Liralei's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[From the Foreshadows (A->N)]

Amazing.

You've outdone yourselves on this piece, guys. I'm still reeling from hearing "These Walls" and this is a one-two punch. This is free to NGers and not included on the EP? If so, it's a pity but it's also amazing. The vocal effects and cuts you've used here fit in so well, and truthfully, it outdoes a couple of the pieces intended for the EP, if you ask me. Props to the violist for her, while not flawless, very energetic and forceful work.

Also, you're making a lot of progress in production quality. I'd daresay that your earlier EP songs will display a different degree from recent pieces like this.

Downloaded and fave'd.

ApproachingNirvana responds:

Thanks for the review! It's always good to see you stop by here. We'll have to agree with you on most of your comments there. We love NGs and will continue to give back to this community as we gain momentum, but for the record this version is very amateur-ly mixed and our production quality can get better for this song. Also, I (SinJim) have a new computer on the way and will really make composing for classical portions a hell of a lot easier - my current computer only has 2GB ram, so it's a bit difficult.

This is not on the EP because it actually takes 6-8 weeks for an album to get reviewed and released onto Itunes as well as Napster, Amazon, and the other stores. So far, the fans on here have been really great and we hope to keep it that way and let them hear our stuff as we progress.

In terms of production quality, sadly your right. As we keep doing new songs, we get better and better. We're learning new tricks for everything and we have to keep going back and adjusting our previous songs to reflect this quality. We submitted our album to Itunes because we felt that we were at a point that's decently close to pro. While we aren't necessarily there yet and still may have quite awhile to go, we are very happy with how far we've progress.

Thanks again!

PS - Hopefully we'll see some more future projects with you :)

[Pale Ice]

Really lovely work.

Your audio talent is darn impressive and keeps being honed sharper. I'm impressed (and an Aura-Core fan, har)-- I'd heard your music before, but it's nice to hear recent work as well. Vocalist? Hm. I can see where people are coming from, but I don't think songs are necessarily improved by vocals all the time. (I'm a vocalist, so. :P Personal opinion.) Your song works well on its own, but hey. Congrats on the top 5.

Winterwind-NS responds:

aura core fan eh? totally awesome
I have heard your vocal work before, which is all great stuff. As far as adding vocals to this particular song, I would assume it'd be somewhat hard to fit in the whole ambient atmosphere, particularly for me since I have no experience in working with vocalists (which I intend to fix sooner or later)
thanks for dropping by

[Karco - Time For Morning]

Actually...

...the breakdown doesn't sound that empty, and I spent a while trying to figure out what it reminded me of. And I remembered: it sounds like a slower, piano-less version of the breakdown from "Something's Up" by Sean Tyas and Simon Patterson. Which is not poor company to be compared to at all, though the breakdown's almost certainly in Simon Patterson's style-- the very long, very hard trance buildup is more Sean Tyas. Go have a listen to it sometime. That's startling progression in a song.

But anyway. I actually really like this song, and it's one of maybe three tracks total I've downloaded from NG. While some could easily argue that it sounds repetitive, even as far as trance goes, your progression kept me from feeling as if that was the case. Instead, it goes toward being catchy, not irritating. Not a terribly useful review, as I only have an ear for composition and sounds, not mastering/mixing, but once I remembered what the breakdown reminded me of, I felt like leaving a review anyway. :P Cheers!

Karco responds:

Well, I've got to go look up those tracks as soon as I get home then. :O Thanks for the thoughts Liralei!

[The Lonely Reunion =HFX=]

I got shivers while listening to this.

And that's usually a failsafe indicator to me of a song's emotional quality. :) The sound of the string solo bothered me a little bit, but this composition, overall, is almost flawless. To me, it's almost harder to make a strong musical impact through simplicity than complexity-- you can wow someone with a ton of well-balanced layers, but to convey emotion and a story through music with simple piano chords and a well-driven ambient backing (and a glockenspiel/xylo? :P) takes a certain finesse. Did you manage that? Oh, yes.

I keep coming back to hear what you put out because you do have a certain talent, and this one's getting favorited. Keep up the great progress!

-Lira

Phyrnna responds:

You had me scared at first when I read your review title - I thought it was that bad. :O
Of course, I felt much better after reading the review. >_>;

Someone else had also pointed out the violin's sound out to me. Indeed, it can be better. For a soundfont, I think that's as good as I'll get it probably. Maybe I can try modifying it a little.... now that I know more about envelopes. >_>; My friend suggested that I use the violin sounds from the EastWest orchestral pack. However mines doesn't work. x_x

As far as complexity, I'm a large fan of really well layered classical compositions such as DavidOrr's. However when it comes to my own compositions, it seems that I do best with simplicity. I guess it's because I like admiring the beauty in what are sometimes the most simplest things.

And you have a good ear! (Though that goes without saying by the quality of your singing...) :D Some people didn't even realize that I had an ambient "bell" sound in there until I told them about it and they realized that it was in there helping out with the song. And yes, it's a glockenspiel. I tried using tubular bells, vibraphones, xylophones, and marimbas. But somehow the glockenspiel is the only one that matched what I needed perfectly.

Thank you for the favorite and for the support. I really appreciate it, and I really am glad to hear that my music can be enjoyed by people. I'll be sure to bring more music as it comes and I hope I never disappoint you.

-HFX ^_^

[Kazmo - Urban Train Core RMX]

Holy damn.

It's amazing to hear what you came up with only using FL core sounds. As a general rule, I tend to dislike Tiesto a lot and go on rants about his music. Out of all his albums, I like three tracks. But...with this track? I'm really impressed. I almost forgot it was Tiesto because I was so caught up going "...Kazmo made this using FL core sounds. WHAT." And it takes skill for a remix to make the listener forget about the original composer. ;)

(Oh, and I'll get on that Still Alive rerecord after I finish some schoolwork. I heard the WIP2 you were doing and went "gaaack!" at how different my voice sounded. Each part was recorded at a different stage of my illness (the chorus re-do was done when my higher register was pretty dead), but I'm well and my voice is back now, so I can probably record it all in one sitting either later tonight or tomorrow.)

Keep up the good work. Cheers! :D

Kazmo responds:

Holy damn? That's a first for me. :P

I surprise even myself sometimes! You hate Tiesto? I had no idea!!! I look up to the guy to be honest, but I definitely don't want to be him. :D

Yay you forgot who the original artist was while listening! I'm glad I did that to you ahahah. :3

Thanks for the review! Hope to do more collabs with you. <3

(It's good to hear you'll crack down on the vocals, school is first mind you. Ya, huge difference in vocal quality, I'm guessing you heard that...xD A timeline of your illness you may say. Yay I'm glad you're better!!! Looking forward to the rerecording!)

[So Irresistible Remix =HFX=]

Hmmmm.

Is it just me, or do I hear the melody of Groove Coverage's "Little June"? Which is one of my old favorites. Good song. <3

Anyway. Considering you did this only with FL presets, this isn't half bad. (I had to add a point back on because I realized I was judging too harshly based on my haaaate of presets. XD) I have to say that the cymbal crash felt a bit weird to me, though I'm not sure what could be used in its place-- something a bit more consistent, instead of just accenting the downbeats. Maybe it's just the out-of-place one at 1:39 that's throwing me off. Anyway, keep it up! Congrats on yet another AP front pager! :)

(Oh, and it's spelled "So Irresistible". :P)

Phyrnna responds:

>_< Oh my the spelling. Let me see if I can correct that.
Hahah. You caught it too. I remixed a remix of So Irresistible by DJ Splash. Of course, that person got the melodic line slightly wrong in his remix. It was similar, but different from the original So Irresistible. I remixed that song.
Later... I heard the original. And Little June. And realized it. XD
In my opinion, I love Little June waaaaaaay more than So Irresistible. But thanks for pointing it out nonetheless. Maybe.... I'll do a Little June remix. :3 If only I could find an a capella version of it. T_T
And for listening.
As for that crash, it was intentionally placed on the offbeat before that measure. :P I guess it wasn't a good thing to do? o.O
Thanks for stopping by!

-HFX ^_^
P.S. How's your throat coming along? Feeling any better?

[Dynasty of Destiny - BrixXMich]

Nicely done!

I do like this track. Separately, you're great producers in your own rights (Britt, you're awesome-- we need more female artists on here! who are actually skilled like you, and not just attention-mongering) and it's always interesting to hear what happens when two styles come together.

To be honest, I don't like the synth used in the main melody that starts fading in at 2:37 and comes in full force at 2:54, fading out around 4:01. It's a bit shrill to me, and makes the song less replayable, especially contrasting harshly with the more balanced first half of the song. But I like the rest of the composition. :) Keep it up, both of you! I'd love to hear more.

BrixXMich responds:

Hmm. I'm glad you enjoyed it =)
I am an attention whore too, you know =O But thanks for saying I'm skilled =D
Anyways, I agree with you about that synth. I made that part, and I always use the same synth so I tried something different. Next time I will go to my good friend the 3x Oscillator!
Thanks for the review =)
Brittany

[Mirror's Edge Remix =HFX=]

Lovely!

Thank you for the kind comment on my profile! As such, I decided to take a look at some of the things you were working on, and this immediately caught my eye because it's a track I've been fond of singing in the past few days (well, sort of singing. I have a cold). Oh, the theme gives me shivers. It's got one brilliant trance remix, which is how I first heard of it, but the original is great.

That said, while the sounds you've used in here sound kind of unpolished, the arrangement is beautiful. I think you could expand on it by removing a few layers and going on a solo instrumental for a few measures at the end of this loop, for a contemplative breakdown-- just a pause, as if allowing for a musical reverie.

Keep up the work-- it sounds like you're coming up with quite a bit :)

Phyrnna responds:

Thank you for coming to listen to my songs. Yes, this is actually rather unfinished and still a WIP. I was just writer's blocked at the time and I couldn't continue on it. And it bugged me, so I just submitted it.
As for your suggestions, I was thinking of that too. I was thinking I would take it down that road later. Maybe I'll get back into the .flp file and work it out.
I'll let you know if I ever finish this. I hope I won't disappoint you.

-HFX ^_^

[- Leaving November -]

Unique effort!

I definitely liked the ideas behind this the first time I heard it, and your transition out of the waves by sidechaining it was very creative, if a bit awkward for the first few measures until you toned them down a bit.

The song length doesn't lend itself to being an actual trance song, per se, since it's too long to be a radio edit and doesn't have the structure of a full mix, but it's perfect for what you were going for, I think, and it's an excellent hybrid of electronic music & traditional instrumentation. I don't know what to call it-- and that's a good thing! It doesn't sound like every other song in the NG category.

So I'm not going to critique it as if it were a full-out trance song, because it's different. It's better in its own context, I think, and I really do like the structure. When the base slowly phases back in starting at 3:46, and you added more instrument layers at 4:00 to distinguish it from the earlier section-- that turned out really well. Kudos!

SinJim responds:

Thanks a lot for the review, Lira. I'm glad you enjoyed this.

~SinJim

[Kazmo - Satellite RMX]

Nice effort. :)

As a vocalist and Above & Beyond/Justine Suissa addict, I was very interested in hearing this remix. The reviews got me hyped.

...A bit too hyped. I was expecting more from the remix. It's a lovely track, but it doesn't have enough depth to support Justine Suissa's vocals. When I listen to a remix, I wonder if it would be able to stand alone without the vocals. I'd say no to this one.

The intro was solid; the light three-note harp-like sound was nice. But I expected a greater buildup and more creativity after that. The melodic phrase that you used in the breakdowns seemed a little tonally awkward. Phasing the vocals in abruptly, like at 2:30, was a bit unpolished. Some of the sounds used were unoriginal-- I was reminded of late '90s trance. I would have liked to hear you do more with the phrase that began at 4:34, though it was not honestly timed well-- syncopated or off-beat tracks should still feel like they go very well with the overall beat.

But I think you still have potential; I liked the first 1:30 of the song. I was disappointed that there wasn't more to go from. Keep at it! :)

Kazmo responds:

I'm sorry you weren't satisfied with this remix. :/

"I wonder if it would be able to stand alone without the vocals. I'd say no to this one." Do you mean if I took out the vocals, it would sound bad? I'd have to agree ahahah, since the vocals are what keep it all together, but aren't all vocal trance tracks like that?

If you didn't notice, the song is constantly building, adding little bits of stuff like rhythm, pads in the background, and it builds all the way to the new melody at 4:07. The build subtle, that's how I wanted to have it for this song, because it has a very mellow feel.

"Tonally awkward"..."unpolished"...I'd like you to embellish what you mean, for I can't quite understand what message you're trying to convey. Some of my sounds are unoriginal? I make all my sounds from scratch using 3xOsc, except for piano. :] It probably reminds you of '90s trance because I grew up (as well as a lot of other people on NG) in the '90s and it has probably influenced me a bit.

As for the phrase at 4:34, I thought that would make a great outro part, and it honestly can't be any better timed/syncopated, since it's not recorded live, and if it was, it's quantized perfectly, I don't overlook things such as timing when I make my music.

I'll keep at it. I promise.

Thanks for the in-depth review/critique!