bassfiddlejones's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Claudius]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Dat brass… Great beginning! The flowing melody with the brass works really well. I’m actually surprised that the transition between your two “halves” was as smooth as it was. Excellent continuity between the two, however, I would have liked to have seen more implementation or a reintroduction of the brass melody found in the beginning of the piece. Also, you can hear a significant difference in instrument quality, especially in the ending. While the composition is quite good, execution could have been a little better. I wanted it to sound huge, and was a bit underwhelmed by the way the piece ends. It felt somewhat rushed. Otherwise, this was an awesome piece to listen to! Great job.

Score: 8/10

[Departure]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Indeed, this is not your usual! Very beautiful beginning. Sounds like something out of Heavy Rain. This is definitely a soundscape – you would be a great film composer. While that “soundscape” element definitely works here, it leaves the piece lacking somewhat. It’s very ambient all around and has some beautiful movement, but it is in no specific direction. I think a strong melody would have really made this piece shine. As it stands there isn’t really any kind of discernible melody, just beautiful chords strung together and voiced well, making good use of suspensions. While this isn’t really uncommon for good cinematic/movie music, it leaves a bit to be desired when taken on its own. I would have loved to have heard more of a climax as well. Maybe not a “IMMA MELT YOUR FACE OFF” kind of climax, but maybe a small “triumphant” moment with some choir and brass, you know. Fantastic production quality, as always. A joy to listen to!

Score: 8/10

[[IV]Shadow-Stealing Girl]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Very ambient introduction. The strings sound great! I like the texture you’re creating. Very atmospheric, I could see this being in a movie for sure. The minimalist section after the intro is a bit lacking… perhaps maybe some more sound-design elements would really make it shine, maybe some different percussion. Just as things pick up at 1:25 and I’m expecting it to get really big it backs off. This would have been a great place for a climax. Really great string work following that, though, definitely sounds “Hollywood”. Again you start to build and then just sort of fade away… I’m left wanting more! Though, the piano in the background brings consistency as you transition from section to section. All in all a great piece. You’ve got talent in both composition and production. Great job!

Score: 8.5/10

[The Ancient Ones]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Nice intro, really sets the mood. However, it is a bit long. The build in the middle section is pretty good! I would have liked to see more variation in general though. The entire middle 1/3 of the song is the same violin riff played over and over. While I see what you’re trying to do, I would have liked to hear another riff or counter melody. It’s a good riff, but you sort of beat it to death. I like the atmosphere you’re producing, good job incorporating the choirs as well as the percussion. The ending is a bit abrupt, I felt as if it should have built more. Overall a very enjoyable piece to listen to!

Score: 7/10

TitanMusic responds:

Thanks for the review.
I am in agreement with all the points you raise and will look out for excessive repetition in my next song submission. I really did beat the staccato string riff to death haha!

[Streets of Whiterun Vocal]

Jeremy Soule Is a fantastic composer indeed... And you have done him great homage with this piece. I'm quite impressed by everything you've got going on here - excellent vocals. The best by far is your use of dynamics. You do a great job evoking emotion with the swells and diminuendos in the vocals and strings. Very subtle and quite effective. I'm off to listen to more of your stuff now (once I'm done listening to this on loop for awhile) :). The only constructive criticism I could give would be to clear up the mix a little bit. While I love the reverb and think that it works very well here, sometimes it gets a little muddy. Great job! Looking forward to listening to your other stuff.

headphoamz responds:

Much appreciated. Thanks very much BFJ! :D

[Sundans - Summer Fields]

I really like this. It really is chill, despite being so upbeat. I love the ambiance you have going on in the background. This generally feels like a "background" piece to me, there's no clear melody or anything like that, but it definitely works. I can easily see this accompanying a video game or film. Having taken up that mindset, I really love this piece. However, it's a bit repetitive. Even so, it's repetitive in a way that works, that doesn't make me tired of listening halfway through.

I would have liked to see more of a melodic component to this, and perhaps more variation in the chordal structure of the piece as a whole. Great job man, I like it!

[Dreamworld]

Wow... This has Bosa written all over it.

This is masterfully crafted. Everything comes in at the right place. The strings provide an excellent backdrop for the brass that comes screaming in before the piano interlude. Again, you do a fantastic job of mixing your industrial/electronic sounds while still remaining true to the "organic" feel of an orchestra. Great percussion sounds. I really would love to see the template you used for this, if I had your epic libraries.

Great piano interlude. It's extremely effective, especially with the flawless modulation. Unexpected and pulled off well. This piece most certainly stirs the emotions of the listener. I can envision a beautiful story unfolding with this in the background, filled with love and war, adventure and loss. You've packed a lot into this little piece.

The only not so good thing about this is probably the mastering. There's actually some clipping near the end (1:47 onward - come on Bosa!). I understand the loudness war and all that, but I'm fine with turning up my volume! Also, I would have loved just a little more decay before you cut off the track.. let it sink in!

Overall, a fantastic piece. In fact, I would go so far as to say it's your best piece yet (except for your jazzy, metal stuff and whatnot). Excellent work, sire. I would love to see more.

Bosa responds:

There is no clipping. You're scaring my audience.

[Blue Bosa at Chitter Street]

Jazzy Bosa. Unexpected.

Bosa responds:

This is ancient lol.

[Anaconda]

Neat intro, really loving the retro vibe you have going on. The way you layer things keeps it pretty interesting. Some really good atmosphere here. Wished to hear a little bit more of that "middle eastern" feel you have going on. Even though your chordal structure stays pretty much the same throughout, there's enough variation to keep me listening. I would like to hear a little more variation, however.

Good mixing. The ending was strange to me. I wanted a little bit more than I got, it just kind of fizzled out. Overall, I'm very impressed by this piece. I like the middle section especially. I could see this being played in the Matrix or something like that. Great fighting/chase music. Good work, man!

Sequenced responds:

adding another progression would just make this song a bit more of a cluster fuck lol.

Thanks for taking your time to review man. :)