EmperorCharlemagne's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Transcendence]

Nice.

Nice work with the piano, and the other instruments. Did a good job of balancing things out so it's not overly focused on one thing.

Nice-sounding, and it's kinda catchy, to boot. You made up for a lack of percussion rather nicely, and I find that commendable. Good one.

Isoken responds:

I have a problem with balancing volumes, so this was really difficult for me. I had to export it several times to hear what it would sound like without the FL lag spikes that occurs when you have too many sounds going on.

When I started this song, I was actually playing around with percussion to see what would sound good. I found that adding percussion made the song seem too much like pop, so I settled for having no drums at all.

Thanks so much for the review!

^_^

[Hey There Delilah-Tommy Grant]

Have the strings do more.

They really feel underused here, since all they do is stay in the background and play block chords. Which isn't too terribly exciting, even for accompaniment. The piano is the only thing really doing anything, which makes you wonder why the strings are there in the first place. Let it go back and forth; you got the instruments man, use them!

As well, the piano at some points was a little simplistic for my taste... The right hand could've played just more than ONE note at a time, in my eyes (yes, it's a hyperbole, but still). Stuff like those arpeggio flourishes towards the latter half were much appreciated, but you could've done a bit more and make the thing even more unique as an arrangement.

As far as sound goes, this sounds fine, and I'm sure those looking for an instrumental will be well pleased, but I say, you can already make things sound good, now make them sound like -you- made them. Sorry for the not-glowing review.

TommyUlysesGrant responds:

Hey dont mention it .. Thank you for the informational review .. I will try better in the future ...

Im sorry this peice is not to your liking

[Life After Betrayal]

I would kill for this?

The spoken voice was a bit weird, but I think overall, you did a good job of constructing a believable and enjoyable soundscape here. In other words, I liked it. The harmonies sounded nice, and the beat, while it could have been softened a LITTLE bit, were still good. It definitely got better as time progressed.

This is a solid, likable track.

JoeyFreezeMusic responds:

Thank you. I wonder if anybody figured out that the one speaking is Mr. Freeze from the Batman animated series.

[Syntrus-Green Gem Stone]

Jimmy gee gem.

I would have preferred some better-sounding drum samples, but for what it's worth, it works.

Nice simple VG-loop you have here. Halfway through it gets nice with that little extra stuff added into it. Again, I think some extra instrumentation would have been cool, but it still works.

A commendable effort.

Syntrus responds:

your snooty.

But I thank you for the comments and the feedback.

[MM2 - Metal Man]

I wish you did more

This sounds like you just kinda redid the track with Fruity Loop instruments, adding nothing new to the song. Which is a kinda bland thing to do, in my opinion. Why should I listen to this song and not the original?

The main problem being there is nothing to really distinguish this as your own.

Now, I know that a lot of these types of songs go onto Newgrounds, and get praised (which is not exactly right either), but another knock against this piece is that its production is just a little bit lacking. There is nothing that quite new or inventive in the instrumentation, and quality of things leaves something to be desired. If this was a verbatim remake with awesome instrumentation, I would have scored you higher. But the whole thing has a 'demo' feel to it.

So the things that would have made this piece awesome would have been
A. your own spin on the theme
B. much better instrumentation

Aviation responds:

I thank you for your review, sir, and respect your opinion. You've given me exactly what belongs in a review: constructive criticism. I do indeed feel that this feels more like a 'demo', because I made it out of sheer boredom. If I do find the patience, I plan on redoing this, and I hope you'll have more to say on the matter then. Until we meet again, my friend.

[Wind Quartet- In a Lake]

Skillfully crafted and masterful.

I don't throw out a whole lot of 10's (I'm more of a 6-8 kinda guy) but this one floored me with its sheer quality. in fact, this will be the third song I have ever reviewed as a 10/10, so that says something.

This piece exudes a total calmness, a total show of control over the material, a total relaxation and effortlessness that transposes itself into a wonderful and beautiful journey of sound that few Audio Portal composers can hope to attain to. But you were able to do it here.

The tones and harmonies are varied and rich, the melody inspired, and the instruments feel greater than they are. As I listened, I was sometimes forgetting that I was only hearing four woodwinds, as your work made it sound as if an orchestra was playing, another stroke of a master.

I cannot not say enough good things about this piece, and I can find no flaw, musically or production wise. Everything is just crystal clear and beautiful.

I eagerly await the release of the second part, and you have duly impressed me. Great job, and keep up the fantastic work.

kentokhromatic responds:

Thanks! This was my first real wind piece so I was really interested in exploiting the colors and ranges of the different instruments. I put in a lot of polyrhythms as well, but that's something I've absorbed from jazz playing and string writing (since string instruments sound more similar to each other, I needed other ways to get the textured sound I tend to like).

I appreciate that you liked the calmness of the piece as well, because relatively speaking I've found people have a little harder time with this movement compared to the second one, because it sets up a more impressionistic, less straight-forward setting before it really kicks into song. The second movement has a darker sound to it, but maybe because it's structurally simpler and rhythmically more straight and "4/4", it's easier to get into.

[Blue River Down]

It's alright

It was a pleasant listen. I could have sat down to listen to a longer version of the song; I wish it wasn't too short. Your friend is indeed not too shabby, and I think the guitar and violin compliment each other nicely. Keep up the good work!

snowfender responds:

thank you for the comment! =D i really appreciate it.

[Atrophy 315]

Interesting Title

The sudden change to a major chord at :57 I found to be rather clever. You don't see a lot of that in typical AP songs.

This is lush and Romantic in scope and structure, which is always a plus to me. The strings compliment each other very well, and the harmonies are well-crafted. This is quite a feat, as rarely do you hear something this good.

At 2:17 the sudden movement was great, resolving in yet another unexpected major chord. That is rather good, as it keeps the listener captivated, and it shows off the technical skill of the composition in capturing the audience's attention.

This is quite a good work; you should be proud.

Animith responds:

I kind of liked the way the major chord sounded the first time, so I did resolve to use it again at 2:20 or so. And as much as I like minor pieces, I'm not sure I have the ability yet to pull one off without foraying into at least some major parts. It's something of an odd habit on my part, but as long as it works, I'll live with it. xD
Really appreciate you taking the time to write this, honestly. And rest assured, the response this has gotten has done much to make me proud of it. Thanks a lot for your review. (:

[Sky Ocean]

Very Admirable!

For constructive criticism, I would quiet down the drums just a shade; I feel that the cymbals are a bit too loud. As well, the piano could have done a little bit more, be a little bit more daring.

Love the string and piano forming around each other in melody and harmony. This is a really high-quality piece, and I love the chords you used for this on the strings and piano. Good job!

TreborLocke responds:

Thanks a bunch. This isnt quite finished. I should really add more echo to the cymbals and bring them down a bit, spead em out ya know. Also, looks like I got 0 Bombed to all heck heh...I wish people would actually review before just simply pushing the 0 button -_-

[epic atmosphere (slow-mo mix)]

Excellent

A slow down really did add a different feel, and one I heartily enjoyed. The sounds blend well, and the pads really do the song justice. The synth/square thing you used was utilized to great effect, and the chord work was rather good.

Very nicely done.

oddfellowfloyd responds:

Wow, thank you, mate! I am very happy you appreciate this! I was really in a Tangerine Dream-esque mood, and this is the resulting music I heard in my head haha.