Well hey
Some interesting ideas throughout, but the music doesn't really feel like it goes anywhere without a clear melody or multiple riffs. The mixing could use some more work - I'd definitely bring out those syncopated horns some more if you want a more Reggae feel (maybe even throw in some extra reverb for them). Also, I'd try panning stuff more so the instruments sound more transparent.
Thank you for your advice and for the review.
Short but solid
Not much to say, but this is a neat little loop for sure. Not exactly my idea of abstract, but it does have no tonal bias, so I guess you can use it for a lot of stuff. The mix felt a bit too heavy for me, but then again, I'm normally not a big fan of compression. Solid stuff for sure though.
Softly
I'm not really getting the "Christmas special" feel, but I enjoyed it. Something to relax and perhaps fall asleep to. You might want to separate the sound effects some more though - everything feels too centered. Try to spread it out some more to give a more realistic sense of ambiance.
Nicely done
Definitely has that determined sort of pathos going about it. I really like the orchestration you've done - especially neat were those low bass-drum hits, which really gave the sensation of explosions in the horizon - and just overall how you've managed to relate closely to the story. Samples were pretty decent overall too considering that they're soundfonts. The only thing off the top of my head that you might be able to improve is to greater emphasize the "with new resolve" part - the ending section sounds a bit too similar to the one near the beginning in my opinion. Other than that though, great job!
Thanks man, I'm glad that you were able to hear the story going there. And listening again, it could have used some more variation at the end.
Heavy
It's feels a bit bare in terms of processing (for an Industrial piece at least), but the drums and bass do have that heavy-handed industrial feel. I really like the synth/pad that comes in around 0:43 - adds a sort of otherworldly feel to the track. I wish the aggressive drums would've mellowed out for that part though. I do like how you manage to wrap up this short piece rather nicely though - it doesn't feel like it's incomplete or needing more parts. Feel just about right.
Well, not too much
Certainly minimal with the melodies and development, but I'm fond of this gradual sort of instrument build-up. The static drums are actually kind of neat, especially that bass drum. The piano riff is well done, especially when you start using a gating effect on it. I didn't like the higher synth riff as much however. Some nice ideas you are experimenting with though - try using them in more full fledged piece and see how that goes.
A bit repetitive
While I liked how you built-up and switched the instruments at the beginning and the various transitions, I think overall it still felt somewhat repetitive. You basically only got one 4-note riff, which is repeated more or less by every synth in unison (rearticulated in various ways of course). In particular, the part from about 1:00 to 1:30 didn't felt especially repetitive since you didn't really vary anything in that section at all. I think this track would be benefit greatly with another riff or two for the other instruments to occasionally play.
Darkish
It's a bit short, but I rather liked it. The bass and the chip-ish synth really give it a dark feel though, which a welcome twist to normally happy-ish sounding House stuff around here. I don't feel so much of the funk since the harmony is kind of minimal, but it'd be neat to hear how you can make this dark bass line into a funk piece, hehe. Good stuff.
Tinny
I don't know exactly what you mean by "remastered", but this track sounds like it's in some serious need of mastering. The high's are way too emphasized that it barely sounds like a piano anymore, and somewhat unpleasant to the ears, especially with headphones. The actual music is not bad at all - has a bit of feel Mario feel with how you did some of the major arpeggios - but the sound quality just makes it hard to enjoy fully. I hope you can fix this problem.
Intriguing
I'm really enjoying this ambient guitar soloing - really projects a sort of dark, contemplative mood. You don't too much effects (for an ambient piece, at least) going on, so the guitar has a really transparent texture, which I felt worked quite well in this piece. My favorite part is probably that gorgeous chord at about 1:40 - I actually felt that place was actually quite a good place to end the piece. The parts after that felt a bit tacked on, since it doesn't really go anywhere - probably would've worked better if you added another minute or so to balance it out. Still, very enjoyable piece, and really nice guitar playing overall. Great job.
Funny thing is, it did actually end on that chord for the first run through, but I decided I didn't want to end on a root note as I was recording, as that gives a feeling that the piece is complete. So as the ambiance of the pad's bassy A was ringing out, I recorded a few odd broken chords being thrown out of tune with my whammy bar to give a feeling that there's more to it, but it's halted on a darker, unsatisfying measure.
Or something. Hahaha. Thanks for the review man!
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Joined on 2/5/06
Tilkanuts - Reggae Morning