GrapheneKid's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Spooktober Forever! (JAMuary Day 2)]

Ooh, liking the unusual time signature here. Very spoopy overall. The pad melody that plays during that drop is my absolute favorite, you gave it this ghostly New Wave-type progression while still keeping that spoopy Halloween aura of despair.

I agree that there do seem to be some balancing issues. For me, the kick felt a little too loud, I'm not sure if maybe turning the high frequencies down on it would help or if there's a way you can pull it back a bit just overall, as it kind of blocks out a lot of the instruments leading up to that big drop.

GlaceonDash responds:

Aye, so I made the drums too loud and some of the bass! Will note for future Jamuary Things

[To The Death [Jamuary Day 2]]

The fusion of acoustic melodies and modern instruments/mixing techniques is extremely fascinating, it shouldn't work as well as it does (especially that WICKED drop) and yet it totally does. The whole thing just sounds so damn clean and punchy. As I've written this whole comment out I've probably replayed this about a dozen times because it just worms its way into your brain and commands your attention.

I think it's really easy to listen to works from other musicians in your sphere and get discouraged. My theory is, much like you've discovered, that it has a lot to do with specializing. Music, and the tools used to make it, have diversified a lot in just the past decade or two. It's easier than ever now to find new stimuli in places you didn't even know existed, and in those places you'll find people who have been practicing just like you have, getting amazingly good at their own thing and iterating off a completely different set of experiences and influences. You could have a person who knows EXACTLY as much about music composition and theory as you do, but if their specialty is, say, piano solos, then you would probably still feel inferior by comparison because it may not be a field you have much familiarity with. They would feel the exact same about you, for the exact same reason.

You hit the nail on the head though about why you wrote this song. You are an individual built of a completely unique mix of influences and experiences. We adapt and evolve as we take on new stimuli, but we are still wholly unique in how we express these facets of ourselves. Other people may do *their* styles of music better, but nobody does your style better than you do.

Quarl responds:

Wow, thank you so much. Very kind words and a thoughtful review. Glad you enjoyed the genre bending, I've always loved how progressive genres fuse influences. Metal in particular; you ever hear David Maxim Micic drop opera and polka in between some shredded guitar solos? Gush.

[JAMUARY 2023 - day 2]

I'm digging this one, it has an energetic depth to it that I don't really see a lot of in lofi hip-hop

arbelamram responds:

woahhhh thank you very much!!! i really like doing deep mixes! happy to hear its appricated!♥

[nature comes running]

This is a real foot-tapper! I like it. That core melody is pretty catchy.

flashmakeit responds:

Thank I love the support and score!

[JAMUARY 2023 (day 2) - The Sun Behind]

Was not expecting this level of funk from such a chill song. When that lead comes in it's just SO GOOD. A little on the quiet end imo but I guess you would actually want that out of a chill song, right?

Viraxor responds:

Most of my stuff is quieter compared to other songs. Thank you.

[Routine]

This is a cute song! I imagine driving a car down a busy freeway. If there's a connection in this song to routines then I'm probably missing it, but I enjoyed this nonetheless.

SkittleWaffle responds:

Don’t worry there isn’t a connection to routines. I just needed a song name haha. Glad you like it

[[Day 2] It Walks]

This makes me feel like I just won a battle and got some gold and XP.

Scareev responds:

YOU WIN! 352+ Gold coins, 1888+ XP, Leveled Up!!

[Self-Destructive - Jamuary Day 2]

Not bad!! It definitely grows on you. The juxtaposition of the upbeat, energetic melody and the pessimistic lyrics is really interesting to me. I love how they both build to a hectic climax, it plays really well to this idea of being under lots of pressure under such a short amount of time. I think the mix could use a little work though, your vocals are fine for what you're trying to do, but they kind of overpower the beat instead of playing to the natural energy of the song. Put another way, it sounds less like the two are seamlessly integrated and more like the vocal track is just sitting on top of the beat. It's a tricky thing to work out a good balance of the two but I think it would be a great addition to what you've demonstrated here.

MasterHand4444 responds:

Really good advice about the vocals just "sitting" on the track; I didn't even think about it that way! I also kinda gave up on the mix in favor of just spitting the track out, which in hindsight I do regret lol. Thank you for the constructive criticism!

[(#1) Chiptune misfortune]

Don't feel bad, I learned a similar lesson with Day 1, lol.

I like this! Has a bit of an adventure-like feel to it. I get the feeling that Jamuary is a good excuse to really experiment and try new stuff or build an existing skill without the need for polish or a long running time. Really, it can be anything in the name of building yourself as a musician. Keep at it!

FL-DMD responds:

Those are some wise words! Thanks for the feeling of reassurance 🙃