nomubiku's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[catsong]

Yay! This song is about as well done as it could get in my opinion. If I really want to be picky I could admit that the top end was ever so slightly leaning towards abrasive like it could use a little eq cut, but it's totally not necessary. Good sounds, song structure, good melody and harmony and rhythm. Personally I would have mixed that up with blast beats for good measure. :) But I find your work here totally satisfying. I think the video-game-chiptune crowd should be happy with this and so should you. :)

midimachine responds:

meow

[Precipice Impediment]

Good stuff! I like where you are going with this. Nice sounds, nice progression. I feel like the intro might be too long, but that's just my preference. If it's the way you want it to be keep it. :) If you want it that long, but feel like it needs something you could create more tension and build it a little more so that when the drop hits is super satisfying.

I really like fat drums and I try and keep them loud in the mix. I think if you mixed your drums a little louder and/or used fatter, weightier sounds it would really life the energy of your song and make the drop more intense. However, if you are totally into and satisfied what you've got going on, don't listen to me. :)

backwardecho responds:

Thank you! :) I always appreciate constructive critique on my work. I think too so long as a musician is reasonably secure with their own style of song-making, feedback from others and different points of view can be very helpful in the maturing process of creating.

As far as drums go, I do like to hit heavier on those too. Recently upgraded my music program though and so far having a bit of trouble finding what I want, but I'm sure that will change in time.

Thanks again!^^

[I Still Care]

Nice sample of several different tunes. it's unclear whether you had trouble ending the songs or not since you fade them out. This may be my particular preference, but I like to have definite conclusions to my songs. You definitely have skills, a good ear, good musical sense. There's no arguing in my opinion that you're making good stuff. The things that I think your music would benefit from are things that I try to practice, not always with success I might add. :) (jump to the bottom for a summary if you like)

First, I try to keep repetition of themes or musical phrases only long enough to get the idea across. Sometimes I take that to extremes. There's a saying in software engineering that a program is done not when there's no more to add, but when there's no more to take away. When I focus on this idea, I try not to allow someone to get sick of a part, but instead I hope to leave them wanting more.

Secondly, while your arranging is great and the parts flow together well, it's not easy to anticipate where the song is going. Again, I'm not master of this, but a good song structure goes a long way to making music satisfying. Following a classic pattern works wonders, like intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-verse-chorus-outro/ending. Then, at least know for yourself which part you wrote is which. And of course you can embellish by having short parts that glue things like the verse and chorus together, etc... It's very satisfying to listen to music that's like a good book or movie where it is clear where it begins and ends and that feels right, and it take you on a little journey and then brings you back home. It builds tension and excitement and then generates release. Also like how a dj will bring the intensity of the music up and down flowing between energy intensities. People can get bored or fatigued when things sit at the same intensity for too long.

Thirdly, I think your music would really benefit from some top end detail. What I mean is the equivalent of vocals/singing/rapping/lead. Often to me your music sounds like it's already a great foundation and is ready to support some great vocals or a lead melody. You can find great, a cappella vocals around the internet ready to go. Lately I've been finding nice stuff on splice. Then you can use it as is or put effects on it or edit it to make it more your own. I've also recently, after the acquisition of a nice plugin, started to use my own vocals which opens up more creative possibilities. Sometimes a good vocal will make music come alive for sure. And if vocals aren't your thing then you might consider writing in some lead melodies instead. Something with nice melody and phrasing pitched above the rhythm so they don't clash (unless that's your intent for expression). And of course you can always mix leads and vocals too.

To summarize: I like music parts only as long as necessary to convey my intent. I like a good song structure where you can anticipate transitions and most importantly feel things building and releasing and clearly taking you somewhere. I really like a good melody with strong rhythmic phrasing by vocals or leads. In my opinion these things could take your music to a new level and really delight people. You've got great stuff and I look forward to what you'll do next. Sorry for the wall of text, I hope you find something useful there. :)

-Pat

bolisa responds:

Thanks for this looong but amazing review! I like your first and second point very much. I understand it and i'll try to work on it.

Thanks man.