Yep, you found your preferred genre
and you're a shoe-in for DnB. The synths sound great, the drums sound awesome, and everything fits. I especially like that dropping effect you did.
My main suggestion is to add melody. I know you don't feel comfortable in that territory, but you have to take the risk. Melody does add richness to a song.
Other than that, I have no other real complaints. Nice song, it definitely does sound like a boss battle.
Thanks a lot BAB for the tips and yes melody is my kryptonite. But i guess i have to take a risk and see what happens :)
Also thanks to point out my good points ;)
I love the religious sound of this!
Another top-notch submission from you, man! Although TBH, the name A Hero's Death doesn't fit too much. However, if you called it A Hero's Last Stand, it would fit perfectly, as that's the image I get in my head when I listen to this song. This song has so much emotion in it, it's simply amazing!
The buildup in the beginning with the choirs was a great idea. And the section after that was full of emotion.
It might have been a good idea to lower the volume of the piano section, especially the piano, in order to convey a bit more emotion, you know?
All in all, this is a very emotional piece, reminiscent of what I was trying to do with a recent piece. The violins are probably the most emotional portions of this song for me, I don't know what it is, it's just a really good sample that's absolutely perfect for this song or something, it fits amazingly into this piece.
Exceptional work! I'll say that a million times, cuz it's true. This is one of the best songs I've heard recently!
Thanks for another well thought out review. Its always good to hear from you. I will gladly take on your suggestion for the name as its a better fit than what I can come up with.
I will however work on the mastering as you mentioned the piano could be a little quieter.
Hope to hear from you again as your reviews are most helpful.
Yeah I noticed the swell too....
It's funny, dynamic control kinda just came to me over time, I never really thought of it until now actually. And now that it's come time for me to kinda impart my own knowledge on it (which is actually pretty limited, I would suggest getting advice from Intero or Paradoxphenomena in the art of dynamic control since they're awesome at it), I gotta assess how I do it myself. Hmm....
Well, I guess I'll start with what you want to avoid. Heavy compression is a big no-no. I know a lot of people will tell you that this is a bad idea, but beginners might wanna set the compressor to just eliminate clipping. Then just lower the imput so that only a bit of your song is actually compressed.
Now as for instruments, well your instrument choice will definitely affect how much volume is increased. Flutes playing octaves won't be nearly as loud as trumpets playing chords, you know?
Also, it depends on what you want to express in that particular portion of the song. If you want a certain part of the song to express an explosion of emotion, then have the volume of the instruments raise for that particular section, then let it die down, as you don't wanna keep the song "up there". And dynamics are essential to beginnings and endings too.
Wow, I really suck at giving advice on dynamics. I guess it's best to show by example than by the written word, you know? Well, luckily I know of some songs that are excellent examples of great dynamic control. Listen to these songs:
Paradoxphenomena- Silent Night
Intero- The Menace
Danman87- Entering the Stronghold (well, that song's just amazingly amazing all around)
Brokendeck- NBTB: Soundtrack Version
Blacknote- Both his Mac9 entry and his Mac8 entries are good examples.
Plus you could just turn to your local classical station to hear some actual dynamics, cuz what's better than hearing real instruments?
Well, that sums up my advice. Yeah, I know it sucked, but I tried, and the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Wait a minute....
This review really helps alot!
I can't really think of things to say, but i would like to say one thing: Thanks!
I mean, you give such detailed reviews and advice me what to do :-)
MH16
2 things
1) YOU CAN PLAY THIS!!! I CAN'T EVEN PLAY THIS HALF SPEED!
2) This song is teh shitz!
Lately I've taken an interest in crazy overwhelming melodies thanks to that one song "Authority" by Rig and Maestrorage. No lie, this song kind of reminds me of it.
Now you mustest turn this into a full song complete with VSTs. It's too awesome to leave alone, man.
The only thing I don't like in this song is the looping, but that's mainly because MP3 literally sucks as a format, so it aint ur fault.
This gets a ten because I'm completely amazed at the fact that you can play this thing on a keyboard and the fact that you did this with no VSTs and a broken comp!
Just let me know if any bombers try to zerofuck this song and I'll 5 bomb it until it reaches above 4.00 again.
haha will do my friend
yeah i can play this, ive gotten alot better in like one month since my pc wa all fucked
i would like to do this with a guitar vst. but i dont know of any, the harpsicord i like
and i actually realized after submitting that i had a longer version, on my HD, but i didnt render it yet, so yeah youl probly see this somtime with full song idk
peace out man good to be back in the biz(music biz that is)
I like how you use a slightly altered...
version of the A minor scale. The funniest thing about that is if you change just one note in that scale, this song has a completely different feel to it. Right now, it feels midieval and energetic while also slightly cheerful. The perfect song for an adventure, actually.
What I like about this piece is the articulations of the woodwinds and the drumbeat. And the cello staccatos blend well into the background and enhance the melody well.
Yes, I'd probably say that this is one of your best pieces, if not your best. But with you improving every time I see you, it's hard to say that definitively.
So far, the only thing I can say at this moment is to add just a slight bit more variation to your piece. Just a slight bit and you should be good. Cuz there is a significant amount of variation in this piece, but since the chords remain the same thoughout, you're now forced with the task of compensating for that, which you've done quite well, I have to say.
Everything else about this piece is perfect in my book. Great instrument choice, great melodies, great in general. I'm favoriting this jawnpiece.
BTW, could you do me a favor and check out my newest WIP, cumulonimbus? If you're wondering about the name, you'll have to check it out to see (:^P
Lol, i didn't even know i used that scale. I know nothing about scales and stuff :P
Thanks for the compliment about me improving :D
And i don't really know how to change chords :S
Really thanks for your review and for the favourite!
I'll check out your new WIP now.
MH16
PS: Nice smiley (:^P
Sorry, but the highest I can give this is a five..
Because of these reasons:
Chord progression
Clipping
Lack of compression/mastering
Now the chord progression is one of the main problems in this song. It's really not a good choice to progress like this
D minor
A minor
F major altered
A minor
And with the melody chosen on the third progression, it really sounds bad on that particular progression. But more importantly, this progression sounds uninspiring and flat. Almost robotic.
Second problem is the clipping. That can easily be fixed with compression though, or just by turning the volume down.
But that leads me to my third problem: mastering. Mastering is an essential aspect to music. As I see that you tried to emphasize dynamics in this song, it's important to master it in a way that also emphasizes the dynamics.
Another problem that didn't occur to me when I started this review is the drums. The drum beat is way too simple. Where's the high hats? Snares? All I can hear is a kick and the one ?snare? roll at :16.
But you do use some good techniques in this song. Namely in the beginning, because that was quite a creative beginning. Also, it was a great idea to emphasize dynamics in this song.
I see you tried to get the sidechaining effect in your bass, but you didn't quite know how to do it. That's the effect of heavy compression on the kick and bass synth together on a compressor. When they are heavily compressed together, when the kick hits it will actually lower the volume on the kick, creating that phase-in effect on the bass.
I would type more, but it's late and I'm tired. I think I've said most of what I can say in regards to this song. Shoot me a PM or stop by the audio forum if you want to learn more in regards to music production. That's where I learned a good deal of my techniques.
RRC mothafuckas! (Review Request Club)
Whoa, thanks for the awesome review! It really helped med a lot! :D
Well, I do know you read reviews
And I write this review in the hopes that you will read it.
For a dance routine, yes this would go perfectly.
The intro was perfect, I have to say. Nice and powerful. The ending was what was flawed. You shouldn't have launched into a melody/chord progression like the one that you used to finish. It was very unclimactic and it makes the song feel as if it just ended right there. Furthermore, you should have let the song finish fading out, for a smoother end. A second of silence is much better than an instant cutoff, you know?
Other than that, I can see no problems with this song at all. The only problem is a matter of taste. The chord progression variation at 1:37 just doesn't feel very smooth to me, but I'm sure others probably love that sudden change.
And that sums up my review. Nice job getting top ten in the MAC9 and nice job on this song. I'm downloading it right after this, but I'm not paying 8$ cuz I'm poor.
Oh and you should make this song a donation-type song if you want to charge for it, since it has been uploaded on to a free site.
For starters, thanks for the insightful review, I often find that people have different expectations for how they think a certain piece should end, leaving some to be quite disappointed in it. That being said, I wrote this with a dance routine in mind, and wanted it to end with a "pose"... as it were. I also wanted to make it slightly loopable should it need to be. This obviously takes away from a climatic ending, but it serves it's purpose. I'm not saying it's perfect or even the right direction for it, I'm saying it was intentional regardless ;). I will certainly put more thought into a more satisfying climax for future instrumentals.
As for the Audiojungle site, that is simply a site where people can "choose" to buy my music for outside applications (such as commercial applications), but since I upload to Newgrounds as well, anyone can use it under the Newgrounds licensing terms for free. It's an option... kinda like a donation, should you choose.
Take care and thanks for the review. You're a good new addition to newgrounds, and an active one too. Keep up the good work.
MMD
Apart from the slow beginning.....
This is an immensely entertaining song. The only problem I can think of is that it may be a little too busy. Don't worry, I have this problem in many of my pieces. All the instruments are fighting for prominence and it overloads the listener.
Other than that, this is a very strong piece. I like it. I'm glad I discovered you.
yea I know, the reason that it's too busy will probably be the reason that I don't feel like working on it anymore.
I disagree with DarkSyphon.
I think you lost focus at that portion. Also, there was a weird quality disconnect at that portion. The rest of the song sounds movie production quality while that section sounds Playstation 1 quality.
Also, the ending should be more conclusive than what it is, in my opinion. It just ends, it doesn't have any special finish or anything like that, it's a little too quick.
The rest of the song is nice and mysterious though. Particularly good choice of chords. And really good skill with the mastering on the sections other than the aformentioned middle section, which is good in it's own right, just doesn't belong in this particular song.
I'm voting 5 because I think that a song of this caliber ought to be at least 4.03 in my opinion.
lol, playstation 1 quality...
I know what you mean with the quality, but I wanted to surprise the listener. I thank you for the compliment of movie production quality :) But the end is the reason why it's not finished.
Thanks
Glad I caught this before it got flooded....
with reviews and such.
As an emulation of real piano playing, I'd say this was top-notch. But I still have to say that nothing beats actually playing the piano. Still though, I like this piece and its switches between sadness, anger, and motivation.
Now as I listen to it, I can pick out a few things that can be improved. Main thing that stands out for me is the ending. It's way too abrupt. It fires up, then just ends in that chord, and the last thing you hear is the sound of the pedal. I would have preferred that you had returned to the minor chord and done a small cresendo to finish the song off.
and something just doesn't sound right about the section at 1:06. Just that one small scale/chord. I don't know what it is, just something bothers me.
Also, maybe it was a little too sudden to have it drop so suddenly at 1:35 from high volume to low volume. Perhaps you should have smoothed it up a bit?
That completes this review for today. Nice job, Selcuk. I thoroughly enjoyed this song.
Spectacular review! Thank you for your honesty! I agree that to the core nothing beats actually playing the piano, but I feel until I can master it, I can learn the flaws of those who have mastered it, and create piano songs which at some level, represent piano playing.
I wanted this song to loop to be honest, which is why the ending is a bit abrupt. I felt it would flow to the beginning well, perhaps I was wrong?
I was wondering how i'd do that at 1:35 to be honest. In a real piano when you let go of the sustain pedal (which is what I did after those long sustained progressions), the sound cuts off because the pedal would remove all sustained noise. This in turn makes the transition feel too sudden. I could have opted for some unrealistic qualities and kept the sustained bleeding over which did make it easier on the transition, but this was a test of realism and nothing less.
Thank you, really, for this review. I'm glad you liked it!
If you ever wanted to make high-quality music with low quality inexpensive shit, I'm the man to ask ;-)
Age 33, Male
USA
Joined on 10/24/08
-:YRX:-MachinRAa Black St 