Animith's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Epic Winds]

Interesting title

The first twelve seconds felt a little messy--I think the effect you were going for was deliberate, and it almost works, but doesn't quite. But that might just be me.

I like the melody, it's nice and clear. The string entry at 0:45ish was very good, but the change at 0:56 was too abrupt in my head. It felt like the track had skipped thirty seconds of transition or something. But then it went back to the original idea about a minute later....I don't know what to say, the middle section felt too random.

The synth you add into the piano and strings is a good touch, it's not piercing or overtly invasive of the melody. Though I wish the very end note didn't have the bass or drums added to it.

I think you've got a lot of good ideas here, and you obviously have a good grasp of how to write something very interesting to listen to. The middle bit threw me a little, but in general this was a really good effort.

codbarley responds:

Wow i wish i got reviews like this for all my songs! :) you should listen to my others.

[Hyann Library]

Very mysterious.

As you're already aware of it I won't spend an age griping about it, but I agree with you about the harp sound.

The tempo is fine, it probably is that you've heard this a lot of times.

The section that has just the bass and harp does begin to feel too sparse after a while, even with the second harp line added in. Though the entry of the instruments at 2:04 is brilliant, I wish the harp would drop an octave or something, it gets a little too piercing at the higher parts and I'm not convinced it's just the sound.
2:59 is sublime; I wish there was more of a buildup than a timpani roll, though, because the string passage is very emotionally written. But the really high strings could probably use being played an octave lower as well, just to give it even more of a lush thickness.

How everything drops out save the one instrument at 3:54ish is very nice, though having a little more reverb on the instruments being removed would have been nice just to make it seem less abrupt.

After that attempt at critique--I think you've got some very good ideas here; I love your melody and harmony work and your general skills at arranging the instruments. The flute solo does also work very well, if I haven't mentioned that already. I could see this working very well in a ominous setting in an RPG. Two off of ten, simply to try and encourage you to fix that harp sound, which is the one thing that threw me off majorly in this piece. Very nice work, overall.

Mirak responds:

Thank you SOOOOO much for your critique.

I do understand how the harp really affects the overall feeling, so i'm going to try to change it for another instrument, seeing as the harp has been present in most in-depth critiques such as this i believe the part could do better with something like a concert piano instead of harp.

I'm going to try and fix some of the things that went wrong, and then i'll change files.

EDIT: I updated it, this time with piano. Enjoy. :D

[Renaissance Ricecar for 3Winds]

Why the low score?

I really don't understand why this is gaining such a low score. Looks like you've been hit by a few 0-bombers, really. And undeservedly so.

Anyway--this is a really well put-together piece. You've utilised the instruments well, I like the way the melodies combine together; it grows into a very mysterious and enchanting piece, and stays so until the end.

Really can't comprehend the low score it has garnered so far, I can find no fault in this. Very nicely done, you should be proud.

kentokhromatic responds:

Thanks! I'm a little surprised at how low the ranking is as well, but I think it just might be that this place isn't very good for posting classical music, especially pre-Romantic era or non-symphonic music. I think renaissance music especially tends to be very far from popular modern music aesthetics, since it's very contrapuntal/there are many things going on, and the distinction between melody and accompaniment is blurred.

[Arenadd's First Flight]

Nicely done

The first twenty seconds or so with just the brass sounds seemed a little too sparse to me, but how it changes at 0:20 more than makes up for it.
The strings there are really nice, you really get a feeling of a change of pace, as if something is really taking flight.
The piano and strings is also very well done, but when the (I want to say woodwind?) comes in at 1:30ish, I'm thrown off a bit, but when the strings and brass get louder and overtake that a bit more, I can see the effect you were going for, and it does work!
Nice ending, too.
All in all, it was very enjoyable to listen to. 5/5, 10/10.

[Shadows of Faith]

Awesome.

It develops very nicely at the start, I love the way you've used the strings and the choir sound; not to mention the drum is just loud enough to be present and not overpowering.
The choir from 1:07 to 1:37 is sublime, gets even more so by the 1:40 mark with the strings. Very nice harmonies, there.
The strings feel too abruptly stopped at 2:32, but the solo around is is very excellently written, not to mention how the choir comes back in again. You really know how to work the instruments you're using to their fullest extent, it has to be said.
The instruments cutting out at 4:10 was a little off-putting, but the change to the majorkey was a nice touch. Really good work, overall.

[Blue Fuzion - The Pianist]

Nice effort

Agreed with the person below, this could do with being turned down a little, a lot of the sounds are clipping in my headphones.
What was the sound at 0:33? Sounded like an explosion? Was it meant to be?

I liked it in general, though some of the notes of the strings seemed a little random at points, and the drums sometimes overpowering. But as a general concept, you've got some really good ideas here. Just needs a little fine-tuning, is all. Good work, though.

[In Darkness We Fall]

Epic title.

Very thematic, as people have said.
I only have one minor gripe--the percussion, while awesome, could stand to be a little less muddy.
Apart from that, it's a pretty emphatic piece and builds up well. I like the way you used the different instruments, especially the choir sounds. Very nicely done. [/late comment] ^^

[The Last Preparations]

Very cool title.

As people have said, not very classical. xD
If you're not sure what genre your song fits to, you can always try miscellaneous.

But that aside--I do like the way it builds up. The melody at 1:25 is very nice. The quality of the drums gets a little irksome at points, as does the way the accompaniment gets no quieter when the melody does at the end...but apart from that, it's a pretty solid effort, there are a lot of good ideas. Definite Terminator vibes.

[Dream Sequencing]

Excellent

Very good indeed. The drums are at the right level so you're not straining to hear them, and they're not cutting the other instruments apart, and everything else is at pretty much the right level.
As has been said, could see this in a sad flash, or at the end of any flash, really. It's extremely well put together. I love the piano melody and harmony, especially at the end. Makes it seem very light and emotional. The last minute or so is sublime.
Really good work, you should be proud.

[[MC] Into the Dark (Full)]

Verk dark indeed.

I think the introduction might have been a little too long, but it did fit the "dark" idea very well. I love the way the instruments build up into a cohesive melody and harmony; the intermittent silences are also very powerful in themselves.
The emotion at 2:30 is beautiful in its simplicity.
the dissonance at 3:30 was unexpected, but worked nonetheless.
The ones after the 4 minute mark were perhaps a little too dissonant, but that may down to personal preference more than anything, and the harmonies at 4:30 more than make up for it; very emotional, there.
All in all, quite a good effort. I think some fine-tuning work and shortening it a little wouldn't harm you too much, but then again it does mirror the idea quite well. Good job, overall.