AceMantra's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[NGAIC 2022, Layer 1 - Pariahs & Peonies (INSTRUMENTAL)]

IT'S NGAIC REVIEW TIME!

I'm a sucker for Lo-Fi Jazz and Hip-Hop. Overall, a very enjoyable listen, and one that is definitely going in my favorites! :)

I really like the glitch effects, scratches, and the smooth-like-butter beat. Also, great job on that flute! Even if it isn't a real flute, I still think it fits really well. You can get away with a little "synthy-ness" with this genre. I find myself coming back to this piece again and again. I can't get enough of this!

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A few notes and critiques:

The dust and skip sounds at the quieter parts are very noticeable, especially in the low end. It might benefit with lowering the bass on those scratches, or even trimming off the edge. Just a minor nitpick, really.
One more little thing I'd like to see: a little more vinyl warp effect on some of the instruments, or the whole mix if it fits. That will help bring a more convincing Lo-Fi experience, but again, just a minor thing.

All in all, awesome work! I look forward to hearing more from you! :)

P.S. Collab sometime?

TheVodouQueen responds:

Hey Ace!

TYSM for your review! Glad you enjoyed it. :D

Yeah, the dust and skips needed a bit of EQ TLC and probably lowered in the quiet spots via volume automation, but in me juggling this and like 3-4 other projects to do (all due around 25th Dec) I, sadly, bailed on kneading the bread on this a lil' more before baking it. I will keep that in mind for future projects, and make sure to trim it up nice and add more warping effects on things. Vinyl is a great plugin that can indeed add warp to things (even based on the era of the record you want it to sound like), and usually I do try to employ it on choice synths. Just another thing to keep in mind, and I'm sure when I do stuff like this again it'll be more 2nd nature to use all this, so even if I am bussin' it in a mixing speed-run, it'll all get put in there!

Same to you! I'll be sure to throw a PM your way today on that. ;)

Thanks again! Much love! ♥ ~VQ

[Amiss]

Very calming and lovely piece. It matches the art well. Definitely gives a bittersweet vibe as Spadezer said. It's easy to get lost in; I don't even know how long I've been listening to it.

Great work! Always a pleasure to listen to your music. :)

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thank you for all the kind words <3
I'm glad you were able to get lost in it; I was hoping one could do that.

[Helping Hand Is Hope (Final Station)]

Hello friend, haven't seen you in awhile. :)

This track is way different than some of your other works. I'm happy to see you're experimenting and continuing to improve. Cinematic guitar hybrid goodness! Love it!

zybor responds:

Howdy AceMantra. Thank you for your review and dropping by. Hope you are doing well. :)

[Look At That View]

Love the choir in this! Awesome job!

ZaazNG responds:

Thank you so much! The choir VST is the Olympus elements choir :)

[Horizon]

Nice track! It's been awhile since I've listened to a delicious House song like this one. Overall, good composition, good mix, and good listening experience.

Benji-G responds:

Thanks a lot! I appreciate it. Also, will you judge some stuff in NGADM this year? I heard SplatterDash was gonna lead the thing, but I'm curious as to who the other judges are gonna be. And yeah I'm hyping up for this contest like crazy at the moment haha.

[Barrett's Privateers Singalong]

I love how this turned out! Sorry I missed it; maybe next time I'll lend me voice as part of ye crew. Great job to everyone.

Ceevro responds:

I shall make a point to notify you when the next Singalong starts!

[Emotional]

Great composition and use of instruments. I could really see this in a video game.
Areas to improve: I would suggest looking into the loudness of your mix. Right now it's a little quiet. If you need some way to measure loudness, try Youlean Loudness Meter. There is a free version so no worries there. Without going too much into detail, a safe number to aim for is around -14 LUFS.

Awesome work! I hope to hear more from you! :)

ArtDeepMind responds:

Thank you, I agree with the loudness, will work on that :)

[Twin Helix]

Very moving piece. You certainly know how to capture a visual idea and turn it into a musical journey. This is a perfect example that art isn't just there to look or sound pretty. It holds a much deeper meaning, and a reason for why it was conceived. Thank you for reminding me of that.
"Know the rules of art, but do not always follow them. Break them when you have a reason to."

Phonometrologist responds:

Hey Ace! I'm glad you appreciate it. I'm reminded of John Cage, "Consider everything an experiment." Personally, it's the process in discovering that reveals insight to the beauty of music.
In this case, it was in tinkering around a couple of notes and utilizing a rule that I contrived onto myself that freed up the creative process. From that, I was directed by the music to create in a specific manner similarly to how nature is led to creating us. The mystery of why is still left to interpretation.

[Adaptation]

This gave me so many feels! You've come a long way with your sound. The piece is so complex, yet satisfying to listen to. I think the percussion is what really got me; soooo goooood.

Keep up the good fight, friend. Stay safe. :)

zybor responds:

How are you doing? :)

Thank you for your review! Stay safe and stay strong!

[Heart U]

Nice song! I really love the lyrics and the smooth, mellow vibe you got going on. I have no critiques; I just wanted to say this track is great.

TeraVex responds:

Thank you so much! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!