Dylnmatrix's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[T-Logic - Influx]

Having been a while since hearing a track of yours, it's really nice to hear how much you've improved. Especially in the melodic and chord progression areas of your tracks. I really enjoy the drum beat in this, the sequencing of the hats was intricate enough to get me grooving and drum sequencing is something I still wish to improve in myself. The instruments also blended well together and complemented the track well as a whole. My only nitpick would be that it is pretty repetitive, but you closed the track (really well done outro I might add, even if it does seem to be a really short outro, it's very solid) before it got too repetitive to the point that someone would just skip through the rest of the track looking for more. The mixing is also well done, I can hear everything very well with my headphones, but the track could benefit from some master compression to boost the quiet sounds so to let people with speakers enjoy the tiny intricacies of the track.

Very nicely done, especially for a track done in such a small timeframe. Pumping out a track in 4-5 hours is something that I would have a very hard time doing now, so I commend you in that.

Don't stop improving man,
Dylnmatrix

TaintedLogic responds:

DylnMatrix! :D So glad to hear from you, man. How's college going? It's like all my early influences on this site stopped by for this track: Johnfn and now you! ^^ Anyway, I'm thrilled that you think I'm improving. I'm glad the melodic and chordal elements were satisfying for you and, as I mentioned in the description, I worked really hard on those drums. ;) I was really going for a "well-blended" sound, if you know what I mean, so I'm glad you thought I captured that here. I totally agree that it's repetitive - I was quite lazy with the structure of this one. As for the outro, it's mostly made up of those last 4 chord hits, which I gradually fade in over the course of the final refrain. :) Thanks for the compliments on the mixing as well, and I concur that I need to do some more work with master compression. I recently got some advice on multiband compressors from a friend from school that I plan on using in the near future. >:D Thank you very much again, DM! Great to see an old friend stopping by my page. :') I should probably check Soundcloud more often so I can hear more of your newer work. Hopefully I'll have some time next weekend. Thanks again!

[The Nightingale Order]

That percussion...

This is beautiful man. Very fitting to the art piece. The musicality is brilliant and I'm in love with the percussion. Gives you an epic feel, yet you wonder about the mysteries that it holds. 1:23 holds especially true to that, and I love it.

I honestly can't think of anything to critique in this. This is just brilliance in my ears and I'm having a hard time finding anything wrong with it as there really isn't anything. Maybe it's a bit short and you could have done more with this, but the shortness works well for me and this piece.

Great job on this.

LunyAlex responds:

Thank you for your kind words, they are really motivating!

[Lycanthropy]

The techno parts give me a really nostalgic feeling with the melody and synths that you used. Though this doesn't really make me think of a man vs Werewolf type of relationship, it makes me think more of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I hear a constant struggle in the song, even in the "calmer parts" of the track as if he has someone tempting him to change, aka Hyde. And then the break is when he breaks and falls to temptation and then the drop is Mr. Hyde taking over. Hyde being calm and collected, the rest of the track is Jekyll trying to get his mind back, but the way it ends gives me the feeling he failed. But that might just be me.

I really like the bassline you gave it, even if it has been used before. And the drop was pretty cool as well, good on you for making it melodic. I also like the breakbeat after the first drop.

While I liked those things, the drums sounded kind of cheesy, and while it sometimes added the old school feel to the techno, I think you need a stronger beat for the dubstep parts, give us a real sense of how big the change is between the man and the monster. Probably could use with some different basses in the drop that would truly contrast the two minds. Also, that snare needs to be stronger, it sounds really soft and doesn't add to the whole beast taking over. I'm kind of nitpicking but it's what I feel would artistically represent the track better, honestly.

In all regards though, this is a good track. I liked it and it really got my art interpreter side working again. The mixing and mastering is clear and I can hear everything, and the overall structure of the song is good. Was a bit repetitive at the end, and could've used a bit of melodic variances, but I digress.

Good work on this and keep it up.

Voltus responds:

Thank you very much.

The snare btw was totally made by myself, my first "selfsynthed snare" ever you could say. But I get where you're coming from. I need to learn that stuff more.
I really appreciate your critique!

[Rain Drums]

This is quite nice.

I like the use of the steel drums and all the contrasting melodies that you have going on at once. It's nice to listen to. I also liked the intro into the track, short but sweet, but just enough to give a good introduction to what the track was about.

A couple miffs/nitpicks/what-have-you: While I liked the use of the steel drums for the main melody and all the contrasting melodies you have going on, it does get a little too repetitive before the end of the track. I feel like you could have varied the melodies as you went along, even in a 2 minute track. Also, the outro seemed a little rushed and it feels like the song has unfinished ideas to fulfill. It didn't quite feel complete, y'know?

Other than that, I liked the track and I hope you continue making more.
Dylnmatrix

Rinibra responds:

Thank you so much!!

[Encapsulation]

Wow...I really like this track. Love it, even.

Great intro into the track, and I love the strings used (of course I do, it's East/West). The mixing is amazing, making me jealous as I still have a long way to go. I also love the melodies that pop in during the breadowns and choruses. Around 2:30 onwards is my favorite part of the track and it just fills my headphones with beautiful sound. I also really love the outro starting at 3:40-ish. Don't know why, I just do.

One thing I did notice though, is that from 0:36-0:46, there's a weird popping noise. It at least goes with the rhythm of the track, so it might be intentional, but it is pretty much the only thing I dislike. I do like the effect you have before it starts, which makes me believe the popping's intentional, but I prefer the way you use it at 1:50 better than keeping the effect going for 10 seconds after it's done. Just a nitpick though.

Other than that, I really like the track. I've listened to it 4 times during writing this review and I like it more each time. You guys did a really great job on it.
Dylnmatrix

Step responds:

Heyyy thanks for reviewing!

"Wow...I really like this track. Love it, even."

Yay. c:

"Great intro into the track, and I love the strings used (of course I do, it's East/West)."

You know what, those strings actually aren't East/West! Those are from Omnisphere. Omnisphere has some absolutely lovely sustain string patches. I don't think they're sampled (but they might be). Whatever the case, I love their warm silky sound and I had to use them. The legato strings at 2:50, however, are East/West.

"The mixing is amazing, making me jealous as I still have a long way to go."

It's all due to experience. I never actually read anything on mixing or followed any tutorials (apart from one small one just to figure out what stuff does). I think it's something that a musician will just pick up naturally after a while so don't fret too much about it.

"I also love the melodies that pop in during the breadowns and choruses."

It's funny, the melodies I just jot into the piano roll casually (such as the ones featured in this track) come out nicely, and when I try and spend ages thinking about a good melody and trying to perfect it, it isn't nearly as good.

"Around 2:30 onwards is my favorite part of the track and it just fills my headphones with beautiful sound."

That's so great to hear. I worked crazy hard on 2:50... after such a massive buildup that Echo gave me, I had to throw all I had at the climax.

"One thing I did notice though, is that from 0:36-0:46, there's a weird popping noise. It at least goes with the rhythm of the track, so it might be intentional, but it is pretty much the only thing I dislike. I do like the effect you have before it starts, which makes me believe the popping's intentional, but I prefer the way you use it at 1:50 better than keeping the effect going for 10 seconds after it's done. Just a nitpick though."

You know, I think I know which pops you're talking about. Certain pops are intentional, but other pops are just unintentional... I have no idea what they are. I had to export this quickly to make the deadline and these must've been artefacts from the export (I sometimes get glitchy exports from using East/West because the VSTs are so CPU-intensive). Weird.

"Other than that, I really like the track. I've listened to it 4 times during writing this review and I like it more each time. You guys did a really great job on it."

Thanks a lot for such a great review! I'm glad you liked it.

[Delta Wave]

Great job on this man. I love that you took some of my advice, it feels good knowing I helped someone make a great track. I can't really find anything wrong with it aside from distortion in the sound here and there that's barely noticeable unless you listen for it (had to listen twice to hear it), or if you have a certain set of speakers/headphones, may be different for other people. It didn't bother me though.

I enjoyed the final product and hope to hear more from you :)
Dylnmatrix

Canas responds:

Thanks for the input my friend :)

[Robot Slave (demo)]

Damn, that is a really crisp mix. I'm jealous. I'm also really digging the bass as well as that transition into the end of the demo.

If you do ever finish this, I think you should try and go farther with it, making a melody over that part at the end and adding a little variety to the bass part. I'm not sure how that would all fit in, as I'm no expert on Drum n Bass, but I do know what I enjoy when it comes to Drum N Bass, and that's when the artist fits an awesome melody over the craziness of the rest of the track.

This is awesome regardless though. 5/5 since everything in this minute and 21 second track is damn near perfect to my ears.

Dylnmatrix
R4R

Sequenced responds:

the key to getting a crisp mix is trial and error for years. ;)

thanks for the comments, i'll keep them in mind for the full

[Life's Breath]

I really like the melody, especially at 1:30-ish, with that little breakdown you had. Nice and relaxing, yet has a good amount of emotion in it to add the tension that I feel was needed to keep me gripped. I feel like you really got the composition part down for this whole piece, as I don't have much to say about it.

Now, you have the composition part down, but there is a lot of distortion and instruments overpowering others. I'd recommend compressing it a little to eliminate most of the distortion and clipping that happens with your crescendos. It's at least what I would do in the mixing process. Don't put too much compression on it though, as it will give your song a muddy feel. I'd also turn the string section down just slightly when you have everything building, as the strings usually take over and it's harder to hear the rest of the track.

But other than that, this is a short, sweet, and nice piece. Don't take the 3.5 stars too badly, as I see a great track in this. It has great composition, it just needs a little work with the mixing and maybe a bit of EQ'ing as well. Good work, Oshii, keep it up.

Dylnmatrix

Oshii77 responds:

Thanks very much for your review!

The problem I have with the advice relating compressing and distortion is, quite simply... I don't understand any of it!
In the software I use, Noteflight, I've never had to think about any of this - I just composed as I would at a piano - not thinking about electronic effects at all.
Additionally, it's very difficult to subtly change instrumental dynamics so at most stages of the piece I have overpowering parts though I try to minimise this... And to top it off, I used some lame online .wav to .mp3 converter which made it all sound horribly fuzzy at parts.

I'll try using Audacity and see what I can do.

Again, thanks very much for your review - it's much appreciated!
:)

[Stereo Tide]

I really enjoyed this. The slides in the melody and bass are really cool, I feel like they make the music flow a lot better than if they weren't there. The composition was great. I'm jealous about the mix/master, I wish I could be that good and make my songs that crisp sounding. I also enjoyed the calm moments with all the sound effects, made me think of sitting outside on a summer day and just listening to the birds.

My only real issues with the track is that maybe it's a smidge too repetitive. I felt like there could have been so many more melodies to build off of the original one. I also think it's a tad too "mainstream", in the sense it's a bit cliche for a dancey techno song. These kinds of melodies and progressions are done a lot in the dance songs I've heard, and it really reminded me a little of the melodies SKILLZmakeKILLZ makes in their dance music.

But other than that, I enjoyed the track. Good composition, great mixing/mastering, and an overall good song. Nice job on this, guys!

Dylnmatrix

ChasingPresence responds:

Thanks for the detailed review! These are rare :)

[Lies]

...wow. This track was beautiful. Nice and varied throughout, the vocals were good quality and the singer has a great voice. Was a little flat at parts, but I didn't notice it as much, so it doesn't deter from the track that much, as I know what it's like singing and how easy it can be to go flat from time to time.

I also love how you had the bass have the transition riff a lot of the times and how noticeable. Being a bass player myself, I always appreciate songs that have the bass be noticeable, and more important than just backing everyone up and playing root notes. Maybe that makes me biased, but I don't care.

I enjoyed the guitar, and with jaysummers playing, it's to be expected. He's a great guitarist, in my eyes. I like how the solo just "creeped" into the track, and there wasn't really much notice to it coming, as there is in a lot of rock songs I listen to. It was new and sounded great to me. I also liked how well it blended itself with the bass guitar, but still gave room for the bass to shine as well, which, as I said above, appreciate quite a lot.

Aside from the singer going flat only a couple times, which doesn't affect the score for me at all, great song. Good lyrics, good progressions, good instruments, great quality...just wow. You're definitely getting a 5 from me for this. I'm not saying it's perfect, but it certainly gets my respect.

Shanath responds:

Ohh, thank you for the very detailed review. I'm glad you noticed that we were trying to give the bass more emphasis as most songs just use it as backing instead of trying to give it a flavor of its own.

As for the singing, Jess has a really nice voice but I know she had trouble getting a good recording done for this track. It might have been because of the certain style of the song and how she had to get used to it. Jay really shines here as well and I hope to work with him again in the future.

Either way, thanks again for the review. :3