deep within me.

Sequenced responds:

edit 2018: wow I completely missed the blatant sarcasm in your review LOL

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Bruh it's a fucking dj intro

Every fucking track on beatport is even more repetitive than this track I garuntee you.

Stop calling it repetitive when it's clearly a dj intro lmao

[Stefan KC Ft Viewtifulday - All I Want Is You]

The sound design is superb! I love the slower drum beat section and the key change at the end. The crashes seemed a bit loud but maybe it's from my headphones. The lyrics are simple, but they sound nice and prominent.

HappyHype responds:

Thanks mate :)

[Mavronéri]

This was one of my favorite tracks of the round. It fits the theme well and it's high in uniqueness.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Why thank you! I was definitely going for uniqueness. That said, the round was full of really great tracks. Like yours! ;)

[Cold Current]

This depicts a water setting so brilliantly :)
Sadly, I didn't vote on all the tracks and I missed this one, but I would have certainly gave you a 5 :) And I voted 5 here on NG! I love the forefront violin.

zybor responds:

thanks man :)

[Mundum de Somniorum]

I commented on this already but I'll say again that I love it. You managed to find a theme that suites your style quite well. I think your piano playing shines in tandem with somber instrumentation.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thank you for commenting again! I listened to maybe 40 themes or so, and picked out three of them. In the end, I decided this was easily the best one for me to work with.
Thanks for the lovely words, hehhe :3

[Water Is Life]

I'm astonished by how emotional this song is, wow!

zybor responds:

I just installed FL 12 :P. Let's do the collab sometime this week.

Thanks again for your review dude.

[An Improv on Freedom]

I'm looking forward to listening to this as I fall asleep. Maybe I'll even listen to it while I'm painting. It's so soothing :D

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thank you for seemingly having already decided to listen to a long portion of this improv, if not everything :O
I hope you're able to sleep well :3

[Searching My Life (Music Box Version)]

This is incredibly catchy! I love the part when the lyrics come in. The chimes make the track sound so pretty.

etherealwinds responds:

Thank you very much! I'm very glad you enjoyed it Bluey! :)

[AIM - Chris, the Boat and the Tormented Sea]

The emotional state of the track fluctuates between tranquility and restlessness, as the chord progression progresses. The way you periodically slow down in playing serves as a momentum killer; the song lacks a stormy climax, but that's a good thing because the lack thereof contributes to the cold-somberness of the track, which appropriately resembles the art. I really like the chord progression; it flows well, yet it conveys so many emotions, from bittersweet to dissatisfaction. The LH arrangement is interesting to listen to by itself; it sometimes sounds like the RH is supplementing the LH arrangement, rather than vice versa. Additionally, the LH arrangement is far more memorable once the song ends. Regarding the mix, the piano sounds harsh and cold; it sort of denies one full-satisfaction, but that's appropriate here. Not only does your song resemble the art work well, but you managed to perfectly manifest the art work's color palette in your own work, from the cold-blues to the highlights and shadows. The very ending evokes a sense of dissatisfaction, which I believe was a risky move, but it worked. A more-satisfying conclusion wouldn't have been that appropriate here in my opinion. I wouldn't say that you composed this song in a rush, but rather, you got caught in the storm of life and made it out just in time :)

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

I agree with pretty much all of your observations! I would argue there's more than tranquility and restlessness in the motion, such as uncertainty, determination, etc. But that's definitely two major parts!

Also, although the song lacks a clear climax, there are a few parts that are a bit more triumphant than the others. One example is the part between 1:45 and 2:15.
It's good to hear you like the chord progression! It repeats almost entirely (with a few changes, and additions) after 1:35, but with a new arrangement, and at times differing right hand movement.

I'm especially happy you like the LH parts! A lot of the melody is indeed prominent in the left hands role, after all. Ofc, the top notes of the right hand, serve as a sort of melody at many points as well. Great observation, once again!

As you know, I tried several different mixes, to have some to choose between, and I settled for this one because it sounded the most grand, and fit the artwork the best (IMO). It would be very possible to create a "warmer" mix, but I think that would change the atmosphere a fair deal :)
I'm glad you seem to think so as well!

I definitely didn't want the piece to have a seemingly positive ending. I wanted it to be somewhat ambiguous, yet heavily leaning on the darker side of things. I wouldn't say it was a rush either, to be truthful. I just really managed to ride the waves of "flow" :D

Thank you for taking the time to listen to this more than once, and for reviewing it!