RyeGuyHead's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Dreamland]

A very appropriate title with that opening. It is lofty and adrift, and the underlying swells add a great sense of foreboding which is capitalized by that delayed bass edging in the drums.

The beat was a little underwhelming after that intro (probably says more about the intro than anything else). Maybe tweaking the snare down a few semitones might do the trick. It is otherwise a very full sound, especially when the two lead synths are working with each other.

The (keyboard?) melody at 2:15 was overpowered by all the reverb and bass. I'd be interested to hear how an acoustic piano would sound here instead...it would add some more punch to the attack, and you'd be able to really lean into all that sweet, sweet reverb.

The breakdown before the 2nd half was executed well. The tom / snare hits sound great together. The keyboard solo reaffirms my belief that this should be on an acoustic piano :) I like the synth hits at the 4:14 mark, but you can barely hear them.

Overall, it's a solid track that sets a great tone and is arranged well. Some minor adjustments on the mix are needed (imo), but that should be expected when you've only spent 4 days on it. Some of my favorite songs are the ones that seem like they've been just waiting to get out.

Nice work!

Mechanical-Head responds:

To clarify, the keyboard at 2:15 was made with Dexed, and with one of the e. piano presets from the original cartridges. I definitely should've spent more time equalizing it, or used an acoustic piano instead :P. The more i hear it, the more mistakes i hear in the mixing of other synths and even the drums, but I guess I'll leave them as is, for posterity sake hehe.

[Melancholy]

Apt title, I feel it.

The keyboards are a great foundation, and all of the background ambience (rain/scratches/phone?) work wonders. The sparsity of the strings is somewhat bold, like...I want to know a percentage of how often they're playing in the overall song. The detune on the main synth adds to the off-color atmosphere, and I like how the melody doesn't do too much either (works with the mood). The drums are forceful yet playful at the same time, a nice mix of jazz and hip hop.

Great stuff.

CRSNT responds:

Thank you so much! The strings are only in the last part of the bar as a transition. I was thinking of getting a vocalist on this track so keep an eye out for that! Think Sophie Meiers...

[Exoplanet]

Sick build up, the panning on the bass and the heavy reverb on the vocal hits / crashes creates a really nice atmosphere. I like the vocal part here, but sorta wish it was an octave lower (or was doubled up with a lower part) all the way through the eq sweep before the drop.

Main part is solid. 8-bit lead has some crunchy goodness, and the vocals work really well here.

I liked the heavy reverse effect around the 2 minute mark, but it is overwhelming in the lower mix. I thought the attack was a little behind when the string pad first came in, but it eventually blended in nicely.

Good work bringing the main part back. Those high synths at the end could probably be more prominently featured

Fade out was dope. You definitely have a catchy, nicely produced tune here. Solid stuff.

GameBalance responds:

It's hard for me to predict how the stuff will sound around and how right it would be for side listener. Hope I can get more experience.
Oh and if by reverse effect you mean that melodic sound like that coming from fade in(it also plays in the outro). Then it's the best thing where it is possible to hear the feature of the cross distorting sound. All those sounds that play in the melody(except for bass that playing on main beat, and strings) are like distorting each other.

[A Battle Story]

haven't heard the drums come in yet, but timpani would sound excellent...

oh there it is :D

Thinking a plucked Japanese instrument (like a koto or shamisen) would fit in just about anywhere in this number, and you could play them off the drums nicely since they are somewhat percussive themselves.

this has an awesome feel to it already though, good stuff.

[School Shooter Chic]

super fuckin heavy

yea the bass drums could maybe thud a bit more (turn down the level and up the low eq?), but the patterns are on point. The higher parts that come in around the 1 minute part should probably come forward a bit more in the mix (it's better later on in the track). Nice use of effects, and the breakdown at 1:30 was quite refreshing. found myself nodding my head along for sure, was ready to jump into a mosh pit around the 2 minute mark.

there's tons of variation in this, but it all seems to fit in together...and bringing back a main riff from time to time is going to allow me to get at least part of this stuck in my head. good shit

hoorayjay responds:

I know this is late but thank you my duder. Check out my newest track if you're keen on this.

[Moonburst]

thanks for (sorta) reviewing my latest, here's your return favor.

(beginning - 0:20) - nice fade in, but bass is a little overpowered during the low end of the filter sweeps

(0:21 - 0:42) - nice way to bring back the theme from the intro. good bouncy beat, but i feel like the snare could have packed some more punch. synths worked together nicely.

(0:42 - 0:45) - not a fan of this transition, needs more leading into the dropoff or I'd flow right into the next part

(0:45 - 1:06) - cool synth part here with the delayed attack, but it does peak a bit before the beat pops back in. rhythm synth has a good build to bring back the main theme.

(1:07 - 1:49) all the parts come together here pretty well. It does start to drag on a bit, could use some parameter tweaks on the synths here to have them play off each other better. could easily work as a video game theme

(1:50 - end) - piano part is ok, but it doesn't fit in at all with the rest of the song...maybe have it start off with it instead?

pretty good work here. melody is catchy and all the parts of the song all have merit. needs more fluidity in the transitions and dynamics throughout to keep it rolling. I'm trying to be constructive here, so try not to take it too personally...

Snikio responds:

OMG Thank you very much!!!~!
I really appreciated your feedback :)

[Pixel Heart]

A review, for you.

It is a fairly campy melody, and it really doesn't fit with the sounds used...maybe you could play off the countering the cheery (almost romantic) tune with a discordant lead synth as, like, a social commentary on something...woah, deep. Seriously, though, this would sound a little more appropriate with classical string instruments.

I think switching up the drumbeat around 15 second mark would keep the momentum going more. I like the wiry synth that comes in the next part, especially when it is paired with the square pads...there's a nice balance. The 2nd half does drag a bit, not quite enough variation. I don't think it necessarily needs more instrumentation, but maybe try bringing in the pads and stuff earlier after the break, or even switching up which instrument plays the lead..

Overall, it's ok. There's decent structure and melodic components, but the clash of sound / melody is not mixed with enough variation to rate this thing higher. Keep it up though!

Should probably upload it as a loop :D

ScottJacob responds:

I couldn't ask for better feedback than this, thank you for taking the extra time for some creative criticism. Cheers!

[AFO Demo OST]

Oh funk...that's nasty. Thanks for getting back and reminding me of this gem.

[[TFC] - Norpilor]

Very dark, at times reminiscent of Mr. Crowley.

The pulsating beat was starting to get too much, but the break around the 3 minute mark was a nice touch. I liked how the bass faded out, actually sounded like it was getting farther away with that reverb.

Really digging the lead that comes in after that part too. I feel like it did get a little empty when the pad dropped, though. Good stuff.

[CTSG4: Anniversary Edition]

First off, hats off to everyone involved; The turn-around time for this project sort of blew me away. Everyone was eager to participate, and I think it shows in the final product.

If you want some more details on what each segment represents, you can check out the original thread here: http://www.newgrounds.com/bbs/topic/1383562/1

If you don't feel like reading through all that (lazy asses), each 15 second clip signifies a different year and genre - from the site's origins to present day. There's also an animation being built to go along with this audio featuring some of the flash portal's most prominent artists (http://www.newgrounds.com/bbs/topic/1388594/1).

Now to address the little tiff below...

I've been contributing audio to Newgrounds for over a decade, but the ONLY reason I'm a part of this collab is because I was lucky enough to stumble upon the topic before all the spots were filled. Moral of the story: Be active in the forums!