Hey! Sorry I didn't review earlier, I've been having computer issues.
First thing I notice - those interesting piano chord hits. The third and fourth hits from the beginning have a very distinct dissonance to them, and it adds quite a bit of flavor to it. I'd almost say it gives a jazzy feel to the chords. When the percussion comes in, it's nice and heavy, suited to contemporary dnb. Perhaps some bass or mids could have been added along with the drums to give the piece some more substance along with the heavy drums. When the drums drop off around 1:45, I got a bit confused - some more work could have been done here. The change in rhythm closer to 2:00 was nice. I enjoyed around 2:30, loved how it slowly went into around 3:00, and THAT BASS. I love it! Great dissonance here, gives off a final boss battle feel, the bass has a nice 8-bit edge to it. From then all the way to 3:50, when the piano comes back in, the piece is flowing nicely. The violin at 4:25 is a nice touch, it reminds me of a game I've played before. The change at 4:55 (there are a lot of pace changes in this piece - I like the variation) is really nice too. Is that a piano hit that's been sidechained? You only hear the reverberations, and that's a cool effect that you have in the background of the drums. When the piano hits come again, nice lead in to the original chord progression around 5:50. From then to the end, clean wrap up, although I feel you could have thought a bit more about how to end it than a filter up with white noise.
All in all, I'm glad I scouted! ;D Nice work, think more about substance with bass/mids coming in with your nice heavy drums, and keep it up!
Really helpful review, thanks.
I'll add mid and bass (subtle at first) in future songs like this, but my music has already gone beyond this.
Some of your positives I had almost forgotten I put in, as I was expecting people to notice only the major additions.
That is no sidechained piano, but at the part you were referencing a few weird noises are used.
The ending does need more work, I agree, I should work on my outros.
Anyway, I wasn't sure where that response was going, so thank you for watching and reviewing.
I'm not sure if I can really do this justice, but I'll try my best. An amazing track like this deserves a thoughtful review! Or at least as thoughtful as I can get...
Piano intro. I love piano, although it's not an instrument I work with well. Great ambient-like melodies, good work on the reverb and the background instruments/fx. Love the tinny little screeches in the background going on from :00 to :45. Those were hnnnng. The gentle pads and waterdrop plucks really accentuated the feel you were going for - perfect assists to a perfect piano. Simply perfect.
The buildup was another thing altogether. Very nice work with the white noise sweep and the drum stop right before a jittery instrument panned to both ears - then it dropped and I died and went to heaven. Hihats were a nice touch during the buildup, really helped to build that energy quickly and smoothly.
Then the drop. I love the fact that you almost layered a second drop into the track, eight measures after the first. The first section with the square arp was a really nice ease into the second drop with the hipass, then portamento down - loved that little touch. You really paid attention to minute details here.
The melody is perfect - nothing to comment. I'm glad you paid attention to the lead here too - those little vibratos at the end of each note really helped to keep the lead in check and add character. Then, breakdown into piano again - great end to the piece as a whole.
Little things I really enjoyed - the kick+thatpipebass during the drop as a whole. That is some SICK work man. Also, this track is nice and balanced - no gross things like buzzing or something hitting a ceiling.
Need I say more? ;D Favorited, Subbed/followed, 5/5 10/10 and all that jazz. Looking forward to your future tracks!
Oh daaaaaaamn. Man, I was in bed, having just woken up. I grabbed my mobile from near me, checked Newgrounds, and saw this. Talk about starting the day on the right foot; this review is amazingly detailed! Thanks a million.
"This is an enchanting piece.
I'm not sure if I can really do this justice, but I'll try my best. An amazing track like this deserves a thoughtful review! Or at least as thoughtful as I can get..."
This review sure as hell is thoughtful in my books!
"Piano intro. I love piano, although it's not an instrument I work with well. Great ambient-like melodies, good work on the reverb and the background instruments/fx." The gentle pads and waterdrop plucks really accentuated the feel you were going for - perfect assists to a perfect piano. Simply perfect."
Piano is incredibly versatile; I love using it, and even though I make orchestral stuff usually, when I make electronic stuff like this I can't help but use it a lot of the time haha. Lots of reverb on that piano; I found it pretty hard to use it for quick melodies without having everything mud up on me.
"Love the tinny little screeches in the background going on from :00 to :45. Those were hnnnng."
They are, aren't they? A little patch in Omnisphere; with a bit of reverb and delay they worked perfectly as intro ambience.
"The gentle pads and waterdrop plucks really accentuated the feel you were going for - perfect assists to a perfect piano. Simply perfect."
Fantastic, thanks!
"The buildup was another thing altogether. Very nice work with the white noise sweep and the drum stop right before a jittery instrument panned to both ears - then it dropped and I died and went to heaven."
Hahaha I love this review. I had no idea whether the drop would work or not, since it's such an aggressive sound compared to the rest (along with the fact that I had no idea what I was doing while making it :3).
"Hihats were a nice touch during the buildup, really helped to build that energy quickly and smoothly."
I had a hi-hat rhythm in mind for that part ever since I began the track. I felt like it was a good way to symbolise a difference between standing on a cliff contemplating if you should fly or not, and actually flying. If that makes any sense.
"Then the drop. I love the fact that you almost layered a second drop into the track, eight measures after the first. The first section with the square arp was a really nice ease into the second drop with the hipass, then portamento down - loved that little touch. You really paid attention to minute details here."
There actually wasn't a drop in that part in an earlier version... it just kept on building up and up with the high pass filter before moving on to the next section. I thought a drop in pitch would be a cooler way to transition! I'm especially happy you think I paid attention to detail in this track; it's something I try and do in every track of mine, so that it's still worth listening to the track more than once to pick up on details you may have previously missed.
"The melody is perfect - nothing to comment. I'm glad you paid attention to the lead here too - those little vibratos at the end of each note really helped to keep the lead in check and add character. Then, breakdown into piano again - great end to the piece as a whole."
Oh man, that vibrato haha. I love it to bits... so many times when I use a lead synth, I add vibrato to it. It gives it such a great sound. I tried not to go overboard with this one though, only throwing in some manual vibrato (rather than a pitch LFO) at the end of most of the notes.
"Little things I really enjoyed - the kick+thatpipebass during the drop as a whole. That is some SICK work man."
Sweet, glad you liked it! I usually make a more complex bassline for songs like these, but for this one I decided to throw a bass note in with every kick; helps give the kick some texture and punch.
"Also, this track is nice and balanced - no gross things like buzzing or something hitting a ceiling."
Haha, good!
"Need I say more? ;D Favorited, Subbed/followed, 5/5 10/10 and all that jazz. Looking forward to your future tracks!"
As I said above, thanks again for the great review. I really can't thank you enough; it's reviews like these that keep me making music! Along with the fact that making music is so damn fun of course :3.
So yeah, thanks thanks thanks. You have some excellent music by the way, I'm super tempted to give one of your tracks a review in return if I find the time!
Clean cut, nicely presentable, smooth, quirky, catchy, unique. Your synths are awesome as well - gives off a very mellow yet energetic feel, especially that echo pipe plucky arp that starts coming in around :30, and slowly opens up into a nice delay assisted arp pattern around :45. Good start with the bass in the beginning, really set the tone for the song. Kick cuts through the mix neatly, and even though the song repeats for a good thirty seconds, I'm not bored at all. Some percussion variations, some new synths introduced, always there's something keeping me listening. I looped this a couple times, and I wouldn't have any problem looping it more. Around 2:00 or so, when the more sawwy arp comes in to assist, the song really gains its energy. My only real issue with this area is that maybe you could have done more with the low-mid to bass area - maybe assist the bass you introduced in the beginning? I don't know. More of a preference than anything I guess - the song is a perfect listen regardless. Love the strings after the breakdown, it serves as a really nice mellow pad to assist the dreamy feel of the track. From beginning to end, solid work. Love this piece.
Favorited, Subbed/Followed, 5/5 10/10 and all that bullpucky. Looking forward to your future tracks. Cheers!
This is a really interesting one. Your tracks never fail to surprise me (in a good way)! The intro bass has this really interesting abrupt clipping someti- OH SNAP THAT'S THE KICK. Nicely done there. The shaker adds a bit of flair that I enjoyed. First time that crazy portamento at like :50 popped up I was like YOOOOOOOOO! That was great! Then, transition at 1:20 ish. That was some nice work :D The pluck work that came after seemed a bit out of place with the rest of the piece. Around 2:00, really enjoyed that mellow atmosphere and that soft echo synth. All in all, the atmosphere of this piece is nice and encompassing - you're getting better at this! Keep it up dude, loving these tracks :D Cheers!
Thanks Lockyn! :D I think you renewed my confidence in this song, because I didn't think it was very good. I agree that the pluck sounded a little out-of-place. I made that riff during the trying-to-decide-which-direction-to-take-this-song-in stage, and once I made the melody at :44 I realized its irrelevance, but I decided to squeeze it in anyway. You're being too nice to me, though, Lockyn. Thanks a bunch, man! ;D
This is seriously one of the most varied and intricate metal tracks I've heard to date, and I was a pretty avid heavy metal listener. Amazing work on the polyrhythms - something a lot of people who listen to these songs overlook, but it gives you a unique feeling when you hear it that is special to metal like this. The chords were something that really set your work aside from others. I seriously am loving the almost video game-esque chord progressions - reminds me of an epic final boss fight. They are unique, varied, and I never get bored as the chords progress. There's always something new, and still I feel a common theme throughout all the change. Seriously - amazing work. Keep it up man.
5/5 review and vote, favorited and subscribed and all that jazz. :)
Great starting melody, it meshes very well with the repeated chord. When the song get a bit more jumpy at :30, I really felt the energy increase with the instruments. The delay piano is a really nice touch - always love piano work. Because of the nature of this song, it didn't feel repetitive at all. At 1:26, the move to cleaner sine instruments was a nice break. The sine ish bass at 2:35 was interesting - I liked the chord change there! Overall, I really enjoyed this piece - just the right amount of variation, and nice meshing throughout. Great, solid work. Keep it up man! Looking forward to your future tracks :)
I'm very pleased to hear your opinion, I couldn't discribe it better! :=)
I remember that I loved one of your tracks and will surely get back to
check out your other work when I find more time.
Damn, this is a solid piece. Only thing is I wish it were longer xD (I know it's a preview haha, no worries.) Starts off with a nice sidechained ethereal pad, and some floating piano melodies - you had me hooked there, I'm a sucker for nice dreamy atmospheric pieces. The pluck at :30 adds some real nice solid synth to concentrate on, glad you didn't put much reverb on that one. The pulsing bass that comes with the drums is nice and warm, but sometimes it snaps me out of the chill mood a bit because of the velocity changes. I don't think it's repetitive at all - this kind of track structure fits the genre. Solid job overall, and keep it up :) Looking forward to the finished track!
wow thank you so much for the lengthy feedback! Im a sucker for that dreamy atmosphere as well =) Thanks for letting me know how you felt about the change in the bass as well, that really helps. Ill finish this asap i promise!
I think you've found a niche you're real comfortable with :3 I love the growl sound, and the little synths you've got here and there! What I most enjoyed was the little reverse glitch effect you've got going on every once in a while ;D that was pretty sneaky of ya, enjoyed that! The only thing I can think of is the track is a bit empty at times - maybe that was the intention? but it didn't take away from it at all. Enjoyed! 5/5 Cheeeeeers!
Why are you like the only person who enjoys my shit lol d:
That glitch sound is actually just a sine wave with a pitchbend and a vibrato (;
It does seem empty at times D: thanks a lot dudee!
FL pluck! Yey! I like the melodies you've put down, but it definitely feels a bit mechanical - modulating the velocity gives it a more natural feel. The kick does seem a bit out of place... a bit subbassy for a piece like this, but that's just me. The track has a bit of an empty feel at times - not the emotion empty, but an actual lack of fill. This would be okay if maybe there were some more subtle soft pads/soft percs going on waaaay in the back, but currently it feels a bit... artificial. Not sure if I'm describing it correctly. But reverb can sound artificial if it's not done right... The sidechain from the kick (if that's what it is) cuts off the pluck sound a bit abruptly. All in all though, I enjoyed the track :)
Thank you for the listen, and keep it up! ^^ Cheers!
Thank you yet again, Khrossfire! ^^ Yeah, I have gotten that "mechanical" complaint before, and I definitely agree with your comment on the lack of fill. The sidechain from the kick you're referring to I also understand completely. I'm trying to move away from using limiters in my tracks now per the suggestion of Johnfn (below). I'm glad you enjoyed it, though, and thanks so much for reviewing! ;D
I love the pluck intro. The reverb and delay ping pong is a nice touch :) Real smooth intro to the main themes after that, and even though the melody repeats often, I'm getting a really nice vibe throughout. Doesn't get boring at all - big plus! Great song to just chill out to. :D Thanks for the great listen! Cheers!
Thank you very much, Khrossfire! :D The delay "ping-pong" and the reverb on the melody instrument is actually all thanks to Autogun, but I did actually do more experimenting with the mixer on this one than I had ever done on a completed track before. Thanks again! ;D
I use FL Studio. Feel free to PM me about anything at all. All music posted here is free to use for NON-COMMERCIAL PURPOSES, just give me credit and we're all good. (Anything else must be discussed.) Thanks for stopping by!
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