mutty99's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Cruise]

-Official NGUAC 2020 KO Round Review-

I really enjoyed listening to this track: it's pretty catchy and dynamic, and it looks like your ideas came out into the music properly.
The structure is solid with good transitions, despite the chord progression not variating that much; maybe adding a variation or a sort of bridge could have made the piece even better.
One little note; i don't understand why you put that lowpass at 0:29, it wasn't necessary at all and it almost broke off the rhythm begun at 0:16.
Despite that, the sound selection is great, and the mix is polished very well.
Listening to this i imagined myself crossing open sea with a motorboat, so you totally got the concept part of your track, props for that!

Originality: 1.25/2
Composition: 2/2
Structure: 1.75/2
Tecnicity: 2/2
Impact: 2/2

Total: 9/10

[Ahurac - ID (NGUAC 2020 Knock-Out Round Entry)]

-Official NGUAC 2020 KO Round Review-

First track i'm scoring on this round.
I love songs that use 8-bit sounds properly, and that's one of them. Great sounds choice.
The first 37 seconds are well polished and really solid, i like the intro with the triangle wave bass. At 0:38, i think the low frequences could have been more marked; that section feels a little less strong than the others. The drop at 1:12 is great, with correct usage of the sidechain, and the transition is not too abrupt: maybe the chord progression could have variated a bit more, but it's also fine the way it is.
The concept is solid, and you overall did a good job, it almost reminds me of Colbreakz's style. Keep it up!

Originality: 1.8/2
Composition: 1.7/2
Structure: 2/2
Tecnicity: 1.5/2
Impact: 2/2

Total: 9/10

Ahurac responds:

Woaaaaw OwO thank youuuuuu! And I'll be taking notes of all this feedback so I can improve my track when I'll finish it ^^

[please take care of this star]

200 tracks. Talk about a milestone. Congrats!

We already begin in a good note: not only you based this track on an image in the art portal, you also made it yourself and it's really good. Props for that; now, back to the music.
The beginning atmosphere is spot on and flows very nicely, then the piano starts. You did a good job with the vocals processing this time around, and took a major improvement step from Child of the Woods; frankly, this track is on a whole new level.
At 1:35 the build-up: excellently done, i was looking forward to the chord progression while listening, and i was not disappointed in the slightest =)
The main section around 2:00 is good too, stands out well in its own while being solid as well.
Now, 3:21. THAT. PART. This is where the piece shines bright: you did an extraordinary modulation here and surprised me, to say the least. You took a huge risk, because doing good modulations is really difficult, but you did it in a way that turned this piece around, and raising the standards in a way which can't be overlooked. The reprise of the build-up and main section at 4:08 is not abrupt, and that's another good note.
The vocal department now variates a bit, being more original and switching from chorus to solo voice multiple times, giving a better sense of harmony; clever choice. One thing i forgot to mention: really enjoyed the strings department, they are processed like in professional/commercial soundtracks. In fact, this song genre could have been also Cinematic rather than Miscellaneous.
The finale is great, and it ends the song with a more than good impression.

Summing up: the mix is well processed, the concept is solid and original, you made lots of clever composition choices and took a lot of risks, which led you to produce this cinematic harmony.
Probably one of the best pieces with vocals i've heard on this site since i joined in 2015. It's a 10/10, period.
After this, no one has the right to doubt your music skills ever again! Maybe somewhere in the future we could also produce a collaboration, but first i want to get better myself, we'll see.

Until then, keep making music, head high! 🎵

[NH22 - Isolation]

Finally found Dimrain's cousin :v
This piece has aged very well, props to you!

[Hyperdrive]

Not bad! I like the middle part the most. 8-bit music has a great potential 🎵

[Glass-cutter]

-Official NGUAC 2020 Tryouts Review-

I like how this track, despite being referred as Hip Hop - Modern, has those synthwav-ish deep sounds, which give a nice atmosphere. Despite the great usage of pads, the mix is a bit unbalanced: for example, in the section at 0:16 the bass volume is a little too high, and at 1:07 that Tom/Percussion you used has a strange distortion, and it covers too much the other instruments and effects. There is a lack of room too, maybe stereo-panning one or two instruments could help the piece flow better (By stereo-pan, i mean duplicating the sound of an instrument and putting one channel 100% panned to the left, the other 100% panned to the right. It's a helpful technique, i suggest trying it out). Apart from those technical details, the song is pretty solid and with a stable structure. Just a little more polishing, and it'd have been even better.

Originality: 1/2
Composition: 1.5/2
Structure: 2/2
Tecnicity: 0.5/2
Impact: 1.5/2

Total: 6.5/10

ChroPh0re responds:

Thank you so much for the honest review! It's nice to hear a structured review and hear specifics on what can be improved. On the note of the tom/distorted kick, what do you think could have helped the other instruments to stand out? Sidechaining, less bass, less distortion, cuts to the midrange, etc.?

[In The Tigers Den]

F U N K Y

[child of the woods]

-Official NGUAC 2020 Tryouts Review-

This was one of the most complex submissions i scored for this round.
The concept wasn't easy at all to execute in a long musical piece such as this, and i think you've chosen the right instruments + the right usage and position for them, making a solid basic overall structure; the eqs are carefully processed too.
The only big issue i have with this track is the solo voice part of the vocal section: even if the text is well written and the pitches are all spot on, they are processed in a way that i'm not fully fond of, and there were some little off-tune notes too, especially in the beginning. The sections 2:57-4:17 and 5:45-7:05 back up and give a huge rise to the score: they are the best sections in the entire track, and the most effective in terms of "concept communication".
Overall, you did a pretty good job, standing out well from the other contestants, i give you props for that! I want to see you going all out in the next rounds, so give it your best shot =)

Originality: 2/2
Composition: 2/2
Structure: 2/2
Tecnicity: 1/2
Impact: 1.5/2

Total: 8.5/10

Troisnyx responds:

Ah, thank you so much for the review! 💖

I find that this track has something that polarises listeners: if it's not the wavering child's voice, it's the distortion. If it's not that, it's how depressing this track is. All in all, though, I'm grateful to hear that your experience of this has been largely positive. 😁

[Corkscrew - Hazard]

-Official NGUAC 2020 Tryouts Review-

Hey there, glad to see you attempting at this contest again =)
Your audition piece is pretty ambitious, with an aggressive and complex rhythm: i really like the drop at 1:00, nicely done. It's the part that shows best how much you've improved. There are a pair of things i'd have done differently though: first, at 0:15 i'd have given a little lowpass/volume filter to the saw segments which come one 4-quarterbeat section yes, one no. They are not badly done, i just would have imagined that section better with those saws coming in a less abrupt way. Last, at 2:30 the second drop begins with a rhythmic section again, then at 2:47 it switched with a breakbeat part. I'd have switched those two parts to make the transition less anticlimatic and improve the flow a little bit; also, the mix
overall volume could have been a bit louder. Apart from those little complaints, mastering and sound selections are both flawless; this is without a doubt one beast of an entry. Keep it up like that and you'll get far in this competition! =)

Originality: 2/2
Composition: 2/2
Structure: 1.75/2
Tecnicity: 1.75/2
Impact: 2/2

Total: 9.5/10

ItzCorkscrew responds:

Thank u very much! <3 <3 I'm so glad u liked it, I'll keep working hard to make more interesting sounds! :D

[Astedroid - Refresh [Dachipan Release!]]

-Official NGUAC 2020 Tryouts Review-

The track flows nicely, and the mix is overall enjoyable. However, there are a couple of moments where you could have polished better your mix: at 1:04, when the lowpass ends, the melody begins its loop again without any kind of fades or transitional elements; for me it was a small letdown before the build-up at 1:17. Also at 3:50, the second drop ends, a last section follows, then another drop begins at 4:04. I don't understand why you made this compositional choice, as it confuses the listener quite a bit: maybe a bridge with different harmonic content could have worked better. Despite those two complaints, the sound is spot on and you overall did a good job. Keep it up!

Originality: 1.5/2
Composition: 1/2
Structure: 1/2
Tecnicity: 2/2
Impact: 2/2

Total: 7.5/10

Astedroid responds:

" Also at 3:50, the second drop ends, a last section follows, then another drop begins at 4:04. I don't understand why you made this compositional choice, as it confuses the listener quite a bit: maybe a bridge with different harmonic content could have worked better."

That part was meant to be a quick break before the last "afterdrop" Also to give little freedom