xxxZigZagxxx's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Cosmic]

0:07 Lol nice. This sine-y main synth. Everything seems together and organic.
0:17 Even if that kick seems a bit overwhelming at a certain frequency.
0:28 OK these chords kind of helped bring it together.
0:35 That bass work. I get the feeling you're working a lot in that really low range recently.
0:51 Part of me does want to see timbre though.
0:56 That change in pace.
1:08 Not sure where this is going... it's a bit weird how it suddenly changes mood.
1:20 But this part is nice. Almost Twin Peaks-y jazz with a low pass filter on it.
1:42 Not sure about that riff. Seems a bit off kilter at the end. But I guess you like off kilter since that's part of your brand. lol.
2:01 This is nice though. Especially those strings in the back. I wish they came through a bit more.
2:16 Nice ending.

Overall the structure is very her and there, meandering between ideas without a certain direction, which is good and bad. It's kind of like, jazzy, but at the same time schizo. I couldn't see how you ripped off Aphex Twin, but that's probably maybe because I don't really know his full catalogue. But I could hear it maybe very very slightly near the intro with his latest album Syro, but even then it wasn't nearly as poppy and generic to be Syro copying. I don't even know what I'm saying because Syro isn't generic but it does sound somewhat like those generic techno backings to old YouTube videos where the audio was pulled because of a copyright claim. Or elevator music by Kraftwerk made modern, but in the best kind of way. Yeah, that's similar to how the first quarter of this song sounded.

Word.

phosphorusprocedure responds:

Oh I just said I was ripping him off because the snares and the synth sounded a lot like Alberto Balsalm. That track had mainly low frequency stuff going on except for the interlude where it sounded like a kid was dragging a metal stick along a chainlink fence. I didn't have any of that high pitched stuff going on, and I guess the first part of the track could've benefitted from that. 2nd part was totally tacked on -- didn't feel like making it its own track.

[Still Can't House]

0:00 Bass is nice.
0:10 I feel that sidechain.
0:20 This is groovy. You got those little "chain" sounds going on.
0:30 This is really nice.
0:40 A little bit silent here, loses energy.
0:45 But that clap and that bass bring it back more. You got that groove goin on.
1:05 Nice if you had a kick or something going on here maybe to ground the track and make it seem less like you muted certain channels that were holding the track together. If that makes sense.
1:27 Ends a bit abruptly.

Overall, I think it's most important that you've got the grooooove. Sounds like some of Sam Gellaitry's house-ish stuff with nice sidechain that melds the track together. It's a bit bassy and some of the things pull out so that the momentum is lost. But overall the groove is the most important thing and this got it.

Thx!

phosphorusprocedure responds:

Yeah I think this track dragged on a little too long. The parts where stuff drops out is me saying, how can I pad this out without adding stuff? Can't have a 35 second long house track, who would do that? And that last part was supposed to be integrated more but I couldn't get it to fit, nor could I just throw it away so I tacked it on there. It's kinda background music. No cool melodies or anything. Just random noises sidechained with each other. I do like the way the bass sounds throughout, though. Thanks for the review!

[Don't Be Someone Else]

This is reall reall reall good i like it you make your beats hahehehehehee

Yup this is real good and please make it longer haha more verse pls

CHiLEDAWG responds:

thank you zigzag, always love your reviews, send me a beat you think i'd sound good on!

[Morning]

0:00 Beautiful piano arps swelling upwards. It's got a crisp EQ'ing and sound to it.
0:23 It's uplifting and musically sound.
0:37 Sounds positively prim and proper.
0:45 Arpeggios feel punched-in in the DAW... which makes the piano sound somewhat robotic. Perhaps altering the velocities will give it a more natural feel.
1:15 For some reason the discordance sometimes reminds me of Final Fantasy IX.
1:30 I am not bored at this point. I am enjoying myself.
1:40 The problem with arps is usually that they can get quite annoying if repeated, but this one isn't getting annoying at all. It's because there's such a good balance between repetition and variance that I'm always interested to listen.
2:20 The roboticness of the melodies seem more apparent when the piano is playing in the upper register. No matter, it still sounds pretty great.

Ends abruptly but satisfactorily. A nice little song with a very plaintive, arp-centered approach with tight melodies that may need a little stretching out to become more casual. I'm thinking you're placing in every single note with the mouse rather than visualising someone playing a piano. Tweaking the velocities can make it seem more natural, if that's what you're going for. I'm thinking just a little bit of that would be beneficial.

Cheers!
and thanks for letting me listen. :)

[Lovely]

Sounds very much like a modernized 90's Mariah Carey joint. Smooth and happy. That style. That sweg.

That sweg.

[You'll Find Someone - Inferno]

0:05 Interesting pop take.
0:20 Not a huge fan of the vocals (they seem a bit whiny).
0:28 OK this is a bit better from the vocals. Maybe it’s the doubling. Needs a bit of reverb or processing of the vocals to make them less dry maybe?
0:53 That vocal chopping lol.
1:15 I think the vocals are sometimes too loud and sometimes too quiet… I think a compressor would help this out maybe? It also seems a bit drowned out by the synths… Eq’ing here with the synths to make room for the vocals?
1:53 This solo is pretty awesome though.
1:57 Not sure I’m a big fan of the latter end of the solo, or the scratches though… the scratches seem pretty “pasted in”. And the drums need a bit of energy to pop out of the mix more.
2:30 Interesting experimentation with synths though.
2:39 OK the vocal chopping is getting a bit old, sadly.
2:47 The chords are nice though. They might need a bit of EQ’ing to take out the harshness.
2:55 This is a nice refrain. Needs a melody on top of it maybe? Or a little more definition and wideness from those strings.

Overall, it’s an interesting composition with creativity to be sure, but it lacks polish in the mixing, for both the synths and the voice. The voice could use some processing to make it seem less raw, and to sort out the volumes at certain points of the song. The strings could be a bit wider, and the drums a little less subdued so they can “flow” with the song. I can’t actually pinpoint the exact reason why it didn’t flow so well, but it’s probably some combination of those factors. Still a good song in concept, though, and musically it could become a hit, but it just needs a little work.

Free2Play responds:

Indeed vocals are really not my strong suit, as I'm not a trained singer at all and I've only had the equipment to record vocals for a year now. I really need to look up more mixing tutorials on vocals, I just do what doesn't sound awful lol.

You're right, my drums are not particularly exciting and come across weak. It's really been a long time since I've tried polishing the drums to a shine, I often just use them as a tool with the composition not really its own section if you know what I mean.

I'm glad you still enjoyed a lot of the parts of the song I enjoyed, and quickly noticed the things I rushed. I'm glad I'm not boasting about any parts that I knew weren't good lol.

If you know any good way to learn more about mixing and mastering I would love to hear it.

I plan on starting another song soon, but planning the whole thing out whereas this was an improvised beat that eventually became a full fledged song.

EDIT: OH YEAH! I forgot, you mentioned chopping in the vocals. That was intentional, maybe it just wasn't obvious enough. I never intended for it to sound like I recorded more, I mean it was the tail end of the line I just did so I thought it wasn't hard to figure out.

[Last Stand]

0:00 I like these chords. These are some sweet chords.
0:15 Yeah, get hype up in da club!
0:35 Those triplet notes are pretty nice.
0:45 I think you needa find a way to hit that snare more hard. Maybe EQ it up a bit, make it really "pop" (it's a terrible adjective, I know). You can do it!
1:10 That said, you've composed this so well that it's hard to get sick or dislike it despite the wet-towel mixing and mastering. Definitely something you could improve on.
1:35 I mean, I'd get down to this, definitely. If I *could* get down without looking like a massive wet turd. My dancing's meant for a bedroom.
2:05 This progresses. It never feels like it's boring or monotonous, that's what's good about it.
2:40 I get the thing with the exporting too. It always sounds quieter. But I think it's just the way it's mixed and mastered. Things always sound better while you're mixing it. You'll find that in the editor, if you go back and turn the volume down lower, then it sounds exactly the same as it does right now. Probably. It's something weird, a phenomenon that I can't quite put my finger on when I'm producing.

Either way, well done. I get the feeling we're in the same boat when it comes to mixing and mastering. I'm thinking of getting someone to help me mix/master my tracks to make them louder or at least more interesting and less flat. But this is good composition, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

And... I'm out!

TeraVex responds:

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it! I've turned up the snare, but I'm not sure if the replacement file uploaded. Newgrounds has this problem of not always replacing the mp3 with an updated one. But the updated one will probably go on soundcloud.

[Handyman - Reittini]

0:15 I don't understand it, but it sounds emotional.
0:22 You could use a better mic, it sounds kind of distant. A better quality sound will improve this track a lot.
0:44 I like the emotional piano riffs.
0:55 It actually reminds me of some of those Lil B tracks where he just lazily flows over a beat. It isn't too offending.
1:15 I wish I could understand it. Maybe you can post the lyrics as well next time, for those who really don't understand English? That would be just great.
1:45 From what I can hear it's kind of monotonous. I think you'd benefit from varying up your voice a little so it doesn't sound like one continuous ringing note.

I mean, overall, it's nice-sounding, but it's nothing really that exciting for me. Maybe it's just because I didn't understand the meaning because it was in a different language, but it didn't resonate with me. Getting a better mic might help.

Sweet.

[La ultima Cancion]

0:05 These drums are really cool and "rock-steady".
0:16 Nice rhythm plucking guitar. There's some weird little harmonics (?) going on I think.
0:30 Oh ok that other lead makes it a little more filled out
0:40 Sounds strokes-ish, the way it repeats.
1:00 This is actually really nice. Sounds like Strokes or Neon Trees
1:05 Oh it's in a different language. Sounds nice though. The vocals are understated and don't offend too much.
1:30 Sounds very Strokes-ish, especially their Reptilia album.
1:50 It'd be nice if there was some distortion on that vocal, it would fill the vibe and make it almost Black Keys-ish.
2:05 THIS is very, very nice. But the vocals kind of waver a bit and sound disjointed from the song... there could be a bit more energy in it imo. Perhaps it's just the mixing though. You can play around with distortion and stuff with the vocals.
2:40 Big fan of this song by now.
2:58 This is a nice build up. I like the quarter note (?) stabs.
3:10 OK this is beautiful. I like that the vocal really gives his all here. It really gives energy to the song.
3:33 Granted, he's not the greatest singer ever, but he's got heart, and that's what counts. It's beautiful ^_^
3:47 Yeah this is grand. Cool. I'd love to see you guys live.
4:00 Really transcendent. Awesome.

Overall this song started off humbly, but then got better and better with passing time. Perhaps you can start off a little more interestingly in future (without having the whole 1st minute pass without vocals etc.) but overall it's a well-packaged rock song and I love the possibilities. Favourited both the song and you.

Cheers!

ZombieEmika responds:

jajajaja cool, i will keep in mind the vocals jejeje

by the way i recorded all the instruments an vocals myself, i do have a band, here is a video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtVmVcpPi-g

there are some songs the didn't like so i keep them for myself and share them here.
i'm glad you liked the song, i'll try to focus on making better songs