mutty99's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Flying Free]

This is fire.

KevinMueller responds:

Thanks :)

[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 ^^

[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

Stargame 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.?

[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

[Amphibia - Anne on Adventure]

Good piece! =)

EezySeven responds:

Thankeez!

[The View From Here]

The drums and percussions are a bit too weak for my liking.
Still, the mix is good, and you captured very nicely the futuristic synthwave atmosphere.
Well done!

ChronoNomad responds:

Fair enough. I prefer not to dive headlong into the Loudness Wars when it comes to percussion overtaking the melodies, and I'd rather there be some amount of nuance to the overall structure, as opposed to a solid brick wall. The beats still overtake the other instruments, decibel-wise, so I'm happy with it.

That said, I respect your preferences and am glad to hear that you enjoyed the atmosphere and found the mix to be good. We all have our own formulas for making music, and that sense of uniqueness is what makes it great. Thanks for leaving a quick review, mutty99!

[Dream Dash]

Inspiring title and dedication to the GD community.
My suggestion to the listeners is to not think about Cosmic Growl when listening to this track: when I did, the song experience wasn't well affected.
Putting that feeling aside, this stands out pretty well :)

DJVI responds:

Thank you for the review :)

[Explore The Core]

A bit repetitive, but still has a great sound!

DJVI responds:

Thanks for the review again!