Bezman's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Beaten into a Pulp (DjD)]

Great fresh vibe. But go further.

I really like the beats here. The techno vibe makes it sound like something the Black Eyed Peas would use as a backing track for their vocals.

The cymbals work well, but start to sound overused. Maybe because it sounds like the exact same sample each time.

I love the instrument you use that pops up at 1:34, 1:49 and later.

I liked the chords you're playing in the beat and the little instrument shift around 0:30 and 0:50.

However, the instruments you're using don't have as much soul as the original guitars, so I feel like you need to bring in more of your own flavour.

I read your response stating you didn't intend for this to be a dance tune, but assuming you agree it sounds good as a dance track, maybe follow that vibe further.

Maybe mix up the beats a little. Try some different drums or beats here and there. Try composing a new counter-melody, or cutting and pasting those that existed to come up with more going on.

I loved listening to this - the original tune is great and you're moving it in a new direction. I'd just like to hear you go further with this.
7.5/10
-Review Request Club-.

Mad-Muppet responds:

Wow, thanks for a great review! I think the Black Eyed Peas actually has done a version of this song, if i'm not wrong. The crash thing i totally agree with, it's just that i was a bit lazy and didn't really find any strong sounding crashes that wasn't choked.

[(FMC) -=Hamburgers=-]

Can really see this as an animation...

An excellent song that just keeps building and manages to throw in a few surprises.

I liked the fast scale at 1:15and the fairly frequest changing up of loops. All worked well together to make a really adrenalin-pumping whole!

from the little roll as you start, to the few drop-downs where you totally keep the beats going, to the mixing up of the electronic synthy melody for the first half... also, I like the final note at the end. (Kinda reminds me of Cowboy Bebop)

My only crit/suggestion - maybe you could have added some more pounding beats at some point?

-Review Request Club-

FunkmasterCatking responds:

Yeah, I need to work on my beat-making skills...

Thanks!

[Surrender (S.C.)]

Pleasant enough... but formulaic.

Though distortion in the vocals kinda fits the tone, some of the distortion seems to be because of the recording.

It kinda hurt my head after a while, listening to the distortion you have in the guitars and everything.

The instruments are well placed and I liked the sorta rising synth notes you have at the start.

However, it starts to feel a little bit derivative. The places where the guitars come in work well but it all sounds kinda formulaic. I like to be surprised when listening to a tune - I love it when it takes a turn that I didn't expect but still fits somehow. That never really happened here.

It's a well made tune. The distortion gives it a real 'garageband' feel and it was pleasant enough to listen to.

It just never lit my fire.

-Review Request Club-

BreakingFaces responds:

I applaud your honesty. Very thorough review, thank you!

[Snakes on Fire]

maybe use for RRC reviewer-sidecollab

The tune had some cool instruments and moments. However, altogether it didn't really gel for me.

The part start starting at 0:16-0:37 sounds kinda like a pop-electro tune. Kinda like something that could be used as the basis for a loop to be used in a little game.

The instrument at 1:46 sounds cool too.

I generally don't like drop-downs in tunes like you had at the end. Just a personal thing, I guess.

Hrm... essentially this is an accomplished tune. It is kinda derivative in places though and it could have gotten a bit more 'pounding' towards the end.

All said and done, I somewhat enjoyed listening to it.

-Review request Club0

Assios responds:

Thanks, I'm glad you somewhat enjoyed listening to it ;P

[The Street Life]

Great improvement, though melody could use more va

This definitely kinda sounds different to the version I downloaded a while back. Maybe it was before the 5th...

Anyways, the rapping is awesome, but you don't need me to tell you that.

I like the new beats you have going on, that pop up at 1:53 and various other section.

There's a fair bit of change in the drums now - some really tight loops and they never got too predictable or overly repetitive.

I still feel the piano melody is too overpowering and repetitive. If you were to work this up any further, I'd suggest trying a few different instruments for the melody and maybe maybe lowering the volume or cutting out the treble of the piano at points.

I really liked the part where you did that for the little sample.

It's an enjoyable tune and after getting this new version, I'll probably keep it.

You have every right to feel proud. I'd be really interested to know how you isolated the rapping.

A few changes in the melody (as well as the key change later on) would have helped it step up a notch though.

-Review request Club-

AfroShine responds:

yea i started getting really into this project so i did a lot of things to up the quality to better than most of what's submitted in this or the hip hop genre here on newgrounds. thanks for the criticism, i thrive on it.

edit*
forgot to tell you that i used audacity to isolate the lyrics. i just got the normal version and instrumental version, i inversed the instrumental version, and it cut out almost all of the instrumental part of the song. I've just found a few sites that will supply me with all the accapellas i could ever want, so i wont be doing that any time soon.

[messpionage]

I was kinda disappointed by the samey choruses but

I love the mix of instruments here.

The bongo-type drums are a great base and when guitars come in, it sounds sorta spanish-y.

I really wasn't expecting the electronic pulsing beats, but they sounded cool and I love the rolls that come after. Clapping was a nice touch.

The long droning noises after the 2nd bout of pulses sound kinda like African music somehow. Makes me think of a jungle.

I have 2 complaints:
1 - after 1:30ish, it all feels like it could use a bit of freshness. I think it could have worked well if you'd altered the dirty guitars as well as some other bits, instead of keeping the instrumental 'chorus' exactly the same each of the 3 times.

2 - the end. The bleep is great. But why the 1s of noise before the end of the track? It doesn't loop well onto its start and it'd just sound slightly irritating when it precedes a diffferent tune.

I was kinda disappointed by the samey choruses but loved the vibe and the refreshing mix of stuff.

Please follow this line of experimentation further.

_Review Request Club_

spamwangler responds:

thanks for a in depth review- you review request club are excellent at writing constructive reviews:)

i agree with you on the point of samey choruses now that you mention it- that one riff feels like its relied on too much.

if your interested, i have a song posted here called snorker-ace which is on the same style line as this, but i think it has more varyation than this one

[Solus- She]

Epic

Why is it called 'She'?

Anyways, this is a pretty epic instrumental piece. Really makes me think of massive armies of swordsmen, hundreds - even thousands - slain and a few survivors reminiscing or passing on the story.

Sounds kinda like the music you might get in an old RPG whilst someone's talking about all the battles that have led to this one final ultimate encounter.

I loved the start - simple but effective keyboard melody. I liked the way you played with the drums, bells and... violins? (Sorry, I'm not the best at telling...)

After the energetic crescendo, it was a creepy vibe with the soft melody and bells.

The 2nd half begins with what sounds like some slow violins - makes it sound more peaceful for a moment.

Sorry for the boring review technique - I'm unsure how to analyse a symphonic arrangement like this.

I do feel it is lacking maybe another layer. I wouldn't suggest lyrics at all - that'd take away too much from the instruments you have. However, maybe a choral arrangement could work?

And maybe punctuate some moments even more than you do? I like the changing 'pace' brought on by your selective use of instruments and judicious drums. Maybe go even wilder at the peaks of crescendos.

This is a great piece. I wouldn't want to listen to it when relaxing, but it'd be a good thing to maybe wake up to or play when beginning a big project. It's kinda energising.

_Review request Club_

SolusLunes responds:

The choral arrangement is planned- but the vocals, I agree, would take a lot away from the instrumentation- as such, the usage of them would be minimal.

Glad you liked it :D

[Speedy Bass (Dubstep)]

epetitive and static but cool sounds later on.

A kinda spooky vibe.

The tempo of the start seems at odds with what follows.

I liked the occasional notes you drop in every bar or two around the 1 min. mark. In fact, I liked a lot of the sounds that followed.

It does generally feel repetitive and slow to move. The vibe and the sounds you have are cool though. Specially for the 4th minute.

I think if you'd skipped the first minute or two or sped up the progression a bit, it would have been a stronger tune.

_Review Request Club_

Jimbobsthebest responds:

Ok man, thanks for the suggestions. Much appreciated.

James

[dolphin rescue squad]

Nice sounds but too repetitive.

The little drumrolls (on what sounds like wood) do kinda sound dolphin-y and I liked the syncopated tempo.

The sound around the 59s mark is cool too.

My main complaint is what I view as WAY too much repetition.

There's a 6s-ish melody that you play for most of the first minute -and-a-half. At 1:30, there are some cool 'underwatery' sounds, but that again turns into what seems like a loop with no variations.

I like the tempo and instruments but just feel like you need to develop the melody more and try to keep it fresh.

And don't be scared of making the tune half the length if that's all the 'material' you come up with. CUT the FAFF!

- Review REquest Club -

spamwangler responds:

youre totaly right about all the repitition, i think i just made one riff and dragged it out the length of a song:)

all you guys advise has inspired me to rework this dull old tune into something more dynamic and different

thanks for taking the time to review:)

[Grand Chase]

Should be 7-8s long. Otherwise awesome.

4.37 / 5.00 (+ 0.0083)

This is a beautiful loop. So hypnotic. It all kinda reminds me of a turning spiral - something that might play whilst a guy's trying to hypnotise me or whatever.

I've been listening to this tune for quite a while. Admittedly, I've gotten a bit tired of it after half an hour (!) but that's to be expected for what seems to be a 7.75s loop.

I'm seriously impressed here. You've really captured that 'dreamy' feel you wanted. The tinkly sound, the long, legato notes, the slowly shifting 'beats'... though I only really made out 4 distinct instruments, there is a lot going on in those 7.7s.

But - why didn't you upload this as a 7.75s loop? True, NG doesn't loop stuff perfectly. Listening to something like that here might not have the full effect. But a shorter loop would have the same effect for those of us who download it and would make it a far stronger tune for including in a game, whether for a menu or a short level.

To be honest, I have no other real criticisms. I'd have given it 8/9 if it were just the length of a single loop.

However, one suggestion for improvement might be to add some more tinkly noises and maybe soften the beat a tad (maybe so it's got more sustain or sounds underwater?).

Seriana responds:

I could have cut in half, but I doubled the patterns to try and make it loop more smoothly.