PGegen's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[To The Unhallowed Ground]

I agree...

With Setu-Firestorm. The orchestration is good and you combine slower sounds in the strings with the melody in the woodwinds to good effect. Sometimes in slower pieces the beat is lost because of legato playing that isn't set against anything rhythmic. There is always something to help the listener keep time in your piece.

In a slower piece like this, you can really drench everything in reverb (within limits, though) to cover up the synthetic nature of the samples.

I also think that Setu-Firestorm is absolutely correct in that one of the things lacking in most orchestral music on NG is dynamics. One of the things that sets apart the pros like danman87 is the use of volume and dynamics to make his parts more expressive. I have not used Edirol Orchestra but with EWQL Symphonic Orchestra there are certain patches that are set up so that volume changes with movement in the mod wheel. Using effects like that to create crescendoes and decrescendoes I think would really add to this piece.

Overall, though, your piece is very well done and uses an accessible but not contrived chord progression to get the message across.

PGegen

CelestOrion responds:

Hey, thanks for the great review! I'm still trying to learn the odds and ends of FL Studio, but I'll be sure to update my songs as I become more experienced with the program! ^_^

[[MvS}(1)Earthly Cellos]

I like the focus on composition

I think that sometimes with more complex sample sets it is hard to focus on the composition itself and not on getting the samples to sound just right. Using free soundfonts may in some ways be an advantage, especially when composing under time pressure.

While I liked both of the compositions as expressions of the theme of the competition, I agree that they are very much different in their approach. The first I though was more underscore-ish, and the second had a bit of a Pan's Labyrinth-style more serious vibe.

Overall, I think they are both very well-done, and I like the focus on composition rather than sound.

PGegen

MaestroRage responds:

I agree PGegen. The glorious thing of using free soundfonts is that things just move quicker since mastering/eq'ing isn't so much a problem as well as forcing you to be more creative with what you have.

Thank you for your critique, we are glad you liked it!

[Cobra151 - The Journey Home]

Good use of arpeggiator

In addition to the strong chord structure, I liked how the arpeggiated synth gave a sense of a clear melody throughout the whole piece, rather than just having a chord progression going out there (a fault of which I am sometimes guilty).

Your use of effects allowed your rather sparse arrangement to fill out the entire mix, rather than jamming every VST you could find in there and muddying everything up.

Overall, great job.

PGegen

Cobra151 responds:

Hey, sorry it took me so long to get back to you on this.

Yes, one of my primary prerequisites is that the melody is obvious and clear. If you cant tell what the melody is, how can it get stuck in your head? :P But since the melody is one of the top factors in making a good peice, I always try to make it the most prominenet factor in the peice (though I have been guilty of failure numerous times :)

Heh, yes I have been trying to use effect more and more, and boy do they really give life to a peice. You'd be surprised how many VSTs I have running though...

Anyways, thanks for the review, always love to hear what you have to say! - Cobra151

[- The Raid -]

Nice orchestration

I liked the variety in the orchestration and the use of percussion throughout the piece, from the more modern "hip-hop" style beat in the beginning to the more traditional percussion later in the song. I think the additional sound effects complemented the composition itself.

I absolutely think you succeeded in creating epic, energetic "trailerscore" -type modern orchestral music. My one small criticism would be that the ostinato piano that starts up around 0:42 is a bit less "epic" and a bit more "daytime soap". I think using the staccato strings as you do at 1:11 for the job is a bit more appropriate.

Overall, though, I agree with secondstamp - the quality of the piece lives up to your usual high standards.

SinJim responds:

Thanks for the review! I'm glad that you liked it!

I'll check into the piano. I'm starting to see myself hitting the limits on those samples I have, so eventually I'll be investing in professional ones.

Thanks again!

~SinJim

[- First Flight -]

Nice string sounds

This piece has a nice overall sense of movement between sections. I think the string samples are particularly well-chosen, having just the right amount of expressivity and dynamics, and avoiding the stridency that often occurs when using samples.

Overall, great job.

SinJim responds:

Thanks for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed the song.

~SinJim

[~|| Chicago RmK [New]]

Good mix of styles

I liked the progression of the arrangement, but I felt like there was about 2-3 minutes worth of ideas in the song. Shortening the song to just that main parts of the arrangement would not only more succinctly make the song's point, but it would also avoid repeating the same 4-bar progression for too long. It might help to change things up about halfway through the song and then recap the beginning at the end.

Overall, though, the mix was good, the instrumentation worked well and I think this song compares favorably with your other Chicago RmK.

T-Free responds:

Cool, thank you. I'll shorten the song a bit if I get the chance.^^

[Heavy Metal Attempt]

It's getting there...

I agree with the other reviews that the song could benefit from some type of harmonic progression. You might try to use two different guitar parts, one lower rhythm sound to establish the chord and another higher lead sound to play the melody, kind of like you did in your other song < / Indie >.

For an example of this in action I would look up "The Star Spangled Banner" by Iced Earth on youtube.

GoldbloodedDragon responds:

Ok, I'll try to look up the video as soon as possible.

[-<- Phantasy Star Remix ->-]

Great song

The instrumentation is right on and the harmonic progression gives the piece some variety. I liked how the song doesn't go on forever as many trance songs do.

The only thing that I can say might improve the song would be to reduce the volume on the lead sound just a tad, as it seems to slightly overpower the rest of the mix, especially the drums. A great song overall, though.

CyberPot responds:

Thanks PGegen.

I agree with you that the lead overpowers the drums and everything. I should probadly had turned the volume down on the lead a bit. Anyway thanks for your opinion.

-CyberPot-

[The Final Goodbye_JT]

Great song

This piece reminds me of some of Al di Meola's songs, with a bit less jazz, a bit more rock, and some Satch-style shredding in for good measure.

Great song, 5/5.

TheFunDindongs responds:

is he an arab =p jk

[Zona]

Great composition, orchestration

I liked how this piece started out with a strong theme and developed in throughout the first few minutes. The piece always seemed to be going somewhere and didn't get boring or repetitive.

The build-up at 4:15 creates a good sense of anticipation after the interlude, and I think that you might consider revisiting the main theme more thoroughly and triumphantly at the end to complete the journey. I also think that the piece might take on a greater sense of grandeur if you incorporated some of the lower-registered instruments like the contrabass to fill out the sound.

Overall, though, I think you did a great job and I really enjoyed the piece. Your score must have been pretty ugly.

camman007 responds:

Thanks for review. First for the end I tried to incorporate the first part of the main theme into all the instruments for a build up, but maybe i could've done a bit more like you suggested. I agree as well that more lows should be added, I always thought it was missing something, but since I never wrote them into the original midi file and my teacher didn't say anything i figured it was fine, I may try to implement them more when I take on another theme of this size. The score was apparently pretty bad according to the judges, I never did like making it look pretty lol, but that's what kept me out of placing i guess, but honestly my winner in a different category was not much better visually score wise and it was the same judges so idk...lol but thanks for the review and feedback