Phonometrologist's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Limbo]

Well well, all is well... I really don't know what to say. There are a lot of neat things going on here for me... a lot of subtleties that I appreciate for example just the fact that you decided to loop this even after 6 minutes gives me a chuckle. The piano chords in the beginning and end really flow nicely. This piece is very dynamic. I admire your ability to just sit at the piano, improvise, and create works with such rich chords in a very short amount of time. I tend to have to sit with a particular piece for a while to figure out what the music is trying to tell me and what direction it's telling me to take. I'm not a very good listener but I'm learning.
I think I know which piece of mine you took as inspiration. I hear that Major Seventh chord and its cool that you resolve it in a way that is unique to you, e.g. at 4:16. I hear hints of Return, but this is a joy to listen to because it's only sips here and there while you have created something completely original. Love your string work to reinforce the piano. Maybe muddy at times but I don't care. The sound works great to wash over you to create an emotional response. I absolutely love that string effect at 3:25... I'm not even sure what it's called. That was a great decision. Overall, without going into detail, this would be considered a great cinematic piece in a retro style. At 4:23 I think of Tron, and in other moments such as in 6:02 I hear Clair de Lune.
Thank you for such honor.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

"I really don't know what to say."

=> You said all the right things ;)

As the name of the track is "Limbo", I think it's very important that it loops. It gives the piece some extra symbolic value :D
Now, whether the listener wants to listen again (if they even make it through the track once), is up to them :p

I'm glad to hear that the piece is dynamic, as that is what I went for.

As for coming up with chords quickly, it's a learned ability. I've always been lucky enough to know what sound I want, in most cases. I guess that I am good at listening to what the music wants to tell me, when I channel it through me. But these past years, actually finding that sound on the piano has become a faster process. I don't actually have a good sense of pitch, but it's getting better! I think that chords, melodies and atmospheres are my three most prominent strenghts in music.

Yeah, "Return" has definitely been a big inspiration, not only for this track, but for what music is to me, in general. I find myself returning to that track quite a lot. More than once a month, I'd say for sure (Lol, like 50 of the listens on that track are probably mine).

4:16 is indeed a good catch! It's a bit too close, actually, but I'm glad that's okay :)

I don't know what the string effect is called either. The funny thing is that the entire climax of the piece would look very bad as sheet music. Because the piano is completely separate from the world of rhythm and tempo, and the strings have to follow. But I was too lazy not to quantize them, as that would've taken forever. So instead I tried to trick the listener through dynamics, and by the sheer speed. But if you try to count the rhythm, you'll find that you lose it almost immediately every time!

I can see your references to Tron and Clair de Lune. Good catch!

You're welcome, and thank you ;)

[FD - Miserere Mei]

This is a neat experience... love it! Right up the alley of some of Penderecki's choir work but with a dash of cinema and 80s retro

ForgottenDawn responds:

Hey, thanks! I'll have to check that out ;)

[scalar waves theory and experiments]

This was very intriguing for me to listen to. Enjoyed every step of the way

SlaughterClub responds:

good stuff glad you Liked my friend

[MM3: Her Mechanical Reflections]

It's been a while! This is really good and I'm surprised about the little attention it has received. A bit more cinematic sounding than your usuals.. cool to hear of you

Anchorwind responds:

Howdy :) Thanks. It hasn't been that long, I did take a bit of a break from the AW brand after the Burning Facility (SCVIP) but then I put out Her Mechanical Reflections, Her Moving Meditations
Her Lonely Wasteland (APH Alternate Mix), Her Lonely Wasteland (Angels Pointing Home Mix),
Lament of Time, Her Swirling Ethereal Solitude (Deep Mix), and Her Swirling Ethereal Solitude . Due to my year-in-review posts (elsewhere) I realized I've done 30 tracks this year on AW. That's a fair bit.

[Percussionella]

Nice! Real quick: Simple enough and that's perfectly fine even with the repetitive progression if it's a good one. It reminds me a little of Philip Glass's work in Candyman. Would have loved to hear more of this piece progressing down, down... to the depths of the Abyss.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

So this is the track everyone has decided to review now? XD
i was on the fence of even uploading it, but within 10 hours, I received 6 reviews. Not bad. I guess that it is really the instrument choice that makes this track. The sounds is nice, and as it's only percussive intruments, the mix is pretty clear.

It does resemble his work there a bit, nice catch!
If I had made this track with serious intention, I probably could've made it so much better, and much deeper. I will probably sometime in the future make a more interesting percussive composition. Thank you for checking by!! :D

[Cold Worlds]

Well I'm on NG so this is definitely the right place. It's just too bad I can't download it. I sometimes feel that I choose to isolate myself in a some distant corner so I can listen and write similar music to this, but there are a few others around here too. A bit short, but I'm glad you uploaded it. I thank you

Azhthar responds:

Thanks, that definitely means a lot to me! I had some reasons why I disabled downloads (one is that this is just the mockup and not the real recording, yet), but if you´re interested I could send you the file, when I get the recording... I know it´s quite short but there was actually a time restriction in the pieces. Anyway... Glad you like it ;)

[The Hunt]

Viruses are good for the computer because it builds immunity, right?
Enjoyed the rhythm and soundscape on this one. A bit brooding

Eagleon responds:

Haha, seems legit. I haven't had one detected that wasn't from javascript in years, and I keep noscript and adblock going, so I'm not too worried.

Thank you.

[Threnody for Innocence]

Well you two dragged me out from my slumber for this nice surprise. This theme of yours is what I find most to inspire me and appreciate in other's artwork. I've downloaded this and listened to this many times alone throughout the day and while I fell asleep. With the structure of this piece, I couldn't tell when the piece ended or began when I just replayed it all as it certainly has mini climaxes throughout different sections.
Oddly enough section 4 has been my favorite to return to particularly at 4:30 and on. Nice progression at 4:48. I can tell that a bit of anime has influenced your style in this one as well and Demolecule's string part really is treated well here... just as a vocal part really with it singing alongside the piano. Overall, this piece really has a feel good feeling by the end of listening to it. The mixing might not be there completely but that's quite hard to do within 2 weeks for a contest. And it really doesn't matter. Just so captivated by the story and drive of it that it's really not that important for me. Again, you honor me when I don't deserve such praise. These "levels" don't really exist either for you to say that I'm elevated from you. This journey would more accurately be described as a trail going up a mountain with vegetation covering our path where only a few feet a front of us can be seen. We may never know how much further the peak may be, but with the people you come across on the same path encouraging you to continue the climb, we'll get there soon enough.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Awesome :D
It's good to know that you're still checking for updates, even if you're on a Newgrounds vacation :3

Thanks a great deal for downloading, and for listening not just once, but several times. Especially, as the track is very long. Not that you're known for having a short attention span or anything, of course :p

I actually thought very much about the structure for this piece. The parts were made in a very different order than they show up in this track. A lot of the time went to figuring out transitions. I really wanted there to be a noticable difference between the parts, while there would still be a kind of running theme. There are several melodies and rhythmical structures that repeat and reappear during the piece. Also, I like how the second and sixth movements are like mirrors of each other, as well as the first and final movement. And in the three middle movements, most of the more driven stuff is happening. In general, I could've made this track loop very easily. But that'd be a bit dumb, from a symbolical standpoint, as this is a journey in one direction, as opposed to several of my other tracks.
What a long side note. The point is, the first and final sections are very closely related, which blurs the line between start and finish. There are definitely a lot of mini climaxes indeed. I feel that our thoughts don't just start at one point, and come to a conclusion at the other. The entire process is filled with ups and downs.

It's interesting that you like the 4th section the most. It's definitely the one that's the most out there! dem0lecule originally composed the fast violins at 4:30 pretty early on. It took a while, but I think I managed to work them into the track quite well. I really wanted to incude them, because they give a very different feel from most of the track, which was needed at that point.
I don't really know what my own favorite section is; I'm still trying to figure it out. I like all the individual movements, but they work the best together, so I find it difficult to separate and compare them in my mind :/

Apart from maybe a few of the melodic sections, I wan't much inspired by anime music alone, except for maybe the piano compositions that are used in a certain kind of animes. But the animes I watched were rather... Depressing. Like, a lot. By going through them all without any real time to recover, all the while composing based on what I felt, I managed to actualize my thoughts rahter well in the form of music. So they were more a way of inspiration in the emotional way.

I know that no one asked, but the animes I watched were "Steins;Gate", "Tokyo Ghoul", and "Shinsekai Yori".

They happened to go in order from pretty dark to extremely dark quite well. But that last one really had the biggest impact on me. I almost felt like I didn't want to watch anymore after a certain episode, but I had to... For... Research...
And because it's great.

If you ever want to question your moral compass, I recommend watching it. I mean... The major concept disgusts me a bit (morally), and I don't really know where I'd stand if I were actually in that situation. On one hand, many children are consciously killed off by the society in which they live, despite being innocent and fragile. On the other hand, it almost feels like that is justified, based on what would happen where they not murdered. And that is only the very first of the many moral dilemmas that are put forth for the watcher. It is a great story, based on a great novel.
Also, as a side note, a big part of that anime focuses on how certain children/teenagers who oppose this kind of thing, grow up to adapt to such a society, despite how they feel about it all, which hit home pretty hard for me.

And yes. Dem0lecule's string work is fantastic. I ended up editing a lot of the individual melodies and tails or a few notes here and there (partly to fit the structure, partly to fit with my vsti's), but all of the base work was made by him, and several parts remain unaltered.

We're incredibly glad to hear that you enjoy listening to the piece, as you were easily the main inspiration behind the track, even before we began composing.
It's a real shame about the mixing, as some things came up. If all goes well, we'll upload an updated version after the competition. While production is not the most important thing, it can definitely help with improving the quality of a track.

I agree that music probably shouldn't always be judged on such levels, if much at all. But I'm sure you know how you never feel like you'll be able to reach the quality of the stuff that has inspired you :D
Maybe that's not true for all situations, but generally, I at least feel like that.
And your compositions really are wonderful; I especially enjoy them because the best of them have that real meaning and emotion behind them, which is what really makes a good track in my book. That, and they're produced well :3

I like your allegory (or whatever word is appropriate; they all confuse me) at the end there. It's a nice visualization.

Thank you for listening and for leaving a review, and perhas more importantly, for inspiring us to write this track. We definitely couldn't have made it without you ;)

[Tenebrarius]

This is a NGADM Round 1 review!
-
Just kidding of course. Don't get too excited, but hey you made it to the next round. Without hearing your competitors composition, I sort of expected it.

The Good:
-mixing: that timbre from that cello! reminiscent of my fav Bach partita recordings by Yo-yo ma. Every other instrument seems very balanced with the right amount of needed clarity. Personally, I don't hear any distracting issues that I could attribute to mixing.
-I keep going between .21-1:00 and there's so much going on that my brain can't grasp everything. The melodies alternating between all sorts of instruments is certainly ear-candy. Love the subtle piano in the background with that ascending bassline at fifty-eight seconds too as an example of how short and tasteful each moment comes and goes. And despite the many little parts, it still feels cohesive as a piece as if I aught to just stand back and listen that this really could be just a Mosaic.

The Not-so-good:
-that music box... okay okay it's actually good considering what notes you decided to use it for. I'm not big for cliches and I end up rolling my eyes when I hear an intro like it. But just like a typical piece that people adore such as Liebesträume at a piano concert, I eventually just give in to it because it really is good no matter how many times one hears it. That drone that leads to the outro of the music box helps. Such an alluring sound with the combination of the two. In fact, the piece sounds like it's telling me "To be continued..." as there really isn't a resolution to the whole journey.

The good, the not-so good, etc. whatever. Forget all of that. Who cares what I think? I certainly don't when I listen to this. I feel sometimes giving too much analytical thought diminishes the integrity of a piece. Music is meant to be an experience and this certainly was. Perhaps not for all, and perhaps not completely deciphered accurately. Can't we just let music be for music's sake? Well it's a fun competition so we'll have to stumble around and try to use words to explain why our own interpretation of a sound resonates with us more than another piece, meanwhile, somehow use numbers to weigh the intangible.

When I listen to this and see the artwork along with it, I realize defining the theme and purpose is defeating the point. Sometimes emotion exceeds reason beyond for me to try to interpret its message.

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

"This is a NGADM Round 1 review!"

=> Lol, of course it is XD

Considering the lenght and the quality, it may as well be one ;)
I'm also glad to hear that you had faith in this track making it to the next round.

It's great that you like dem0lecule's cello! He is great at programming cello's in general. He is the cellogician ;)
When it comes to intrument balance and clarity, I actually directed quite a bit of it, based on my personal tastes. I probably caused a mixing nightmare for dem0... But things came out fine in the end, so I'm glad we put work into this :D

0:21-1:00 is all dem0lecules work. It's the base we started working on, but I think it's good that we left some of it untouched, as I too like that part.

The piano at 0:58 actually inspired me to write the melodies for the next minute, as the part felt very empty, and the piano originally lead to nothing specific at all :)
We tried to make this track more consistent than the previous collab, because even though we love it, many were complaining about the "randomness", I guess.

"Music box"

=> Totally my fault, hahha XD I definitely get what you mean, with it being cliche and all :p I guess I just have a natural drawing towards music boxes in general (I even own one that I can program with a sheet of paper, a bit like a player piano). The first intro I wrote for this track pretty much sucked, like... A lot! So on the day we submitted, I had two different new ideas, but we just went with this one, as we thought it was good enough, and gave a sense of the beginning and end being tied together. Sometimes, though I am a huge friend of variation, I try to be as cliche as possible, because people tend to like a sense of familiarity in music too. But I definitely see your point :3

And for the last paragraph, I agree as well. I don't think that music is something that can be objectively judged, if at all (well, to begin with, I don't really believe in objectivity at all, but that's another discussion). I possess the ability to not criticise something I am experiencing, be it a movie, a book or a composition. My theoretical skilla are bad enough for me not to recognize the chords or melodies unless I try! Which actually gives me a sense of freedom when listening to something I enjoy; I can ignore everything else, and just enjoy whatever I am experiencing :D

On the other hand, competitions like these are great ways to motivate people to try hard and evlove, as well as bring communities closer together. Leaving a score as a number is perhaps not the best system, but it works to somewhat of an extent. PeterSatera and others have discussed this before too, and tried to think up alternate ways.

Here's an interesting thought: Does everything need to have a message? I certainly didn't even have a specific and defined thought behind this track; I just did what felt right, perhaps based on something on a subconscious level. I mean, I got an image in my head after the track was done, sure, but I actually didn't intend this for anything else othar than enjoment, thus leaving the interpretation rather free. As for dem0lecule, who made the base, based on the weirdest thing, the story is more interesting. So at first, I made a track (that we'll likely use as a base for the next round), which I sent to dem0lecule. And the legend says he dreamt about the track being played by a music box in a swamp, which inspired him to write this track. Very cool :D
I don't think most people could've known that by listening to this! But I guess that the music box in the track makes sense for the wrong (or maybe right?) reasons now anyway :p

"Fantasiamaailma" had many times more intent behind it than this track though, I dare say, perhaps not surprisingly.

And then there's tracks like "Medley of a Shattered Mind", where the concept became clear to me halfway through the composing process. I think that most if not all forms of art, can be interpreted freely regardless of the creators intent, unless you want to look at it in the same way. After I've made something, although I may guide someone in looking at it like I do, I think everyone should be and is free to interpret any kind of message, or none at all.

Thanks a lot for the long review!!! Much appreciated.

[Who Killed The World?]

Haven't seen the movie but love the soundtrack to it so I can hear the inspiration. I'm glad that I'm in the same group as you since I don't mind losing to this. Actually, I'd prefer it so we can get to hear more music from you.

LunyAlex responds:

I wonder if, in retrospect, you've seen the movie :D