Glassedhouse's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[3632]

wonder where this guy went

[Night]

Nice piece! I think compositionally, it succeeds at invoking a certain mood and atmosphere. Could very clearly see it in a game of some sort. There were a few things that I really liked, as well as things I think you could improve on and/or take into consideration for next time.

I feel like at 0:24, you need some proper bass. The thing you have here is not nearly low enough and just sounds like an annoying synth pretending to be a bass (although I suspect it's because it's just a poor synth and not that you have it too high). This is maybe my biggest criticism. I like the music box aspect the melody has to it. Seems vaguely Lena Raine inspired.

I think at 0:48, you need to add more melodic and instrumental elements. You have a sick fill there to lead up to something like that and it doesn't happen! Just a small thing to keep the song interesting.

I like the interlude at 1:14 a lot. I think one of your keys on your EPiano (the bass) should sustain with the rest of the notes, just to kind of fill out the rather top-heavy section.

The kicks at 1:39 are a good progression but they kind of clip my headphones out when they're that exposed! I would work on the mixing of that whole section up to 2:27. I think the drums for here also sound a bit eh. You can really hear the low quality of the drum you have here, which isn't always a bad thing, but it just feels so exposed and underdeveloped here.

I really like how hard the song hits at 2:27, although I still think you seriously need to fill out the bottom end BIG time. It detracts from the whole experience probably more than any other criticism I have for you (that and the fact that I think that entire ending section kind of lacks a melody. Maybe it would be a good time to bring back the first one but slightly modified?) Also, I wish we got more of the drums at 3:09! It sounds super good and yet for that entire section the drums stay kind of subdued. If you have the means to create a progression to add to the pace of the song, go for it! (especially in a song like this).

Of and that unresolved ending is very well done. Ending on what sounds like a major 2nd AND a tritone. Wow! Anyways, glad to see that you are happy with how this one turned out, you should be!

Dominuus responds:

Woah!! Thanks for taking your time to write such intricate feedback! I'll keep it in mind when making my future tracks. I used samples from a free sample pack my friend linked me, so naturally it's not top notch quality, which in addition to my poor processing skills, might've made some of the sounds sound a bit lame, but I'll try to improve that in the future!

Also, regarding the unresolved ending, I thought of it as a major 2nd with a harmonic minor note snuck in there rather than a tritone - it's very interesting to see other people's perspectives on the same concept haha

Once again thanks for the feedback!

[Autumn Waltz]

I think you're in dire need of some more realistic samples if you want to continue down this path.
I think you could invest in some better VSTs. I can tell you're using VSCO2 or something. Consider BBC Symphony Orchestra Discover which is either 50 dollars or Free if you fill out a survey. Because of the very poor quality of the instruments, it's hard to give you pointers on the composition itself. It seems fine, if not a little repetitive/derivative. I do like the drum kit though, that's cool and different.

If you can't afford new samples. FL Studio has tones of shit to mess around with. I think that you could maybe take your orchestral compositions and turn them into more electronic, better sounding songs with that distinctive orchestral structure. Consider it!

[Hope You Don't Mind]

Atmospherically, I thought it was solid. You have the vibe down, you just need to refine it with some of the production choices. The kick drum and clapping snare sound pretty... lacking? Kind of flimsy/cheap which I don't think suits this song in particular well. It feels like it should be much more mechanical/clean. I thought the samples are a bit strange. They felt like they often broke the flow of the piece, and didn't really add much other than a bunch of non-sequiturs. I suppose that's a big part of the genre, but they didn't feel well executed here. The vocal sample at 2:09 sounds really bad slowed down, almost sounds like he's ill.
My largest complaint would be that the entire sound feels like one intro. Doesn't really go anywhere or hit at all when I feel like it really should have moments of kinetic motion or just, something happening. I think it general, it just kind of flatlines at a piece of music.
So there are a lot of things to improve upon, but you certainly have your correct foot forward! There are a lot of subtle things you can do to make your music that much more professional sounding. Hope you continue!

[Party Dancefloor - Dj-U]

You have talent,

[Happy people want to dance]

This was a very professional sounding track! All the sounds feel very cohesive and smooth. Progresses nicely as well!

I could praise you all day, but I'm just gonna jump into the criticisms I had. I feel like it should all be a little crisper in general? I do like the atmospheric space it has is rather unique to this genre but I still don't know how I feel about it. I also wish 0:21 to 1:18 had a bit more of a defined and tangible melody. I know this kind of is a habit the genre has, but I feel like this song doesn't really have it's own identity? I feel like there are a ton of other tracks that are essentially the same, which only a few having the character to be memorable. I know this is very vague and hard to pinpoint, but it was just something I couldn't help but think, and thought I might as well tell you.
Regardless of all that, I thought this was pretty good, especially for being made in 4 days, Wow!

retrize responds:

Thank you, I'll keep that in mind.)

[Reptile Master NGUAC 2020]

An interesting direction you took here. You don't typically hear metal this barren, although that might not be a great thing here. I feel like you need more kinetic parts added to this. It almost feels like a bit of a death march? That would be really cool in theory, but this particular instance just comes off as really needlessly halted and almost uneasy. I wish you had more solos! That shit was super baller and it only happens like, once! Makes me think that this was rushed/left unfinished for the contest, but oh well. If that is the case, then you'll have plenty of room to add shit like that. Your guitar work for that section is pretty clean so it shouldn't;t be a problem.

I think this song is in need of some proper bass, as well as more of a prominent melody? I know this genre might be different, but you want to still make it interesting at the end of the day. This almost feels like an instrumental backing to a more polished/interesting song.

I don't think this song had to be 6 minutes long? It almost feels as if you're playing with one riff or a few power chords over and over again and not really doing anything with it, especially when you don't really have a clear melody to grab onto. The parts don't really seem that discernable from each other, and the weird quieter parts with morse code(?) seem rather pointless, just to break the flow you might have tried to maintain.

I guess I can sonically and mixing wise, it sounds pretty solid? Although that might be a result of it just being so minimal in general. With a bit more time and intricacies, I think you could really kick this song into high gear.

Banana-head responds:

Thanks for the review! Now that i think about it, it was a mistake choosing a subgenre that is commonly slow and repetitive for the contest, it was pretty much all intentional, the lack of melody, the 6minutes lenght, the death march feel, etc. Well except for the morse code, which is not morse code, is my bass pickup fucking up which i could have easily removed from the song wasnt it for the rush for the contest, its funny that someone thought it was intentional rather than a score lowering mistake. And thanks for the compliment on the solo! I rly should've added more of them since its also one of the highlights of the subgenre. I was expecting a more harsher critique on the mixing because, well, i cant mix for shit and im still learning it.

[The Healing Process?]

Atmospherically, this is a 10 man. Feels like I'm somewhere else. Love the dejected chords and fucked up sounds you got going on. It all feels very alien. The string inclusions are very well done and fitting, despite the tone of the rest of the song.
I think the piano sound you used is a bit corny/poor quality. That's really the main detractor that takes me out of this gloomy place you've sculpted. I think it's also a bit dry? I would slap some reverb or delay on that to mesh well with everything else. There are also a few sounds here and there that are a little harsh on the ears, that I think could be toned down pretty significantly. But honestly, this is a great piece, composed more of sound than of notes. I'm definitely going to check out what you do next.

PhantasmosTheData responds:

I have actually uploaded wrong version of the song which is the video version (linked in author comments). The official song starts after strings section with the "heartbeat" sounds.
I agree piano is cheap quality. I usually sound design all of my sounds but this time I used FL studio piano and as I worked on song for a while my ears adjusted to it and it stayed.
Thank you for your feedback I definitely see all of the points you made. Im self taught and grind alot while making a song and I learn things as I go.