GrapheneKid's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[[DAY 5] - Cogushroom]

ooh, I like the spooky sinister feel. What's the game this is for?

Scareev responds:

It's for TTD (Through The Dungeon), the name is temporary and is still in development, but if it releases i will share it on NG!

[Guns (MH4 Mix)]

Week 7 but instead of a battlefield it takes place in a retro nightclub

MasterHand4444 responds:

You see the vision better than I do lol

[No Matter the Cost (Jamuary '25)]

This is nice! A little off-key in parts but your delivery is a lot stronger and more confident than the last one.

Now the question is: Are you gonna do a duet with Miku?

MasterHand4444 responds:

Holy Toledo I just might have to. That would force me to be on key as well…heck yeah, I’ll 100% do that before Jamuary is over.

[Plaything (Jamuary '25)]

Vocals are mixed nicely and I like the simplicity of the beat, but the vocals being off tune make the song uncomfortable to listen to.

There are two ways you could theoretically go with this: a second take more on-tune, like you had posited; or alternatively, leaning into the off-tune nature with some vocal processing. How exactly you would do this is definitely a fun and challenging little puzzle, but I can't think of any ideas off the top of my head that would help sell the off-tune aspect as symbolic of vulnerability or emotional damage. But hey, Alt-Rock does that all the time, so it's not completely impossible.

Honestly though, props for putting this out. It can be really scary to sing about vulnerable stuff like this and to work with your voice when it's minimally-processed. While I think the end result leaves something to be desired, I think this is a good way to get your feet wet when it comes to stuff that's a little more heavy.

MasterHand4444 responds:

I appreciate the sincere feedback!! As critical as it is this may be one of my favorite reviews I’ve gotten haha. I love the idea of leaning into the off-key, but I’m def not there yet in terms of knowing the “rules” enough to break them.

I also 100% want to get better at using my voice in projects and singing. And rapping! I’m glad you thought it was mixed well, and I agree that Jamuary is a good way to get my feet wet with heavier subjects - especially given what I have planned for this year ;P

Thanks for the review :]

[Jamuary #3 - Call Across The Mountain]

Feels nice and airy. I love your choice for the lead synth, gives me Undertale vibes.

MauveDash responds:

What can one say? I REALLY like square waves

[Jamuary #2 - Streets of Streets]

I like what you do with the synths here, especially the bass. I know what you mean though about ideas, it can be hard to come up with new stuff constantly. Sometimes listening to new subgenres or new artists can help spark that fire up again.

MauveDash responds:

That's not a bad idea, I've been doing music listening stuff throughout the latter half of 2024 but didn't expect should come in handy.

Tomorrow maybe will have a better idea!

[Albatross]

Really digging the percussion here

Aalasteir responds:

Thank you!

[Those were the times]

Oooooh, not sure how "lofi" this would be since I'm not knowledgeable in that genre but the guitar has this wonderful analog tape-like crispiness to it, and the percussion is punchy without overstepping that low fidelity feel.

Seriously though that guitar kicks ass, I love songs where you can practically hear the musician's fingers as they glide effortlessly up and down the frets or strum out chords. Such a rich sense of handmade texture.

Arponax responds:

thanks man :D yeah i was kinda aiming for that lofi aesthetic vibe.

lofi is very calm genre tho i was thinking that them lofi drums could be really cool if some distorted guitar played over them, and yeah it created kinda interesting piece. :D

Also thats what im always enjoying while playing and recording when you can hear them fingers and all the "percussive" sounds.

happy you enjoyed :D

[GizzyKittyMusic - [Jamuary Day 1]]

Nice work! I can see this working as a mountaintop theme. All the underlying dissonant strings remind me of flora or structures teeming far below at the base of the mountain, but the piano is bright and airy, as liberating as the brisk air at such a high altitude.

GizzyKittyMusic responds:

Thanks! I love your interpretation!

[Unsure (Jamuary '25)]

Never used a vocaloid program before but it seems like you know how to make it shine. Digging that solo. This definitely has potential if you ever were to come back to it, and give it some depth and some form.

MasterHand4444 responds:

Def still getting used to using Vocaloid. The program can be very frustrating to deal with lol - if it were more user friendly, the song would've been longer.