RosesWolf's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Fractal Footsteps]

Ok, so there's a few things that bother me with this track.
First off are the drums; often times they sound random simply for the sake of randomness, which isn't really pleasant to listen to. I'd recommend at least keeping the kick and the snare relatively the same, since they're pretty much the anchor to your entire beat. The hats can be messed around with a lot more since they're less important to the rhythm of the track. Further, the drums take up a huge frequency space, causing the other instruments to take a back seat to them. Lastly, I think the drums have just a tad to much high end.
The second thing that bothers me are the melodies; they don't sound like they're staying in key (unless you're working with the chromatic scale, but that's rarely every used for melodic purposes). I'd suggest studying up on some music theory and trying to work with chords and the likes, as, just like the drums, the melodies sometimes seem to go random just for the sake of being random.
Lastly, I don't think the composition of the track justifies it being as long as it is, as there aren't a whole lot of new elements introduced throughout the track.

Overall, I can see the idea you were going for, but the execution lacks. Nothing a little practice can't fix though. Keep on trucking, and hit me up in a year or so to show me how you've improved!

BALDORF responds:

Thanks for the feedback.

Most of this seems to be highly subjective though.
I don't think you see the idea I'm going for. You think my kicks should be the anchor and the hats should be rhythm, yet that's not what I was going for... Everything is in the same key as everything else, so I don't know where you are getting that idea. Perhaps the tone of certain instruments I used? I don't know.
As for length? There are songs that are 10 minutes long that have virtually no change and people listen to it all day long...as I said, highly subjective feedback here.

I can agree my drums and mix are not the best, as drums are not my forte and I know basically nothing about mixing.

[Kameko Woods]

Gotta say, though I really like what you're going for, I can't get over how synthesized the guitar sounds. It's also a tad bit too loud in my opinion. Some humanization should help with the synthesized part of it, though. I also feel that you could have some other instruments join the violins and cellos that provide the founding of the track, just to spice things up a bit. I understand it's supposed to be a background track, but even now, I think that it'd be kinda forgettable as is. Still, I look forward to seeing what you're going to turn it into!

ARealGhost responds:

Thank you for the feedback <3

[Contrainte [Original Mix]]

Note that I'm giving feedback as I'm listening to this. This is actually pretty damn good! Drop sounds a bit messy, especially in the mid-high frequencies, mostly due to the lead you have. I think that if you shortened the notes there it'd fit together a lot nicer. Also think about lowering the volume of the bass in the verse, so that your drop sounds more impactful.
Not a real big fan of the snare you used for the buildup at 1:12, but that's personal taste. I should cut off a bit of its tail, just to be safe.
The drop at 1:21 lacks serious power, largely due to the lack of bass, and no, the growl you have doesn't count. At 1:41 you actually partially remedy this problem, though I still think the sub bass could be a bit louder.
The silence at 2:01 is a bit too long for my tastes, as it messes with the established flow of the song. The verse that follows is a bit empty, and I don't think that the stereo bass works.
The top at 2:51 again lacks bass like the drop at 1:21.

The idea is really cool, I'll give you that. You need to work a bit on the execution, but that can be learned with practice. All in all, this is still really good. Colour me impressed.

Dj-Troll responds:

Hello!

I am surprised by your feedback! And of course I want to say thank you for constructive criticism and useful advice.

In fact, I have little experience in creating music and your advice will be very helpful for my future projects.

[The Sassmaster]

The only reason I gave this one 4,5 instead of the full 5, is because the second verse is a bit empty for a large portion. I know that this is an OST track that's supposed to play in the background, but I'd still like it if there was something going on, instead of the music leaving a gap to be filled. Otherwise, this is a phenomenal orchestration

ARealGhost responds:

Thank you for the feedback!

[Perspective]

Question: why is the piano in the beginning so stereo? It's a bit off-throwing when it's solo, though it works fine when the pluck comes in. Said pluck is pretty dry though; perhaps think about adding some reverb or delay on that. The drop, as it is, lacks some impact, though I don't know if that's what you were going for.

All in all, quite a nice project, having made it in one stream (I assume).

icantpronouncethis responds:

I haven't thought about switching stereo to mono or vice versa in mid song. I should take a note of that. Thanks for that tip. That could really help me with the clarity. It's true, this was done in one stream, and it was also a challenge what I can come up with and if I can make it sound good. I might have forgotten about adding the reverb/delay on the pluck. Speaking of drop, I do have a problem approaching. I know I want to make a bigger impact, but I get to afraid it might get distorted or just blow out your ears. Any tips or examples how to approach drops with big impact?

Thank you again for the feedback.

[Triplets]

Not gonna lie, this is relaxing as shit. Personally would have added a few pads to give it a very cozy, floaty feeling, but that's just personal preference.
I would have liked a bit more variation in the melody structure, as it's a tad bit repetitive at the moment, but that's not a huge issue. Definitely fits the title of "lullaby" though.

ARealGhost responds:

These are some great notes! Originally, I wrote it short to actually be something that would fit in an actual music box, but I like the idea of making it something more.

[Bio - Wonderful]

For one, the piano could be humanized through changing the velocity of the notes, though that's just my taste. It's not necessary for this type of music.
The drop lacks impact. The synths are fairly weak, so consider layering them more layers. The snare is also very weak; same advice there. The low-pass filter you put on the kick does not exactly work in the scenario, as you want a punchy kick for this type of music. The constant tape-stops you put on all the instruments gets repetitive, and somewhat disturbing after some time, so maybe keep that contained to only certain chords in the drop.
There are two big problems I can hear that I wanted to discuss on their own. The first is the lack of variation in the track. You have an intro, three verses, three buildups, and three drops, and with the exception of the last drop, they all sound virtually the same. Do you see how that can get repetitive very quickly? You want to keep your listeners on their toes, have them wondering what will happen next, holding only a slight hint of predictability so that it doesn't become random. I'm sure that, in time, you'll find this a lot easier to put into your songs, I'm sure.
The second big problem I noticed is that your song doesn't stay in key. Though I'm not the most knowledgable when it comes to music theory, I can hear that the third chord does not fit with the other two. This creates a rather unpleasant dissonance throughout the whole track. Same situation here, though; over time, you'll find it a lot easier to stay in key as you train your ears.

To summarise: the song gets repetitive quickly, the chords don't stay in the same key, and the execution could use some more work.

Don't think that means your track isn't good though! It definitely has potential, as do you yourself. Just keep practicing, and I'm sure you'll grow to become a very skilled musician.

BioHexagon responds:

Thanks for the feedback! I'm definitely going to listen to this advice!

[Rise of Sun]

The piano could use some humanizing (you can do that by editing the velocity of the notes), the transition at 00:14 is a bit sudden; some form of riser or reversed cymbal would have been nice. The snare that comes in at 00:33 could definitely be turned up a bit, as it's almost buried immediately after. The leads at 00:44 could be turned down a bit; another thing you could do is turn down the volume of the piano at that point, as the two sounds are somewhat clashing for dominance. Maybe try making the pads in the chorusses a bit more stereo; as it is right now, everything is in the same headspace, which makes it very easy for sounds to clash and drown each other out. Think of that as a live orchestra, where the choir goes on the right, violins in the middle, drums in the back, etc. Everything has its place.

All in all, the idea could use some work, as could the execution. However, considering everything, this isn't half bad at all. Just keep practicing and you'll improve in no-time!

Dragoneex responds:

Thank you for your review. To be honest this song is one of those i am not proud of. I have many other songs better than this.