Spadezer's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[On The Glass Edge]

Good solid Metal

Oh wow, the arpeggios at 02:42 is so clean!

I keep looking problems with the piece and I can't find them. All of the problems I have with this song is more of personal tastes, and even then there are barely any problems with this piece. And don't think I don't like metal. I'd have this track next to my Disturbed and Amon Amarth music.

The only thing I can think that I'd really want to change in this piece is I'd like to hear more bass guitar. Minor mixing issue. I really like the chorus that you have here (01:12-01:37 and 02:14-02:38).

The only thing I have to say is that everything sounds really tight and clean, and it's got some wicked themes carrying through the piece. I bet this would be sweet with vocals too.

Be awesome, be more awesome, and repeat.
-Spadezer-

PirateCrab responds:

Thanks for the detailed review dude! I would push more bass guitar, but the low end is overpowering for the majority of speakers I've listened to it on and forces the mix into a muddy mess. Let's see if I can rework it tonight!

Most definitely will be on repeat, expect more no matter what! :)

[The Abyss]

Darn you!

This made me think of a very specific scene in Sleeping Beauty. It sincerely creeped me out as a kid. Like at 01:21-01:38. As a matter of fact, my mind starting playing the music from that scene once the track was over.

If this makes sense, I almost hate how good it is. However, that goes to show that I think you did a pretty decent job. You just about creeped me out with the music. Well done.

DamienFleisch responds:

Creepy is good, that was the goal :D

[Deflect]

I don't know how to feel about this since you're my direct competition, so I'm defaulting to a 4.5 star. With all of that aside, I can still give some sort of feedback.

Love the sound at 00:28. It really creates a cool atmosphere and it feels really full. You've done a good job picking the synths the fit right in the piece. What you have is really tight and nothing is too powerful aside from what Sequenced already noted. It sounds like you've really spent some good time thinking about how everything collaborates.

Like I said, love the atmosphere, and it's well put together. As a whole, the themes are simple but you have a lot of details that you've layered underneath the themes. Although while the dynamics in the synths are flat, the song still has some dynamic work.

Really convenient that your piece just happens to show up right after mine....
Best of luck and let the best man win.

Now to work furiously at my piece.
-Spadezer-

garlagan responds:

Hey Spadezer!
Thanks for the review. Just listened to your track and I think it's amazing. You've got a pretty unique sound which is insanely cool.
PM me when you're done working on your piece so I can give you some feedback.

[Can Your Cow Do This?]

Heh, I can imagine a cow on stage with shades and Skrillex hairdo.

I agree with johnfn though. It seems too simple and there's areas of the track that leave me filling like it's empty. The sounds you have are amazing. I wish I could make the synths you're using, and they have such flavor. When the composition is full, it gives an amazing feeling. It's content that I'd be willing to listen to on repeat for hours.

OMG that bass synth at 02:46 is so sick! It's amazing.

Overall it feels slightly repetitive, leaves something to be desired, but there's such good awesomeness when it happens. My suggestion is that it needs another pad or something to eat up some of the empty space. For example, 01:51. The chord progression is powerful, but with how it's structured, it needs either a pad in the background or a melody that coats the top like thin frosting.

I sure would love to know what you're doing for these synths. I'd be happy to know if it's not something that requires $500 software.

Keep being awesome, you're doing good work.
-Spadezer-

introstalge responds:

Thanks for the feedback. I agree with you on sounding a bit empty. I will use some more pads in my next tracks. As for the synths, they're all Massive patches. There isn't too much processing in post either. A few Fruity Blood Overdrives, EQ and occasionally Vocodex, that's pretty much it.

Check out Barely Alive and Virtual Riot on Youtube. They have some tutorials which explain how to make these sorts of basses. They've helped me a tonne! The most important thing to get right is filter automation. Once you have that figured out, you can use pretty much any combination of wavetables and still end up with something nice.

[Swing For A Special Lady]

Here's a review for ya.

The first thing I can think of is the guitar playing. The recording is clean and I'm in awe when it comes to some of the solos. It doesn't matter how fast you're playing you make sure every note is clean and tight. Pure show of skill and experience.
The vocals: I'm not a fan of the lyrics. They are humorous, but not my taste. I do like the background chatter. They could potentially make good comic relief in something and I like it when you're actually singing. It's good to hear what you sound like. and I like what I hear, especially when you sing "Well I close my eyes.." That section's pretty sweet.

Is it just me or are you missing the last group of lyrics?

All in all a good solid track. And from me I think this would deserve a 8.0 out of 10. And I hope Tim's mom either feels flattered or she never hears this

Be awesome, be more awesome, and repeat.
-Spadezer-

Ceevro responds:

Hehe. The whole 'Tim's Mom' thing is directed at a coworker. Counter-prank. He felt it would be hilarious to sign me up as a member of every religion that would take membership online, resulting in me being inundated with literature arriving at my office.

The pranks have been ongoing, and they're generally pretty funny. And thus, I felt that dissing his mom was the natural next-step. I had planned to keep the theme for as far as I could go in the contest...my next song was going to be a soulful rock ballad...

[Ignition]

Cool track. Since you wanted feedback on the mix, I'll be glad to focus on the mixing.
Overall the mixing is solid. I think I can hear what you mean about the kick. The volume and pitch is fine, it just needs to be focused more towards the lower frequency. It sounds a bit too much like a thwack and should be more of a thwump if you catch my drift. The way I've seen it explained in a Youtube video is that when you adjust the bass on the kick to be a little higher (above 100 Hz), it's more prominent and can be heard better in the mix. Then when you adjust it a bit lower (below 100 Hz) it's more felt than it's heard. In a big house setting it's those frequencies when you hear the kick that you can feel it in you chest as you're hearing it. Bottom line is I think some low frequencies need to be heard better from the kick (somewhere between the 60-90 Hz range).

The bass synth is good but it could use an accompanying sub. Leave the bass line as it is, just add a sub synth that's really subtle but can add a new dimension of bass to your track. The tricky part about that is making sure it's not trying to compete too much with the kick in the same frequencies. You don't want to overpower the kick and you don't want to wash out the bass with the kick either.

The only other complaint I have is the kick at 01:14. That particular rhythm when used over 3 measure messes with my head since the kick is so loud. The troubling part about this is that I can see exactly why you would do it, and I would have done it as well. But it's like my ears don't like adjusting to the volume of the kick, and then listen to everything else become not so compressed once the kick settles, and then back into the kick again. Just me being nitpicky though.

Now a few things that are awesome in this track since I've bashed you enough. It's a really cool piece. The themes your making a sweet to listen to and the melody is fun. Your arpeggioed synths are placed well and not overpowering or too quite. I really want to know what you're doing to get the alarm at 01:22. It's not the cutting in and out but I want that tone because it would be perfect for some of the stuff I do. I love the growl at 03:41. Oh look, a key change.

With the composition as it sits right now, I'd say this deserves an 8.7 out of 10.

Once you get past the mixing, I'd download this without a second though.
-Spadzer-

8-bitheroes responds:

Thanks for taking time to give some in depth feedback. This will help me out a buttload, plus i think you hit the nail on the head with the kick drum issue. I did actually have a sub in some areas of the track but the fact you didnt hear it means its probably way too low in the mix.
If by alarm you mean the riser sound at 1.22 ..thats just a harmor with the unison pitch up high a large number of voices with some compression on a dash of reverb and plenty of delay.

[All Gone (WiP)]

I'm like "wow this song is repetitive." Then after returning to the tab this is on I realize that it's looped. I like it. It's fun and I kind of needed this since I had a car crash today so more props to ya. The chord progression is good and you make a really good atmosphere with the synths you're using and how you control them.
I think it could use a little more bass as I'm listening to it right now.
Now I got to listen to something before this plays in my head for the rest of the day.

Be awesome, be more awesome, and repeat.
-Spadezer-

D-Chain responds:

Thanks spadezer! i needed this. badly.

[The Spider Machine]

Since it's a WIP, I'll attempt a thorough review (I'm still stuck in NGADM contest mode).

So Cool! Makes me think that this could be a thowback version of Star Fox and Andross isn't a monkey. Or a really cool Dishonored level. All the creepy and brutal instruments make it spectacular, especially the low brass / strings 00:51. The tune definitely is an earworm tune. Most likely will be singing it in my head afterwards. But it's cool. I just want to walk around like *boom boom boom*. Your composition is up there by the least. The creepy notes you use make this all just pop. The only complaint I have since I'm on this note is that the percussion feels like it needs to be more complex between 01:07-01:23. I feel like the timing is off in the drums ever so slightly, right around 01:11 I think. Don't get me wrong though, what you're doing with the percussion everywhere else is spot on I think. I like the key change that you fade out with though.

Short recap:
Awesome
Love it
Would love to hear and download the full version.
Oh, I forgot! The organ and chimes are sweet.

I'd also like to know what you're using for the orchestra.

Respect
-Spadezer-

cazok responds:

Wow thanks! Really appreciate it :)
A mix between brutal, weird and epic was definitely what I was aiming for. I know what you mean about the percussion, and I gotta admit that my playing was a bit off there. I play everything by hand on a keyboard and record it on a multitrack recorder, it's a pretty old fashioned system really (f.ex when you're done with a song you have to burn out a CD to get it to the computer :P). Sometimes I make mistakes or play a bit out of time... I try to avoid it though.

Thanks a bunch for the review!
-Cazok-

[i believe]

It's good to see that you made it on to the next round. I don't think I'll get the chance to directly compete against you (I don't know why but I decided to make you my benchmark for my first trip in a NGADM contest).

All that aside, I'm really glad to hear this. The first half of this is just an excellent display of your ability to make beautiful atmospheres, and then the song really just blossoms at 03:30. It's really cool how you take a synth that sounds like it isn't meant to be soothing but you make it turn it around and make the piece sublime.

Be awesome, be more awesome, and repeat.
And good luck
-Spadezer-

johnfn responds:

Thanks Spadezer! I really enjoy your entries too, they use standard instruments in really unexpected and nonstandard ways.

I'm glad you liked it! Gonna go attempt to be more awesome now.

[Punchy Punch]

I hope that when you win in round two it's because you demolished me with music like this.

You get another fan for that.
-Spadezer-

garlagan responds:

don't be silly. Your submission's retro style actually blew me away entirely! this is gonna be fun!