DavidOrr's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Donkey Kong Country Medley]

Brings back memories!

I loved how you put together the medley, things flowed quite nicely. I remember playing the Donkey Kong games when I was younger and this certainly brings back memories!

The piano sounds very, VERY synthetic- perhaps you could try to give it a little more warmth and take off the ping with some eq adjusting. Also, the velocity levels seem to be all the same on your repeated notes, giving you the dreaded 'machine gun' effect.

This could really shine with some additional instruments- the piano is very nice but there are many places where I could see some strings and bells (for instance in the underwater theme).

All in all awesome work Nigel!
5/5

If you have a moment I'd love to hear your thoughts on my latest piece, -Orr- Colony!

Kreepman responds:

I suck at EQ adjusting :P
But I'll try.

What I do when I record is record with the velocity sensitivity turned off so it's all the same velocity as I absolutely hate when I have keys that are quieter than others when I'm recording (it bothers me for some reason XD).
I usually then go into my program and adjust it if needed but sometimes I don't.

But yeah, I'll give it some variation and EQ adjusting!
Thanks for your review! <3

Also, you're the first person on Newgrounds (that's not my cousin...unless you're related to me :P) whose called me Nigel :D

And yes, I'll hear your latest piece <3

[{BT} Prelude in C minor]

Beautiful!

Great work Ben, this is dripping with emotion. I love how the melody is mostly stepwise motion. It makes the few moments where it jumps does jump very powerful.

Great work, well played!

BenTibbetts responds:

Thank you David!

[FFL - Springtime Bliss]

A nice start-

I think the overall feel of the song is a bit too sparse for the melody you introduced at the beginning. I'd try introducing some new ideas and let the piece sizzle a little before you end it. At 0:52 you could introduce a lot of different things, such as a synth pad in the background, or more complex drums. Right now I think it ends too little too soon.

You're off to a good start, I'd take this idea and run with it!

5/5 for exposure

If you've got a minute I'd love your ideas on my latest piece ST Conflict!

FurFurLife responds:

Thanks for the eight.

I might just upload an updated version, who knows....

[Snapdragon]

Great work!

It's been a while since I've had a listen to your music and boy was that a mistake! The piece is really well mixed. Everything has it's own space and is very audible. Awesome work!

When the melody comes in at 1:21 I think it'd make sense to pull the arps in the same register as the melody back slightly- they don't clash to my ears, but it is hard to hear the melody. Great break at 2:42! The guitar riff could stand to have a more gradual fade out- it sounded pretty abrupt and caught me off guard.

That's all I can think of for suggetions. Keep up the Awesome work NT!

5/5

NemesisTheory responds:

Thanks for those kind words, David! :)

When I listen to it now I actually agree, it's something I'll take note of in the future-- and for the guitar, you're right. I suppose I could've done that a lot better XD. I threw that in there as sort of an homage to the original :) I guess I was too fast when I did that!

Thanks for the suggestions- I'll definitely keep them in mind for whatever I do next :)
<3 for the score, too! :D

[Battle Me Gulch Bastard - WIP]

Very Cool!

I loved the instrument combinations. The trumpets at the beginning added a really nice touch!

The french horns at 0:39 don't quite sync up with the rest of the track- I'd go back and look to see if they're quantized properly. I love the build up after the solos, very well done! The ending is a bit over done I think, about 1/3 of the piece is just the tag at the end. I'd try lengthening out the piece or shortening the tag to make the proportions feel a bit more normal.

All in all great work, keep it up!

If you have a minute, I'd love your thoughts on my latest piece ST Conflict!

[J2A [Demo]]

Nice work!

There are a lot of good things here. The track progressed well, and it had a steady beat to it. Good job with that!

Some of the levels of the instruments weren't especially well balanced- the bass was very hard to hear. I think you may be mixing on some unbalanced speakers, so try getting another set of speakers or a set of headphones to provide an alternate listening angle. One last point I had was there doesn't seem to be quite enough variation- I think you could benefit from adding in some more variety throughout the keep the listener's attention.

All in all a very good start, keep up the good work!

5/5

If you have a minute I'd love your thoughts on my latest track ST Conflict!

Zenan responds:

Thanks for the review, I'm trying to take in all of the advice given and it's sounding a lot better already! I will listen to your track and review, cheers!

[DJ Boss - Freudian Slip]

Nice work!

Lots of fun ideas here, and there was enough variety to keep my interest for the majority of the piece. Good job!

I'd try to give the mix a bit more depth. It felt pretty flat, and dull sometimes. I think the drums are the culprits. They feel a little too bland for a piece like this, I'd consider beefing up the kick and snare a little to give them more body. I'd experiment with that, you may find something you like!

5/5

If you have a minute I'd love your thoughts on my piece ST Conflict!

bossler13 responds:

Thanks man!
I think I'll go work that out now, as a matter of fact. Gald I could hold your interest!

and yes, I'll go look at your piece! maybe I can get some inspiration from it. I'm stuck on a project at the moment, haha

[[CE]- Spacial Awareness]

Very Creative!

Great job, and a fun idea. Reminds me of the Virtual Barbershop (if you haven't heard it google it, it's pretty cool!) I loved the introduction, I think it's the coolest part of the whole track.

I think it'd be fun to expand the idea to an entire orchestra. The piano was exaggerated quite a bit (I play the piano a lot and it doesn't quite sound like that), but and orchestra really is that spacial when you're sitting in the middle of it.

Great idea, I'd run with it and see what you come up with!
5/5