ADR3-N's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[~cC~ Hands Up, Alien Overlords!]

I really think that sax lead could be swapped out for another more obvious synth instrument and seriously improve this piece. Your key solos in particular were great. Any sort of synth would do, even a stock sine or saw lead, because it isn't your writing that holds this piece back -- it's the dadgum articulations on that sax! I just can't get past it. I 100% think that a different choice of synth would take this to the next level!

CelestialChaos responds:

I really appreciate the review! I agree that the sax was a little rough, unfortunately I kinda forced myself to include that instrument and use the best sound font for it I could find. I was happy with the way the solos came out so thank you for the kind words!

[desolation]

Вау, интересно звучит -- а вокал атмосферный. Жанр колеблется между хип-хопом и … не знаю, может быть ло-фай. Вот ощущение печали просто кайф. Я бы проверила эквалайзер на мастере, чтобы исправить немножко плоский АЧХ, но в основном, трек хорош.

cantbemyself responds:

Спасибо! Да, у меня со сведением и мастерингом проблемы, мягко говоря))

[Forest of Eternity]

Crazy that you made this with the JV-1080. One of my favorite synths -- as it was used for many of my favorite soundtracks coincidentally. It definitely has its limitations though, when it comes to realistic instruments in particular. The extra hard attacks of the double bass no matter what, the attacks of the strings and brass -- for an orchestral score, I would almost never use something like it.

Where it shines ofc, is perc and synth sounds as we see in your outro. I wish I would have heard more of that (and I would love if I could reach out to you for samples sometime, but that's besides the point!)

As a composer, you're fantastic. This song took me on a walk, a run, and a flip on the trampoline. Great voice leading, walking bass lines, and resolutions. I think if you had better sample banks at your disposal with more articulation/realism, this would smack!

BigBlueBazooka responds:

Thanks for your insight. I actually like the sound of the sampled real instruments, it reminds me of the many video games which used this machine and, other like it, immensely.

[Belong (NGUAC 2024 Version)]

Really interesting choice to bit crush all the accompaniment. If more was done to make up for the spatial and clarity issues that bitcrushing causes, especially to double/spread/pan instances of the ukelele, I would score higher.

I particularly feel that as the song develops, more stringed instruments such as guitar could be brought into the fold on the sides. The side presence is really where I feel the song is suffering.

Vocal performance is good. Just need to get things meshing a bit more. Modulating the amount of reverb is an idea you can try, as well as experimenting with gentle panning.

AveragePhoe responds:

Hi! Thanks for the feedback. I agree with pretty much all of it. I'm working on a single version that sounds much better already. It's hard to focus on mixing when you've got a deadline, really.

[Solivagant [NGADM] [NGUAC]]

I see you took my words to heart about master comp and bass presence -- I still would mono bass below about 117 hz rather than letting the chorus spread it about.

The overall level of the master is good, but it sounds louder in the right channel than the left toward the end -- actually throughout.

My favorite section is 22 sec to 1:01

I think the bit crush on the keys could be softened with a second layer of analogizer plugin to roll off the highs. I use Cymatics origin for this purpose, occasionally in 2 layers with different sample rates, one harshly bitcrushing and saturating, the second at a gentler bit rate with the pre and post filters turned on to limit harshness and the freq gently rolling off until it's just a bit less shrieky in the high register.

Your treatment of drums in the first half is nigh perfect. There is a bit of a hiccup at 1:30 or so where I'm feeling just a bit few many milliseconds of swing or lack thereof not quite meshing with the other instruments. Do I know these samples? They sound like an old 90s drum sample CD by Dave Ruffy I'm very fond of.

I would recommend bringing kick and snare more to front and backing off saturation/clip very slightly. Alternatively you can turn up transients -- but watch that cymbals don't start acting wild and exotic in terms of volume.

With this level of crunch on the entire mix, you have to watch that your reverbs and pads/strings don't get muddied up. A plugin like Pancz on your drums can shorten and dry up the note bodies for them, pulling them out of the way of the "air" of those synths -- an issue I hear toward the very end. Subtle sidechain also works well for kick and snare against all other aspects of the mix for a crisp, tight sound.

Also, I think the strings and pads could be balanced more left to compensate for the right keys

In terms of experimentation though, this is a great step outside what I typically hear from you and a massive improvement in competitive LUFS/mastering standards.

Overall, I'm torn, but I'll have to settle for an 8.5/10

[Mr.Must3rd; Meowtronica]

That is the most insane transition into midtempo I've ever heard in my entire life.

What stops me from rating 5 is that master is quiet, especially for midtempo and adjacent genres, and the track lacks a strong center channel, particularly for the bass which sounds very spread out. These two factors suck out the power from your drops. A little study of mix/master and some references to test against and it won't be a problem for you for very long.

Great work, seriously :)

MrMusterd responds:

this is actually something I just recently learned to do without COMPLEATLY destroying the mix. this one is Mastered to -14 LUFS, which isn't optimal but I didn't trust myself to push it further because I started noticing some distortion. As a broke 16 year old jit in my bedroom, I don't have any mastering plugins which would be cool, but the Kilohertz limiter is decent enough to use and catches most intrasample peaking, but its not perfect. I was able to push my last song to -13 LUFS which is an improvement, and I'm glad I was able to pull that off! if you have any advice or criticisms, please that stuff is like gold to me! :3

[We'll Meet Again]

Your thoughts sum up my feelings around the same time as I graduated college. I took multiple hiatuses for this reason. I couldn't seem to make the music I liked, or anything that didn't suck. I had a few cool ideas now and then and largely they were ignored. Partly it's my fault for not putting myself out there in the community. Partly it's the songs' fault for being ... mid. I had these infectious melodies and was beginning to grasp structure, but mix, master, instrument quality and so on were just not there.

Now the stuff I make blows my old material out of the water.

Why am I saying all this? It's not because I want to talk about myself -- I'm saying not to give up. Find references in the genres you want to make, and strive to make your songs approach that standard in as many ways as possible. Mix, levels, use of FX, structure, similar sound palettes. All that stuff really helps. And when all else fails, hit the tutorials.

Now to finish this off as a review, there are some things I'm noticing. The waveform is pretty quiet, meaning the track looks unmastered. None of the levels are offensive, but your bass could use a little bit of mids to bring it out of the dark. The kick and clap are driving, but the bass is pretty muted and relaxed.

Melodically, there's nothing wrong with it at all. I might double your lead with a different synth up an octave at times for variety, but it's not bad at all. It just doesn't seem like there are a lot of instruments keeping things spacey, or any real presence in the higher octaves from anything but the hihat.

Just my 2 cents. Thanks for coming out to NGUAC!

[Tree of Life]

I can find very few things separating this piece from contemporary filmscore of the last few decades, beyond perhaps a little bit of mix balancing here or there, a bit of panning or stereo-staging. It is suitably ambient without boring the listener, makes great use of various orchestral lead patches and their articulations such that they are almost indistinguishable from live playing, and is emotionally varied with fantastic transitions. Very satisfying listen.

HollandAlbright responds:

Thank you so much! I really appreciate that

[5. Moonflowers Grow From My Skin]

I'm rating 5, because your story made this grown ass woman cry like a little girl. I was teased relentlessly in school too, for being fat, for being ugly. None of these things was actually true. I look back at my photos, and I looked like a normal kid, even a good looking one. I just never wore makeup and was AVERAGE weight, not heroin chic. >.>

My mom unfortunately kind of played into this by telling me whenever my hair was even slightly sweaty, when I had a pimple or three, or if my clothes didn't fit right because, well, I was still growing. She didn't mean to, but she did. And the elderly lady my mom sat with couldn't see too great, so she said, "my, what a handsome young man you've raised," when I went to visit. The teasing at school about whether I was a boy or girl was ridiculous.

But my grandma always told me I was pretty like my mother, and so did my dad. I wish it stuck!

One thing that did stick was this, a verse from the Bible if I'm not mistaken: God is no respecter of persons. Meaning, it doesn't matter how much money you have, how hot you are, or what you can do. God looks at us all as equal.

GlowBoyMusic responds:

My heart is with you. I am glad to see you around here once again, ADR3-N.
Everything you have practically said from your experience, I can charcoal a tick next to in similarity of my own experience. Body image issues start at the most tender root of someones life, and the longer it festers, the worse the resulting damage. And when parents ignore or otherwise escalate the agony, you feel as if you could dissolve into nothing.

Truly, you are not alone. Trauma can be cruel, unrelenting, and unforgiving. but when it comes to putting it into a piece of art, it can be a key to relieving some of that burden from yourself.

This whole album, is an example of me relieving myself from my trauma, forgiving my past regardless of its severity, and sharing with the world a ‘canvas’ made from sound. Colour, texture, tuning, length, and emotional direction will drastically change, and perhaps sound ‘unaudioable’ or even ‘corrupt’ in some songs, and some will sound polished, defined, and almost radio ready-like. All of this is suppose to represent my mind and heart as I grow, each track number is my age, and each description is like the caption of a fine art piece, telling the story about this point of my life in as much detail as my memory can allow.

Just remember, whether someone is spiritual or atheistic matters not, spiritual health means more than just your faith — it means rediscovering yourself through the aftermath, and learning how to walk again, and find peace with yourself inside; and out.

Mad love, and thank you for coming by!
Glow.