Troisnyx's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Angels In The Sky]

I agree with many others in that the intro was quite long. That synth could've started muted, and then went on progressively brighter and brighter until 1:15 when everything started kicking in. Because, were it not for the drums, there wouldn't be too much of a dynamics change.

The synth around 1:40 sounds beautiful and true to the title -- very angelic.

There was a sudden change of mood around 1:59? There was a gradual progression back around 2:22... and then the drop after that was alright.

I like the sense of buildup you have around 2:40 onwards. Everything is introduced gradually, and there's a sense of something greater coming on.

3:40 onwards was my favourite part of the song. This could've been made as a theme for this piece in and of itself.

The fact that this piece is called "Angels in the Sky" kinda hints at the fact that this piece is meant to have an ethereal quality to it. Yes, it does in some places, but there are places where there's a sudden change of mood with those sawtooth synths. And it.... doesn't fit. Throughout the piece, I swear, I was THIRSTING for a warm pad somewhere to balance out the basses, drums and the highs. There were very few mid-range sounds that gave a sense of angelic warmth. Right now, it sounds like something dirty and gritty, rather than something angelic.

Great effort, just try and see what can be added to complement the mood of the piece.

3.5/5.

idfpower responds:

First of all, thanks for the very detailed and to the point review :)

Now, a little explanation about the song's title... this one is part of an album that was built upon a main theme: aliens. So the "angels in the sky" - although hinting a bit at the more ethereal nature of the song, is in fact reffering to extraterrestrials. Hence the "unexpected" harsh sounds used in the song. And there's a reason for the longer intro, because its role is to calm down a bit the album's pace. I can see though why taking it out of context may draw such observations :)

Thanks again for the suggestions & all the best :)

[.Single Step.]

Right off the bat, I must say that this piece has a good sense of chords and melody. You've at least nailed these two foundations.

But this is where it all ends, unfortunately. I have a number of issues with this piece.

1) You uploaded this piece as a loop, when it sounded like either a finished piece or a work in progress. There was no seamless loop. And for 1'18", it's really, really short and could stand for a LOT MORE expansion.

2) The piano could do with some extra reverb. It needs body, especially for those sections where the piano comes in on its own.

3) The strings sound ethereal, but they sound more like backing to a more pulsing buildup. There's very slow attack, which really doesn't help the piece's atmosphere too much.

4) And finally, my BIGGEST point of contention: BUILDUP. All the points I have mentioned just now have led to this. This song is about a single step, a new beginning. A single step should lead to more, shouldn't it? That piano did suggest a single step, but there wasn't much buildup to suggest running, leaping steps from that point onwards, which is what every human heart yearns for.

Pulsing specato strings (and I mean all orchestral strings) can start to kick in when you're illustrating the next step. And then, full orchestra. But more importantly, a climax and a proper ending. This ending sounded like, "kthxbai". Not a very good first step now is it? You could keep the solo piano in the ending once the climax is over, to resolve the piece, but you don't want to leave the music hanging like you did here.

Pieces like these are meant to uplift listeners, and I think you and I know that too well. And in terms of uplifting, this piece could've done *so much more*, it really hurts.

2/5.

gridcrawler responds:

Constructive criticisms like this are extremely rare, at least for me. Thank you for taking your times to write them. All the things you said are right and I have no objection, at all.

Took note, this will be my priority of fixing this month. Thanks again.

[Scary Monsters & Nice S's]

Right off the bat: you've got very soulful playing, and I can overlook the slips because you're expressing yourself very, very well.

Just like one of my solo instrumental pieces, you have a VI - VII - i progression which you use regularly, but you vary that with melodies so well. 1:52 onwards is my favourite section... sparkly bright notes, and I get the picture that someone is afraid, but wants to see the beauty outside.

My only complaint is: Why the abrupt ending? Considering you borrowed a lot of elements from themes from previous seconds, you could do something similar for the ending. Beyond this point, consider me nitpicking -- I'd have loved to also hear some solid left-hand playing. Now I know it's simple to resort to playing in octaves (I sometimes have fallen into this tendency), but some broken chords on the left hand would've added more body to this piece.

4.5/5 (5 in practice).

SkillSkillFiretruck responds:

Solid left hand playing would of been great. Thank you for all your words. I still practice this song now and than, I have changed the ending much. you are right. I'll keep it all in mind.

[Shake Well]

A lot of things stand out here as excellent: the chord work, the sense of melody (and the occasional sustain), the introduction of various themes (and also the change of feel within the piece). There's nothing I can criticise about this piece that would warrant me docking off a star.

Have you ever considered making this a seamless loop? This is something I would love to hear over and over again as a level theme.

5/5.

frootza responds:

Thanks again for the review Trois,

I'm happy that you enjoyed it. I could make it into a seamless loop, I didn't consider it though since originally I composed this for the 8-bit audio contest. I wish someone would use this as a level theme! Maybe one day!

Frootza

[Tournon]

Right off the bat, the blending of those instruments reminds me of one of the Haven Forest themes from the Jak & Daxter series, which is a good sign!

The drums stand out to me the most, as I'm able to pick out rhythm the easiest. As for the strings: they provide a really good atmosphere but I can't seem to make out the chords sometimes. I hear a lot of VI (Db) and i (F minor) but beyond that... I'd suggest clearly defining the chords and the melody line.

3.5/5.

frootza responds:

Thanks for the review Trois,

Being the first orchestral piece I've submitted to newgrounds, and the second I've written, I appreciate that you went easy on me. Hopped around 1 3 4 and 6 in this one, but the inversions might make it difficult to latch on to the chord changes.

When I upgrade to some better VSTs, and revisit this, I wouldn't turn down your suggestions!

Frootza

[Mr Brightside/Somebody]

I can see the potential in this -- all the parts were in tune, by-and-large. The section around 1:30 was my favourite. <3

My complaints with this are:
1) Heavy reverb makes the section between 0:47 really muddled up, but it also messes all the other vocals. Please consider making it cleaner, because this is the kind of song where you need clean vocals -- you want to be able to hear every part coming out crisp to fully enjoy it.
2) What's with the abrupt ending?

Build up on the other things -- it's good! -- and knock out the kinks, and you should be on your way.

4/5.

raggd46 responds:

Rerecorded and hopefully clearer!