EmperorCharlemagne's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Pimp that Space Ship]

Another good Syntrus groove

The type of low-level beat/groove stuff you provide is always good for a listen, and most importantly, they all sound different (which is the mark of a good music-maker). Keep up that competence, man, because it works wonders on your listening audience.

Though as stated, this doesn't change much over the course of the song, I don't see that as necessarily detrimental; lots of funk or blues do the exact same thing, and it works very well (I personally like the style and utilize it myself).

If I can criticize anything, though, it's that the main synth could use a bit more variety... maybe some differing dynamics at the beginning and the end, like fading in and out... Just a thought, something to liven it up.
As well, this loops very well.

So anyway, this is pretty darn enjoyable, and i commend your effort.

Syntrus responds:

Yeah Charlemagne we are tight. Any favors you want from me will be extended.

Yeah diversity seems to be something you all like. I am not going to sell out that a really diverse song does more for an audience then a repetitive one.

As for the funk blues influence. I do listen to a lot of funk. I also really enjoy oldskool hip hop which borrows from the funk genre a great deal. I wish I knew two people to help me.
Chiefly here Is what I want.

One a drummer that owned some Roland Electro drums.

Two a lyrcist be it rapper or one with the ability to sing.

The other thing I would want is a Keytar! Cuz well that's just kick ass.

[Guitar Partitia #2 - Russia]

Top quality stuff

The playing is good, as is the recording, so I won't say much there.

The musical aspect is also very well-done; the composition itself is varied, not cliched, and very satisfying. There is a nice ethnic flair that i think compliments what you were trying to go after here, and I cannot really find any fault to give you with this piece, so unfortunately, this review has to be short (because i can't really think of anything to say other than "this is really good").

Best of luck with your endeavors; music like this will hopefully get you somewhere.

Darkmaster603 responds:

I hope so too. Thanks for the review and kind words

[Vampire Slide]

To be technical...

I think it "sounds right" because when I counted, I couldn't detect an irregular measure... Sounded to me like 4/4 all the way through, man. In fact, if ya count in 2/4, everything fits to a tee. It sounds like in the beginning, you accidentally deleted one measure or beat, and that's what set things off if you are counting in 4/4 (like I said though, if you count in 2/4, everything just works fine). Just thought I'd point that out.

Actually, this is a good skill to learn in making songs: If you switch up the time signature every now and then, it can give your stuff a real funky, or groovy, or out-there vibe that can jive pretty well with the astute listener. It keeps things interesting, so to speak. Experiments, or in your case, accidents like this can help you out on the road towards becoming unique.

As far as weirdness goes, I've certainly heard a lot weirder; for me, this is actually pretty mild. However, that's not to say it isn't good. It works, and it's not too shabby. The synths sound good, the bass is all right, and the EQing and mastering don't clutter up the song with muddiness, so that's all a good thing.

In short, I give it a 7. It's an above-average enjoyable little ditty, lol.

NKAT responds:

Thanks for your in depth summation. It does mean a lot. The first part of this song is in time to a 4/4 count O:OO to O:1O, but normally one would do 4 bars of 4 counts, while this one does 3 bars of 4 counts, or even 3.5 bars of 4 counts, in my program the bars come up short visually so I no this is the case. I am very intrigued by a double snare hit that seems to time-warp you a little ahead it seems.
Regardless, you talk about this time-change as an accident, and yes this is true - the reason it happened was that the bass and other instruments at the beginning played out that way, i tried a full count but it sounded better this way, It was all due to listening to the flow, while not using math or theory - which are valid techniques, I am not frowning upon them, I just do not have these skills nor would I personally want to approach music this way. This works, I have opened another door to the songs due to this, thanks a lot for discussing it with me. Have a good day.

[Rig - Warface]

It's a really funny coincidence

That I had literally seen this scene in the movie about 5 minutes before I watched/listened to this.

Funny stuff, funny stuff. Nice loop too, ha!

Rig responds:

Cool, I've never actually seen it. haha

[Opaque Shards]

Very impressive!

I gotta say, your instrument choices, filter effects/reverb, and funky beat/rhythm section won me over very early.

The cool groovy beat goes great with this quasi-crystal/industrial vibe I get from the piece, one that makes things very unique and enjoyable (because you don't get quasi-crystal/industrial vibes from songs often, lol).

The mallets are a great touch, and the heavier drum and bass stuff is well-executed. This is damn good and darn fun to listen to.

Great job!

Kirbyfemur responds:

Lol I didn't know you could have quasi-crystal/industrial but i like the description. Thank you for your review. =3

[A Ship to the North]

Not bad at all

From the technical side of things, the piano sounds a bit mechanized and stiff... Honestly, since i use solely synth stuff, I can't fault you TOO much on it.

On your next project, try to use dynamics and such to bring out a greater diversity in the sound (in this case the piano).

Also, I think the ending could have gone for a bit more of a fade-out ending; as it is, it's a little abrupt. Nothing to detract from the experience, but it is noticeable.

All in all, this ain't all that bad; an all-around decent track that is enjoyable.

Grandvision responds:

Thanks. I use Truepianos and I don't know how to master a piano to make it sound more realistic. I use what I can. I will try to use more dynamics in my next track.

[Lost Myself In a Bass Warble]

cool story bro

The volume was fine for me, but I heard a little crackling, very faint, in the course of the track.

Love the background rhythm section; it had this real funky groove going on that I like, yo. I personally feel the main synth could have been toned down a little bit; it felt a little TOO overpowering, personally. Could have used some support, you know?

But I thought this was pretty neat.

Syntrus responds:

thx for stopping by.

[[SxHx] Prfkt.Tempo (REFIX)]

I'll admit that the pulse waves hurt my head too

But I guess that's the nature of the genre, eh?

Nice way to put things together, though I somewhat personalyl question the phasing in and out of the vocal track. That is a personal artistic choice that I don't personally agree with, but it's fine that you did it (for me it just makes it too hard to understand).

This is however and altogether good track, well-produced with no glaring defects, and I have to say good job on doing that.

shesmackshard responds:

a 7 for what lol? thats not justified.

thanks fore the review, outright though!

[The Chapel of Flandre Scarlet]

Ow.

You're reading the reply in the thread you made, so I'll keep this fairly succinct.

Like I said.
Turn down the volume on everything. Everything loud. The organ, the strings, and some cases even the piano. This song tries to assault the listener's ears, so instead of taking in the piece, the listener is trying to fight off the cacophony you throw at them.

Silence is a virtue, some say. Learn to quiet things down in order to let the music speak. Because constant shouting says nothing.

Good try, but some serious issues need to be addressed.

ZakoZaku responds:

Thank you for a honnest review. See, this is why you cant really trust friends. They always say its good, just to avoid makeing you upset.

[15thD - Light]

Alright

The only criticism I can really hand out is that this is very very very loud. I have my volume set at the dead medium and I'm jerkin' my head back.

This is alright, but again, the volume feels forced.
This is especially so at :36 when the high string quite literally SCREAMS at the listener, which doesn't make for the most pleasant of auditory experiences.

15thDimension responds:

heh heh, well, like I said before, I didn't put a whole lot of work into this, which means no volume limiting or any of that. You should've tried turning down your speakers. But hey, thanks for the review.