johnfn's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Swing For A Special Lady]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

I don't even know what to say. This piece is so ridiculous and dumb and yet good. Somehow! The lyrics are a bit of a stumbling block for me, admittedly. I mean, they're definitely hilarious, but I feel like they also stop me from fully appreciating the piece. I love the bass groove and the vocal melody is really solid - in a fuller song with e.g. drums this could be super solid. It's already very good. Score: 8

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for what this means and how to improve)
* Composition: 3+/4
* Arrangement: 3/4
* Mixing: 3/4

Ceevro responds:

Yeah, I wasn't going for the super-serious here! Everything was live-recorded, meaning there aren't any electronic loops. What I had was a guitar and a mic...glad you had some fun listening!

[Supermaus]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

Dang son, when that drop dropped, it really took me by surprise! The melody is rocking and you've got da energy! But when it happened again... it took me a little bit less by surprise. By the third time, I wasn't surprised at all. :P You've got a really solid riff here, which might be enough material to stretch out for a 2-3 minute song, but if you want to go to 5 minutes, you're going to need to let your song evolve - take the melody to new places, use new chord progressions in the chorus, etc. Excellent mixing, btw. Score: 8.5

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for what this means and how to improve)
* Composition: 3+/4
* Arrangement: 2/4
* Mixing: 4/4

[army dreamers cover]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

Very good. You are a very good singer (though do I hear a hint of auto-tune in places? Just curious - it won't effect your score. I hear it mostly in "aaarmmmy dreamers"). The big problem here is the arrangement, I think - I think you stick on the same chord progression a little too long (verse and chorus), and changes would have helped. (NOTE: I now recognize that this is a cover, so maybe I know nothing - but I maintain that my position is right because you slowed down the tempo a lot, which makes it feel a bit more repetitive than the more speedy original version.) I also LOOVE the guitar solos, so I was kinda let down that there were only 2 and they were very short. I wanted more!!! The song could be much better with an expressive solo that I *know* you're capable of! Still, great song here. Score: 9

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for what this means and how to improve)
* Composition: 4/4
* Arrangement: 3/4
* Mixing: 3/4

jambrother2 responds:

you're absolutely correct about the autotune, there is actually quite a lot of it (I'm not much of a singer, so it was a necessity here)

Thanks for the review!

[Drifting Away]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

DANG. This is really, really, really good. The mixing is next level! The melodies are awesome as well. I think the only flaw is that it's a little too repetitive. Like, that one melody that plays at the drop at 6:00 (phenomenal drop, by the way) is looped wayyy too much and gets repetitive. With more melodic variation this track would be amazing. It's still very very good. 9

Only mixing flaw: piano at 2:11 is a little too quiet.

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for what this means and how to improve)
* Composition: 4/4
* Arrangement: 3/4
* Mixing: 4+/4

[sick as, not a sick as beat ok?]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

Man, there are some cool chords here, and a really nice use of a suspended chord. But outside of that chorded section, I'm not totally sure what's going on here. The song transitions rapidly from section to section without really helping me to find anything else to latch on to. Your ideas are fascinating (I honestly like almost all of them individually), but the piece lacks the development to feel like a cohesive whole. Score: 6

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for what this means and how to improve)
* Composition: 2/4
* Arrangement: 1/4
* Mixing: 2/4

xxxZigZagxxx responds:

Cheers, bruv. I can be a bit random sometimes, it's just my style. But progression and stuff are always important. I guess I just always want someone to find something new in every part of the song sometimes.

Thx!

[Dependent]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

Wow, this is really an interesting track. The ambiance of this track is really, really cool. I can't remember hearing whispered vocals too often - maybe Nine Inch Nails did it - but they have a great effect. The background ticking noises are great, and so are the echoey, distant vocals I hear sometimes. What I don't like is the instrument at 3:26 - it sounds off tune. I also think that the drum set is a little too try and crisp for your ambiance. 8

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for what this means and how to improve)
* Composition: 2+/4
* Arrangement: 3/4
* Mixing: 3/4

SoulSecure responds:

In this song I really wanted to have a drier drumset. When I put a bunch of reverb on the drums everything sounds washed out and we lose that tight groove which is essential to the song. This was all carefully thought out, as the whole point of the instrumental's structure is groove. If you didn't notice, there isn't much reverb on the chopped up rhodes riff either. It's all about that tight, groovy sound.

There is no instrument at 3:26. Nothing new comes in at that point. You'd better check your surroundings for noise.

[Distance ft. Himeko]

== This is an NGAUC Audition Round Review. ==

The vocals here are pretty awesome! I like the overall feel of the track and the accompaniment. What I don't like is the mix. With a proper mix, this song could be AMAZING. As it is, it sounds a little muddy and the drums are not powerful enough - they are overpowered by the mid-bass. I feel potential here - keep at it. Score: 7.5

Mini-scores (See http://johnfn.newgrounds.com/news/post/936953 for a description)
* Composition: 3/4
* Arrangement: 3/4
* Mixing: 1/4