Geoplex's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Facing the Foe]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

This is a great RPG-sounding piece. I have to praise your melodies, and how you keep things going at a steady, consistent pace, but without repetition. You're creating a theme that repeats itself in many different ways and incarnations but without stagnation. In a lot of ways this is absolutely perfect for a game soundtrack, because you've got this continuous feeling where the song isn't broken up into sections but also isn't repetitive. I'm finding it difficult to get tired of it. That, and it even loops! Good lord. This is so fantastic because were I listening to this while playing a game and not really paying attention to it, it'd be difficult to tell when it looped; where it ended and where it began. This creates the illusion of a very long, very complex song that almost always surprises you no matter how many times you've heard it. I love it. In many ways, it's the conceptual holy grail of looping soundtracks.

The production side of things is pretty good, too. Your mix is pretty well balanced, there are very few instances where anything is too loud or quiet specifically. I think the mix lacks power, partially because of the percussion (I think instead of the rapid militant snares you'd be better off with bringing your deeper, tom-based percussion to the forefront; but that's more of an opinion.) The only instance that stuck out to me in terms of mix/balance was the section from 2:33-2:55. Almost everything, but especially the brass, felt too quiet there. I feel that it was probably intentional to pave the way for the semi-crescendo toward the end, but the change in level is definitely perceptible to me and felt a bit odd.

Anyway, I can't really say this song has any real flaws. I don't like the choirs at 2:45, I think they're used improperly and sound a bit digital, and I didn't think the hats in the intro were thematically appropriate at all, but honestly those are such tiny opinion-based problems that I only mentioned them because there's just about nothing negative to talk about. Most of what I've said already has been pretty subjective or mentioned in johnfn's essay :P

You've got yourselves a nicely self-contained, incredible piece here. Keep at it, dudes.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Well then, time to respond to these, hehhe.
First off, thanks a lot for the effort you guys put into judging; without that, the competition would be nothing.

Weird. I usually have a really easy time responding to reviews, but I find it hard to come up with anything conclusive. I'm honestly pretty surprised by the very positive reception in general. I knew that the melodies are pretty good, because I had a real flow when I made them all. But I'm honestly very glad that people appreciated the fact that the structure isn't repetitive! I very often get comments about me using too little repetition, so it's refreshing to hear that it worked for most people with this track. I guess that as you said, the track has enough of a drive and a solid base for variations to be enough.

I'm also surprised that people seemed to like the loop, in general. I am usually pretty good at looping stuff, but I was uncertain about this one. my only problem with this loop, is that it is a climax. It's great for a standalone track! But if I were to really use this in a game, I'd probably go for a calmer section, which would be the intro and the ountro, where the loop would be pretty much unnoticable. But in the heat of battle, you probably wouldn't pay attention to the loop indeed. Because I've played games that have used music that loops horrible, but while actually playing, I've very rarely noticed it.

It's good to hear that my production is improving slightly, as it used to be extremely horrible. There's still a long way to go, but steady progression is enough for me :)

I agree 100% with all our complaints. Part of the problem with the percussion, is that I simply don't have any good percussion libraries yet, and another one is that I'm horrible at both creating and mixing percussion XD
But if I eventually get my hands on Stormdrum 3 or something like that, I'll make sure to practice my skills.

As for 2:33, all I can say is "yup".
That's the place I personally have the biggest issue with as well :D

The choirs at 2:45 are indeed not very good. But you should hear them in dem0lecules version! It's the best part of the track. He really is a choirgician. We will probably still upload it at some point while this years competition is over for us :p
Same goes for the hats; probably a bad idea XD

Thanks a lot for the review!!

[What Lies Beyond]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

This is a nice song, nice instrumentation, pretty good production, pretty good composition. One thing I really have to get out as quickly and effectively as I can is that, because of the pizzicato, harp and bells, this song is intensely Runescape to me. I don't know if you ever played Runescape but this is bringing back so many memories for me lol. It's great :P It's mostly in the instrumentation because this song is a lot better composed than those old Runescape songs, but yeah - you get the idea.

Part of my rabid association of this song with runescape is probably also because it's very RPG, and I gather that's obviously intentional. It's got a great "starting village" kind of vibe, where the player is somewhere safe and looking at setting off on adventure. I like that you kept the song fairly interesting, not sticking to one rhythm or tone for too long. I feel though that a consequence of this is that your song feels a little aimless, if you will. Were it designed as background music, that would be perfect, though, so I really can't take points off for that :)

I feel there are some things to mention production-wise, namely that everything sits in the mix a little equally - this is also how it reminds me of runescape, lol. I feel that this is the kind of song that would benefit a lot from some subtleties. You've got a lot of potential dynamic range to use, but the levels are all quite similar, you know? This is compounded as a problem by the fact that almost everything in the song is very high frequency, there's very little going on below 100-200hz in most of the piece (there are definitely some exceptions to both these comments, but you get the idea.) This isn't inherently bad and the mixing itself is pretty good, I just feel there's more that can be done in this respect.

Anyway, this was a nice listen and a nostalgic one at that, regardless of how intentional that was :P If you were attempting a classic RPG style, you've nailed it in my opinion.

ChronoNomad responds:

Thanks for dropping another NGADM review on me, Geoplex!

Interestingly enough, while I have indeed heard of Runescape and had friends who played it (some of them quite religiously), I never actually did myself. I've tried out a handful of MMORPG titles over the decades, but very few really managed to hold my attention for long. The one I played the longest was Star Wars Galaxies way back in the day, and that one was put out to pasture permanently several years ago. Nevertheless, the impact of such nostalgia is certainly not lost on me, so I'm glad that this song could serve as such a pleasant reminder. :)

Console RPGs are my bread and butter, man! So that serves as quite the compliment to me, and while there are a lot of inspiration sources for my music, it is without a doubt influenced by the gaming culture that I frequently steep in. I can't really complain too much about any background music comments, especially since you don't actually make it sound like such a bad thing. I think that it's an important nuance for any musical artist to be aware of, that sometimes the music has to take a backseat and is not the driving force. Most of the time, actually. And that's just how our media-driven world is. Music with lyrics is at the fore of Pop culture while instrumental pieces are, more often than not, relegated to the background.

More Runescape ruminations! But yes, it is a fact that very little tends to stand out in this composition. But hey, it's all part of my growth process as a musician. I've got to take every little piece of feedback that I get and use it as I keep moving forward, making new tracks and breaking my own personal boundaries, while hopefully knocking down a few musical ones along the way. It is true that there's very little in the deeper range, and that was a conscious decision on my part. Do I kind of wish that I had added a few more touches? Yep. There really is more that I could have done with this, but at the time it sounded really full. And my last reviewer said that things already sound too crowded at times. Damned if ya do, damned if ya don't...y'know? Heh.

I'm glad that you like the music, and while the nostalgia trip wasn't quite as intentional as it may seem, I'm still glad that I could take you on that journey. As for your last sentence, I will take that as one hell of a compliment. :3 Cheers, mate!

[No Hope in the Horizon]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

This is a lovely solo piece, I love the dark way it starts and how it moves into a more bittersweet major feel toward the end. The reverb really shines in the higher notes, they're god damn beautiful and probably my favorite part of this song. Others have mentioned pretty much everything else, namely that your rhythm is a bit limited throughout and that the song doesn't really change pace much. This isn't necessarily bad but it does make it a lot less interesting over time, and given that it's already a solo piece I think this becomes a little detrimental, especially given the short length.

That said, really nice listening experience, I enjoyed this a lot. Technically near flawless in its simplicity :P

[Unsung Hero]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

I really love the piano in this! It works so well in such an exciting track and is one of the most interesting elements to me in this one. What also really gets me about this track is how memorable it is, because it's quite catchy, but you're not afraid to stray from simplicity (where most of catchyness lies) and I think you've hit a really nice mid-point between the two.

So as with most of my reviews this round, it seems I'll mostly be praising the composition and instrumentation and nitpicking the mix :P sorry

So right out the gates the piano and cymbals are beautiful! The tone of the piano is really excellent by the way, I don't know why I'm so excited about that. Is it recorded or are you using a VST? Anyway - there are a few things I notice as soon as you bring everything else in at 21 seconds, namely that the low frequency sub-impact thing you have muddies up the mix a little (needs more of a transient, imo) and that it really exaggerates how I expect the chorus mix to sound, as there's more low frequency content in the first half second or so of it than in most of the chorus itself (I think I mentioned something similar in the previous round, although it could have been on another song). The other thing is that the percussion is quite quiet and lacks impact, especially the kick. The cymbals are actually pretty damn nice and airy, but I'm finding the kick and snare are a little low. The interesting thing is that later on at 1:10, it all sounds pretty great! Kick could be taken up a bit, but otherwise it all sounds fantastic. It's more in the main choruses that your percussion is somewhat overpowered.

Something else I'm noticing is that at 1:24 you really need some kind of transitional element to give the new chorus some impact, especially since the percussion in this section is quite low as well. I also am unsure about the panning you're doing on the kick. The idea is solid, but because the kick is so overpowered, when it comes into the sides it ends up being a lot more audible (especially in the high end) which creates this feeling of inconsistency for me.

I think the part at 2:10 is pretty solid, (melodically it's GOD DAMN AMAZING) though, partially because you've got those orchestral toms and whatnot. I think it's a much more appropriate pace/style of percussion for the sound and takes a more appropriate background role to the lead instruments. It also has a lot more impact and power than the kick drum in previous sections, and it's a lot more exciting. I suppose "exciting" is a pretty appropriate way to end it, and it works well :D

Sorry about nitpicking, by the way, because this is an awesome track. Great transitions, great melodies, great chords, great instrumentation. It's been a blast to listen to :P

bassfiddlejones responds:

Geoplex, thanks for the review! Really glad you liked the piece. And don't worry about the nitpicking, it's what makes us better musicians! Yes, transitions were a tough one for this song, but we're paying closer attention to them! Time is tough to come by >_< thanks again for the review! We really enjoyed making this one.

[Dark n' Damp]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

Dude, I really like this song. It's so long and interesting and dynamic. I really enjoy it when artists try to take their listeners on a journey because it's such an interesting creative experience to enjoy and analyze.

I have to give you props and many points for your atmosphere and intricacies. This song is supremely engaging for its length and these two things contribute a lot.

Your composition is pretty good - the fact that it's slow and drawn out quite well reflects your intentions with the piece and I definitely enjoyed it for that. Nothing particularly stood out or was incredibly memorable, but the song itself certainly was, you know? It's quite compositionally dynamic too, but that's to be expected :)

Despite the fact that I'd describe this song as existing fairly deep into the "artsy" zone (nothing wrong with that of course), I'm going to talk a fair bit about production. I'm assuming that you recorded most or all of the elements in this song yourself, which is awesome, and they generally sound pretty good - some things sound as though they're a little out of time though (mostly the cymbals, but honestly most of the percussion sounds quite out to me around 02:50, for example), and through most of the song I feel that your snare sticks out a bit much - though it's probably fine later on in the 4 minutes section, most notably. It's just that early on I feel it detracts from the atmospheric aspects of the song, especially with how "boomy" it is when it's lowpassed. The low-mids of the percussion in general really overpower me a bit here and I feel like it would be a lot nicer without the percussion at all toward the beginning, but oh well. Nitpicks :P

Solid track dude. Enjoyed it a lot and it's one of the ones I remember the most.

[Zen]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

Really enjoying the slightly bandpassed intro and composition in this song in general. As others have mentioned, your solos are godlike. There's just about nothing I can fault this song on composition-wise, I enjoyed just about all of it and this isn't even really my kind of music, so kudos on that! You kept a nice level of consistency with repeated parts, and I never found myself becoming too familiar or getting bored.

Because I'm a critical bastard, I'm going to mostly talk about the mix as it's where I think your track's weaknesses lie. The mixing is overall pretty alright, though your percussion is almost definitely a bit low, especially in comparison to your lead which is absolutely screaming. Using a spectrum analyzer I can see that while the lead is playing the mid-highs are quite loud - it's a very sensitive part of the spectrum to human ears. This becomes more of a problem when the lead is playing along with the rest of the guitars in the choruses, and you end up with this layer of saturation/distortion around where the lead sits (1k-6k.) I'm guessing that this is because of the harmonics in the other guitars + how loud/high the lead is. (To clarify, it's most noticeable from 00:55 to 01:23, 01:41 to 02:30, and 03:40 to 04:30.) It makes listening at regular volume a bit difficult for me, whereas the rest of the song (the parts not listed in my previous bracketed statement) are fine despite not being quieter (RMS-wise), which is why I've talked about this issue so much. It's mostly an EQ/level problem, really. You're also rolling your highs off to a pretty large extent, though the song doesn't sound any worse for it, actually.

Despite some critical words, I think this song is pretty awesome, especially composition wise. Keep at it, man.

[Son of Beach (NGADM '15)]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

So this is a pretty sick track, well produced, quite interesting, not very repetitive, and consistent. There were a few nitpicks I have about the mixing and perhaps a little about the mastering, but beyond that this song is quite difficult to fault. It's engaging and sounds great.

So others have mentioned your snare sticking out a little, which is definitely true to an extent (though it's not too bad imo), but I think it's in part due to the fact that the rest of your percussion is quite low in comparison; especially the kick - though the cymbals are pretty quiet as well, but less of a deal.

(My comments on the kick may stem from a lack of experience with the genre to be perfectly honest, so feel free to dismiss the following if you think that's the case :P). The kick is quite punchy and has a nice transient in the high end, but almost no presence anywhere else. If I lowpass the song just a bit I can't actually hear the kick anymore. I understand that kicks of this nature are quite often fast and as such giving them a lot of low end would completely destroy your mix, but I think they at least need something down there in this instance... at least toward the lower end of the spectrum. You could always shorten the tails for rapid kicks, anyway.

Apart from some issues with the percussion, I think the mixing on this track is pretty great in general. The track itself is probably a little quiet (-15RMS) but I like that it's relatively dynamic and I think I'd find its level to be more of a strength that anything else, as it's definitely a long way from being offensively quiet.

I also enjoy your transitions a lot by the way, especially the one around 3:45. Good stuff :)

JDawg00100 responds:

Thank you for the review!

[Caribesque]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

Sooooooo this might be some of the most compressed acoustic-based music I've ever heard :P I can understand the need to sausage it, but sometimes there has to be a limit haha. Don't feel bad though, I was "sausaging it" as recently as a year or two ago. Learning is gradual ^^

So I'd like to talk about production in general and maybe go over some concepts - you're probably already familiar with most of them but analyzing your song in this context is probably the most helpful thing I can do.

While there are no real rules in mastering (like, you don't have to do your mix first and *then* master it like the masters of old might tell you), it's generally helpful to adhere to a structured approach. I don't think the production issues with this song stem simply from "too much master bus compression", because I feel that the balance of the song was probably out before you started mastering it, which only exacerbated some problems. First off, the percussion is really loud. It's about in line with the guitar in the start of the song, but compared to a lot else it's really overpowering, and then the brass that comes in after that is so loud that it squashes even the percussion. The issue with fast attack compression is that it's very effective at squashing transients, and so when you have loud drums and smash them through a limiter you get a lot of audible ducking, and other instruments have a hard time shining through. Then you get in the vicious cycle of "it's not loud enough" and so you turn it up... or at least, that used to be my problem. The leading instruments like the brass are so much stronger than even the percussion, that the mix sounds like it's all over the place even when it doesn't need to be.

What I'd suggest doing is putting some compression on your master bus, but turning it off for most of your mixing process, and getting the balance right before you really master compress. It's true that in most electronic genres, master compression "glues" the mix together, and so it can be necessary to hear how it affects the mix while mixing the song, but here I think that is less important, and because you want a fairly dynamic mix it's more important that the master bus compression simply makes what you already started off with a bit louder. Bring it up to that commercial level, you know?

Anyway, your song sounds pretty good in quieter sections, and the composition itself is enjoyable. The bongos make me think of some kind of jungle video game setting, really strongly. Brings back memories of this terrible old video game called Croc 2 for me :P I think this could be a really great song, just gotta hone your production :)

[NGADM 2015 Submission (WIP)]

This is an NGADM 2015 review.

So this is pretty nice, pretty chill. You have some nice ideas in there, some good structure and good production. Everything is clear and the mood/intention is clear. Obviously the main issue is that this piece is really short, and sounds like a snippet or a demo of a larger song. Because it has no major structural components, no percussion and only about 3-4 instruments most of the time, there isn't that much to talk about.

As taintedlogic mentioned, this sounds like something with a good deal of potential, though. I hope you keep working on it!