BlazingDragon's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Quiet Happiness]

Has a nice vibe

I'm not a huge fan of this kind of music, but I kind of enjoy this. It's not melodic enough for me, but you've certainly got an iteresting vibe to it. I guess I would call it "mood music". I do like the quiet piano (?) in the background, and the part at 2:10 where everything kind of faded but synths was cool.

I felt that you could of toned down the percussion and upped the synths, though. Also, the percussion began to get annoying and repetitive. It sounded like you copy and pasted a lot of the beats for most of it. Try to switch things up every so often with percussion. Also, this song would highly benefit from more dynamic contrast. I know it is a pain, but go through and tweak the volume on different phrases of the song. It will help a ton, trust me!

Again, this isn't my kind of music, but you did okay. Keep working at it; I look forward to more of your music! :D
8/10 and 4/5

Trypno responds:

Thanks for the input. Yes those were pianos. I will try to take your advice in the future. The thing about ambient music is it is kind of repetitive, it is supposed to be able to fall into the background and just create an ambient noise, such as in a chill out room of a dance club where people can talk and still listen to the music a bit.

[Orchestra of the Stars]

Enchanting

From the first note I heard, I anticipated something beautiful. While this does not fall well into the classical genre, that does not diminish its listening value.

As the first chord sounded on the strings, I visualized floating in the endless expanse of outer space. No helmet on, no space suit; simply me, carelessly hovering with no objective. My mouth was agape in amazement, and my eyes were wide open, taking in the scene around me. For light years, heavenly bodies stretched across the universe. Brilliant crimson stars, water covered blue planets, and violet spheres with golden rings circling them. My curiosity builds, and I cannot help but remain frozen in amazement as I stare and the grand picture before. It is almost as if God himself painted this tapestry of stars...

That is the image I get. :P I LOVE the string samples and the chord progression. What software are you using? The percussion and dynamics are pretty good as well. The only complaint I might have is that the song is very repetitive. You know what, though? It doesn't bother me in the elast. The slight changes you implement here and there help, and this is more of an ambient "mood song" in my opinion, rather than one trying to express a specific melody. And it does that ambient job quite well.

Continue to write my friend. I am quite impressed by this. :)

ProfessorMordarm responds:

I am quite amazed by the lengthy response you gave. Quite a descriptive mind you go there. ^_^
To answer your question on the software I use several; ACID, Reason, Sonar, and Live just to name a few. And to answer your and other comments of the repetitive sound, that was intentional. I wanted to show that even that in the stars may look different at different times; they all, like us, occupy the same space we call the Universe.

[Letting Go of Yesterday]

Soulful

Though the quality be a low and the sound be muffled, this remains a beautiful song. I can feel the pain, the bittersweet memories, and the sheer emotion poured into this one.

The chords were beautiful, the melody was expressive, and I love it. Do yourself a favor, though, and go buy some nice software and a good mic. Your music deserves no less.

You grandfather would be proud. :)

[Clarinet Techno]

Chills on the ambient part...

I love the ambient feel at the beginning. The melody is very haunting, indeed. The percussion and synths came in pretty seemlessly for those couple measure, though the change to a major key was kind of rough. The cool percussion instrument at 2:01 was very nice. (A...Conga? I'm bad with percussion :P)

As a suggestion, I personally would have liked the bass guitar part at :58 to be a little longer and build more. I love that crescendo. Also, at 2:46 when you go back to the ambient stuff, I think it would be nice if you extended it a few measure and included the clarinet again. Concerning the background percussion track and synths in the background, they worked, but became repetitive. It would have been nice to hear a drum fill hear or there, or a slight change in rythym. (Though the conga thing helped bring a little more of a fresh feel). The piano, too, was just a bit generic. It served its purpose as a melodic device, but as a piano player, I would have liked to hear it shine more. :P You know, like change the sythyms to something a little more interesting than straight 8th notes.

Anyway, great job with this one! I'm not a big "peppy techno" fan, but you pulled off the ambient part great. I loved the chords at the start, too. They were so haunting! Keep writing music; you're doing great. :D

[The Doghouse Adventure]

Very whimsical

Wow, I thought that you had fallen off the face of the earth! It is good to know you are still making music. :)

I really like this track. The piano part especially is quite interesting. It is very up beat and fun. The pizzacato strings on the off-beats anchor the song, and it is cool how the piano and winds play off of each other. The Flute/Bells combo really added nicely to the over all mood, and the French Horns (?) were a nice touch. I am a first year French Horn player, actually. It would be difficult to play it due to the speed and how this track uses the upper register, but I'm sure it is playable.

This song made me laugh. It is very comical, especially with the "dog barks". :P

SuperTonic64 responds:

I didn't fall off the face of the earth, I just went to music school! :D (That's what happens...)

Anywho, I've been writing a lot of slow/minor music lately, so it's about time for me to get in gear with some more upbeat stuff. :D I've been taking some composition lessons lately, so I'm learning how to use instrumentation to play off one another better. (I'm glad you noticed that! :D) The French horn stuff really isn't that bad, it might be a little high though. :D

Anywho, I'm glad this song made you laugh! :D I've been listening to your stuff lately, and I am really happy to see your musical ability grow! I can't wait to hear more stuff from you, and see more reviews! ^_^

Thanks for your review!
~Smart

Thank you for your review! ^^

[*- Tuck Everlasting -*]

Serene...

I love the melody. It is so beautiful...So serene. It brings to mind a clear flowing stream in a land untouched by man. Where all is peaceful and calm. Even if you didn't come up with it yourself, you've done a nice job transcribing and tweaking it. The reverb levels are just right. What samples/software did you use?

I don't know how many times I have had a song come into my mind, only to find out the idea was not my own. Just a few days ago, I sat at the piano and began to come up with a beautiful chord progression. I thought it to be my best work ever, and showed it to my brother. He pointed out that It was nearly the exact progression used in an old song that he often listened to. And sure enough, he was right.

Ah well, not much you can do about it I suppose. In any case, great job. Keep it up! :)

Jebbal responds:

Yesss the melody is brilliant! I'd been thinking that I came with it on my own for like 5 or 6 years! lol Before I submitted this I decided it would be a good idea to check the movie's soundtrack and make sure that it wasn't in there...but it was. :(

I still want to build off of this and make a longer version, and I have plenty more good ideas for songs that I know for a fact aren't from other movies I saw years ago haha

I have FL Studio, and for this song all I used was a recording of a note played on a guitar. Mostly just added some reverb, but I tweaked a few other knobs too!

[Catacombs]

Very abmbiet

Catacombs is a very befitting title for this track. It really gives that dark, underground vibe. I love the constantly repeating harp line that anchors the song. It is cool to hear how the chords change all throughout, but the harp (and harpsichord) line remains steady. I really like the progression, and the instruments sound very good. The percussion especially is quite cool.

The transition into the harpsichord section was a little rough, but it worked out. The harp just kind of dropped, and it didn't sound right to me. I really like the change of mood that comes with the harpsichord, though. My favorite part was where you had the major chord at 2:31, and then just obliterated that brief feeling of hope with the strings that followed soon after. The brass toward the beginning and the gong add nice flavor, as well.

Great job! You've got a 5/5 and 10/10 from me. I'll recommend your music to others. I would love to see it on the front page! :)

ParishIsDead responds:

You are right to see this as a devastating hopeful. Your reviews never cease to amaze me dear listener. As my scores remain 10/10 I should be seeing my prize sooner that I expected. Thank you for your growing support and faith in me and my practices.

[Melancholy]

There is beauty in subtlety

I read the "author comments" and could immeadiately tell that this would be epic. I can tell that you, my friend, love music. I know from experience that passive listening does not do a piece justice; one must close his eyes and immerse himself in music completely to realize its beauty and depth.

The melody is so hauntingly expressive. The chords were lush, and your harmonies were simply wonderful. The dynamics added a further layer of depth. I loved it! But what I found best was the subtle differences throughout. I noticed how you used varied orchestration to create interest, and how you changed dynamic levels here and there to build contrast. The orchestral colors you painted were great. I loved the instrumental combinations and how they defined the mood.

As I listened with my eyes closed, I recieved a very specific image. I could see hundreds of men, women, and children, marching through the snow as they were forced to leave their homes. Their tears had run dry, and they marched on solemnly. In the cold they continued, yet they hadn't lost all hope. They knew that they would persevere; that they must continue forward.

The bass drum which steadily fell in the background created that image of marching for me. The high strings and woodwinds gave me that snowy picture. The descending string part around 1:30 especially evoked the image of gently falling snow to me. The phrase starting around 2:24 gave me that feeling of determination in the people, though, and that chord at 2:29 almost gave an air of hope.

This review is becoming lengthy, so I'll stop here. :P You've done an excellent job, though, and I am thoroughly impressed. I wish I could write music like that! The only thing that bogged it down was the samples. They were slightly poor in quality, and made it sound midi-ish. This would be so much more grand with high-quality samples! Do me a favor and find a way to buy some. Your music deserves no less! By the way, did you by any chance use Finale for this?

Again, great job, and thanks for sharing your wonderful music. It was a great listening experience. :D

-BlazingDragon

ParishIsDead responds:

Nope, not Finale. I wrote what I used in the PM to you a few moments ago.

That imagery was exact to my own when I wrote this piece. The reason for the midi-ish quality is that it was recorded at a really high sample rate and then converted by newgrounds so it could be played here.

Please listen to Catacombs. I think that you will see even more that what you saw here!

Please tell everyone you know about me. I am fighting for the audio portals front page!

[Break Limit]

Awesome

This is great! I love the bass guitar throughout, and the piano at 31 seconds in. Some of the subtle background stuff is cool as well (The bells at 45 seconds). You've got very realistic samples as well, especially in the percussion.

Great job, 5/5!

BTW, what samples/software did you use for this?

[Goodbye - Loop (16s)]

Wow...

This loop is freaking awesome, lol! As soon as I turned it on, I couldn't help but laugh. It doesn't really match what I expected from the title, but that's fine.

I would love to hear an extended version with another instrument on top serving as a melody. You've got a great sense of harmony here, and it loops seamlessly.

Great job on this one, and keep it up! :D