NicholasCabraja's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Wanderlust]

Very well orchestrated and wonderful job capturing such an emotion. IT fits quite well in a cue for a fantasy film. As the song progresses in the middle it feels like the song is growing then a nice percussive finish.
5/5 for the mixing
5/5 for composition

Well done!

LawnReality responds:

Thanks! Glad you liked it! :)

[Gravity]

Man that bass, sounds meaty and gritty! I'm afraid though if it sounds distorted other than my headphones. (phone, car etc.) I'm sure If i had this played out my speakers my windows would crack haha.
Great sound design tho and nice catchy rhythm!

Lubloom responds:

Thanks man! I tried it on my phone recently because my family wanted a listen (lel) and it didn't sound overly bad, but it was slightly distorted when it came to the drop. I take no responsibility if your window breaks xD. Glad you like the sounds and thanks for the review! <3

[Lost In Time]

You definitely kept the song interesting with different sounds, Around 1:40 when we enter a new rhythm. I LOVE that part!!! The sound design is quite comedic. Some of the gestures are quite funny like the coin ding sample towards the end. I love what you did with it.

Your beginning melody line reminds of the song Popcorn haha. Then as the song carries on to your other lead synth at :25. I kind of lost Interest. the melody with that sound wasn't appealing in the high end. But I did like how it sounded in the mids. A spot where I noticed it was at 1:15-1:20. Where it plays the last few notes of the riff on the lower register.

However for that sound in particular..IMO I think you can make sounds that are far more better. You could also try a "call and response" method. Where two sounds are playing the same melody but they take turns doing so.

You also throw in a nice Egyptian feel at times which is nice. Especially with that sweet super saw at 1:24.

It's very well mixed in my speakers, just I think the sound design and parts of the arrangement fell flat for me.
But you throw in a lot of sounds and gestures which are really cool and kept me super interested and the usual "Pump" effect just helps enhance it. SO GREAT JOB!

(P.S. It's definitely louder :P)

TechnoLogical15 responds:

Yeah! The “coin ding sample,” I think, is a pluck (also used in Taking It Back) playing several notes. I wasn’t going for “coin,” but yeah, I can see that! I listened to Popcorn. The pluck does sound similar. The pluck and bass in Lost In Time were both a tom sample with some effects/distortion. No kidding. The first melody synth I used was kind of strange, and I knew that, but I used it anyway. I currently just use 3xOsc for all of my synths; I haven’t bought any other good synth plugins yet. I considered the call and response thing, but I didn’t end up doing it. If you have anything you would like me to listen to/review, just ask! Thanks for the advice!

[A Long Night]

I'm always fan of jazz when it appears on my feed. Your elements are nice. Piano - as always - is super! The drums is probably what really captures it. I love how ambient it is in comparison to your piano who is sitting in the front of it all. GAH! The song has such a weird combo!! You got really nice piano playing jazz and then an ambient kinda drum kit. Hmm, Interesting...I think I'm floating. ~~

Well done!

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Yeah. I rarely compose anything jazzy, as it's usually not my style. But if it's for a competition, I'll go for it. I like the drumset (or the soundfont drums) that I was using, but I didn't have time to make some good beats out of it, and I had to repeat a lot too, which distanced the beat from the piano to some extent. The piece is indeed a bit ambient. I wanted it to be experienced as something you listen to in the background of a (dark) pub, while you're talking to friends, or sitting alone and enjoying the music. Thanks for listening and for reviewing!

[IJ1 & TL15 - Edge Of The Universe]

Really awesome job! The arrangement is pretty sick. I'm a big fan of DnB though I hardly ever create it. Was this done on Ignite? That was the first Music software I used before deciding this was my passion.
The guitar is awesome. The overall mix is very well thought out in terms of arrangement and sound design.

The only thing that I think needs better understood is the genre.
Not that you didn't capture it, you sure did. However I think the drums need to be turned up to really set the foundation of the track. (Especially the break before the guitar comes in) Those snares and kicks should have been punchy and really smack my ears. The adjustment could have been subtle on the drum bus and that would brought a tad more life into your mix.
The reason also is to fill up headroom. Typically any fast paced or upbeat song always will have the drums in front of the mix as possible because thats what drives the song. In DnB, its practically in the name haha :P

Also...is there a limiter on the track if so..its not compressed enough XD.
Because this sounds quiet compared to a mastered DnB song. Not sure how much you know about Peak and RMS, but its something you might want to look into if your thinking about to m.

Again, this mix isn't bad, its very well damn good! AND I LOVE THE GUITAR!!

TechnoLogical15 responds:

Yes, we did use Ignite! Good ear! So drum bus? Nahhh. I used to use Ignite. I use FL Studio now, but IslandJump1 still has Ignite, so that's what we used. What does "Peak and RMS" mean?
Oh yeah, the guitar says thank you. XD So do I! (And so does IJ1, or I'm sure he would, I'll show this to him.)
I think it's limited? idk

[BRUCE: In the Dark]

Dude I got chill on my spine. This is insanely cool. I'd always wondered what I could do with what Stormdrums 3 and omg...this is the creepiest inspiration. Those wooden repeated hits always get me and I feel like I'm about to get grabbed. Every gesture you place hits me with a shiver and I can't control myself. I love how some hits pan from center to right or left and that repeated gong to set the motion, the next wave of sounds to scare and capture me.
This feels like I'm in a room with someone. Someone I don't want to be with. (spookyy) Awesome work here!

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thanks a lot, dude!
Stormdrums 3 sure has a lot of very interesting and experimental stuff in there. I'll have a lot of fun with it, hehhe...
I find that the sounds sound very real, almost like you're indeed, there in a room. Cool thing is, that panning and all, I didn't really have to do anything! Stormdrum 3 comes pretty much pre-panned, so that everything fits together. It's pretty rad XD

Glad to hear that you liked it :)

[BRUCE: Angel - Innocence Lost]

The piano would sound great on its own. And what skills! ;)

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thanks, man! Much appreciated :)

[Percussionella]

Great now I'm stuck between your jungle one and this one. haha. I like how ambient this one is, but the jungle had such a neat groove. In this one I feel like I walked into a mansion and a skeleton in a top hat is asking me "would you like some tea?" *slowly pulls chair.
Anyway. This doesn't get boring to quickly, and the new subtle and noticeable changes throughout give it a nice character!

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

I know that if one really wants to, once can find a jungle sound in this. But the atmosphere is too different from what one would expect a jungle to sound like, I feel.
It has a bit of a light horror/comedy sound to it for sure :P

Thank you for your review :)