Karco's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[_-={The Djsou Forest}=-_]

Huh, odd title.

Care to elaborate? :P

So it's another collab with LadyArsenic? Neat. Unfortunately, I'm not hearing too much singing in this one. I hear something at 0:36, but it sounds like it could be a choir as well. Did she simply collab with you the normal way this time? :\

Anyway, whether it's your choir or LadyArsenic singing, the singing becomes... buried, under the rest of the song. I have to strain my ears to hear it, and, considering the part singing usually would play in a song, I don't think I should have to.

Huh, at the end - the song simply cuts off. It sounds like it was supposed to loop, but it feels like it loops too soon. It loops perfectly - great job there - it just loops a little too soon.

There's not much new about this song. Your MAC7 entries were great, and you had put tons of effort into them - but this could have been done before all of those, in my opinion, just as easily. :\ Personally I'd rather see better submissions that come less frequently than average ones coming often. Come on, you know how I am about effort.... ;D

That's enough criticism, it's all I've got, anyway. :P On to the positive sides of the song. I'll start by saying that the atmosphere set up by the river and owl effects is great! :D I'd have liked to hear a little more - maybe the owl once more, or some other sound effect. It's simply the river playing through the entire song and the owl hooting.

Now, what I'd like to know is HOW THAT TURNED INTO CRITICISM ON ME! >:( That was supposed to be praise! XD

I can see you're using the guitar as well, and it's well-used! :) I especially like what I'm hearing starting at 1:32. Quite original and far away from your usual composition style. (Ha, that was praise and STAYED praise. >:) )

I think that's about it. It's a decent song, but more effort could be going into songs like this. Don't get me wrong, I like it. :P But, again, I'm more for the occasional pwning than the frequent "good job." ;) Keep at it, both you AND LadyArsenic. ;D

WAIT, WAIT, WAIT, I FORGOT THE IMAGE!!! :D Here it is! It's another piece of imagery, with a lot of the figuring out left to be done. I had fun writing this one, hope you enjoy it. :D

A dark figure leisurely walks through the forest, unaccompanied. It's nighttime, but the dense trees cover the stars and moon. The forest is nearly blackened, except for a few visible moonbeams shining through openings between the branches.The sound of a river can be heard from far away, and the dark figure walks towards it.

They approach the river, kneel down, and dip their hand into it. It is very cold, and the current is very fast. The figure stands, and sees a light on the other side of the river. Fire. There are voices. There is laughter. The figure sits and watches.

After what could have been any amount of time, the figure stands up. They turn around, and start walking in the opposite direction. East. The figure's shadow follows behind.

Here's the end of the review, for REAL this time. >:) Hope you enjoyed it.

MaestroRage responds:

The title of the song, is the name of the forest in a game LadyArsenic is working on with a friend. It is only right to keep the name.

It is a collab with LadyArsenic, but not in the sense of her singing, but more her musical talents. Other then some subtle choirs there isn't singing.

The export might have cut off the end I suppose, on Fruity Studios it loops perfectly. I know what you mean though, it does seem to cut off here too quickly.

Concerning effort, this song didn't take any effort at all. It was just brilliantly fun for myself. It may seem like the song is not finished, or is rough, but to myself, and hopefully to LadyArsenic, we are happy, and proud of it. It is actually this kind of music that I love making. Simple, powerful, celtic-esque, warm, soothing... It's just great fun for me.

In any case, I always appreciate your honesty, so please, don't stop them.

As for the owl, I didn't have more then 2 types of hoots, and I didn't want to make them over used, so I used them twice each. I should have hunted for more, but simply could not find any decent ones. Many were halloween oriented and it was painfully fake or childish.

And as for the guitar from 1:32 onwards, that completely LadyArsenic's work. In fact ALL the guitar in this song is LadyArsenics work XD. But I know what you mean, I learned a great deal from studying under her in this song. Her guitar style and melodic work is very different, and I loved it.

As for your image, my image was always oriented around sunset, with the warm orange glows, but your image is as effective as that one! I never even considered night time, yet it clicks well. Good stuff Karco!

Thank you for your review, it is always a pleasure to hear from you Karco, i'm glad you enjoyed the piece!

[==(Frost)==]

Nice chill-out song...

Nice intro, I like that pad and your use of drums and that distorted-ish effect.The piano enters a bit suddenly, though...

I can't recall ever hearing you use piano... but you're good at it! The composition and the general sound of the piano are awesome. :D You could do with a bit more diversity, though - I'm hearing the same general melody over and over and over, etc.

Wait, what? So you're saying that those are actually RHODES? Not a guitar? :P It's sure convincing that they're a guitar. You should try to harmonize them with the piano a bit more, rather than having them play their own stuff (which works, but this could be better).

The drums are a bit odd - they sound good, your samples are chosen well, but there's a lot of reverb on them. I'd normally call it excessive, and suggest toning it down - it works just fine, though. I'm not so sure about when they get extra loud towards the end, though, is that supposed to be a buildup of some kind? It kills the chill-out feeling, and my ears. :( Careful.

A rather short review by my standards but I haven't reviewed one of your songs in forever, so I thought I would. :P Looking forward to more...

[_-={Deranged Sanctuary}=-_]

Finally, a decent amount of time!

I've been meaning to review one of your songs for a while now, but I've never had a big enough amount of time - knowing my reviews for your songs, I'll need a decent amount of time to review 'em, and, knowing my computer, I'll have to do it all in one sitting or I'll risk losing the review when the window stops responding. XD I have been keeping up at least listening to them, though.

A different kind of song, I can't recall ever hearing a song quite like this from you. Quite rhythmic, and driving - almost energetic in a sense, though I doubt that's what you were aiming at. :P All of the instruments fit together so well, and how they all come together harmonywise is great, too. I can't say I've ever seen that kind of skill from you... you've improved here quite a bit. :D

Is that a panflute? :O It fits so well, and reminds me of certain parts of GoldenSun, for some reason... have you ever played it? Such a great game. :D

That sitar... I'm not so sure about it. It fits just fine, but I think there are instruments that could fit even better, while contributing better to the image you have in the description. That's just what came to mind when I heard it.

Not much else about the song, so here's my image...

Far out and isloated from the other ruins nearby, a fairly large, but not quite enormous, building sits - also ruined. It's obvious it was built with the intent of being a place of worship, due to its structure. However, it is worse-ruined than any of the ruins it is isolated from. Its builders were followers of a largely unaccepted belief, thus the isolation. Still, people would go out of their way to vandalize or destroy parts of it, even in its prime. And now, whoever invaded and wreaked havoc... this place of worship before could have been compared to the rest of the ruins afterwards. By destroying it as well, they were in almost a literal sense kicking a dead, bloody horse.

You'd think by now it would be simply a pile of stones - however, destroyed, lifeless, and uninhabited as it is, it still stands, stubborn and refusing to die. A memory of the past.

That's all, hope you enjoyed it! I enjoyed this song, that's for sure. ;D Keep up the great work and good luck in the MAC. :)

MaestroRage responds:

I'm glad you felt I have improved, because I feel the same way. This contest has given me so much insight on so many things, it's quite thrilling to have learned what I did. Mostly learned through sitting at my computer through the whole night hammering away at things, ripping my hair out, cursing my competitors names, and vowing vengence of the most melodic kind!

It was worth it though. All of it was worth it.

That is indeed a panflute, my favorite woodwind eva! I havn't played GoldenSun but it got mad good ratings, and my friends all liked it. I should try it out sometime.

Your image and story were both entertaining and vivid. Seen like bacteria, hated and shunned, these small group of people strove together to build a place, to withstand everything that was thrown it's way...

a very interesting, unsettling, yet pleasent thought.

Thank you for the review Karco, always appreciated :D!

[Und3rground]

Review time!

Aww, no awesome intro? You're good at those! :D Oh well. This song kinda reminds me of Sandstorm, is that where you got your inspiration? :P That buildup, (a bit overdone) and the way that synth is arped, really reminds me of that song.

Those bongos don't quite work, unfortunately. They're a bit too reverbed and a bit too loud. Nice try at an original touch, though, it almost works. ;)

The arp towards the end is nice, too, though it didn't quite work if you're trying to add to the song. Maybe what you could do is have another synth play a melody on top of the one you have already instead? Or have the original synth play a harmony? Or a new synth play a harmony? I don't know, I'm just throwing ideas around... :P

There's something with that lead... it's not that it's overpowering, it's that the rest of the song is too quiet. If you were to make the lead quieter, it would be great, but then the song would be too quiet. XD Just be careful with your mixing. ;)

Aaagh! I just don't have very much to say about it this time. Usually my reviews are longer - ha, you know that - but I just can't think of what to say now. This is a good song, don't get me wrong. :P I just don't have very much praise, nor do I have very much criticism. Hope you understand. :) Keep up the good work, Drumr, looking forward to more. :)

[Sea of Pixels]

>:O

And I give that smiley for three reasons:

1) That you renamed the song since you sent it to me. When you sent me the file a couple months ago it was titled "Even Heroes Are Made of Pixels." I liked that title. :P

2) That the song has only one review since you submitted it, and it's a fairly small one...

3) That it's been zeroed into the 1-range. :O I'll five it right now, actually.

I really don't have much criticism, since I've had this on my iPod for a while and I listen to it fairly often. :) The mid-range synth that plays by itself in places is a bit loud sometimes, though.

Praise is all over the place so I'll make a quick summary. :P Great percussion, effect use, melodywork - remember when I said in chat that back in the days of NES's, this would be a hit song for a Zelda-esque video game? XD

Hmm, different ending. Octaved, and different percussion. I personally liked the version you sent me more, and I'll stick with it. But this one works too. :P You really need to make more, you're quite talented at 8-bit. :D

[Lost In Metal Minds]

About time I got to this...

Though I don't think I'll have too much to say about this song. This looks like it's going to get a short review, but we'll see in the end. ;)

Hope you don't mind: I'm going to be copy-pasting a paragraph from another review I left earlier. I think you need it just as much. :) It's below:

Firstly and most importantly - from now on, stay far, FAR away from the drum presets that come with FL Studio. They sound weak, flat, and VERY overused. Find some better samples, even if it means buying them - as long as you're avoiding those FL samples like the plague. They're not going to get you anywhere. Don't be fooled by your ridiculous number of reviewers who praise your work to no end within the few lines that they do give. There are samples out there that can offer so much more than any of the samples you're currently using can.

That's all I'm going to be copy-pasting. Hope it helped. Now for the actual writing... :P

I can see you're getting the hang of getting notes to sound good together - the notes the guitar plays aren't half bad, in fact! :D (Though I don't think that guitar needs the And I really like the sound of those strings... where'd you get them? I wouldn't mind getting a chance to use them myself. :O They didn't need the panning, though. Another thing I don't like is the guitar-ish thing that comes in around 1:15, which isn't necessary in my opinion.

The next things you should be working on mastering, along with getting notes to sound good together, is song structure - this song right now is just a collection of loops in my opinion. Also try to get your drum rhythms right - fine, you're trying to be original. :P It almost works. But make a song with the kick-hat-clap-hat for once and see how it goes. It might actually turn out to be pretty good. :D

Not quite a monster review like the kind I used to leave you, but it should help anyway. You just might get somewhere if you keep at it and follow my advice as it comes. :)

New-Milkman responds:

Ya, because a 5 paragraph review isn't very "monster" ;) And I promise I will not use the drums that show up when you open up FL next time. And I didn't think the guitar panned at all, but I wasn't really paying attention to that. Or maybe I'm just retarded, I don't know...

As for the thing at 1:15, I just wanted to pass the 2 minute mark, and I couldn't really think of anything at the time, and that was the best I could come up with. And for "kick-hat-clap-hat"-ing... maybe I'll try it once just for you :P

Thanks for what you call a "not so monster" review!

[{SD} - Dark Memories]

Heh, you're welcome. :)

Ugh, though! What happened? Something must've went wrong with the file sending over chat, because this isn't the version I got! The kick is heavy to the point of distortion... and the hihat could be a bit quieter, right now it's fairly overpowering. Suppose there's no use crying over spilt milk, though, I suppose you should move on, leave this one behind, and start a new song.

You really got that diversity problem down! :) Great job there. You really made that lead fit. Also, kick and hihat aside, you figured out how to make that quality work! :) Great job there.

I really don't have too much else to say about it seeing as that I listened to it so many times already. But it's an improvement overall, so keep up the good work. Don't hesitate to ask me again for help if you ever need it. :)

ShirkDeio responds:

I'm glad you liked it. Thanks so much for all the help on it, now I will (try to) set out on my own =p.

[-´Vexeta`-]

Good melodies, but drums need serious work.

This is becoming quite common, now - you're the third person on NG I've seen who comes up with good melodies, structures their songs well, and then neglects their drums and synth choie. I'll skip the praise, which would lie almost entirely in your melodies and harmonies anyway, and go straight to the criticism. How does that sound?

My guess is that you used FL Studio to put this song together. You made liberal use of the VSTi Sytrus, (you used some of its presets, too) as well as using the drum samples that came with FL Studio. Am I correct? Then let me start by evaluating the resources used... then I'll move onto clarity.

Firstly and most importantly - from now on, stay far, FAR away from the drum presets that come with FL Studio. They sound weak, flat, and VERY overused. Find some better samples, even if it means buying them - as long as you're avoiding those FL samples like the plague. They're not going to get you anywhere. Don't be fooled by your ridiculous number of reviewers who praise your work to no end within the few lines that they do give. There are samples out there that can offer so much more than any of the samples you're currently using can.

You make decent use of Sytrus, but use it so MUCH! Use other VSTi's, too. 3x0sc is actually quite decent if you add a lot of FX, for example. Look up Vanguard or Z3ta+ and see if you'd use either of those. And then, don't make the mistake with any of those that you did with Sytrus - at least TRY to make your own synths. Nobody can expect you to instantly master a synth as complex as Sytrus. But tweak around with the knobs and see what you find. Then try basing your synths off of presets - so you'd take a preset and tweak it until it sounds fairly different, and then you'd use it. Small steps. :)

Claritywise, this song could use some work as well. Though you know how to space your synths out so there aren't too many in the same frequency range, you end up with too many in each frequency range, and the song becomes quite crowded. Throw in your drums, along with a snare roll in certain parts of the song, and it's chaos. Careful. Try to limit the number of synths you use while keeping that full feeling. And if you feel you can't remove any more synths, then tweak with the individual volume knobs. Make what's quiet, weak, and barely audible louder. Tone down anything that overpowers the rest of the song. Rinse and repeat until your song sounds clearer. ;)

So, in summary:

1) Find better drums, ASAP. Don't use the samples that came with FL Studio.
2) Find synths other than Sytrus, and start to get used to making your own synths.
3) Work on clarity!

That's about all I have to say for this song - if I ever sounded harsh, know I'm just trying to give you the criticism you need. You did a nice job with it but you still have a LONG way to go. Don't be fooled by your many reviewers - you definitely have talent, but right now it's quite raw. Keep at it, follow my advice, and I'm sure you'll be on your way to making some great music.

[Atomic Inc - Finish Me]

Definitely NOT "Just another track." :D

You really need to get yourself known, AtomicInc. This song seriously deserves a LOT more than a score of 3.63 and 7 downloads. ;) Good thing you've been getting a nice amount of reviews, though... I'm going to give you mine. Here's a nice, big one. >:) You deserve it.

First, I have to say, I really like the melodywork in this song! It's done quite well, and the harmonies match it perfectly. Nice synth choice, too. (And then not just for your leads - for pretty much everything else as well. :D) It takes a while to develop - I would have preferred to have heard what starts at 0:44 (awesome transition into that part, by the way :D) starting at 0:31 after the transition. ;) It could be a bit more diversity too, actually, most of the time 8-measure-melodies work a lot better than 4-measure ones. It kinda gets boring, actually, since you have that 4-measure melody playing the entire song. Don't get me wrong, though - that aside, I think it's great in every other respect. :)

Your drums are well-chosen, too, you have good samples and you know how to use them. ;D The snare in the intro, I think, shouldn't have been so heavy. A lighter, crunchier-sounding one would have worked a bit better in my opinion. Everywhere else, though, I have no problem with your sample choice, it all fits very well. :)

Great work with this, get out there and get yourself known! Your work deserves a lot more than this, I assure you. :) Voted 5, keep up the good work. I'll be keeping an eye out for more of your music... >:)

[_-={Tell Me Once Again}=-_]

You really are crunching! :O

So many entries in such a short time! Better now than later, I suppose, I guess I'd rather not have a deadline breathing down my neck too. :P

Still, I feel a bit more effort could have been put into this entry. It's good, but it doesn't shine like your song The Desire to Destroy. How much time did you spend on this?

In my opinion it's a bit lacking in emotion as well. Something about the melodies, harmonies, instruments chosen... it doesn't feel well done, in my opinion. I do think it's sad-sounding, I think it would fit a Game Over screen just fine, but there could easily be other songs that would fit one better.

As far as the actual song, compositionwise, is concerned, I don't have too much to say. My main problems here are with the clarity. There's... something, it sounds like a timpani, in the background. I think you made it too quiet, I have to listen VERY carefully to hear it. Not too much else to comment on... suppose I'll move onto the story now.

An aged character sits under a tree, at the top of a hill, and they sit facing the city the hill overlooks. The morning sun shines down at their back, and at the tree, casting a shadow towards the city, which bustles with life. People are walking, running, laughing, chit-chatting meaningless nonsense the character couldn't care less about. Peace reigns over the city, yet our character doesn't want to have anything to do with it.

Our character is in exile.

They stand up, turn around, and walk away.

A bit vague, but the rest is for you to figure out. :P Not a bad song, but again, lacking in effort in my opinion. Keep trying, hopefully your other contest entries will be better. :)

MaestroRage responds:

The things with loops Karco is that the more diverse you make them, the more powerful you create them, the more tiring they are to the human ear. The less you can listen to them. The Desire To Destroy, if you listen closely, has no main theme or melody. it is a long sequence of punishing chords and percussion.

Now if I had put a melody on top of that song, it would get super old, super fast. Battle/Angry pieces also tend to demand having a climax *build up* of sorts. The end of that song DOES have a semi-climax, but ultimately it leads back to the beginning, which some have claimed was a bad idea.

What i'm trying to say with all this is, a sad game over piece, DEMANDS melody. It DEMANDS having a voice, and for this reason I had to make it semi-bland, had to make it as powerful as I could whilst making it as fragile as possible.

True I didn't put as many hours into this as I did Desire To Destroy, though I didn't slack on it either. I suppose this one was just a failure, thats perfectly fine! That just means i'll have to try harder. Make another Game Over theme!

I also enjoyed your story, short, but there is room to figure things out myself like you wrote, which I did... in great detail. I wish I could show you the image in my head of him sitting under the tree atop a hill, overlooking the village...

In any case, thank you for the review!