alternativesolution's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[inside the machine]

- NGADM Round 2 Review -

Whoa. Very funky. I like how all your sounds come together very cleanly, with the exception of the bass quietly muddled in the background. Your melodies are great, and I instantly recognized this track as yours. If not dynamic range, originality is definitely something you've got down. It's also the way you randomly incorporated those keys that actually did not sound as random as they should have. The structure of the track is good, and is varied enough to somewhat dismiss the overuse of your main synth; the melodies really are the basis of this song, and help keep the beat from becoming too noticeable in its repetitiveness.

Score: 8.8

johnfn responds:

Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked it overall and I think you pointed out some good suggestions for improvement. If you think this is repetitive or the synth is slightly overused, I'd hate to see what you think of contemporary edm... haha. But honestly I'm right there with you, I kinda felt the same way about the track and electronic music in general... and I kind of overcompensated for that in my next track... Someday I will find the balance, and it will blow your mind! :D

[The Great Ocean]

- NGADM Round 2 Review -

This is actually a really cool piece when you don't factor in the extremely repetitive riff from the intro inserting itself all throughout the track. Your main chorus is very nice. Your simple bell melody works well with your powerful bass. It's a nostalgic type of melody that I'm particularly fond of. Drums don't have much range, and sound flat and compressed.

You've got a decent structure set out, but what really hurts this song the most is its inherent repetitveness. The first minute of your track is basically the same thing over and over, and the riff is very simple, too, which made it excessively repetitive.

Your transitions are not bad either, but the one at 2:35 could have been slightly altered to help differentiate the following change in chorus from the first one, as well. The transitions alone, however, fit into your song very well.

Overall, the production is not bad, and the composition could use a lot of work. You already have a good foundation; all this track really needs is more variation in melodic content.

Score: 7.8

[FD - Moontears]

- NGADM Round 2 Review -

Your introduction is mysterious, and has a nice sound. However it begins to become drawn out. There is also a general lack of a distinctive melody for the first half of the piece, although I can see you were aiming more for a track based on atmosphere and emotion, for which of those two, you to do quite well. Your strings are great for the mood and you have some beautiful melodies going on into the second half. It begins to become emotional storm and it is really very expressive. The transition around 3:30 was out of place, however. Even if it was supposed to drift away from the despair and turmoil, what comes next sounds like it's supposed to have a sudden coldness, to take away from the mood that had previously been established; however it becomes numb and thoughtless, and makes for a rather poor transition. The strengths in this piece are definitely its atmospheric quality and emotional detail.

Score: 8.5

ForgottenDawn responds:

Thanks for your review.

[Ling Kano's Fighting Show]

The first thing I noticed when listening to this song is its atmosphere and clarity. Your percussion is crisp especially at your intro, and works well with your bass through the track. It's a great combination and it lets your bass lines shine by letting them not be obstrusive and still noticeable when given adequate attention. At 0:17 the sudden transition sounds a slightly out of place; I blame that not on the composition, but how the drums were mastered. After that you've got an excellent main melody. Very catchy. And it gives off a very cool vibe, and definite color. It's this great retro 'color', with brightness swirling all around. This goes for almost all of the song. At 0:35 there is distortion, although slight.

At 1:21, the song has an abrupt change, which caught me off-guard at first. The melody at that part was great, and fits well; however, the mixing of the instrument could have fit better. The instrument causes a definite change in mood, which came quite abruptly and could have been smoother, too. Aside from that, the uniquity of its composition caught my attention for sure. Then your main melody comes back again, and you add on to it excellently. The way you use your strings is wonderful. That really added onto the vibe you had established so early on in the piece. Your ending is also good. It brings all the energy you've built up throughout the song and ends it on a satisfying note.

Score: 8.8

SourJovis responds:

Thanks for the review. I got a lot more reviews for this round than the previous. Must be because there were less contestants. Glad you liked it. I made a second version called "L Kano's Fighting Show S2", where I hopefully fixed many of the issues of this version.

[A Storm Over Lavender Lane]

- NGADM Round 1 Review -

The strongest aspect of this track is it's level of quality and production, as well as sheer compositional skill. The intro is very impressive, and the song as a whole, while not partcilarly memorable at all, does not disappoint on the first listen. What does disappoint, however, is the abrupt change in direction the track sometimes takes, which make it sound disjointed – key points being at 1:08, and especially at 1:18. Although these parts disrupt the flow, the disruption is minor compared to the strengths listed above.

Score: 9.2

headphoamz responds:

Thank you AS, really appreciate the review :)

[Star Blade]

- NGADM Round 1 Review -

Very cool feel, right from the start. Very exciting, and the mood is just very upbeat and awesome. The light slowdown at 2:45 is very nicely timed, as well as the re-introduction to the main melody at 3:06 although at 3:06 the attempt to bring back the excitement was not as effective, possibly due to the overuse of certain elements that are heard quite a few times throughout the song. The mixing also has some issues in terms of getting a good, clear sound. Overall, this is a very solid track.

Score: 8

[Skyline]

- NGADM Round 1 Review -

Your singing is very good. The lyrics are great, and they go very well with your voice and chosen melodies. The progression is good, as well, and there a definite flow to the track. The production of your track is nicely done, for the most part; however there is some muddiness in certain parts that definitely take away from the clarity that the song strives for; the vocal mixing could also use some work integrating with the rest of the track. Overall, this was a pleasant song to listen to.

Score: 8

Wolftacular responds:

Glad to hear you enjoyed the track overall, and thanks a bunch for the feedback!

[Empty]

- NGADM Round 1 Review -

What I like most about your music is its progression. Your melodies and bass, along with the drums just go very nicely together. And your lyrics are great; you have this knack for creating a fitting mood in your songs to accompany them well! Your intro and ending are both good (especially the ending line, and how you let that fade way ), and your instruments are just used very well.

What could use some work though is your vocals – they are very slow and draggy, even if it's intentional, it keeps the song rather flat, and the dynamic change is almost none. Your mixing is not weak in terms of balance, but the song could benefit from some better mastering.

Score: 8.6

DivoFST responds:

Thanks for the review and high score alternativesolution! :D
Yup, i only started using compressors recently and i think that would have helped a lot dumb me! xD

[Realisations]

- NGADM Round 1 Review -

Yes, there is a lot to be liked about this song. There is a certain unique quality to your composition that I can't shake. It's a very good thing. Your choice of instruments and how you use them work brilliantly together. You've got an excellent rhythm, and the whole song is quite catchy, to say the least. Drums are great, and your progression and structure is very solid. There is dirtiness in the low-end for sure, but it's... minor, considering the number of instruments you have at play, no matter how well you use them. An excellent track, no doubt!

Score: 8.8

InvisibleObserver responds:

I'm pleased the instrument selections stand out, I focus on cohesive and unique mixes of synths/samples/instruments/textures. Everything is made up and tweaked before being written with. As for progression, I like to have songs adventure a little, allowing me to play with mood, while also stopping any section from becoming particularly stale. Thank you for the comments!

[Point of Time]

- NGADM Round 1 Review -

First off, you've got a great introduction. The pacing and mood of the track is very nice. In fact, the way you set up the first half of the song makes the way it ended so quickly very uncalled-for. You've got this great fullness and wonderful atmosphere going on, but then...the end! It gives the entire song a sudden “unfinished” quality to it. Like there needed to be something more, something more you planned to put, but for some reason, didn't. Aside from this, your instrumentation is nice, although the production could use more work, as you already seem to be aware.

Score: 8.4