SeeD419's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Christmas (Alt One Four)]

Not bad

Well I'll start this off by saying that the beginning sounded extremely trendy and didn't really stand out from any other trance song I've heard. The piano notes were well thought out, but just sounded so generic alongside that synth. The drums followed much of the same lines.

When the bass line came in around 40 seconds it was extremely refreshing to hear. I like the sound of the bass quite a bit. The synth line that followed on top of that was also very pleasant to listen to, and I'm really glad you switched it up from the melodies in the intro.

The bridge with the piano was somewhat expected. The piano notes sound great, but I think it's a bit hard to focus on the beauty of it with that happy synth line in the background, but that's me personally.

The outro could also obviously use some work, as the song seems to end rather abruptly without notice. Maybe a fade out would be appropriate here?

It doesn't really sound very christmas themed to me, but keep up the good work nonetheless.

-RRC-

aryst0krat responds:

Thanks for the review! We'll definitely be referring to this when we do our rewrites.

[The Pain (Rah)]

Interesting

Well I wished you had posted the lyrics for us to read first of all. The vocals sound good for the most part, and the lyrics sound creative from what I can hear.

The guitar part wasn't bad for the most part. Probably the greatest part about the song is that you added additional vocal notes over the top of the track, which sounded really great.

The only hole I really see from the song is any form of percussion - so if you're looking for something to add, I would definitely start there. Then if it still feels empty add a bass line to it.

The piece you have here is certainly a great start though, and it doesn't sound bad at all really. It's certainly one of the more original things I've heard in the audio portal, and I commend you for doing your own thing.

No comment on the scream at the end, lol...not sure that really belonged.

Overall a decent track. Keep up the good work, and I'm interested to hear what you end up adding to this.

SoulSecure responds:

Ah, it was originally supposed to be a folk song and that's why I didn't want any drums but as I moved along it became more... Well whatever it is, instead of folk. It's a really awkward song for me, yet natural at the same time, being from an area where bluegrass runs rampant.

Yeah, vocal harmonies, layered vocals and such are some things that I love doing but not too many of my NG submissions have them. My love for the sound of it comes from harmonizations in music like The Ink Spots, Ray Charles, other older artists and also is highly influenced by orchestral music and System of a Down.

About the scream: I got this idea, back when I started working on my new album (which this song belongs to), to make a separate album with songs that are about the feelings that the bosses in Metal Gear Solid 3 are named after; The Pain, The Fear, The End, The Fury, The Sorrow and The Joy. After some deliberation I decided to do the idea but include the songs in the album instead of separate. So, the song is all about pain, there's a painful scream at the end, I feel good about having it there. Plus, it helps to tie in with the song that comes after it in the album; The Fear (which is up on NG).

[Pacemaker - BeefourMusic]

Not bad

Like I said in the last trance song I reviewed - I'm not a huge fan of Trance stuff, so know this beforehand.

The intro is very appropriate and the stereo panning is great in headphones. Right when the main bass line kicks in it sounds amazing and the synth build up was done quite well, in my opinion. That...trance...synth....

After that the song kinda seems to idle for awhile...I guess at this point I'm supposed to become 'entranced'

And then the piano comes. Beautiful. I enjoy the work you did with that quite a bit. The drums at this part sound a bit funky and are especially to my liking.

The bass synth after that - at the next buildup - sounds great to me. When it finally hits the mix was blended very well and sounds great. Not overly catchy, in my opinion, but very well mastered. I was pleased to hear the piano make a reappearance as the notes you chose it to play sound very pleasant.

The outro was pretty appropriate, and makes the song loop well.

Overall, not my cup of tea - per se - but good work nonetheless, keep it up.

-RRC-

SUB4RU responds:

Thanks for the review! Sorry for the late reply, I have just come back to Australia from a South African holiday!

Great review and considering it's not your choice of music, you gave it a very nice score still :) Everyone seems to listen to NG music in headphones, I should try it to see what everyone hears too.

Most of my songs have a small slow breakbeatish section in them to break it up a bit.

Thanks again,

- BeefourMusic -

[DJ Ravenz - Improvisation]

I hear an FL preset

Well the FL preset for the first 40 seconds wasn't really anything special to hear...mostly because I've played with it before and I know exactly how it sounds already...

The improv on the synth was rather impressive, as I could probably not do near as good just on the spot using a keyboard computer, so good work on that.

There's a lot of interesting noises going on here and at the seeming-to-be climax of the song, I would agree that it would sound great for a video game menu of some sort.

As far as things to improve on, I would never use any FL presets in the future as they're too easy to pick out once you've heard them and they just don't sound very original. I'd avoid sequencers at all costs...at least with the presets...the very beginning sounded great because it was modified.

Keep at it.

-RRC-

[|\||_| Stardust [Hardstyle]]

Not half bad

This is just one of those songs that I honestly just don't have much criticism for. It doesn't sound bad, but it really doesn't sound overly great to me either. By that I mean I can't find any major flaws, but then again it doesn't come off as very moving to me.

It sounds a bit like trendy trance but with a strange electronic intro...which wasn't bad. I did like the sound of the intro, but the main synth just sounded kinda happy hardcore-ish but in a really trendy way.

The drums come off as a little generic to me and nothing really special. It all seems to blend together really well though, just doesn't sound overly interesting to me. As Rory would say, "Not my proverbial cup of tea."

Keep up the good work regardless.

-RRC-

Numi responds:

Mm. I know the feeling of not really having a review for someone. I judge in the RUNGADM. Each round, one track was submitted that I just couldn't say ANYthing about. Nothing great, nothing bad. Nothing outstanding as positive or negative.
And yes, what you mentioned as flaws became oh so apparent to me not long after uploading >.<

I'm glad you didn't totally hate it though =D

[[dB] Aliens]

Not bad

While this isn't bad, it seems to get stale quite fast.

The beginning is fantastic, especially up to :45 I think you nailed it. After that the strange electronic sounding sounds in the background I wasn't really digging that much, or the synth lines after that. They just didn't come off as very catchy to me personally.

The drums aren't bad at all. The snare around 1:55 seemed a bit overkill, but I did like the IDM elements you mixed in after that a lot - but I suppose that's just a personal taste.

Overall, I'd say you absolutely nailed the intro, and the outro, but the whole middle of the song just feels stale to me and not all that moving. Regardless, keep up the good work.

-RRC-

Decibel responds:

Thanks SeeD! I appreciate your review :)

[deciBel]

[.:Boss Battle:.]

Nice

Hey it actually loops pretty well too, surprise. Daunting is a fabulous word for what the piano at the beginning sounds like. The synth notes are very good as well. The dark sound to the bass line is just about perfect as well.

The whole song really has a boss battle feel to it - I think you captured the mood perfectly. Either that or the castle/lair of the boss. It doesn't quite have the intensity or energy that an actual battle would have, as it seems a bit more laid back and creepy feeling...so maybe it would work better for the road to the boss. Maybe call it 'boss level' lol.

I like the 8-bit sound this has to it as well, feels almost nostalgic like I can imagine seeing an 8-bit ghost floating around with cheesy effects, lol, which I enjoy. Although, I could see this in a final fantasy game, maybe 8 or below.

I think you did an excellent job with this track, and I'm rating accordingly. Keep up the great work.

camoshark responds:

Great to see you enjoyed, thanks for the great review!

You're seeing it the same way the people below your comment see it, so you're probably right, this is more of a boss level, rather than a boss battle.

I didn't really think of it as 8-bit music, but so many people say it nowadays, so I'll have to conceed to that point.

Cheers,
Samuel Hébert

[Rhythmic Serialist Loop]

Not bad

The tune here is quite relaxing sounding, and immediately I feel as if I'm in a shop in a PG rated RPG game purchasing some ammo for my slingshot or something ;) Either that or buying some potions to revive my health from battle....but I suppose that's neither here nor there.

The song is rather repetitive, although it sounds pleasant, there doesn't seem to be much audible changes going on and I can't honestly even tell if it's just a loop or if things are changing during the whole song.

It's a great base for a song though, or maybe just an ambient tune the way it is for a game like I said earlier. I guess it really depends on what direction you want to go with this really...

-RRC-

WizMystery responds:

Thanks for the review!

Things are changing, it goes into several keys. It's mostly a melodic change and not a texture change.

[Tomb of the Unknown Warri]

Sounds good

Sounds pretty good to me, I can't really find any flaws in this one. You should really make a career in audiobooks though, lol. Your voice would be great for storytelling. This one didn't have any strange pauses or gaps that I noticed at all. It did seem that you spoke much faster in this one, but it didn't sound necessarily worse or better, it was just faster.

The whole concept behind this is just awesome. Very respectful to those who lost their lives, and the story that it's a completely unknown soldier is interesting. I'm sure the memorial is a sight to see.

The only thing I think you could have done if you really wanted to go the extra mile with these, is to play an ambient track softly in the background, while you read. I think that would make it sound a lot more full and pleasant, but of course you'd have to find the right track for it and mix the two correctly. Just a thought for future works I suppose.

Keep up the good work, coop.

Coop responds:

Thanks - playing some sort of ambient track in the background would really be something that I'm not capable of at the moment - I barely know how to use audacity, let alone how to do any advanced things like that :P

[CloudScope (drx)]

Great sound

This has a really great happy go lucky sound to it. The synth is nice and trippy and not trendy or cliche at all. The bass line is a tad glitchy sounding and sounds great. The bass kick is a tad repetitive and unoriginal, but it seems to blend in okay without being to pronounced. I'm a sucker for a piano as well, and the piano work you did was quite good, although I think the volume could be turned down a tad on it to blend it in better.

The song really does seem to be missing some percussion. I mean, it sounds good without a bunch of percussion but I can't help but wonder what it would sound like with some - and I don't mean a few claps I mean some serious hats to sound like I'm on a fucking jetpack flying through space.

I suppose if I had to give any criticism for improvement the only thing I could think of is that you need a climax where you add some percussion to really give it a full sound. Nonetheless, a good track though. Keep up the good work.

-RRC-

DavidRx responds:

hehe yea its a more happier song :P
yea i kinda focused on the bass glitchiness a bit i kinda like glitchy music :P
i rly love piano :P so in some of the tracks i do have piano in them indicating a calm part/magical :P

i did put some percussions but just a few :o
im not rly good with percussions rly XD so i ussualy dont put them but ill take that in mind :P

thx for the review mate :D

-DrX-