Bezman's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[suzuki techno]

Hyper bouncing flashing dance beats

I honestly wish I could save 'favourite audio artists' and 'favourite audio tracks' the way we can with flash stuff.

Really incredible tune.

It totally got me up dancing for a while. Been listening to it maybe for 15 minutes and I just don't want to stop.

The first time I listened, I was really impressed by how you varied it with the beats and backing notes you used and occasionally skipping parts of the melody. Kept me guessing and kept the song interesting. This is what everyone should do!

Maybe you could have taken that a wee bit further, maybe varying the main melody a little more. Maybe varying the instrument you used as the mood shifted.

I do kinda like the way the notes stay the same but just with parts missed though - gives it a real coherence, whilst the skipped parts are chosen so cleverly as to give it enough variation.

It all have a real sorta 'acid' feel - it seems perfectly suited to some sort of hyper platformer with flashing colours and bouncing characters.

This is the first tune I can say I've really heard and felt a need to make a game for. My only real beef is that it's not a very good loop. I mean the way the melody comes to and end and we head the 'brrrrr..r...r ....rr' sorta engine slowing down noise means that it'd be a bit jarring as a loop.

Also, after about 25 minutes, I'm finding it a bit tiring to be honest. So maybe it'd work perfectly for a hyper platformer lasting 5 minutes at most, or maybe some other game... I'll think of something.

But I reckon maybe if you made the melody a bit subtler and varied it as much as you do the rest of the tune, it'd have more lasting appeal. And made it loop more seamlessly.

It may then have less of an instant hook, but it'd work better as a loop in a longer game.

Anyway, great tune and I'm looking forward to hearing your other tune.

DnX-Danefex responds:

thx for the realy nice and long reviews. i like it when people give me constructive criticizm along with what they liked. and all keep all of that in mind.

dj-maxxx

[The Watermellon Song]

I kinda disliked the tune

First: your guitar skills are pretty incredible. I hope you keep practising and assume that the stuff you upload is just a tiny portion of your output.

The start, specially, of this is great. I can't really play guitar myself, but it seems like there's a lot going on.

My favourite part is probably the last 15ish secs, where you take your foot off the distortion and allow us to hear some clear notes.

I don't know if this is your own composition or a cover, but I wasn't too keen on the tune itself - it just kinda seemed predictable and didn't really do anything I found very interesting.

Sorry I can't be more specific.

Stay funky and keep playing.

~review request club~

FrozenSheep responds:

Its my own composition but the whole song is pretty much improv, so the predictability is expected

[-=LJC=- Laudanum is delicious]

Some crazy feelings

I liked the piano sound - the reverby sound and the simple melody kinda reminded me of something like the ghost piano in the haunted mansion in the Saturn game 'Shining the Holy Ark'.

I did find the focus was on the melody for too long for my liking though and the melody kinda over-short.

Really enjoyed the trippy bit. I specially liked the way it sounded while it ended.

I reckon you should revisit this, maybe shorten the 'intro' and get to the trippiness earlier, then play about and mess around more at that stage.

Stay funky!

LJCoffee responds:

Thanks -

Never played 'Shining the Holy Ark' but I'll take your word for it.

This was all put together over a few hours one day so I really didn't take as much time as I should have developing things. Your comments are quite valid and very helpful - I think that I'll take the advice that I've been given so far and rework this piece.

I'll drop a line when I submit the next version.

Thanks a ton!

[kindacool]

bopping

Starts off with a cool beat, but pretty much as soon as the 2nd, higher-pitched, drums layer comes in, it gets a sorta tropical-y sound.

The melody has a funky vibe, that I could see myself dancing and cracking coconuts to.

I don't much care for the instrument you use for that main melody. It sounds kinda too 'synthy' and the aural equivalent of 'blurry' if you follow my meaning.

Also, if you cut off 6s, it could actually loop fairly well. Seems like a missed opportunity.

At the end, with the descending, then re-ascending loop, it felt like an ideal point to launch another layer and melody. I suppose that might have made it too long for the Audio Portal though...

Lastly, I think there are a few points where playing with the 2 output channels could help make the tune more interesting. Specially the ending - that's a prime spot to try and get the 'spinning' melody to feel as if its rotating and spinning all around us...

Still, it's a kinda funky tune and had me bopping along. I just dislike the instruments you use.

cheesebizkit responds:

that cracking coconuts comment really, really helped me personally. thank you.

[kindafunky]

no real sur

Essentially, there's just not enough going on here for my liking.

There seems to only be 3 layers - the beats, the 'funky' melody with which we begin and the 'scales'.

You use some interesting-sounding instruments and I like the way you morph the sounds. But I just feel like there's no progression; no real surprises to be found.

cheesebizkit responds:

thanks

[deathbeat]

Racingbeat...

It really is a car-racing tune!

The start kinda sounds like an engine revving up, whilst portions are kinda like tyres squealing.

The 2nd 'half' specially, just makes me think of a car accelerating along a straight, maybe through a tunnel, whilst speedlines fly by.

The cheering crowd kinda complements that impression.

Can totally see a film for this and may have to try animating it at some point in the future.

Not much to criticise. I don't like the name much.

Also, it ends kinda suddenly - could maybe fade out for longer?

Great tune though.

cheesebizkit responds:

nice insight thank you

[Pink Floyd - Money (cover)]

fact

The guitar seems proficiently played, but I don't find this particularly enjoyable to listen to.

Mainly because it just made me wonder why I wasn't listening to the original.

Without the vocals, it felt a bit empty towards the end.

Whilst a cover that takes a song and puts a new spin on it (like Muse's or even PCD's 'Feeling Good' covers) the fact that you used the backtrack just didn't allow you to that, had you even wanted.

You are a great guitarist though.

FrozenSheep responds:

thanks :D.

i'll consider that the next time i try to do a cover