damifortune's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[AIM- Come Home]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

you put a lot of detail into trying to represent the mood and emotion of the moment depicted in the artwork; i feel like the dark melancholy of the piece fits the scene really well. even some rain sounds! the song really soars at times, especially when the vocals and solo strings are at play. nice melodies, cinematic indeed. it's thoughtful and brimming with emotion. i like the little attention to detail in the piano writing with the flourishes and grace notes.

DigitalProdigy responds:

Thank you so much for the review I really appreciate it. I started the song with the piano and then started to fill in the pieces as the musical ideas started pouring in. Thank you for taking your time to review my song.

[babait // home - AIM2023]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

you did a really great job of capturing the strong emotions of the artwork you chose to represent... a very moving tune, i like the sort of uneasy approach to the detuning/letting pitches spread out as they may, things feel kind of deliberately 'unconfident but trying my best', which is maybe the best way i could describe this sort of indie aesthetic here and it matches well with the art. the second half is absolutely gorgeous, i was floored by how it develops into this very full sound. everything meshes really well... and the vocals are so powerful. i really love this, and will gladly listen to it more as time goes by

[AIM - Shuffle!]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

your guitar playing and harmony are so wonderful! ah man what a vibe. could jam out to that all day. what this makes me envision the most is a scene in which these two characters have their first kiss and as soon as their lips lock the song starts playing and we cut away to some sort of crazy psychedelic scene that's supposed to represent their experience. that's a cool take on this art and a good way to read into & play off of it without leaning into the sexual aspect (something tells me based on their clothing and poses that this is not their first kiss lol). it's cute, adventuresome, freewheeling. luv it

compared to the dynamism of your live playing, the drums suffer just a bit; there are times where repeated use of the same samples feels a little nagging, like when the crash starts hitting every beat around 2:30 and likewise for the snare 30sec later. to some extent you can mitigate it by modifying note velocities or very slight changes in the pitch, but speaking from experience trying to sequence drums like that, it's tough when you only have the one sample to work with. i totally hear what you're going for though, they're all great decisions for drumset writing...

my only other thought is that the energy level is fairly constant throughout and it'd be cool to see the song build up a little more than it does, or drop off & then build back up. all that said though, i really love this, it's such an infectious tune and you are a great guitarist!

[KERKA:Warden's Theme [Art Inspired Music 2023]]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

this is a fitting stylistic choice for this very grimdark, action-y artwork that you chose to represent! it makes me picture a trailer in which the art is just a single mid-attack shot taken from the trailer. i liked the atmospheric voiceover, and i also liked that you tried out some new ideas in the last half of the song or so. a smaller thing that i think is really nice - in the main running eighth note guitar lick, there's a part in the 2nd half of the phrase where it breaks from the "up up up up / up up up up / up up up up / down down down down" pattern to do a cool little flourish that goes up higher and kinda has its own direction. that's a nice touch and i would love to hear a lot more of that kind of detail in the partwriting. there's nothing wrong with what you've got but some extra thought towards the overall direction of your lines (instead of kinda oscillating at the same rate, so to speak) could totally bring this up a notch and make the song feel fluid.

i don't have a lot of experience with mixing heavy guitar-centric music, but my gut tells me the low-end of the mix could be beefier than it is. i think the guitars sound great though, the drums are nice and boomy, and the low piano is nicely slotted in. bass and kick are where i expect more punch, but it's up to you!

Trackers responds:

I also don't have a lot of experience mixing guitar so maybe that shows. I guess I tried to keep this one a little more symmetrical like a 90s theme song... I was thinking X-Men cartoon when I made this one.

[AIM - Misery Haunt]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

ooh, lots of familiar spooky tropes in your instrumentation... i like a lot of those choices, especially the music box in the opening section. there's some nice touches in the sound design too like the reversed bell and the low, growly rumbling. i like how you went for different degrees of fullness in the arrangement as the piece went by, too; the first part is more intimate but heavier strings, drums and brass make their way in towards the end. sounds like you had a lot of fun playing off the art you chose, which has that somewhat cartoonish spooky horror vibe that your music hits its target on.

a few things could be mixed a little more carefully i feel; a lot of the percussion is quite loud and you can even see where it's used in the overall waveform: bass drum, cymbal, tambourine. the oboe, too, even though it is meant to be the focus of its highlighted section, seems to stick out a bit. the release or reverb on the harp was also something i noticed near the beginning - since it's playing a lot of quick notes that are close by one another while the notes continue to ring, it comes across as a little bit muddy overall, maybe exacerbated by the harp sound itself not having a lot of attack to it.

with all that said though, there's a lot to love about this song and the mood feels just right to me. quirky, spooky, adventurous in the arranging, and with a good amount of playing towards established tropes (while still exploring new territory)!

Codefreq responds:

First off, thank you for your in-depth review. I'm glad you like my piece. :)

One thing, though: I'm not sure what instrument and notes you're referring to when you say the "harp", as there is no harp sound in this song.

[Contrasts. (AIM 2023)]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

the droning texture here (sounds reminiscent of tremolo-picked guitar) is simply magical - it fills in so much space and brings the listener in for contemplation while the rest of the track slowly builds in around it. the harsh cutaway after (the titular contrast i assume) where the drone is finally removed is such a cool effect. i think i would've liked to hear the piece soar to even bigger heights before that cutaway - i almost felt teased by the introduction of the drums for them to depart again half a minute later, and i think the immediate transition would've been most powerful going from an 11/10 down to a 1/10 with the biggest contrast possible. not to say at all that what you wrote doesn't work though, it's well-executed! i'm just imagining another minute of huge post-rock style crescendo there. :')

regardless, i really dig what you've come up with here thematically, and your song is very touching. the first couple of minutes are full of wistful love and warmth and that's a big part of what i see in the artwork you chose. just like with the artwork, your music contains multiple contrasts: motion and stillness, bitterness and hope, light and dark, minuscule and enormous. in that regard you have really succeeded in uniquely capturing its essence.

[AIM - Sunny Patch]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

aww yeah, this is super sweet... this feels like credits music where you just saved the whole town and everyone's cheering you on as you ride through. we even pass through a couple different themes along the way that we might've heard before... i like how the meter shifts from 4 to 3 too. the melody is really sweet, and when it comes back on the piano during the interlude section it's particularly powerful imo. i could see there being just a tad more development on the themes within their own sections - for instance more stuff like that flute melody at the end, which is a solid idea that riffs off of the rest of your writing. a bit of call-and-response between the phrases, like on the repetition changing a few notes to go in a different direction, might really sell the emotion you're already putting forth nicely!

still, altogether this is really solid, and you chose a nice set of instruments to convey this peaceful, folksy, rural painting. something that stands out to me a little is that even though the setting seems pleasant and rustic, the muted colors of the painting don't make me immediately think of 'cheerful' per se, but it's certainly not a leap to arrive at the kind of mood you aimed for with your song; the relation seems clear to me and you have done a fine job here : )

(belated bonus thought weeks after writing this: this keeps getting stuck in my head at random points, so congrats on making something so memorable :D)

Manvineo responds:

Thank you so much for taking the time to review my submission! Your feedback means a lot to me, and I genuinely appreciate your kind words. I'm glad the music resonated with you and captured that credits-music vibe. Your suggestions about developing the themes further and adding call-and-response are right on the money, and I'll take them into account for future compositions.

Your feedback has been invaluable, and I'm delighted that the melody stuck with you! Thanks again for your support and encouragement.

[AIM23 - Forgotten Civilization]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

i love when that portamento lead comes in; the sound adds a lot of fresh character to the tune, and then the same is also true of the filtery electric piano. i'd love to hear a few extra details in the bass to complement that, and perhaps some additional, busier drum patterns - especially some stuff up high could help out. it feels like, in comparison to what this tune could build and blossom into, it is slightly on the low end of how much could be going on in the song, and how much further it could develop/change. what you've got is a great foundation though - a solid groove and a nice hook with that crunchy porta lead. i think i'm envisioning some faster rhythmic patterns and more sounds filling in the gaps of the drums later in the track, but however you would ultimately choose to flesh it out, i think it would really shine with extra detail!

although i don't sense the deepest connection between the music and artwork, i definitely still see this sort of style as fairly fitting for a mysterious civilization in space we know nothing about, and exploring/probing in its midst. the synth bass and electronic drumkit help with the "space vibe" too. i think i see what you had in mind, and it's a cool take on the sci-fi!

Dynamic0 responds:

Thank you for review!

[AIM - Bellowers of Grief]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

very lovely orchestral writing. mournful and slow-moving and full of space. the couple of big swells are very thoughtful and well-positioned; i love how they are just little moments of contrast that blow in for a moment and then fade back away. the tone really does set a far-off, frigid isolation, and this would make for some really wonderful background music for a scene in such a setting as your chosen artwork. you paint well with the orchestral colors; i like what you chose to feature, such as the clarinet, and your string writing. as far as i'm concerned you really nailed the vibe you set out to accomplish! let's get you a video game to score, eh?

Everratic responds:

Thanks for the review and for judging :D

I'd love to score a video game!

[AIM - Sun Diver]

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

i love how this song opens up as it leads into the first big section - the opening is pretty dark and then we finally get that major third and mixolydian modal harmony which fills this perfect spot between upbeat and adventurous/exploratory - feels like a good choice for something that is both sun-centric and inviting of a journey of some sort. it's like the sun reveals itself there! the drums, awesome textured bass, and vocal clip sample also help create the mood of like "diving into something much larger than oneself". it's entrancing, all-encompassing, like entering the zone. very cool interpretation of the artwork, and a nicely produced piece with a comfy amount of variation, push and pull. in terms of the overall form, it strikes me as slightly unusual that the biggest section comes before the halfway mark of the song, with the latter two sections kinda being their own variations on the idea. i don't think there's anything wrong with that, but i thought it was worth mentioning; from a full-song narrative arc perspective, i would've expected the hugest moment to be more towards the end. but regardless, this rocks! very into it!