skyood's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[TJFish - TenTaTive]

Ok, honest feedback from an "old" man who's been playing music for a loooong time. Music means putting yourself out there which can be hard, but part of growing and improving as a musician is listening to constructive criticism and using it as a tool to improve. That is my intention here, to help you improve.

What it sounds like to me is that you found some cool sounds and loops you really liked and are playing them almost at random. At least the ones you chose fit well together, so that's a good thing. But if you want to make appealing music you're missing basics like a melody, chord structure, recognizeable tempo, etc.

Your profile just says "a kid," so I don't know how old you are which would make a huge difference if you're really young ... But here is my advice: 1. Don't quit. Don't let anything discourage you. Your heart is in the right place. Clearly you love making music; keep doing it, keep putting it out there. 2. Learn everything you can-- your head needs to catch up to your heart and your ears. Pay close attention to what exactly it is that you like about your favorite songs (you won't be able to put it into words at first, that's ok). Start learning about music theory, check out musictheory.net for example. Learn to play an instrument, take lessons from a trained teacher if you can afford it, etc. Piano is probably best because it will give you a foundation for other music/instruments, too. Go after learning about music with just as much passion and excitement as you have with listening to and making music and a year from now you'll be shocked at how much you've improved.

TJFish responds:

How about this? https://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/879420?updated=1566601965

[Cosmonautilus]

4.5 Just because I felt like the piano only section at the beginning could be half as long, imo, for this to be relatively stand alone; I was starting to get bored before the rest of it kicked in ... and then it was all ear candy after that. Aaaah. Of course it would very much depend on how this was being used, and the lack of a real ending leads me to believe you'd expecting to adjust the length etc to whatever actual purpose it might be used for.

[Mystical Mountain]

I can't say that I've listened to a majority of NG tracks or anything, but what I have heard ... I think this is the best orchestral piece I've heard on NG by some distance. Maybe it's just bias because I've heard you most recently, I don't know. But you're blowing me away, dude. I think you have a serious career ahead of you-- don't give up man.

[Ode to the Reader]

I give 5/5 when I can think of any negatives to point out. And I can't. I hear what the judges are saying about randomness and lack of complexity ... but I think that's a bit hogwash in both cases. Complexity for the sake of showing "Ooh look, I can put in a diminished 13th and get away with it!" doesn't necessarily add anything to a musical piece (sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. For the sake of the competition, that's potentially another thing, but my original statement stands. And who cares about winning competitions? It's all about making good music, right? ... Right? :P). I think the sudden rapid-fire transitions (or lack of transitions) also fit in with the often frantic feeling of the piece, and ditto for the abrupt ending. If anything, the nice beginning doesn't fit with the rest of the piece, but there you moved us there gradually at first, so it's fine.

There can be such a thing as a soundtrack piece without there being an actual thing that is being set to music (composers have done it for centuries before movies existed), and I think that's what you have here. And that it is very good.

[Coin and Haggle]

Dude ... just ... dude. This belongs in a game. Like, yesterday. The little effects (coins dropping, etc) add a really cool ambience, and overall just a beautifully written, mixed, performed, everything little tune. Very very nicely done.

MichaelJ responds:

Thank you, skyood. I'm really happy to hear that. I'm glad you liked it!

[Call from Somewhere]

Me likey, again. I think it's another section/variation away from a feeling "done," but I imagine you know that. A good example of what you can do in 30 secs or so. Just well constructed and clean. Very nice.

Rexyrex responds:

Thanks :) I actually made this one a long time ago, just found it on my harddrive recently :P
I totally agree with you that it doesn't sound finished

[Picnic on the Beach]

Again, perfect fit as a video game song. You've got this style (that to me reminds me of Tetris Attack) really nailed. As for room to grow, I'm not in love with the loop point. I think it's because toward the end it's already been winding down for a bit, so that when combined with the beginning it's just a little too much sameness in a row (which you otherwise do a great job of managing - see: my comments on "Exciting Summer Day")... or maybe that the kind of "stuttering" beat/feel you have going on doesn't link up well between the end and the beginning. Can't put my finger on it precisely. But again, you really have this particular little sub-genre/feel really nailed. Sounds great!

Rexyrex responds:

Thanks for your detailed review!
I sure will look into the loop point and see what I can do to improve.
I'm really new to making video game music and it's really nice to hear you think it sounds suitable :D

[Exciting Summer Day]

You get the rare full 5/5 out of me that I give out when I can't think of anything negative to say. This would fit great into a game, and "exciting summer day" describes the mood well. I think you have just the right amount of movement/changes/development happening that the music doesn't get boring but not so much that is calls attention to itself to the possible detriment of the game it's set to. Great work.

Rexyrex responds:

Hey thanks a lot for the review!
It's flattering to have been given the rare 5/5 :P

[Skyline]

Love the strings, love the lyrical creativity, and you have a great voice, man. My (hopefully constructive!) feedback would be that the piano part hitting the chords the way they do ... it adds like a choppiness to an otherwise smoothly-flowing song. Maybe that's what you're going for, and maybe it wouldn't be as much of an issue if it weren't as muddy (see: Divo's comment), but to my ear it stuck out and not in a particularly good way. But overall man, it sounds great! I'm really impressed with the writing from both a musical and lyrics perspective.

Wolftacular responds:

Yeah, my poor excuse for mixing skills always gets in the way somehow. I was also in a huge rush to get this done because of the deadline. I only had a couple days to work because I moved out of the state. Anyway, either way, I'll look into the piano stuff to see if I can catch what you're referring to. I'm almost convinced it's just the mixing though, since it sounded well enough alone. Thanks a bunch for listening and reviewing!

[Mechanical Anima]

Quickie: Reminds me of certain areas/scenes in Final Fantasy III (My wife said the same). Which, by the way is the game that probably has the most memorable music to me. So that is a good thing. Very "automaton"-ish. Vurry vurry good.

steampianist responds:

now that you mention it does remind me of a bit of FF 3. Oh and thank you for listening happy to know that both of you like it