ObsidianSnow's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[*(\Devn/)* The Final Hour]

Time for a serious review.

Looking over the other reviews, it seems that nobody has done a full, serious review yet. I figured I'd step up to it for you, since I try to return reviews anyways.

I'll use my standard review system (check my first news post on my userpage for more info on the system).

Initial comments: I like it. The strings add a lot of flavour, and your percussion is pretty well done.

Flow: Good, good. The transitions are nice and fluid - although it doesn't really seem to go anywhere. I can't distinguish a clear climax. It's like you were building up to the climax, but ran out of ideas before you got there. It's too short (mind you, without a direction to the flow, that's better than too long. At least it's not boring this way). The clang at the end (I forget what it's called now... unfortunate, especially since I'm a percussionist myself) sounds disjointed and out of place - it ends everything before it has the chance to really come out. It's fine in every other place you used it, and it might still work as an ending, but not in the context you put it in there. I would suggest building into a clear climax and adding a bit of a bridge and a conclusion on top of that. You've done a bit of a mini-bridge in there, but I'll discuss that a little more under "Themes". Decent flow overall, though. [ 1.880 / 2.475 ]

Balance: Also good. It could, however, use some more work with panning. It's all coming across sounding a bit too mono. As a result, you're not getting as much depth and presence as you could be. I don't know if FL has a stereo imager, but if it does you should experiment a bit with it, as well. Not too shabby here though. I do like the bass (although it's almost too muddy sometimes). [ 2.030 / 2.475 ]

Themes: This is where you died. Your themes are great, but they're not diverse. You had one idea, and it petered out really fast. I love the violin marcattos, but there's not enough variety. The violins evidently were intended to carry the melody, and they do... but you failed to use that to launch into any kind of new idea or theme. You also could have brought out the horns a little bit later to carry the melody (you almost did that, but it didn't come across because they ended up just supporting the violins anyways. Maybe if you had brought the strings down a bit there...). I mentioned your "mini-bridge" earlier. It almost worked, too - the problem was that when you came out of it, you pulled back to the original theme again, and only long enough to bring the piece to an unexpected and disjointed end. I will, however, give you credit for the quality of the (I mean this a little more lightly than the word seems to imply) monotonous/repetitive themes. What there was of them was well done. [ 1.115 / 2.475 ] ...(P.S. some key changes would be nice.)

Effects: I liked them, but they seemed a bit lacking, too. The dramatic effects of the piece you generated simply through the properties and application of the instruments themselves was very well done... although I would have liked to have heard some more effects similar to the percussive effect at around 0:55. It just didn't pop out as much as I wanted it to. Otherwise it was fine. [ 2.100 / 2.475 ]

Extra: [ + 0.010 / 0.100 ]. I did like the piece, and it certainly had some interesting aspects.

Overall:

Flow ------[ 1.880 / 2.475 ]
Balance --[ 2.030 / 2.475 ]
Themes -[ 1.115 / 2.475 ]
Effects ---[ 2.100 / 2.475 ]
Extra ------[ 0.010 / 0.100 ]
---------------------------------
TOTAL ---[ 7.135 / 10.000 ]
Review score ----[ 7 / 10 ]
Vote score ---------[ 4 / 5 ]

Nice work. You certainly have a significant talent, and I'd love to see where it gets you in a few years. I wish I could have been so talented at 14... oh, well. By no means should you find my review discouraging, btw. I intend it fully in your best interests. (sorry to break the 10 streak... :/ I'd have rated 10 if it was just based off how cool I think this could be, and how many awesome things I did see in it. :) )

Power to you, Devn!

...(WOOT!!! REVIEW CHARACTERS REMAINING = 0! )

Devn responds:

wow, a good song to you must be insanly awesome. thanks for the insanly long review and taking the GREAT time to write it. wow.

[Metal Ode to Bacon]

Bacon.

There is bacon. Where there is not bacon, there is also bacon.

I love bacon.

Power to you, kevin.
(P.S. LAEK OMG I'M LAEK SO TOATALLY ALL OVER BACON!!! ...actually, it's all over me, but that's another story)

Pure-Metal-UTA responds:

Bacon is everywhere, everyone is a baconist!
BACONISTS REJOICE!!
\m/

[<MWA> Losing Grip]

Review time!

Your message sat in my inbox for at least a month longer than it should have. But here I am, with a review heading your way! (My reviews take forever to write, which is why it takes me forever to get around to writing them...)

Anyways.

Initial comments: oooh! I like the glitch effects. They're very well done, and you're making me want to try some of it myself. That, and this song seems to be perfect for my crappy laptop speakers (my nice headphones shorted out :/ ). The feel of the piece just seems to work even on the low-quality speakers. I like that.

Flow: Beautiful. You even made the ending coherent! I'm so proud of you! ;P It was great, and I have nothing else to tell you here.

Balance: Not bad at all. as always you seem to display a proficiency with getting things to balance out just right. You're obviously not even half as lazy about it as I am... I just wish I had headphones so I could get nice and picky about this.

Themes: Really great. They leave only one thing to be desired - and it's something that I've commented on in my reviews of your other pieces. It doesn't have anything that makes it stand out from the crowd. Listening to it, I can't see any clear "high point" or "climax" of the piece. It's an awesome song, but I can almost guarantee that I won't remember what it sounds like in a week. It just needs a clear melody somewhere in there, something that sounds different from the rest of the piece, even if it's just for a few bars...

Effects: Brilliant. 'Nuff said.

Extra: +[ 0.02 ] - Just for the effects. They were that well done.

Overall:

Flow ------[ 2.470 / 2.475 ]
Balance --[ 2.465 / 2.475 ]
Themes -[ 2.250 / 2.475 ]
Effects ---[ 2.475 / 2.475 ]
Extra ------[ 0.020 / 0.100 ]
---------------------------------
TOTAL ---[ 9.680 / 10.000 ]

Review score --[ 10 / 10 ]
Vote score -----[ 5 / 5 ]

Great stuff, MWA! Power to you!

- [OS]

mjattie responds:

"(My reviews take forever to write, which is why it takes me forever to get around to writing them...)"

lol, as I mentioned before: you don't have to write that long reviews xD, although I appreciate it!

my respons on your review, sorted on subject:
Initial comment: It's a shame you listened on bad speakers. You don't hear bass which is important in almost every piece. But I'm glad it sounded nice to you.
Flow: Thanks for the almost perfect score here xD
Balance: well, I don't master so much, but I listen very carefully to every instrument I make. I guess that makes the difference, but I'm very lazy too...
Themes: Hmm, you're right about not-having melodies, but I think in this kind of music, a melody is not necessary. I think I have to stick out with sound design in this kind of music...
Extra: Thanks! :P

Thanks for the review, I appreciate!

[Mortal Kombat vs. DjBracksta]

Bahaha!

Sorry it took so long for me to respond, I had a lot on my plate...

Anyways:

Initial comments: hehe, I like it. It sounds kind of sadistic... >=D

Flow: WHAT? lol, you used the vocals to tell a bit of a story and to carry the piece, I don't think I've heard anyone do that before in this genre of music. I applaud you. Full marks, sir.

Balance: I heard no balance issues, didn't hear any cracking or fuzz... I didn't get a whole lot of "wow" effect from the panning, but it didn't actually cause a problem so it's not hurting your score. One thing I might mention is that the bassline that plays on the 8th note offbeats only could use just a very slight push with the reverb. Just tweak it up by the slightest amount. I could be wrong, but I believe that it might give just a little more punch to the vocals. Another option could be to totally change its spatial positioning every time it changes what note it's playing (so it sounds like it's coming from randomly changing locations), although I think that would only work until about 1:20 or so. I'd have to hear it to be sure if it would actually work as well as I imagine though.

Themes: You did a fantastic job with the themes, I love the change around 1:20-1:30 or wherever it is exactly. You played around a lot, and it was fun to listen to. Full marks here.

Effects: What you had was great. But for some reason there just seemed to be something missing in this area. I can't place my finger exactly on what it is, though. I just didn't get the "!!!" or "wow" feeling as much as I think I could have. Missing a bit of power every once in a while, maybe. In any case, like I said, what you had was great.

Extra: +[0.03] awarded.

Overall: hmm... I think a [ 9.78 / 10.00 ] is what I ended up with here. [ 10 / 10 ], [ 5 / 5 ]. Good work.

Power to you, Bracksta!

Bracksta responds:

wow, great review :)!
Responses:

Flow: yep the song was a three round death match lol, thanks for realizing that, many did not.

Balance: you are right i did add much reverb and didn't master the song very well.

Themes: the themes were iffy in many peoples opinions, but that is because they missed the point of the song. I took the mortal combat melodies and mixed them with my own meledies, thus "Mortal Kombat vs. DjBracksta".

Effects: there is a lack here because there are almost no effects, mostly transition fx at that.

Overall: Amazing review :) thank you very much for your time and effort!

[Alien Relations - BK]

Aliens are among us...

...And they are known within human society as "musicians". Because normal humans just can't do that.

Initial comments: Enjoyable. The vocal effects throughout were cool... more comments on that below.

Flow: Pretty decent. It certainly did have a flow to it... To me it seemed like it wanted to go somewhere more than it did, though. Perhaps it could use a little more direction. Right now it seems to me that it would work well as an ambient background for some kind of advertisement for belief in aliens or for some other kind of wierd show/tv clip. On the other hand, I don't see this working as well on it's own - as a piece to be enjoyed while sitting on the bus or smth. It's still nice listening, but I'm just saying that it could use a tiny bit more push toward some abstract but recognisable goal.

Themes: You've got plenty theme, sir. What I said about flow applies a little bit here, too, though. Perhaps you could add that extra direction by throwing in some more significantly different themes once or twice. Not a big issue, just something to think about.

Balance: ^^ Love it. Full marks to you here. The mastering is next to untouchable.

Effects: Fantastic application of the effects. I might go so far as to wonder if you could have messed with the vocals a little more - I can imagine some pretty intense possibilities there that weren't fulfilled in the piece. Nonetheless, I can't deny that your effects were otherwise extremely well done.

Extra: [+ 0.01] Awarded. There was definitely a little something extra there.

Overall: Solid. [ 9.29 / 10.00 ], [ 5 / 5 ], [ 9 / 10 ]. Good work. I really did enjoy it, even if my review suggests otherwise. I'm just really picky when I'm trying to be critical. ;P

Power to you, Bracksta.

Btw, I apologise for the late review - I was pretty busy for a while there.

**A description of my review methods can be found on the first news post on my profile, should you be wondering at all what any of this means.**

Bracksta responds:

wow, thanks so much for the amazing review, not many people sit down and do such a extensive job. wowsers. i will reply :).

Flow: I agree that i could have added a few more solos and variety to liven thing up to the listener, i just stuck to the basics lol, nuttin to flashy, just enjoyable and chill :).

Reply to Review:

Theme: i should have gotten some more vocals or alien soundeffects, i got lazy :P

Balance: i just made what sounded good, it's all in the ear lol.

Effects: i added some reverb, filters on the pads, and delays to make it spacy

Extra: Thanks :D

Overall: feckin awesome review by obsidian snow

[trombone solo!]

LOL.

Oh Matt, I love you, buddy. This tune is definitely you. Screw my normal review methods, I just found this so amusing that I had to rate ten. It's so rediculously happy... I just don't know what else to say. XD

Power to you, Matt. Power to you.

You made my day. Lawl.

[Noise Research]

Interesting...

Initial comments: You seem to be new to this. That's ok, don't worry about that. You're experimenting, which is a critical step in getting better. Don't take the rating personally, either - I see potential here, so I'll help you if I can.

Flow: There's a bit too much repitition. I think you can probably hear that for yourself. The 3 seconds that keep looping do have a sort of flow of their own, which is good. But the whole piece doesn't have flow. It doesn't go anywhere or serve any musical purpose. There needs to be something done to make more rhythmical and harmonic variation.
Also, watch the transition from back to front of the loop - the loop doesn't finish the phrase before it begins again. You might want to fix that, or just keep it in mind for next time.

Balance: Decent, although you really only had one voice and a couple background effects going on to deal with. Nonetheless, I think that the balance present is still pretty good. Your mastering is actually fairly acceptable overall.

Effects: Not too much going on, but I like what I do hear. You seem to understand a few interesting little effects and how to use them.

Themes: No themes were really present. Throw in some melodies and variations, and some other voices or instruments... and you might have something in the way of themes. You have a nice atmosphere, though.

Extra: None.

Overall: [3.84/10.00]. Needs some practice, but you have the ability to get yourself places. Keep experimenting and getting better! :D

My review methods and the explanation can be found on my very first news post on my NG profile, in case you're wondering.

Power to you, Tix92!

Tix92 responds:

what can i say thanks so much :P now this is a helpful comment :D il keep in mind on everything you said so i can make things better and better. your totally right im still in an experimental fase im trying out lots of things. so thanks again for the review and il keep al this in mind when im going to make a next real thing :D

[<MWA> Trembling]

=D Yes.

Initial comments: I really like the way you introduce the piece, and I love the idea with the kids in the playground. I can see the imagery, too - this method is my personal favorite way of writing music, because so much emotion can be expressed...

Flow: Absolutely fantastic on every level. You were writing an image, with hundreds of emotions. The expression that comes across as a result of this method will always beat the hell out of anything that's just written for the sound of the music. There's just nothing like it.

Balance: I don't think I'll ever be able to complain about your balance. Full marks to you, sir.

Themes: Same deal as with the flow. There's just nothing like writing about an event, an image, emotion, or anything on that level. Especially when it's done through skilled hands.

Effects: This is my only complaint. I thought this might just have been my speakers, but my high-quality headphones are giving me this, too. Right at the beginning with the piano solo intro + children sounds, the notes in the higher register are creating some crackling and fuzz, which is something I haven't heard in any of your pieces in a long time. I'm sure you can fix this, I just think maybe you didn't notice. I was pretty surprised to hear that happen, I have to say. In any case, outside of that one thing, your effects are just phenomenal.

Extra: [+0.10] Awarded. That's something that almost never happens. I have no other words.

Overall: [9.98/10.00]. [10/10]. [5/5]. I really can't say more. I'm very impressed.

I don't care what other people are saying - there are certain qualities I find here that they would only see for themselves once they gain a greater understanding and appreciation for music. This is art - and more. It's times like this that I remember what music's greatest potential is. Thank you.

Power to you, MWA!

mjattie responds:

obsidiansnow :)

glad you took the time to review! I thought the cracking noise was my sound system... (it's logitech 5.1), but if it's bad on your expensive earphones, then I have to equalize the piano a bit in higher freq.

thanks for the 10 and 5!

[<MWA> Flexibility]

Worth cranking.

Initial comments: You continue to live up to the high expectations I have for you. I'm grooving to this.

Flow: Great. You managed once again to take me on a bit of a ride with this. Good use of your dynamics and musical expression.

Balance: As usual, I really have no complaints with your balance work. You seem to have found a bit of a "balance niche" that works for you. Keep it up.

Themes: Good use of the recurring themes... However, despite the fact that there was some distinct diversity in this track, at the end I still felt like there hadn't been anything particularly memorable about the piece. There was diversity, but it still lacked something to distinguish itself among other similar tracks. For some reason I'm thinking a saxophone solo would work really well to serve that purpose... I'm almost tempted to write a sax solo to go with this myself...

Effects: Everything blended in a really fantastic way. I can say nothing that would make the effects better.

Extra: [+0.03] Awarded. Might be more with the theme issue resolved...

Overall: [9.92/10.00]. [10/10]. [5/5]. Solid, solid stuff. Enjoyed from start to finish - even if I felt there was a little something missing.

Power to you, MWA!

mjattie responds:

yea it's plain, and I not regard this as one of my best pieces, but I just couldn't let it sink in my big folder of .rsn files and forever be forgotten :P Shall I give you the .rsn? :p and you remix it xD would be awesome

[Ziende Ben Ik Blind Geworden]

Vocals...

...I like it.

Initial comments: Great stuff - the lyrics are really great, too. Tips to the vocalist.

Flow: Has a mind of its own, and evolves really well. Genuinely enjoyable.

Balance: Definitely has the kind of balance you'd want to listen to while driving. Which is something I might do... No complaints.

Themes: Good work with this. I have one thing to say, though. Even though your lyrics are great, and even though I don't speak Dutch worth crap, I can tell when the lyrics repeat. And it seems to me that after the first time you go through the words, it just ends up being a repeat of the entire song. I might suggest adding at least one more verse so that there are both familiar elements (the chorus) and unfamiliar elements (verses) for the listener. You always want to balance predictability and unpredictability.

Effects: I have nothing to say here - I would be happy with these effects.

Extra: [+0.03] Awarded.

Overall: [9.89/10.00]. [10/10]. [5/5]. Very, very well done.

Power to you, MWA!

mjattie responds:

yea you're right... But I can't write vocals, I'm enormously bad with that xD I also said it to the singer, but he's lazy xD

thanks a lot for your review! your way of reviewing is very nice!