damifortune's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[AIM - Snow Angels]

(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)

wow, brief aside here, i wasn't expecting to see anything written in Finale PrintMusic in the compo... that's where i got my start in 2003-04 with Finale PrintMusic 2002. even just seeing your score screenshot takes me back lol - cool!

anyway - very pretty, emotional piece you've got here. the harp/piano and especially the strings are really nice; sometimes i wish the arpeggiated parts deviated a little more, but i would find this very suitable background music for a game or cutscene. the mood is dark and wintry! it actually feels considerably less lighthearted than the artwork you chose for inspiration, where i maybe would've imagined some cute pizz plucks and glockenspiel for these cute fellas having a good time in the snow. but, with that said, i can still see what you had in mind, and it sorta feels like what i'd be feeling by zooming out to see the whole landscape, neighborhood, town around them on a snowy winter's day.

although the EWSO sample libraries help out, i know from experience it's pretty hard to get humanistic sound out of Finale without *a lot* of finagling - un-score-like finagling at that, where you're dropping dynamic and articulation markings all over the place and it looks unreadable or silly. but that's one aspect where i think this piece could really benefit; the arpeggios and other repeated rhythmic figures would feel less like a computer was playing them back if their volumes varied more, offbeats were de-emphasized, etc. basically what i'm saying here is the playback isn't doing your score justice lol, i see some good clean detail in the page you provided, so it'd be lovely to hear a real recording; real players would handle so much of that stuff themselves :')

NativeNiles responds:

Thx for the review!

[AIM - The Sun Hides Its Face]

(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)

it's cool to hear such a mix of acoustic and digital sounds, and there's something a bit unnerving and melancholy about the piece which i think matches with the artwork you chose... those lit-up windmills, those gnarled branches, sure are menacing. it's conceptually interesting the way you tried to bridge all those disparate elements; and not an easy task either.

the instrumentation could perhaps be used more effectively; the orchestral parts are all written in fairly close range of one another when it might feel more expansive and open (doubly suiting the wide landscape of the artwork) to be spacing out the chords towards the bass register and creating some motion down there too. the whole first half of the song feels really wanting for some lower-pitched sounds. also the writing doesn't "go places", parts do a lot of looping, which isn't inherently bad but not what i would expect out of orchestral writing; it might be useful to think about where the lines are going, to pay attention to their overall shapes and directions, and write with more intentionality, like heading towards particular high points and low points, or reusing (in new ways) familiar shapes/rhythms/patterns that came from earlier parts of your melodies and supporting lines. this would go a long way towards making everything feel cohesive!

the last section with the drums feels particularly cool to me, even though its tone is a bit disparate from the rest. i like all the rhythmic elements at play there. there's a lot of cool ideas in this tune, and with some more careful handling of all its parts it could really succeed.

Joel-Phelps responds:

Thanks for the review!

I will definitely try for more intentionality in my next artwork. This has helped a lot!

[Rock On Gustafa [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 accompaniments that unfold as the piece goes by are all really lovely... bringing out a lot of emotion and peaceful feeling. love the various field recording incorporations too, i'm a big sucker for that. :D this is spot-on for an atmosphere of "farm sim where nothing can go wrong and all is right with the world", and of course in the artwork you chose, this cheerful hippie bard with a joint embodies that exact feeling. in that respect you nailed it imo!

the only thing that kinda stands out to me about this arrangement is the guitar - being front and center and all, a bit more detail in the writing would go a long way. de-emphasizing the notes that aren't on strong beats by lowering their volumes would help make it feel humanistic, as would slightly varying their levels across the board. a few more changes in the chords would also be nice; or even just variations in how the arpeggios move/start/end/etc. regardless there's a lot of love in the rest of the piece and it is quite enjoyable and fitting!

Quarl responds:

I quickly fake dynamics with an automation lane on a volume knob, good to know I can go harder on those peaks and valleys next time I use a dulcimer patch to fake a guitar :p

[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.

[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.

[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!

[Beneath (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)

ooooh... spectacular sound design O_O so many big, deep swells and a lot of cool effects that i think strongly convey the deep sea locale. i'm super impressed with the soundscape here, and i can only imagine if this is what you're bringing to the table you will excel in film scoring too. this is massively creepy, unique, and delicately crafted. the light presence of solo cello really sells it too, giving us something slightly mournful and uneasy to latch onto that's clearly acoustic amidst all the processing and cinematic sound.

geez... this is just so good, i'm really inspired by this one.

chipsqueek responds:

ty for the review ! :D fun fact the cello is actually a violin (specifically the one in the Gypsy library from EastWest just pitch down an octave with some subtle tube distortion to remake the unevenness and inconsistences in real life strings, since pitching the violin down gets rid a lot of high end !) also ty for all the descriptive words ! i plan on going into composing for films and games in the future, so all the descriptives really help me understand what to focus on for future tracks and scores ! :D