Lordant's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Red Thirst [NGUAC24]]

I have no much critique of the intro, it's creative, and I like the 3/4 writing for harpsichord, humanization is also well done. The only thing I didn't like is how you introduce the pad, as it does not fit all the chords in progression and interrupts the main theme a bit. As for build up, the harpsichord feels too raw and loud, and I don't really like that one-shot chords. You could work on it more, like adding delay or improving the writing.

The compositional aspect of the drop is well done, the lead melodies and chord progressions are varied and interesting to listen. However, the drop itself is rather long. The 8 bar structure is OK, but the new elements are being added rarely and there are no noticeable changes during the single part. What you could have done is merging two 8 bar progressions into one, adding small changes after 4 bars or creating some drum fills or something like that. Also, the second drop would have been a great addition to the song, as you could make the first one shorter without lacking progression (24 bars instead of 32, for example).

As for instrumentation, I like the sound design overall, and how main theme instruments complement with the arrangement, but the harmony sound design feels simple and not diverse enough. Subtle rhythmic pads or arps may help, also the main synth (the one on 1:10) gets boring closer to the end. As I said earlier, the drop is long, so more sound desing or compositional elements are needed. The mix overall is solid, I would only prefer more width, especially during the first 8 bars in the drop, also the hi-hats are quiet.

Overall, you have done a good work with this entry. My main complaint is about structure, as the song needs more variety to keep the listener entertained, still, I liked the composition and the mood of the song, it was one of my personal favorites of the knockouts. Keep up the good work!

TotallyPorff responds:

Thank you so much! Ill look at getting a better habit of adding more variety!

[Cadmium - Grand Escape (Benji-G Remix)]

Great remix! Love how you used cinematic elements here, and the background synth fits the drops just perfectly

[Eonian Sweven]

Wonderful composition, love every aspect of it! Best of luck :)

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thank you so much! Best of luck to you too <3

[plegaria]

Sorry for delay!

Great use of electronic elements like bells and keyboards. Sometimes I feel like the different parts of the song don't blend well enough, the best examples are 0:04, 1:00, 2:12. I think it might be better to do more smooth arrangement transitions in that case, like gradually adding individual instruments, or just making more arrangement-related transitions. For example, you could make a short and unobtrusive build-up before the pause on 2:12 with more drop synths. Also, the overall structure is a bit unpredictable, not a bit complaint though.

As I said earlier, I like the sound design here, especially the use of bells and keys. What I don't like is the arragement in several parts. At the 0:59 you have an unexpected change to a different arrangement, with electronic bass and almost no rhythmic elements. It sounds decent on its own, but doesn't blend well enough with the previous part, and the bass/saws here are a lot louder. The 1:36 part is nice, although it's a bit unnecessary at that time, as there was no drop yet. A bit too much noise here, and bells should be a little more quiet. Sometimes vocals, keys and bells combined make a mudd in the middle freq (~800hz).

The drop is cool, but the sound design variety is not a strong point here. I think you used too many similar synths here, especially the saws, which makes the climax weaker. What I would recommend to do is to experiment more with balancing, make less necessary voices like arps less out of the mix and probably change the sound itself to make it less similar to others (to chords in your case). Also the mix here is a bit much reverberated, especially the drums, and the bass could be brighter and more complex.

Among the more global things that I didn't like, I want to mention the vocal processing. It's unique and distinctive on its own way, but I think there is too much distortion anyways. It might be better to work a bit more on it, or maybe alternate it with different, more distant processing variations. Also the mix is very tight for almost a munite, and the rest of the song could have more panned synths too, especially in the drop.

Overall, you've written a unique song with many interesting sound design and composition choices. My main complaints here are about the mix and arrangement. Also the structuring has potential to improve, as the song progression is a bit akward (at least for me). Anyways, you did a great job, thanks for coming to NGUAC!

kiiri responds:

i can't thank you enough

[Bumper Car]

There are plenty of compositional changes compared to the previous track! I like how you managed to do a completely different writing with the same arrangement. This work feels a bit straighforward, mostly because of the rhythmic chords and drum lines. I think drums is the weak part of this work. Although you have some short breaks, the main pattern is too simple for repeating it, and there are almost no pauses, especially at the first half. The drums closer to the end (except for 2:33), however, are written pretty-well for my taste.

As for main melodies, I have no complaints about the first minute, different rhodes melodies blends well, but the one on 0:51 (and 1:42 also) feels a little out and needs countermelodies support or small changes, as it is very simple compared to everything else. I approve the mood change, however. As for chords, the progression is nice, and you chose a good offset for chords themselves, but again they are repeating too much, and the rhythm changes or pauses may improve it a little.

I really like the 1:59 part, especially the little modulation on 2:11. However, I have some complaints about the next part. Firstly, the rhodes go a bit wild with chromatic notes here, compared to rest of the song, and sometimes it doesn't fit well imo. Secondly, closer to the end, the main melody goes too high, and again in doesn't blend well to the everything else, as there were not many high register melodies. Also, I wished for more small arrangement details here, like the quiet glissandos you used earlier (2:07, 2:12). After this part there is an abrupt transition on 3:06, which was completely unexpected. I think it was a smart decision to finish the song with one of the previous parts, but the transition could be a lot better.

My instrumentation thoughts didn't change, I still think that it's decent, but could be more complex. I think layering different rhodes patches partly or alternating them in the long melodies would fit well. Also, I didn't like the usage of ride here, and sometimes drums feel lost in the mix.

Overall, I liked the idea of this track, and the composition is pretty well-made, with many interesting choices. My main complaint about it is the structuring, as sometimes the parts doesn't blend and feel abrupt. Also I think there is potential for improving the composition and arragement. Thanks for coming to NGUAC!

[Conglomerate]

You have a decent set of jazz chords here, and you make a good use of transposing. However, it feels overused throughout the work. I think ending some of that down-going mini-progressions the other way (maybe a fast arp on the chord tones, or even another chord?) would work. In my opinion, the composition lacks the harmonic development. Although everything seems well-connected, some small changes are still needed, like adding more chord variance, without just transposing or inversing 7th chords or moving its highest notes.

As for main melody, I really like the first 20 seconds, as there are many sudden pauses and down-going sequences, and it fits the theme really well. The rest of it, however, feels a bit forced. There are many modulations, and the melody itself is complex, but it there is not enough progression. I think adding pauses, like you did in intro, or sudden tempo/rhythm changes could make that part better suited. I wouldn't complain much if the track was longer, but it actually more that a half of the song. Also, the end of the song is kinda akward, like... it could be more theme-oriented, a less-logical end could be a bit more interesting here. Otherwise, the composition itself is good, my main complaints are about the structuring and harmonization.

I don't have much to say about the instrumentation, it's ok. There is nothing unusual in the arragement, but it doesn't need to be. My only wish is that rhodes could be panned a bit further, as the mix is pretty tight. As for mixing, the rhodes are a little loud, especially at the end, and the snare sounds a bit out of the mix. I would also add more reverb to the drums, but it's unnecesarry.

Overall, you did a good job with this track. I really liked the idea, and the writing is complex and interesting. There are some composition and structuring details that I didn't like, but it's my throughts, you can disagree with it. Hope that was helpful, good luck at the next round!

[Eclipse [NGADM 2023]]

Great stuff, I really like it! Good luck at round 1

Benji-G responds:

Thanks man! Good luck to you as well.
Sad they reshuffled the groups since we're no longer up against eachother in this round. But hey, we'll both make sure to make it to round 2 so we might go up against eachother then xd

[Rise]

Wow

[The king's tale]

I like how you made sixth melodies, it sounds nice and memorable. Although I think it's a little overused throughout the second half, but the instrument variety works pretty well, and it's not very conspicuous. The melodic content is probably one of my favorite elements here.

The chord progressions and harmonization are good, nothing else to say. The development is a bit slow-paced, but the orchestration is solid, I would only prefer a bit more filled texture at the second half (2:12, for example) and less static strings (0:52). Also, woodwinds (especially at the end) are a bit loud.

Overall, it's a solid orchestral work, good job!

EagleGuard responds:

Hi there, thanks for taking your time to write such a lengthy review! I definitely get your points and I will try to keep them in mind for future orchestrations. I have to admit that I still have a lot to learn in the orchestration department (particularly keeping the sound organic), but I'm very glad you enjoyed the piece overall!

Thanks again for your review, it's much appreciated!

[Village Fest - NGADM Round 2]

Wonderful piece, great job!