bassfiddlejones's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Bajo el sol, sobre las rocas]

This is an NGADM Round 3 Review.

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What I liked:
-I really love the mashup you have here of flamenco and metal. It works really well!
-The opening was fantastic. I really love that guitar sound.
-The transition at 1:06 is sweet. In fact, so sweet I went back and listened to just that several times. Awesome job.
-I think the areas where this track shines the most is the flamenco-styled areas.

What could have been better:
-Some of the metal sections get pretty repetitive.
-I didn't like that synth over top of the metal stuff at all. I think you should have incorporated the flamenco sounding guitar.
-There is not enough flamenco guitar. I think it's genius to mix these two styles, but it feels like you leaned toward what you were most comfortable with in the end as opposed to diving more into the newer genre.

Overall this is a fantastic track. I really like what you have going on here, and you're and excellent guitarist. Great work!

Score: 9.2/10

InYourDreams responds:

Thanks for the great review! I'm glad u liked it and I totally agree with the things that could have been better... I'll definitely gonna have ur feedback in mind while composing next time. ^_^

[Public Enemy No.1]

This is an NGADM Round 3 Review.

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What an interesting track!

What I liked:
-You definitely nail that 30's jazz mood, I like it.
-Excellent piano work! Love that rag time feel.
-Great chord progressions in general.
-That last chord is money.

What could have been better:
-I would have liked to see you let this song breathe a little bit at times. It feels a little hectic, which may be what you're going for, but I think it could benefit from some more openness.
-Few things hold you back in this song - I think the sample quality for some of the instruments is a minor issue when they are exposed , but overall they actually sound quite good and realistic.
-The drums aren't mixed too well compared to the rest of the instruments.

This is an awesome, creative and unique track. Excellent job, you're full of surprises!

Score: 9.3/10

SoundChris responds:

Thanks a lot for your kind review! I am really glad you liked the piece. Maybe the insertion of a relexing sequence would have been a good idea - maybe i will make a revised version of this track where i will fix the cymbals, piano loudness and some other little details. Creating this track has been really fun for me and i am sure there will be more jazz pieces out there, soon (the work on one special track is already in progress :D ).

So thanks a lot for your useful review! All the best,

Chris

[Pride]

This is an NGADM Round 3 Review.

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Wow, what an unexpected track!

What I liked:
-So unique! I loved the approach you took.
-The bassy voices (which I'm assuming are also you?)
-Great use of percussion all around.
-The harmonies at 1:13, which bring me right back to "O Brother Where Art Thou" for some awesome reason.
-Great vocal work.

What could have been better:
-This is a very vocal drive piece, which is good, but I would have loved to see more strings throughout. I think it would add a lot.
-I was waiting for a big climax that didn't come.

This is a great piece of music, and definitely outside of the box. I'm impressed, and never know what to expect from you!

Score: 9.7/10

headphoamz responds:

Yay! Thank you bassfiddlejones for the great score and review. I agree with the ending - very unfinished. Maybe when I have some time I'll rework the song. :)

[This is Not the End]

This is an NGADM Round 3 Review.

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What I liked:
-The strings in the beginning sound great. Especially the slide in the cellos, very nice.
-Around :43 the chords/melody gets really cool.
-The chords you use around and after the 1:00 mark are fantastic, I'm a fan of all the key changes!

What could have been better:
-The mixing/mastering is a little flat. I would have liked a bassier, wider track.
-The IV, V, vi chord progression is nice, but is used a little too much.
-It feels a little repetitive in the second half.

This is overall a really nice track, with great melody work. I would like to see a little more bass and some creative panning of instruments to widen out the track. Great work!

Score: 8.2/10

ChronoNomad responds:

Thanks for another lovely review, BFJ. You gave this one a slightly higher score than Tir Na Nog, so I guess I must have been doing something right here! :D

It's nice to hear a good word about the cello slides, especially since I worked on them a lot to try and get just the right kind of sound and timing. I'm hoping to a find an even better cello soon that can sound even more solid when using tactical note slides. It's also great to see someone commenting on the rolling chords! I was beginning to feel as though they went rather unnoticed, so I am very happy to know that someone enjoys them. Seriously, bless you for that.

Still working on my mixing and mastering, but I think I like to think I'm getting there. I think that using too much Stereo Shaper in this track was a mistake, to be honest; it kind of made the music sound thin and less dynamic. Six of one, half a dozen of the other, I suppose. Hoping to make better choices in this regard in the future. I can't deny that there is a bit of repetition in the second half, but there was a purpose behind it, and I guess it's just a case where my own artistic vision didn't resonate with others in quite the same way. So be it. I can fully understand and accept the alternate point of view.

It is very nice to hear that the music is well liked, overall. There's certainly nothing to be ashamed of in the scores that I've received and I'm proud to have made it this far. I'll keep working on things and maybe take another stab at it next year. Excelsior!

[Sons of Valhall]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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What I liked:
-You are an amazing composer. There is so much going on in the background here with the winds and brass.
-This song is packed with fantastic instrumentation.
-You use some great chords.

What could have been better:
-Sounds like you're pushing that horn to the top of its range.
-There's a lot going on this piece, and at times the mix seems a little muddy to me.
-The yelling people are effective, but overused a little bit.

This is an amazing piece, I am quite impressed, and you have great skill as a composer.

Score: 9.5/10

SoundChris responds:

Hey there,

thanks a lot for your kind review. I am really happy you liked the piece because i really liked your cinematic tracks. The orchestration was quite difficult for me to orchestrate and mix. This has been the first real orchestral track with high quality instruments (i used the EWQL Hollywood series and stormdrum here) and i still got no experience how to mix all those instruments well and also which patches should be doubled, layered and so on. The soundquality still could have been better if i have had the possibility to mix loud with boxes (which i couldnt do in that week). So unfortunately the result is quite "washy" and lots of details which can be heared only with headphones got burried. I also have to get more knowledge about the use of the brass section (thats why the horns got a little bit to high) - if you know some good books or stuff you can recommend to learn more about it i would be very thankful. I thought about working with the Rhimsky Korsakov classic orchestration book or "professional orchestration 2A and 2B" - dont know if they are useful or even too hard for me, but i think i will give it a try when i will got a little more time again.

So thanks a lot bassfiddlejones for your helpful review!

[Steam's Wonderful Contraptions]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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What I liked:
-This is such an incredibly unique piece! And it's quite catchy.
-The industrial-type drums in the background cool.
-Great use of electronic sounds as well as pizz strings.
-I like the chords you use. You're not afraid to change things up.

What could have been better:
-The quality of some samples (the clarinet in particular sticks out to me).
-While this is definitely a unique track, it almost becomes repetitive at a certain level, maybe due to the drums and bass going in the background.
-I didn't much care for the whistle, but it did fit the piece.

This is an incredibly unique track, and definitely stands out from the rest as such. You've got great skills as a composer!

Score: 8.6/10

steampianist responds:

thank you for the review jones and im happy that i got a higher score from you
cos for me i youre one of the hardest judge. thank you very much

[Memories of a Forgotten Land]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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Wow.

What I liked:
-This is such a beautiful piece. It's organic, and that violin is used so well.
-This is a very romantic, emotion-invoking piece.
-Production quality is super high.
-I love the simplistic approach you take.\
-That ending is beautiful.

What could have been better:
-Some samples could have higher quality (like the horns). They aren't bad by any means, but the live violin juxtaposed against sampled instruments makes them really stand out.
-I would have liked to see more dynamics. While you do incorporate them in places, it's dynamically a little flat at times.

This is an absolutely amazing piece of music which I didn't expect to find on Newgrounds. I'm very impressed by your production quality and the great composition. Excellent job!

Score: 9.6/10

MichaelJ responds:

I couldn't agree more with your review. Thank you!

[Draesdne Adaas]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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What I liked:
-Choir sounds were quite good.
-Orchestration is done well.
-I really like the brass near the end.
-I can hear a lot of classical influence here, which is awesome.

What could have been better:
-This piece is a little underwhelming. When I think "organ" I think 'BIG'. I know that that's not always the case, and it shouldn't be, but it sort of feels like you were shooting for a really big sound but didn't quite get there.
-I think the organ should have been more of a supplement to the track rather than the focus.
-You end on a V chord. It leaves me wanting. It sounds like it's the end of the first movement of a longer piece. NOW I WANT A FUGUE.

Overall a really nice piece, but it doesn't reflect your potential. I really enjoyed listening to it!

Score: 8/10

samulis responds:

Thanks for the review, BFJ!

I wasn't really going for a 'big' feel. I instead wanted to go for more of a softer more intellectual style. Sure, this wasn't as intense as a Bach organ piece, but I tried to do something that at least wasn't the normal orchestral-cinematic blast-fest. :)

[Tir Na Nog]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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What an interesting piece!

Things that I liked:
-Unique choice of instruments.
-This takes me back to my gaming days!
-I really like the percussion you use. Very effective in making this feel medieval.
-You're not confined to any specific chord progressions, which is great.
-The panning harp sound is really cool.
-Those vocals are great!

What could have been better:
-While this is a unique track, there are a lot of generic elements to it.
-The samples you use work in this instance, but increasing your sample quality would really take this to the next level.
-The flute is nice, but overused.
-I would like to have seen a larger climax.

Overall this is a fantastic track and I greatly enjoyed listening to it. You make some great music, and the incorporation of etherealwinds' vocals was a good choice. Great job!

Score: 8/10

ChronoNomad responds:

Don't you mean...8.3/10? xD Stuff happens; no harm, no foul. Thanks for the review, BFJ! You like a lot of aspects of this particular piece, and that makes me happy. It was certainly a lot of fun to make, and I think that manages to shine through. You also offer up some very solid points regarding what could have been better, though not much by way of suggestion. Of course that's part of the journey. Probably just needs more cowbell. ;)

I'm personally very content with the way this turned out, and EW's contribution is like the icing on the cake. I'll definitely view Tir Na Nog as my biggest accomplishment in this contest, and it seems primed to continue as my 'best of' submission throughout the remainder of 2013. ^_^

[When a Good Man Goes to War ~P]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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What I liked:
-The general sound and feel here are great.
-The theme introduced in the beginning, and the fact that you reintroduce it!
- The lyrics.
-The Trans-Siberian Orchestra type sound you have going on, very cool.
-That this piece tells a story.
-The section at 3:47 is awesome!

What could have been better:
-The guitar sounds in the second half were a little generic.
-I didn't really like the didgeridoo.
-That your lyrics aren't sung!
-The opening sequence is great, but it's a little too long/repetitive.
-The percussion, while great when introduced, becomes repetitive and distracting after awhile. I would have loved to see more variation in rhythm as well as incorporate different percussive elements.

I really enjoyed listening to this piece! You've got great potential as a composer, and have some great ideas. I'm not sure if the guitar you recorded was live or not, but if you can get your guitar sounds more realistic it would increase the production quality of this piece dramatically. Also, those lyrics are awesome! They would have also dramatically increased the piece's value had they been sung. Overall, a great piece and fun to listen to!

Score: 7/10

Phyrnna responds:

Hmm, interesting! Thanks for the review!

Let's see here......
No lyrics actually, that's a poem from the thing I was inspired by. xD
No didgeridoo in this piece at all actually, just Uillean pipes.
Drums definitely needed work, i rushed those. xD

Thanks for the feedback! :D