dragonknighttara's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[The Anderson Tapes]

Creepy!

This is really a great script and the execution of it was quite good. Mixing sounded excellent, particularly the ghosts at the end and other subtle nuances added. My only comments for improvement would be first to say that I think Xerrat could have been a little more dynamic or extreme in his emotions, in the sense that a lot of his delivery had a similar voice quality to it and he sounded very calm during some intense lines. To his credit, he really picked up on the emotion a lot more in the end, but I would have liked to see more from the beginning. Also, a few of the lines were difficult to make out at the beginning when the Detective first began speaking, but it cleared up fairly quickly - I'm not sure if this was mixing or simply the actor's delivery.
That aside, this is a great project and showed some awesome talent all around. Great job!

Eisaysek responds:

Glad you liked it. Check back in a while. We (me and strength-in-virtue) are going to make a half-hour epic spin-off of this.

[True Love [Final Version]]

Well...

The sound to this is very lovely (except for the warble in playing on the off beats - sounds like woodwind effects being cut off too quickly) and I love the instrumentation. But it's really a difficult piece to listen to as it never really seems to go anywhere distinguishable. It sounds like you know alot about composition and I would LOVE to hear this right way through to help me make a better comparison and this is an interesting idea (Rachmoninoff's 18th variation on Paganini's theme is pwnage :D) but this piece hasn't really struck me as anything truly spectacular yet. Keep up the work all the same!

3/5, 7/10

Conal responds:

mmk!

Thankyou for your review!

[Classical Tears version 2]

Good start

Not bad, the bass could be lighter though as it's too driving for the softer type of piece you seem to be going for. You only hit the low chords like that if you're playing beneath a full band, you don't need the power as a solo instrument. The melody isn't too bad either, but it's a little aimless (which may be what you're going for) so it's kind of hard to evaluate in that concern. One way to maybe improve further is to make some more interesting chord choices, and add some surprise sounds now and again to keep your listener interested even if the melody doesn't have an exact direction they can follow.

Hope that can help! 7/10, 3/5

DJFilteredFantasy responds:

It's definitely supposed to be aimless. Like what you feel after you've lost someone you love. The chords are meant to be kind of the force that pulls the song along, but i know what you are saying. The song is meant to be like a person wandering, maybe through the streets after a city has been wiped out. going through their stuff, it's supposed to be familiar, but saddening. Then near the end you find another person maybe. Then walk off together. I guess....that's just the feeling i get from the song...

[{Heim} Nightfall]

Gorgeous..

The beauty of this piece truly lies in the subtlety of the orchestration and emotion. Everything you wrote fits together so beautifully and the result is a rich, elegant sound that you listen to for hours on end and never get tired of. The dynamic extremes you've presented are very fitting and the hints of melody that are interwoven shine beautifully. I cannot wait to hear the third piece of this suite! Full marks - 10/10, 5/5

JeffHeim responds:

Thank you for all your feedback, I'm glad you liked it!

Originally I hadn't planned on making a 2nd or 3rd movement, but in the beginning stages of writing "A Storm in the Night" (now the 2nd movement of the suite), an inspiration hit me where I decided this MUST be a 3-piece suite! I just couldn't end it...the Sun's gotta come up again! The 3rd movement will be done within a week or two, but in the meantime enjoy the music!

[{Heim} A Storm in the Night]

Perfect!

This is a wonderful piece - the imagery fits so well and the instrumentation and progressions are so perfect. I love the bits of snare, guitar and bells in the middle section and the piano makes for a perfect touch in the midst of the other instruments. I can find nothing to comment wrong with this - your mix is great as well, and this almost vaguely reminds me of a piano concerto - sort of a mix between the Beethoven Moonlight Sonata and the Shostakovich piano concerto #2. Awesome job! 10/10 5/5

JeffHeim responds:

I love Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, the beginning piano texture does have some similar qualities to the Moonlight Sonata (except this is much faster). I'll have to listen to Shostakovich's piano concerto #2. Thanks for the feedback!

[*Memories*]

Needs different instrumentation

Not a idea, but your instrumentation is just a little too weird for my tastes. The harpsichord is rather rough and some of the synth really clashes with the sound I think you're trying to get at. Keep trying though! 5/10

3piecejimmy responds:

much thanks for the input, i get wat u mean. the harpsichord does kinda stick out so to speak. lol

[Gothic Lullaby]

Very nice

This could be a really pretty piece but the midi piano does not do it justice at all. The bass is too harsh for the high notes and drowns out the melody. If possible, I would definitely recommend you get a live recording of this. Actually, if you have the sheet music and are interested, I may be able to help you out there.
The melody is very pretty however, and this definitely shows a lot of promise. 7/10

Gheninae responds:

I might actually take you up on that offer! While no sheet music exists for it right now, it wouldn't take much to transcribe it. (it's all in C XD)

[The Shadows of Loneliness]

Pretty

The music is very pretty and haunting - easy to listen to. Some of your themes, particular the one from 1:18 - 2:50 are quite charming, though many of your chord progressions are repeated probably a bit too much. They are a little too predictable a lot of the time, but now and again you throw in a nice chord that keeps it interesting and definitely improves the quality.

Personally, I would shorten the piece a bit, as it is very long and does loose momentum with some of the parts, but overall the lyrical tone and imagery is extremely good.

Good work! 8/10

Jabicho responds:

Thanks for the great review man!

hehe yeah, I found it kind of repetitive too, but I think it's because i joined four pieces together (each piece had to be at least 1 min), thanks for saying the changes keep it interesting and improves the piece quality.

Thanks for the support! it means a lot

[-{EP}- A New Beggining]

Needs a bit more to it.

Not bad, but it's a little mindless and could use a few more interesting progressions to add some distinction. Could also use a bit more direction, but otherwise it's pretty good.

ErikPaladin responds:

I think it's a little bit empty at some parts, but I'm trying to improve it already. Thnx for the review.

[Turning Of The Tide]

Beautiful Imagery

This is an excellent piece as far as imagery goes - it makes for wonderful background music and would well set up the scene of an epic battle of sorts. I still think it could use a little more layering, rather than string chord progressions making up the bulk of the work, but in and of itself it still is good. The harmonies are lovely though and I love the flute at the end (I wish my recorders would record so nicely) Even the guitar blends in well. Definitely shows a lot of promise - keep up the good work and ignore unhelpful flamers who say otherwise ;)

Rottenbeard responds:

Thanks for the constructive criticism. I did originally experiment with more layering in the song but I just couldn't get it to sound right so eventually ended up giving up on the idea. At one point I even had soft guitar solos going through much of the piece over top the synth but it just wouldn't sit in the mix properly.

I also need to work within a 2 gb memory budget since FL Studio won't address more than that. This song hit 1.6 gb in samples so I was nearing the edge of what I could physically do with it.

If you're curious, the flute was recorded using a matched pair of Apex 185 mics in a stereo configuration. Nothing fancy! They're lower end home studio condenser mics but they sound fantastic. Paid $165 for the kit, with shock mounts, hardhsell case, omni and cardioid capsules and wind filters. Not a bad price!

Thanks for the feedback.

Regards,
Daniel