Animith's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[War Is Near (unfinished)]

So...this was awesome.

Seeming as everyone else has said this is fine as it is, I'm going to listen to it as if it's a finished piece.

Nice start; it's simple, but you can tell it's going to build up into something huge.
The staccato cellos (I think?) at 0:23 are nicely done, just giving it that extra edge of pace.
The sudden buildup at 0:45 is again, very well done. Simple but epic melody, nice underlying chords.
The part around 1:10 where it kind of goes to build up into something huge again, before dropping down to almost nothing is possibly my favourite part. Because it builds the anticipation like nothing else.
The ending is abrupt, but fittingly so.

If this is the UNFINISHED version? I'd hate to see what kind of mastery you come up with when you think it's done. I think you're possibly being too critical of your own work; you can't think of what to do because there's nothing else to be done. You could easily leave it as it is. I refer to your average scores to lend a credence to this. Very nicely done.

AudioVision responds:

Well damn now I might leave the thing as is! Thanks for the review!
And yes, staccato cellos.

[The Reason For Living Preview]

Powerful

Nice opening chords. Though I have to agree with Gravey, the arpeggiating strings could probably use some work. Not only does it seem to be highlighting some odd notes, but I think in general it's just a little too loud. Given how their range is generally much higher than everything else playing at the time, it could probably stand to be a little quieter.
Though in saying that, the ones that come in at 0:44 work very well. VERY well. At 1:25 now and I the one fault I can find is with the arpeggiating strings. The piano and brass entries are very nice, very powerful. Especially at the 1:50 mark, where everything kind of culminates.
The build-up is nice and structured, in general it's got a lot of promise. Even if this is a WIP, it almost works as a loop by itself.
It's got the promise of a beautifully majestic air, I'd be really interested to see how this sounds once you're done with it. Nice effort, overall. 7/10, 4/5.

Theledge93 responds:

well, when i get the final product out, i'll definitely let you know my friend.

[Flying with the Wind]

Nicely done.

Reviewing as I go:
The subtle entrance of the strings at 0:13 is awesome. I almost wish the piano in this section was a little quieter, but then again the emotive power of it is quite effective.
At the 0:35 mark, the lower notes I think could use being a little quieter, just to emphasise the absence of the strings a little more.
I love the semi-absence of the strings in general. Insofar as even when they're playing, you can barely hear them; as if they're an echo themselves. Given this is meant to symbolise wind, it works very well.
1:06 is genius. The fluidity of the next minute also works well, especially given the subject matter.

The final chord could probably be fine without the strings added in. Simply because the echo on the strings at around 2:55-2:58 seems a little unnatural, Which is a shame, because the piece in general is very good. It's got a great air of melancholy. The piano sound is a little harsh at times, but apart from that I can't fault this. Looking forward to hearing the next two pieces from this, definitely.

Jabicho responds:

Thanks so much for taking the time to review my piece, it means a lot to me, and i can't thank you enough. Loved reading your comment, and it helps a lot to improve, thanks again!

I made a mistake while I wrote the info about the piece, hehe, this is already the second piece, you can find the other one called "Dwelling at the Bottom of the Ocean" at my audio page, and I'll submit the third one tomorrow =) i'll let you know when it's uploaded, take care!

[NG Orchestration 09]

Highly emphatic.

Really like the start. I like the way you've not hurtled straight into playing the theme all the way through, and have rather taken the first part and developed the piece into something bigger than the theme itself.
The descending notes in the harmony were very well done; as a person below put, it creates quite a calming atmosphere, and the way you bring all the instruments in at around 0:16-0:26 was very nice. The first drum roll could have been louder, but the quiet after it was very emphatic.

What can be said about the buildup at 0:40-0:52...loved the guitar, just gave it even more of a tense aggression to it. This is one of the more rhythmic and intense competition entries I've heard for this contest, so far.

The strings at 1:30 were very energetic, the way you bring them into the theme also at 1:50 felt very romantic and epic. From 1:16 onwards, it really reminded me of the sort of music you'd hear in a movie trailer for something like the Dark Knight, which is odd because I've gotten Pirates of the Carribbean vibes from a fair few of the other pieces.

The ending is insane, in the good way. The cymbals at the 2:35 point could have been a little less frequent, but the break just after it, before the drums/double bass was again, very tense.
The ebbs and flow of instrumentation and dynamic were on point, it was a very engrossing and emotionally intense piece to listen to. Excellent work.

PGegen responds:

Thanks for the lengthy review. I'm glad you thought it sounded trailer-ish, since that was part of the vibe I was going for.

PGegen

[Spooky Tune]

Welcome to the AP

I like the melody, it is very spooky especially for a first submission. Not so sure about the instrument choice, to be picky.
Don't get me wrong, I think you're a pretty good singer, but I think doing a creepy tune with "noo-ne-noo"s is a bit of a mistake. I think adding lyrics and/or finding another way to sing/play this would not go amiss as an idea. But in general, I think you've got a pretty cool tune here, nicely done.

Jtec responds:

Thanks, I Will use that advice if I enter another submission!
Thanks!

[Ancient Discoveries]

Nicely done.

Not totally sure about the Harry Potter part of the characterisation, but I can really get the Mountain King idea of this. Definite Grieg vibes, throughout.

Not totally sure about the sound of the drum roll at 0:15, that could have standed to be a little more subtle. But that asides, the rest of the percussion in the 0:20-0:48 area and continuing further create an even more ominous feel accompanying the strings. Very nice stringwork, by the way; the melody is very clear, but haunting at the same time, and you use the pizzicato to tremendous effect.

The acceleration reminded me a lot of Grieg again, it was very well done. Melodically, the strings before 2:40 where the main tune comes in again were again, very haunting, but with an added tension to them, also.

The ending was also very good, I liked the abrupt silence before the final chord. Though the cello (I think) which bows the two notes at 3:40 doesn't seem quite right, sound-wise. Maybe because the dynamic of the instrument is negligible just before it, and then it just abruptly comes in with these two notes...I don't know why it isn't sitting right in my head, to be honest, which is a sure sign that I've just listened to the ending too many times.

Anyway: Evidently you've dived into Kontakt like a fish to water and it's achieved a very successful piece. I'd be interested to see what you'd accomplish once you know the software a little better. Excellent work.

SantaBro responds:

Heh, that characterisation was something I heard from a couple of buds who listened to it, I'm not sure where potter comes in either. I now realize I may have been subconsciously influenced by Grieg when I made this, I just went and listened to Mountain King again- the accelerando, lots of pizzicato, there is also a rhythmic figure in it that is very similar to the figure played by the pizz. cello in this piece.

Thanks for the great review and advice! I'm very glad you approve of it, I am in fact quite proud of this one. I'm really looking forward to get into Kontakt, this is mostly meddling with presets :)

[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