bassfiddlejones's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[The Last Prince]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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What I liked:
-The intro was really cool, I liked the way you used the piano to convey the mood of the piece.
-I really enjoyed the warm low strings that came in after the opening piano. The dynamics really add a lot to the atmosphere.
-I love the strings at 2:32! Very subtle and great dynamics.
-The climactic part near the end when the choirs are introduced. Very nice!

What could have been better:
-I think this piece is lacking direction, I would have liked to have seen a strong motif throughout.
-Some of the builds are effective, others are not. I would have liked to see more texture throughout the piece.
-Some samples' sound quality were great, others not so good.
-It gets repetitive at times.

All in all, this is a great piece which suffers from some production issues. I really enjoyed it, and believe that you've got it in you to make stuff that's even more awesome! Mixing/mastering is always a difficult thing, but you've got some great fundamentals to build from. Keep at it!

Score: 6.7/10

TitanMusic responds:

Thanks bassfiddlejones!
I'm glad you enjoyed the low strings after the piano. It's been met with mixed feelings but I like it.
Ill definitely go through this review again as I work on my next songs.
I still don't really know what I am doing when it comes to mixing and mastering haha

[Coin and Haggle]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Excellent atmosphere. I really enjoy the mood you're creating. I also love the violin! You're lucky to have such a talented player with you! It could really give you an edge in future rounds if you employ it correctly. Great coin sounds! I love the rhythmic change at :36, it adds a neat layer to the piece. The sound design element to this piece really gives it character. It portrays the feel of a medieval fair of some sort. Composition and production were both great. A well executed piece. My main complaint is that it isn't long enough.

Score: 8/10

[Fight the Movement! ~P~]

This is an NGADM Round1 review.

A fun piece to listen to! I really like the mood you create here, though it sounds somewhat generic. The strings are wonderful. I like the "band" type feel you have going on even with the strings. Production quality is decent - I like the piano a lot. The loop is pretty seamless, great job with that.

While this piece is fun to listen to (and quite catchy!), it lacks substance. The main chord progression is nice, but definitely overused - you need some more variation! Guitar sounds worked, but I feel like the could be mixed a little better. This song is missing either vocals or a strong melody over the top. I think that would help this really shine. Good job overall!

Score: 7.5/10

[Utopia - NGADM '13 Entry]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Really beautiful melody in the beginning here. I like the introduction of the low strings. Mixing seems to be a little heavy on the high end – the violins stuck out a little bit too much for me. I like how you layer the melody with a few different instruments, the piano adds some texture to it that I really enjoy. Some really good composition here. I would have liked to see more variation at your halfway point instead of going back and repeating the already “big” section (at 2:53). I think you could have really made it shine by bringing in a choir or something of the like, or changing the melody at this point. It feels almost like you copied and pasted the part at 1:25 and didn’t bother to add much more than a layer or two of new sounds. I understand reprising the theme there, which is awesome, but I want more! The drop-off at the end is lovely. I really love the way the piece ends (except for that last note, I want the tonic back!). It would be even more dramatic of an ending if you built the section before it a little more. All in all a great piece good sir!

Score: 7.5/10

[Saharan Sunrise]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Really cool texture you have here in the beginning. I love the atmosphere. This kind of feels like Wii loading screen music to me, which isn’t really a bad thing. Very ethereal and pleasant. I liked the chord change at the end – the violin run “ending” was a little abrupt. This sounds a bit more like an introduction to a larger piece. Either that, or it should be set up to loop. The ambient strings add a lot to this, very subtle dynamic changes which are effective. That said, I think that this piece is lacking some substance for such a large contest. While it is a pleasant piece of music to listen to, I feel like you could have done so much more with it! Still, great job, I enjoyed it very much!

Score: 7/10

[Anthem of the Adventurer]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Great intro! Sounds like this could belong in an RPG for sure. Reminds me of sailing. I really like the part at :37, though the mixing could be a little better – I feel as if the arpeggiated strings should be taking a back seat to the neat melodic stuff you have going on, but they really stick out. While I like the build in the middle of the piece, it definitely could have been a bit bigger. In general, I think, the piece could have been “bigger”. The modulation, while a good idea, just sort of crept up without notice. Maybe the introduction of a new instrument, descant, or cadence would have really helped build the section before the modulation. And naturally, I was hoping to hear the modulated part give me something new other than the same thing in a new key. The ending is a bit abrupt, kind of like you’re reaching the top of mountain to shout “VICTORY!” and right before you take your last step you trip on your shoelace. Maybe because of the voicing in the violins (they should resolve upward to the tonic!). All this said, this is a great piece and I very much enjoyed listening to it! It takes me back to my old gaming days.

Score: 7.5/10

ChronoNomad responds:

Thanks for leaving me this informative review, bassfiddlejones! Everything I used was strictly a Squidfont instrument, and that was maybe part of the problem. Honestly though, I didn't have much else to use at the time, but I've been busy trying to expand my instrumental repertoire for better quality going forward.

As for the arpeggiated strings, they were a bit softer originally, but it was suggested that I make them stand out more...which I ended up doing kind of against my better judgment, and that was - in perfect 20/20 hindsight - was probably a mistake. Everyone hears something different, so sometimes suggestions run counter to each other; that's fairly inevitable, I suppose.

Nothing you've said is untrue, though the stumbling on your shoelace analogy did kind of make me cringe. ^_^; C'est la vie. I'll be taking all of this input with me as I move forward and hopefully continue to improve in my musical journey. I'm really glad that you still enjoyed the piece regardless of its flaws, and once again thank you for taking the time to leave this review. I truly appreciate feedback more than I can ever express.

[Hot oxygen - NGADM13 - round 1]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Hey there. Neat song! I can really picture this in something like FFVII. An interesting choice of instruments. The main xylo/vibe thingy sort of sticks out against the rest of the piece, and is maybe why it makes me think of FFVII. I like the chords that you use throughout. You don’t confine yourself to standard chord progressions. I like the bassoons. I would have liked to see a stronger melody, it sort of jumps all over the place without much direction. You could definitely use more variation in the strings in the background. Since the song is already looping, having such a repetitive riff in the background is a little much. It loops pretty seamlessly, good job!

Score: 7/10

[Mechanical Anima]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Quite an interesting track! I like the beginning a lot. Good atmosphere with the pizz strings and light percussive elements. I think I’m hearing some parallel fifths in your “major” section after the intro. It was interesting that you moved from minor to major sections – broke things up a bit in the piece. I liked your second major section a lot (starting around 2:09), composed very well. I think you could have made that modulation a little bigger, but it was a good idea! Neat ending, I liked the effect used. Great job overall!

Score: 7/10

steampianist responds:

parallel fourths actualy. thanks for the review

[Make A Scene]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

This track certainly screams ZipZipper! You’ve got a very high production level. The introduction is great – grabs your attention immediately. I wouldn’t quite call this beat-boxing, but rather, using your voice in a percussive manner (if that makes any sense). Great work on the glitch effects. The little falsetto part at 1:12 was wonderful. I wish that you would have reintroduced that or done something similar later in the song, maybe during the guitar solo. The guitar solo was unexpected, I liked it! It probably could have been used in the introduction as well in a truncated form, which would have really tied it in to the rest of the piece. My only gripes with this track would be that the glitch effect was overused a little bit too much, not too much else to complain about! Great job.

Score: 8.5/10

[The Girl With Silver Eyes]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Great introduction! I’m quite impressed with the composition of this piece. It’s interesting to listen to – sounds sort of like battle music for a game. I love the chords that you use throughout. I like that you’re not afraid to incorporate some fast moving strings and runs into the piece. Great play between the strings and piano! Some things that could use work – your sound quality is definitely not on par with your composition skills. Production needs to be a bigger focus – while this wouldn’t be a huge issue if you were just writing for a live orchestra to record, few sadly have that luxury. Your piano and string sounds, while not bad, could definitely be better. The track doesn’t sound very “beefy” to me. Also, it feels to me like the fade at the end was a bit of a cop out. Such a wonderful, flying piece, only to just sort of… fizzle. All that said, great job with this! You have immense potential.

Score: 7/10