Age/Gender: 17, Male
Location: Palatine, IL
Job: Student
I've just finished my debut album! Check it out at www.sycrossmusic.com !
Newgrounds Stats
Whistle Status: Normal
Exp. Points: 200 / 280
Exp. Rank #: 161,511
Voting Pow.: 4.19 votes
BBS Posts: 16 (0.03 per day)
Flash Reviews: 2
Music Reviews: 46
Trophies: 0
Stickers: 0
All Audio Reviews
46 Reviews | 30 w/ Responses
Not much left to say about this song, the other reviews pretty much covered everything I would have mentioned.
I love the panning and subtle layering a lot. The piano sounded exceptionally good (what synth are you using for that?). Sounded like you painstakingly entered in slightly different velocities for every note, giving it an authentic feel.
I also especially like the drums in this song.... They don't quite fit prefectly, which I think was intentional, because it adds some "off-beatedness" to the song.
Anyhow, I'm happy to report that I brought your song's score to exactly 4.00. :)
Hate to ask you of this, but I was wondering if you might be interested in checking out some of my songs also. It seems to me that you might really like "Forsaken" (my latest song), and I could always do with some more opinions.
Thanks,
Sycross
Author's Response:
Hey man, yea no problem. I'll review it now. I'm glad that you liked the drums, that's sort of been a bit hit or miss with people. Haha, gotta love how the classical genre gets raided by people. Thanks for the review!
~SinJim
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Hey, sorry I didn't get to this till now. I read your PM and then forgot about it... :P.
but anyhow, I think this is a great song! Very atmospheric and often subtle with the instrumental layering. I personally would've like to see a more intense climax, but that's just a matter of a composer's preference.
I agree that the software sounds great! It's very realistic, I may need to upgrade my own software some time...
The only complaint I have about the song is that in the beginning that high percussion note doesn't really fit in too well. Although it's percussion, it has a tonal quality, and keeping the note its playing constant wasn't really fitting with the chord progression, and it was kind of diverting the mood that you were trying to create.
Other than that, great work! I don't mind the PM at all, in fact, I appreciate artists letting me know when they release new works!
~Sycross
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review, Sycross. I assume that, with the percussion, you're talking about the anvils. I can see how that might conflict with the tonal aspects of the rest of the piece; but I'll have to listen closely to see if I can detect it. I thought I paid close enough attention to that, but I'll go back and have a few more listens.
In retrospect, I think that I could have done better with the climax. Then again, me adjusting that depends if I can make time to put that on my list of things to do haha.
The new software is incredible and I would HIGHLY recommend it to anyone. Well worth the money (yes a lot of money) spent on that. I would also recommend you have around 4 GB to run it because I run out of ram ALL the time with 2 GB. Ah well.
I'm glad that you liked this one, I'll let you know when I post up some other pieces. Thanks again for the review!
~SinJim
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Hey, I really like this song, but I'm mostly writing this review to ask you a question:
What is the "woosh" noise at 0:24-0:25? it sounds almost like a cymbal, but not quite... Anyway, its used in a lot of orchestal pieces, and I'd like to start using it in mine. Unfortunately I don't know what it's called. If you could respond with an answer that would be great.
Thanks,
~Sycross
Author's Response:
that's just a cymbal crash. There are many many crashes out there, I mean hitting the cymbal at any point gives off a different sound, just have to find the right one i'm afraid.
Thanks for the review, glad you liked it!
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You wanted a review, so here goes:
Some Cons:
-The percussion sounds out of tune with the rest of the song, and kinda creates an unpleasant dissonance.
-Might want to take another look at some of your transitions. They are ok right now, but could use some buildup leading into them.
Pros:
-Enough variation to make non-repetitive.
-Good, rich sound.
Overall:
8/10, 4/5, Great song, just work on the things I stated.
Look forward to more from you,
~Sycross
Author's Response:
Thanks for the list...and your time :).
Yeah I really need to practice with my drums. I really do lack in that area.
You are also right about transitions. The song really doesn't grow, just stays towards the same level.
I will work on it for my next song...
Thanks,
Jake
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Much better than your DnB (read my other review). Melody is definitely present. The transition at 1:04 is a bit spontaneous... perhaps you could try building up tension before going into the faster part? Also, the post1:04 part sounds remarkably happier than pre1:04... just add a better transition and your song will be MUCH better.
Other than that I don't have many criticisms... in general, the song flows well and is nicely layered. You make good use of a variety of instruments. Song is also very natural-sounding, especially the beginning strings... Really, some moving stuff you have going here :). Bird sounds and SFX are always awesome, too.
~Sycross
Author's Response:
Thanks! I'm working on a remastered version. :)
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The reviews you've gotten so far haven't been very good at all...
I read kirbyrocks's review and it was the worst thing I've ever seen. You can't judge a song based on... "Oh... I'm bored of DnB right now... maybe if I had listened to this a year earlier it would be good." The fact is, even if you don't LIKE a song, that is nothing to attest to its quality.
Overall, I think your song deserves a much better score... At least a 3.0+... Seriously.
This is not to say that you song is amazing... there are definitely areas where you can improve, but I thought I'd say some positive words, considering that your song has such a low score.
Now to the Analysis:
-Throughout the song (most notable in the beginning), it feels like the song is missing a melody. I was expecting and hoping for some track to just come out and take the lead part, but that didn't really come until 0:57-ish... A good melody is crucial to a song, and in the beginning is kind of just hammering notes of a chord (that's not necessarily bad for DnB, but I think that you could improve your climaxes with melody.)
-Good effects, layering, etc.
-Transition at 1:28 to new chord progression could use some work, but it works as it is now.
-As BCPARK stated, some repetition might help (instead of just ending up somewhere totally different than the start). I think that this would work well if you continued the song into a repeat of the main chorus. (Not really necessary though...)
Yep. 8/10, 4/5... My Vote = (+ 0.12). You're welcome.
~Sycross
Author's Response:
It's nice to see there are still some people who review things thoughtfully on Newgrounds... thanks.
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I will never understand how you make such lively piano tunes.
Pros:
-Excellent use of subtle variation
-Great piano tune and sound (I didn't think the piano sounded bad at all, despite what you thought)
-Instruments blend and work well together
Cons:
-Just a tad bit repetitive, but not too bad.
Great job as always, and thanks for the PM about this song.
~Sycross
Author's Response:
I agree with the repetitiveness. I'm glad you still enjoyed it though :-D
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Sounds like this is actually recorded (a rarity on newgrounds). I like the song in general, my only comment is that at some points the drums and the guitar feel out of sync with each other (rythm-wise). Other than that it was good. Looking forward to more from you.
~Sycross
Author's Response:
Thanks man. yeah it's a pinch outa sync, but this was my first attempt with recording. Some new stuff up soon from my actual band. Thanks for the feed back love to hear it
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This song feels a little simplistic... There is a melody, a beat, and not much else. I really feel that you need to add some form of harmony (or at least some chords/bass), it would help A LOT.
Keep working at it, you'll get better. Please don't be discouraged by my comments, I'm just trying to be helpful.
~Sycross
Author's Response:
thats alrite, i just wanted people to hear hwat i did with key change in the synth and the flute nad piano 2gether, but i underdtand what ure trying 2 say, :P
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This is really good... I'm not sure why it's rated so low...
Some positive points:
-Not repetitive at all
-Great use of multiple tracks
-Nice effects
Constructive Criticism:
If you were going for a light/soft feel (compared to other DnB) for this song, then you got the job done, but if you want to add more force to the song, I'd suggest increasing the volume of the bass tracks or adding more (simple bass tracks involving just chords work great).
Overall, this is a great song. 9/10 5/5
Keep it up
~Sycross
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review! Yeah, I probably spent more time trying to get the song to sound right by means of equalizing and mastering than actually composing it, and I definitely know that it's something that I need to work on. Heck I might even play around with it some more to get the "force" you were talking about.
I'm glad that you took the time to write that, however, because it really opens my eyes and lets me see it in a perspective other than my own!
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