Neophyte-Ronin's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Stormwind]

A Bit Too Messy for a Game

There is a lot of noise in the form of background effects and voice-overs, much of which is marring the chief riffs and melody of the song itself. There are also chiptunes (or an approximation thereof), although that doesn't make for a game track.

To grasp how they used chiptunes and other limited sound-fonts, listen to old games by Sunsoft and Konami. Blaster Master, Castlevania, and even the NES version of Batman are great places to start. Round it off with Fester's Quest and Contra, paired with The Goonies II and The Immortal (Will Harvey; this one's released by Electronic Arts and appeared on many game consoles and PCs). All of these games contain very complex arpeggios and techniques, despite limited hardware, and the tunes were insanely catchy regardless of their limited instrumentation.

I get the idea that this song would work elsewhere, like on my CD while driving to work, or on the dancefloor, but not in flash movies or games. There is that sense of chaos, but some sound clips become repetitive, thus ruining the sense of chaos.

So, this one is old and hard to sell. Look on the bright side: you've improved considerably.

[FFVI Terra's Theme]

Someone Performed Terra Quite Well Today...!

This seems like more of a straight cover, but thank God there aren't any percussion-oriented instruments as drums during the first half... the song is a long crescendo where the second half actually has percussion. Before, it's a string set, a quintet or quartet. It's a tension-raising, moody tune, one that even had my father's attention one day on guitar. Terra also happens to be one of my favorite characters in the Final Fantasy universe, so the urge to offer tens in the review was great.

But since this is more of a straight cover that captures and perhaps "covers" the original sentiments of the classic tune by Uematsu, I can't offer a full ten. I did, however, send you Respect, so in the technical sense, you succeeded.

Post-Script: Though I am loath to admit it to any musician here, whenever I find someone who submits regular quality, I tend to download their material even if I didn't offer a full review or even a regular vote. It's not as tangible as a review or vote, but consider it a sign of approval whenever I download practically everything from your NG catalog. Look at it this way: one of them might end up in a submission's soundtrack!

[Zelda - Gerudo Valley (remix)]

Top-Notch Quality

Reminiscent of some of Scott Peeples' Gerudo Valley mixes at OCRemix, meaning it's insanely beautiful. Perhaps too beautiful... forgive the comparison, but it sounds vaguely similar to an erotic movie soundtrack. I've seen a fan-art of Link and Malon that's both racy and intimate, and this track captures the moment a little too well...!

Unfortunately, saying such things means that some jerk author will actually try to animate a pornographic flash based on the Legend of Zelda: the Ocarina of Time! Worse yet, they'll probably want your track... or worst of all, they were actually inspired by the same track!

Other than rousing a disturbing association, the song itself is mellow and fun to listen to, which explains why the style is preferred for erotic films in the first place. I suppose you should keep up the good work, but watch out when you claim something was "made for fun and there's nothing special about it", because someone will be cruel enough to over-analyze and conjecture about what you really wanted out of the song....

In the end, you made it for fun, but you only assume there's nothing special about it. I bet all the fan-girls say otherwise. ;)

C-Storm responds:

Yeah.. cause I listened to the orchestral version of it and it was so beautiful, so just wanted to make a quick remix of it and when I uploaded it I didnt think anyone would like it :p

[N-TraxX - The Tunnel (C Remix)]

Polish and Subtle Inspiration

I recognize the soundtrack to DK Country. This is arranged in such a subtle yet skillful way that OCRemix would gobble it up. If judgment is too harsh for you to get in, VGMix is a cheap but satisfying alternative. Speak to Nemesis Theory or Zircon--fellow musicians dwelling at this site--on how to get involved with the game music arrangement community at the big-wig sites... where your caliber of music belongs.

[When The Time Comes]

You've Improved

Even I will agree about the vocals being wack, although the lyrics aren't bad at all. I bet you MilkMan-Dan and a few other guys would love to take a whack at singing this one... myself included. I love the original and would like to listen to the updated instrumental version of this song.

And by the way... it's great to see you throwing out such an excess of tracks. You have been improving both your guitar and your production skills. When the Time Comes is definitely worth any Negrounder's listen any day of the week, whether they're itching for a cheap-shot against emo music or not (given some lyrical tweaks, this song can get out of that stereotyped territory). Keep on chugging... even a grizzled sucker like Bad-Man appreciates your dexterity.

Kor-Rune responds:

Thank you!

Yeah, the lyrics are boring and generic pop radio lyrics, I was planning on changing the good bulk of them.

I certainly am positive I'm a horrible vocalist, hell, my voice isn't even developed all the way, so I'm glad to have anyone else change up the sing and/or change the lyrics, and post their shot. I feel this track still has more work to be done to it.

I'm trying my best to start instead of working on just compositional skills, also production skills. They are hard. :( But at least they are improving, thank you!

Thanks again for the review!

[_-={To Rise Again!}=-_]

Decent....

This could be used for something. Just .2 more and a cute little ribbon would be yours. One issue is that you can't really make a hip-hop song out of it. It would be hard for any vocalist to bypass the dominant lead synths, whereas Sorohanro's entry (I knew I heard it somewhere--I downloaded it!) is far more versatile and contains smattering of live instrument (trumpet).

The end on this one is flaky; t'would be better for you to have looped this one.

MaestroRage responds:

yup. All true. Like I said, I had never made a beat before, so I didn't even try. I just took the beats, sliced em up, threw em on a solo cello, had a few luls and called it a day. I suddenly ran out of ideas near the end which is why I ended it that way.

I know I don't deserve to win, I was really surprised it got as far as it did.

Good advice, I was aware, but thanks for being honest enough to bring them up. And again for the review!

[-+[Adobe Bazaar]+-]

Enchanting to a T

Maybe this will be another track in an upcoming project. There is a general sense that a "heat" is felt; I imagined Israel with a tinge of Latin. Either way, there is that stain of exotic that creeps through the song.

This can easily be looped and made into a BGM for a game, and it's perfect fodder for a movie. It's just a matter of time before someone makes an attempt.

[_-={A Moment's Respite}=-_]

Wheat Field in Moonlight

It doesn't loop perfectly, actually, but that doesn't kill it completely. It's perfect as a song heard only once, which fades out before the end.

I recognize the melody is very, very similar--perhaps dead-on--to The Moonlight Sonata, an excellent classical piece. That is what got my attention the most.

For its intended use and its beauty, I'm more than likely swiping this from the Tower Tactics II soundtrack for a project of my own. IF saying that it's beautiful is one kind of compliment, seriously considering its application in a Flash has to be the best kind of compliment for you, seeing how your efforts won't be wasted.

Excellent work. A second version should loop perfectly, next time.

[Ruin (Song For Lydia)]

Club Kukeiha, or Michiru?

This is a leap over the regular stuff you do: you've composed something complex enough to be featured in a contemporary video game soundtrack.

It initially reminded me of Club Kukeiha... or rather, the music/sound team responsible for the Vampire Killer/Castlevania series soundtracks. Michiru Yamane, who composed the Symphony of the Night soundtrack, comes to mind as well. Consider it a compliment, then, to have a critic be reminded of such things; those soundtracks were tricky and technically complex, not to mention inspiring to hear while killing vampires.

It does, however, seem a little repetitive. Maybe if the chord progression changed a little over the course of the song, rather than merely enhance the intensity of the instruments (particularly the percussion), then it would be even more likely to fit this into a game setting.

By itself, however, it's an excellent start. Several cool ideas play out here, so take a few footnotes from this track before moving onto others.

HappyHomicide responds:

I'm glad you you enjoyed it, thanks for all the criticism, it's really helpful!

also, the repetativeness is on purpose if you read the little description thing