Troisnyx's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Edge of Time]

Sounds like something that I would find in a Kid Icarus remake, minus the rock influence.
I'll agree with Thei-Mortal about the lack of power in the percussions, but I do like the chords you have used in this piece, by and large. : )

stunkel responds:

Thanks! Glad that you got some sort of video game feel! And I'll try to fix the percussion before DoS ends! Thanks for the review!

[Aslal - No Drum, No Bass]

Okay, before I go on with my review, let's put into perspective what ambient music is all about: creating an ambience, either tonally or as a sort of background setting.

That having been said,

1) The piano could do with some expression. As is, the piano sounds like it's at one volume setting, and it sounds as if someone is trying to jam the piano rather than provide expression. If you are using FL Studio (or any sequencer for that matter), make use of the individual note velocities. You would normally see it below the piano roll as vertical lines. You want to make use of that section: changing the individual note velocities by running your mouse through (or by individually clicking each note's velocity) until it sounds natural.

2) The watery synth coming in after the piano sounded beautiful, but they HORRIBLY DID NOT MATCH the chords the piano was playing, making it a difficult listening experience.

3) Around 3:15, a random synth appearing in places which does not match the chords of the piano and the otherwise watery feel of the piece.

I mean, I get it: ambient music can be either chill or disturbing or anything we want it to be without having any melodies to sustain it, but this one is neither -- it is jarring. I highly recommend you to review your chord structure: modify that, and you will make your piece a whole lot better and a lot more pleasing to the ears.

1.5/5.

aslal responds:

Yeah, I wasn't too sure about this track either. I'm scrapping it, and just starting over.
EDIT: I'm having a bit of troubles, I'm trying to load it, but the old version's still playing.
EDIT 2: The download file's right, but the player file's not right for me.

[Remember who you are_]

Absolutely brilliant mixing and chord work. I also am able to feel the story that you have written.

My complaints are that 1) the piece in and of itself is very short, and doesn't seem to cover for a speech about oneself. Which leads to my next complaint: 2) I found little melodic development and not very much structure. In truth, would you hear (in a film or a game) a personal theme with little melodic development and not very much structure?

That one star, I have taken off because I yearn for submissions which represent YOU. YOU are submitting YOUR story to the Dreams of Splendour contest, and essentially what I find is something which sounds generic at best. While it can work wonders in a film, it can work wonders in *any* film, and will not especially work wonders in, say, a film about Mr. Cleverhill, who braced so many obstacles and finally fulfilled his dreams of splendour. The theme doesn't scream individuality.

Note, normally I would take off two stars if the piece sounded generic, but because of the way you handled the mixing and instruments, I'm docking off only one.

4/5.

[Nature's Miracles]

I don't know whether to say this is Final Fantasy-esque or Zelda-esque when I first listen to it, but when the drums kick in, it sounds more like Final Fantasy X-2 material. At least, the opening sounds promising. I love the sound effects you used here too, they do reflect the whole nature theme.

Then from around 0:39, your melody could use some imagination.... The same chords repeat all throughout the piece, and while I do sense some form of buildup, you could make it sound more miraculous. Right now, the piece in its entirety sounds like a bit of a mishmash of genres and I don't know in which direction the piece is going.

One track for you to listen to on YouTube to see where I'm coming from: Look up "Shelanoir's Forest". While neither you nor I have Akiko Shikata's production level, there's something to learn: she has a SOLID MELODY, her CHORDS ARE VARIED, and she still manages to keep to the whole nature theme.

2/5.

Ausghost responds:

The melody at 0:39 repeats in total 6 times (throughout 3 minutes, 14 seconds), but there are only 3 areas in the piece in which it is heard. At 0:39, 1:26 and 2:14. They were meant to represent the beginning, the middle, and the end. But if you think it gets a little repetitive, that's fine, I accept your opinion and I'll try to make it not sound so repetitive the next time around. And if it just sounds bad in general, then I'm sorry, I tried my best to make it sound good.

About the mishmash of genres; you are right. I never intended this to fit in any genre. I just went with the flow and added what I thought would sound good (while still trying to maintain that 'video game' feel). But how does defining a song's genre affect how good the song is? It may sound a little more disorganized, but not necessarily bad. Either way, noted.

I've checked out the track, and while it's not my cup of tea, it's not bad. The lyrics were especially good.

Thank you for taking your time to write the review. :)

[Tasty Cake 2]

I quite like the happy feel of this song, it put a smile on my face! My main complaint would be the lack of buildup: all I hear are bass, melody and drums, with nothing in between to flesh them out -- that takes quite a lot out from my overall listening experience.

The best happy songs I've heard have some form of progression, something that makes you HAPPIER inside and makes you look forward to the rest of the loop. Look at the soundtrack for Kirby's Epic Yarn for example. Or even EXEC_HYMME_BATTLESPHERE (Saki), also known as "Buri Hamachi". There's an extra layer of yumminess added to it over time, you know?

[Never Wake Me Up]

Right off the bat, I'm not the best RNB appreciator, but I do love Summer's voice -- and the vocal layers. Is that her on the piano as well? Would you like to encourage her to make an NG page?

BlazingDragon responds:

You know, I've never been a big R&B fan either, but I think her piano playing and vocals really make this stand out. I'm not sure if she wants to put all of her music under creative commons, but I'd love for her to get a newgrounds page. Really, I just want her music to get more exposure!

Thanks for the review, Trois!

Edit: Summer said that she did not play the piano on this one. The production was done by Natrell Anderson.

[Zafrece - Tunnel Dive]

I have to agree with Sequenced. The bass and kick frequency muddling is something that I have had in some of my previous works, so yes, we've all been there. : )

The feeling I got from this when I first heard it, before the other parts started kicking in, was that I was in this testing facility with smoke in all corners of the room, it was hazy and dark. This is what trance is all about: carrying the listener over in the tide, and having him come up with inspired sequences from that little trance he had.

Keep up the good work!

Zafrece responds:

Ya, im uncertain what to do about that kick and the bass fighting for hertz control. That bass takes up a huge lower range and with out it taking up so much room i lose out on a massive amount of body it gives the song. I might have to learn how to make a decent kick for next time so i can put the hertz where i need them, rather out of the way of everything else. Also thanks, i really got the feel for trance with this song. i'm glad i could take you some where else for a brief amount of time.

Thanks for taking time to leave a comment m8 and ill try to work on mixing better next time.

[Christe Redemptor Omnium]

T_T

That is all I can muster right now... tears. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Happy Advent. Pax Christi sit semper tecum.

bassfiddlejones responds:

Et cum spiritu tuo, friend. :) Happy Advent.

[Elfin ~P~ (Teaser)]

It's a preview, so I can't say much for now, but I like how this preview began: awesome buildup, and very good violin use. Are the same chords going to be used throughout the piece though?

Phyrnna responds:

Similar, this one only has three sets of chord progression in it. Thanks for the review! :D

[Prosperity]

If this didn't have 8-bit in it, this would remind me of Kingdom Hearts II's gummi ship themes to some extent.

It's very atmospheric, the chords are well formed, the melody lines are by-and-large okay. This is one of the few cases where repetitive chords don't hinder the piece from sounding interesting: there is constant buildup in the other instruments to keep the listener's interest going.

Jackayl responds:

Thank you again for your review :) I might update the song later on and fix some parts, like adding better transitions and maybe better drums or atleast more variation to them..