blackduckie's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[End of the tunnel]

Mehh

No points for originality, I'm afraid. D: I think someone commented earlier down saying that they used the same intro melody in a song of theirs? Most likely that's because, if you listen closely, you can hear the same kind of bassline in most of the commercial pop songs on the market.

What I mean by "bassline", by the way, is a set of notes, stretching for a bar or so each, that other notes can stack up on top of to make the melody. You don't actually have to have a bass or whatever playing through for the underlying theme to come through. I'm just sick of hearing this exact one and seeing legions of Newgrounders rating 10s when it's virtually no different to every other techno/dance song on here.

For that reason, I probably wouldn't call this classical, but don't worry too much about that. I made the mistake ages ago of calling a song "classical" simply for including a piano in it.
I'm also not blaming you for using this theme, because it does creep in to the minds of us all when we hear it all the time. I do like looking for something different, though.

But that aside, nothing really stands out to me about this song apart from the occasional distortion and the heavy-as-hell limiting that hurts my head ... I hate how FL Studio loads a limiter into the Master track by default: it doesn't make a nice sound at all; just screws with your levels. Try taking it out and replacing it with a Soft Clipper for a more natural sound that still doesn't become overly loud.

Also, try tweaking the settings on the piano instrument to get more of the sound you want, as well as using the mixer to your advantage. For example, loading a Delay effect in will give it a nice echo.

Sorry if you already know all this, but as you've said you're fairly new to the program, I'm just trying to help. 5/10

Eurykrates responds:

Yeah yeah, I just wanted to try out something new. I don't really have the hang of flstudios yet, cause I'm so noob-ish. Maybe you could help me and send me a couple tips? But hey, that's your choice. Oh well. Thanks for the review.

[Let's Crash Sumer 2010]

EWW COMPRESSION

Sorry, but that killed it mainly for me, though it might sound better on speakers. At least it's not distorted to the max. :P

Most of the arrangement was very professionally done, with all the different synths and layers. Some of it was a bit drawn out, where there could have been extra effects to keep it interesting (such as the intro buildup). I also thought the phasey noise sound at the start cut out too quickly.

Can't really give you originality points for the melody and bassline, though you executed it better than most of the generic AP dance does. XD

I'd try and focus on the equalisation of the track, but that master compression is just constantly messing around with the levels. The buildup isn't really as epic if it's still at the same volume as the rest of the structure, and when it does finally reach the climax, the volume of the bass forces everything else to be this small hiss in the background.

Even when the arrangement isn't really going anywhere, the song sounds like it's vibrating, every sound trying to overcome the others, and being continually suppressed. Try adjusting all the levels manually, instead of relying on a limiter or something to do it for you.

I won't detract too many points just for that though, when everything else sounds like it's had a lot of effort put into it. Overall it's a very dynamic piece, which I like to see, but it has its issues as well.
7/10

[Whatever You Want it to be.]

Not bad ...

I like the introduction, it's very nicely ambient, though the pad fading in and out is a little loud and amplified too much in the middle frequencies ... not so much that it's ruining though. The piano is also quite nice, and all the little effects here and there.

It was a bit of a disappointment to go from that to just a single beat repeating over with a kind of glitchy synth over the top. It sounds a bit better with the other instruments coming in over it, but it needs to go somewhere after that, in my opinion.

It bounces around a fair bit, but after the first minute or so, it just seems to repeat what has already played. The mastering is a bit weird as well, do you have a limiter on the master track there, messing around with the levels?

All in all, not too bad; a nice tune, but it gets a bit stale after a while.

kenshiIce responds:

Yeah I hear what you're saying, it really didn't take that long so its bound to have faults :)

Also yeah I have a limiter but I'm fairly new at the software.

Thanks buddy :)

[25 second 300 BPM Gabber!]

Meh

You just used the default drum patches in FL Studio, and the voice sample "go". There was no actual structure, just a complete mish-mash of percussion samples, and I've heard M1dy; this doesn't resemble his music at all. Sorry.

Also, the extra second is always added on by Newgrounds. I don't think they even put silence on the end; they just tell you it's one second longer than it is. =/

[Hardyboys1 a troll response]

I voted 5 before I even watched it. XD

Did you intend for that first voice to sound like the Joker? I loved the lip-smacking at the "I'm very protective of my little boy" bit. XD

I didn't actually get spammed by this guy, but a friend of mine did, and he seemed to feel honoured that he was trolled.

Also, I'm pretty sure this "Ethan" kid is fictional. Looking at his banner, I'd assume he's just another dickhead from the Duck Division trying to ruin Newgrounds for the rest of us -- you saw what happened to the Art Portal, right? -- so I'm not sure the whole "If you were a responsible father of this child" thing was necessary, but it was still funny.

I also love your accent, by the way. :D

Stalagmite responds:

yes. he is fake lol, duck division attacks once again, but none the less, if they are foolish, i will exploit them.. i am always picking a fight with the crews lol. except talented ones like CC. :D i hate dick head spammers. they deserve all the abuse they give out. :D
no iwasnt going for a joker feel lol, this is kind of the only voice i can do hehe... and the lips smacking was well.... meant to be simulating something more sinister... lol...
thanks for your input man! your AWESOMENESS!!!!
and yeah as for my accent, i am frequently mistaken for a girl LOL!

[RFU - FF7 battle theme dnb rmx]

Woo, didn't see that one coming.

At first, the synths sound a bit generic and dry, but then the drums kick in, and it goes all epic boss battle on you! :D Could use a bit more bass and suddenness to it, though...
I think it repeats itself a bit too much, but if it's a remix of an existing song, it's kind of unavoidable. I would have liked some interesting drum breakdowns though.
Overall, I think a bit more structure might help, but it still sounds great because of the fast energetic pace. :D I'd love to be able to do drums like that!

[Atari on Acid]

Aha, this is great!

The tune is so strange ... it's like none I've ever heard, and it definitely retains the video game feel while being a bit... trippy... Whuh.

Definitely suitable for anything crazy or random. :D

[-Ricochet Love-]

LOL

When I first started listening, I was already thinking of writing a review saying, "It's a bit slower than your other pieces," before it even buffered to the 00:35 point. XD

It was a really great blend of Orchestral and Techno. I heard a lot of that kind of hybrid a while back, when I was listening to the Ratchet & Clank soundtrack. Where do you get your orchestral samples?
Very melodic, also.

I quite liked it after the 2 minute point, actually, where it all went quiet for the string solo. It really had a lot of diversity throughout, which contributed greatly to its epicness. I don't care how much time you spent on it; it wasn't wasted!

I've never really tried to master my music either, because I tend to tweak everything to my desired volume as I make it, so I can't really tell that you've mastered this, never having heard comparisons between "mastered" and "unmastered".
You did a great job of it nevertheless, I must say... again. =/

Keep up the good work! :D

Waterflame responds:

haha yeah the intro was supposed to trick you, sorta. so you get that element of awesome suprise. my orchestral samples are from a free soundfont called the squidfont. thank you so much! :D