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!

^_^

[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.

[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.

[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.

[Town Crisis]

Alright

Tone down the steel guitar, as it is a bit too loud for the effect you're going for. It is blaring at the listener far too much.

This sounds as if it was made with the standard Fruity Loops instruments (I recognize that bass). I would recommend looking around for some free soundfonts that can diversify what you can and cannot do, sonically speaking.

The song is not that bad, but can use some spicing up in some parts, like maybe a few more instruments, or more importantly, some more variation in the melody, which is pretty bare bones for the most part.

This sounds similar to some of my early songs (which are not on the AP), so I can certainly see where you were coming from at this stage in time.

JinsokuMan responds:

Hahah. Yep. I was pretty sure people would immediately pick up on the FL. I was madly in love with that steel guitar back then. I cringe now, but still like the melodies I came up with.

I'm looking for my soundfonts and FL and all this other stuff to reinstall and start toying with things again. I want to post one of my later ones, as I thought I actually progressed, but my one problem is my bare bones melody. I always hit a wall and can't think up anything else.

Thanks for the critique!