MetalRenard's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[<EagleGuard> Nemesis]

You've captured an epic feeling, good stuff. You get the stars because I like the composition. :)

On the critique side: To be honest, I think you would have been better off with a synth for the lead since the guitar is very unconvincing, especially to someone who's played guitar half their life like myself. The low mids are muddy which make it hard to understand the chords and rhythm guitar, try cutting the bass away above 300hz and cut the guitar away below 200 to 250hz to improve clarity.

EagleGuard responds:

Thanks for the review, MetalRenard! I'm glad you liked the piece as a whole!

Your advice is really good, and other guitarists I know have indeed also mentioned that my guitar "solos" sound a bit too artificial. I hope to get an actual electric guitar in the future, so that I may get a better feel of what is realistically possible for such guitar parts.

Mixing has always been a bit of a struggle for me, so those suggestions are always welcome, thanks!

[Colours]

Cool track! Very happy/joyful.
About the mix, it's actually pretty bottom and top heavy at the same time, the high mids are almost non-present. The chime is hurting my ears in the highs and the bass is over powering in the lows (though the compression was done well to make the kick drum stand out).

DuttonsaysHi responds:

Thanks!

Yeah the mix isn't the best with this one and it wouldn't be the first time that somebody mentioned piercing high ends with some of my stuff :P. Thing is I have a problem with my left ear not being as good as my right, so it isn't as piercing to me, but it shouldn't be as apparent once I get it fixed.

But yeah the mix seems to be the main issue here. I guess with a lack of mid-range instruments the leads and bass are competing for dominance. I'll try and avoid that next time :P thanks!

[Acoustic Video Game loop]

That's some pretty messy production there mate. The bass is all over the place frequency wise, the drums are flat and dead, everything is mono...
I'm mentioning it because you did in the description.

You should try panning the high instruments a bit and using some EQ to fix frequency clashes. Kick drums should sit below 100hz and bass should ideally be cut away below 100hz and not be too present above 300hz. That should get you started on cleaning up this mix.

Glammetaldude responds:

ahh thank you dude! I pretty much have no idea where to start with bass i tried the best i could by cutting the mid and boosting the bass and highs but i really have no idea what to do with bass for this kind of music. Thanks for the advice man I will upload another anyway, was thinking of looping the guitar track so its more dead on aswell.

[GM - Zombies Nearby]

Seriously bad-ass.

InYourDreams responds:

Thanx! :D

[IYD - Embrace Temptation]

That main riff after the intro is awesome! The beat threw me off at first but after I counted it out a few time in my head it made sense (I wouldn't call it djent since djent is a sound, not a genre and this sounds like heavy metal). You have a cool guitar tone too even if it could do with a decent mix. I enjoyed it!

InYourDreams responds:

Thank you sir! :D... I didn't call it djent... djent is just one of the tags, like temptation ^^. I put djent there, cause there are some djenty guitar sounds on this song.

[Test one's limits]

Well the notes themselves aren't off but your bass is out of tune! :)
I like the concept of this song, it reminds me of the first Terminator soundtrack (that was also done on the cheap, in mono even!) and I think that with time you will be able to elaborate on this and make something decent.

NightMayers responds:

Thanks a lot. I wanted to give the feel of that "danger you knew was coming" I do hope to redo this since it was only a halfassed attempt. Please look forward to my work in this upcoming year!!

[An Augmented Infiltration]

Leaps and bounds mate, leaps and bounds!

Neon-Bard responds:

Thanks man, I hope I keep making leaps and bounds. Thanks for the support!

[Wet Grass]

It's a shame about the sound quality in general, especiall the violin that is covered up, but great work! I really enjoyed it.

MilkyChocolate responds:

The sound quality is where I wanted to be for this sound. (At least the guitar, the lo-fi tone is intentional)
What is "covered up" about my violin?
Anyways, I'd love it if you expounded in a PM, you seem like you know your stuff.

[As The Phoenix Rises]

On a new level from your usual work sound wise, indeed. Good job!
Good use of percussion of the oriental style, I do love those sounds and they're always reminiscent of a meditative state (gotta love cliches). Well mixed over all too, of course.

Now you have reached a higher level I have to be more critical though. I have to admit the lack of variation (some have pointed it out already) is tiring after a while, it could really do with a break somewhere to take a breather, that would allow the next part to come on even stronger.
It's biology really, if stimulated non-stop by something we become numb to it... like how you can never actually smell the inside of your own nose because it's always there! (The classic example is how smokers can't tell that they smell of smoke)

Neon-Bard responds:

It's a great feeling to realize that I have reached a whole new musical level! Of course, as you have stated, that opens me up to more criticism...but criticism is always a good thing in my mind because it allows me to keep growing. Especially the constructive kind that I receive from you, for example, which I always appreciate!

I'm glad you liked the percussion. I used Taiko drums for a reason, and it looks like it was a good choice. As for the lack of variation, as I said to Stunkel, I was partly 'blinded' by my emotional attachment to the song. I admit that even I got a little tired of it after a while. However, I think it helps support the theme I was going for (in a way). Constant growth and persistence. Though on the other hand, it's good to know that I could work on using more variation because it will eventually improve the things I produce.

Many thanks for listening, and letting me know what I can work on for the future! :)

[Mirror Note]

I feel the intro is a little long and could use a touch more variation. The lead guitar from 1:15 (ish) is great, good job not falling into the stereotype with that. The understated percussion that comes in later on in the track fits very nicely and the guitar/piano combo works really well at that point. Actually, that part of the song, when the choir comes in, reminded me of the Dr Who soundtrack (which is a big compliment, just so you know).
Quite a long but varied piece of music, but you kept my interest until the end.

A few tips on orchestral: String instruments have a natural legato transition when being played and tend to not leave long quiet gaps between notes. 0: to 0: you can hear those clearly, all you need to do is bring the midi notes closer together or overlap them.

DivoFST responds:

I honestly didnt even notice that the bass strings sounded unnatural but now that you point that out they would sound better and more fluid without those gaps
Thanks for the comment MetalRenard!