Kyron20's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Xtrullor - Jnana]

I just want to address a couple things that won't affect the rating first. I completely respect, understand and am in no way opposed to your decision to remove your songs from Geometry Dash. I wouldn't want to be associated with the majority of the community either. However, I saw in one of Lockyn's streams that you said you wanted to be world class, and that calling your music "game music" was insulting. I may be misunderstanding because I didn't get the full context of what you were saying, but these things combined are all somewhat contrary. Most "world class" music (depending on how you view it) is, in fact, game music, for one. Two, I don't know what the qualifications are to be "world class", as there are really a lot of things that could go into the standards for world class music. If it means being acknowledged by the people who are considered some of the best, throwing more than half of your fanbase out the window was a bad idea. I know you thought about it more than I will, but with the thing you're aspiring for, it just seems like a step in the wrong direction. I know the more dedicated and important fans will stay with you, but it just seems counterproductive. Otherwise, if it's just very high quality music, you're just about there. Again, I may be completely misunderstanding and taking everything out of context, so please correct me if I'm wrong. For all I know you were being sarcastic and it completely went over my head.

That aside, I really enjoyed this track. I liked how more electronic instruments were mixed in more with the orchestral instruments instead of exclusive orchestral and electronic segments. I also liked the slight Middle-Eastern style some of the elements had. That said, I felt like there were less orchestral instruments than in the rest. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it has a more whole electronic feel to it, which can be taken as a good or bad thing depending on who is listening. I appreciate you taking risks and not taking the safer route that you have carved with your 2016 submissions.

Everything was mixed very well. Nothing was too loud or too soft. Some of the panning was a bit strange to me, but that's a matter of opinion. Otherwise I enjoyed how everything was mixed.

This song starts a bit slow, but not slow enough for it to be too slow. It could have been introduced just a touch faster, but again, that may just be me.

During the first section from 0:28 onward, the snare seemed a bit high. The pitch threw me off and personally I thought a better snare sample could have been chosen. It drew my attention away from the main elements, and for that I think it could have been improved upon.

There were a couple sections in the song that seemed empty and it was more just ambient noise instead of music. There's nothing wrong with that by itself, but in my eyes it was overused and there were some parts of the song that didn't catch my attention enough. The ambiance was mixed in well and added to the feel of the piece, so I'm willing to overlook my previous issue.

As always, your instrumentation is beautiful. Every sound is used so well and really immerses you in the music. The sound design is very well done as well, and I am really intrigued by it. The bell, which I assume is synthesized really compliments the texture of the piece. The basses you use make your dubstep very unique and unlike anyone else's work. The mix between smooth metallic sounds and rougher, more common dubstep sounds really creates a contrast I enjoyed. The stutter bits really caught my attention and made the drops that much better.

I really didn't think the spoken bits were very appropriate. You have a very composed majestic piece that really takes you into a different mindset and world and then you have vocals which sort of take you out of it. I did listen to what they were saying, and although they were relevant, I just didn't feel that they belong. I believe a better way to do it would to be putting them in the description rather than the piece itself.

The last nitpick I had with this song was the unusually long space at the end. That could have been cut off, but a bit of silence never hurt anyone, so I'm not going to let it affect my perspective of this piece.

I'm giving this track four stars because I really did enjoy it, there were just a couple of things that distracted me from the mood and immersion of the piece, and while relevant, they felt out of place. Besides that I can't find any issues with this song. It was a very composed, almost intimate piece, of which I haven't heard the likes of in a while. Keep up the great work!

8/10

Xtrullor responds:

Thanks for the awesome review, I'll take everything you just said into account with the next release.

- X

[Opulence (VIP)]

I didn't notice you uploaded this until just now. This has a really fun twist on all of the instruments that you used. I felt the main melody had sort of an Envy vibe to it, which I though was pretty cool, intentional or not (I'm assuming not). The mixing was pretty good, I didn't hear a ton of issues with it. The drum samples were a bit cliche, especially the claps. They weren't super cliche by themselves, but when mixed in they sound more like a stock clap. There was a series of claps 1:37 that could have been changed a bit.

This brings me to my next point, which is editing the velocity of notes. If you want an even bigger contrast between organic and electronic instruments, editing the velocity of the organic instruments will make them seem more human. With the claps, this would have helped a bit, but is in no way necessary. The piano could have really used it though, and so could the plucked instrument. The piano more so than the plucked instrument. They don't need to be big changes, but they can make a lot of difference.

I really enjoyed the key change, and I thought it helped carry the song along. One last issue I had though was that the song was fairly repetitive. It used the same melody throughout the whole piece. The variations and breaks you included helped it be less repetitive, but another pattern for the main instruments to play through would have been nice.

The ending could have been a bit better, but the last few notes made up for that. It was quite a surprise, but was in no way unwelcome. The drums didn't quite fit there, and I would have added pads to support the lead instead, but that might just be me.

All in all, this song was pretty good. Most of the issues I had were easy fixes, and they didn't detract from the quality of the song. They could have added a little bit, but they weren't necessary at all. Keep up the great work!

9/10

Miyolophone responds:

(Sorry for late reply, I was away)
Thanks for the lengthy review Kyron, I can always count on you for that! Good catch on the Envy vibes, that was my inspiration for the original (though I forgot until you mentioned it). Sorry about the claps... they were in fact stock claps...
Working with velocity is a good idea. It always seems like such a pain to edit individual notes, but it really does add a vivacity to the piece, I'll try it next time I guess. Steady improvement is what I'm going for, glad you liked it overall.

[AIM - The Little Warrior]

This is just another one of your amazing tracks! I don't understand how you get your instruments to sound so light but so full at the same time. There's only a couple playing at a time (in most cases) but it fills up the mix so well. I guess that's just the effect an amazing mix will have on your songs. Great work! I really can't find anything wrong with it. The fact that it can tell a story too is just mind blowing.

10/10

Ylmir responds:

Thanks a lot ! :)
" I don't understand how you get your instruments to sound so light but so full at the same time."
Actually, I love playing with contrast, putting a lot of very different-sounding sections in my tracks, with some that are more heavy-sounding that others. In order to achieve that, I of course play a lot with the dynamics of each instrument and the characteristics of each articulation (using quieter strings in quieter passages, with less short notes, this kind of thing), but I also try to fill a bit more the frequencies when I'm writing an epic part than when I'm writing some smaller passages like at 2:10.
Choosing your sounds can also help a lot - an example I like is how a choir will give different colours depending on the vowel used for your legato/sustained passages. I tend to see the "Aaah" and "Oooh" vowels as what you want if you're trying to make something either epic or more "spiritual", the "Mmm" vowel makes for a very mellow sound (First Flight, the part at 1:20) that works perfectly well as soon as you try to make something sound more "emotional"... When you think of all the possibilities, when taking into account all the instruments and articulations available, that makes a pretty wide palette already, but layering different instruments add even more choices.

To be honest, there are some parts I find quite empty now, and surprisingly, it's the more epic ones, but on the other hand they still work pretty well, so maybe that's not too much of an issue, for once. I guess it works because there's also a lot of movement - that's what I was aiming for, something reflecting the agility of the character. But there isn't any sustained notes for example in the last epic part (apart from the choir, but it's more marcato notes than actual sustains), and it's probably a bit poor in terms of harmony.

And yeah, I tend to think music like a story - I actually try to write stories through music, I just love working this way when I'm not writing for a specific project, it helps when you're trying to find which structure you want for your piece. And sometimes, you can come up with some interesting ideas as well thanks to the story you're working with - that was the case with the part at 1:30, which I still love. This darker part was actually inspired by the look of the character's weapon, and it influenced everything that follows - even the way the last epic part sounds... well, epic, but neutral at the same time, not too heroic or dramatic - because the character himself comes back as an hero, but he knows that behind the looks, the story is somewhat darker.
Another thing I love with this process, too, is that since you're creating a story with music, the story can be somewhat vague, and the listener can imagine the details himself. You put the basic plot structure and events in place, and let the listener imagine the rest, putting him in his own creative process.

Sorry, I wrote a long reply, I hope you don't mind. xD

[Isospheric]

I don't really know where to start, so I guess I'll start at the beginning. The kick is a bit strange for what you were going for. It a very slow swooping sine wave, which makes it sound cheap. I probably would have gone for a punchier kick. The clap sounds pretty generic, and I would have liked a different style sample better. A snare would have fit nicely where the clap was. Then we have the lead. First of all, it drowns everything else out. Sidechaining and lowering the volume a bit would help with that. The lead also sounds dry and abrupt, which could have been easily fixed by a small bit of reverb. I also think it could have used a bit more detune to give it more of the supersaw feel. The melody actually isn't that bad. It's a bit simple, but it's better than having it all over the place.

Most of the sound design felt sloppy, but that's to be expected with a beginner sound designer. Really dissecting presets you like can help you choose better and make better sounds. There were some random sounds that I didn't quite like in there, for example, high pitched sweep. It was out of place and was too loud. I'd use presets still until you can get the hang of sound design. The more you make music, the easier it will be to know which sound you want and how to make it.

This song was a bit hard to follow. It had little to no transitions and there were a lot of very abrupt elements to it. Many of the things in this could have used some reverb and it seemed a bit empty in some places. The mixing definitely could have been better. The leads and synths were often too loud. The melody was okay, but it could have used a bit more variation.

5/10

GeometryDashBrad responds:

I was actually thinking of making an updated version of this. Thanks for the in-depth review! (like you always do) I agree with you about the drums, I wanted to find a better sounding one but honestly I was just slacking, and I didn't look hard enough. I was pretty proud of the lead at first but now that I hear it again it's a little harsh. I actually have no idea about pretty much any of the automation clips and stuff like that, and that could really help this imo. I have to say, while I was making it, the melody was my favorite part. I definitely think this was way too repetitive as well. Also, I'm very new to actually trying to mix stuff, Ambient Step was my first attempt of that at all. I pretty much agree with everything you said in here.

[AIM - Rainbow Curse]

I feel like this piece should have kept generally the same mood as it did in the beginning. Your inspiration is basically something to do with sleep, so keeping it quiet may have been a better stylistic choice.

The sound design was okay, but it definitely could have been better. Again, I feel some of the synths didn't go along with what the mood should have been, but without the inspiration they would have been fine, so I'm not taking anything off for that. The thing I didn't like was that the lead seemed very... how should I put this... metallic(?) in a way, which didn't quite fit with everything else. It was just such a change from the beginning. Speaking of changes, the transition from the intro to everything else was very abrupt. It pretty much came out of nowhere, and I think it could have been transitioned into better.

I also have a couple issues with the mix, the first being the snare. The kick should stand out more than the snare is, as the kick is a lot of a track's body. I could barely hear it after 0:56, because the snare's tail was drowning it out. One thing you have to watch out for when you have a fast drum beat is the tail of various instruments. The kick should cut through all of them, and it's one of the few times I sidechain the other percussive instruments. On the topic of sidechaining, I should probably mention that this track probably needed a bit more, especially on the lead. I didn't hear any, and it made the lead a bit overpowering. I'm criticizing the kick so much because it should be at the front of the mix, just in front of the melody and bass, which should be more or less equal to the snare's volume. Usually that's just the way I like to mix my songs though, so don't stick to it if it's not right for you.

This song is generally solid. The melodies are okay and the mastering is pretty good. Mixing could be improved upon, the transitions could be better and sound design could use a bit of work. The thing that really bugs me is the beginning. It just had so much potential, and it was kind of wasted when everything else came in. Much like in "Starflight", the beginning was one of the best parts of the song They just had a very nice WaterFlame feel to them (especially like Fuzzy) and I would love to see you make a full song like them. The beginning just showed how much you shine when your work is at it's best. Now the other parts don't make the song bad per se, but they do kind of ruin the feel and they do detract from how amazing the beginning was. I agree with Kenki on this one (except for the "housey" part... just goes to show how much this website hates house). The intro really has a great feel to it which is kind of taken away by the next sections. In conclusion, this track could use a bit of work, but in the end it's an alright song.

7/10

Evilgrapez responds:

Thanks for the review! I think I will do a song like the beginning now that you mention it. When I do that I'll probably message you with it because you're the one who suggested it. :) I've always wanted my songs to be fast-paced and stuff, but I think a change wouldn't really be a bad idea.

Thanks again!

EDIT: Remember all that time ago I said I'd do a song more like the beginning? Well, uh, I kind of did. Finally. http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/740289

[Jomekka - Eighto [Complextro RMX]]

This just goes to show that you can make a pretty mediocre song and it will still get featured if it's dubstep.

The mixing is overall subpar. There were many points where instruments got drowned out. The beat is really generic, especially for dubstep. I guess I shouldn't expect anything too outstanding. Otherwise what I'd say has already been expressed by the not-so-positive reviews by people who know that these aren't rated by the samples or the person who made it.

Also, I'm taking off a bit (1 star) because this just seems like pure clickbait. Seriously, add actual tags that are related to your music. Adding "Geometry Dash" really doesn't say a ton (or anything, really) about the song. I mean, the samples are from Geometry Dash people, but it's in no way related and you've done it on every song you've made, as far as I'm concerned. Also, even though it doesn't normally add to what comes up when you search it, it still is just extra stuff added in in hopes of getting more views, which I really don't think is appropriate or necessary. You already have 36k people following you, which is more than most of the people here. It's greedy and disappointing. I get it when other people do it, who have <100 fans. With clickbait like yours, it makes it hard for them to get any attention whatsoever. I know your ethics aren't supposed to affect your rating, but it's sad that you have a remix of a popular Geometry Dash song, the names of many famous people (on Newgrounds, at least) in the description and "Geometry Dash" in the tags. You know better than that.

Overall, this song is just disappointing. The production quality honestly wasn't that high, and you decided to be greedy and try and milk the Geometry Dash community for views. I mean, you had 7 Geometry Dash famous people, Geometry Dash in the tags, it's a dubstep song and it's a remix of a Geometry Dash song, which seems unethical. This is something I'd expect an unknown person to do, not a somewhat famous person. I hope to see some change by the next song you post.

3/10

EtzerGD responds:

I'd like to point out, and I made this very clear in my YouTube (although it is my fault that I did not make it clearer here), that the point of this remix is kind of a thank you video to my subscribers and stuff. Eighto is what grew my channel in the first place and it is kinda a thank you/fun goof. While I understand your issue with the tags, I don't really know what else I would've tagged, and it is just something I do. I do think the mixing could use work, I tend to clutter projects a lot, even if it is with samples. I guess the point I'm trying to make here is that I understand some aspects of your complaint, but a lot of this song was just sorta meant as a fun thank you. Besides, I'm still fairly new to the whole music stuff, and right now I am mostly just trying to start transitioning over. I'm sorry you were disappointed by the song, and hopefully my future songs will be better. Good or bad, I really appreciate the time you took to write the review :) Way more helpful than people just commenting that they like the samples :3