mr-jazzman's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Hypnose (NG Cut)]

Wow

Great stuff man, really. This is awesome, some of the best DnB on NG (honestly, this makes the beloved PX9 look like a little child). I can't find anything wrong with it really, the mixing is really good, the drumwork is spectacular, the gaps are filled in nicely, the synths are fat and beautiful, it doesn't get old through over-repetition...Here and there there are "patches" that could be filled, but honestly, this is extremely minor when compared to the whole. This is sexy, hands down. It makes me realize just how out of the loop I've been with producing DnB stuff lol, I've been into the dubstep scene pretty heavy lately. GREAT job, I actually aspire to make a tune this cool in the future. Keep it up man, love it!
10/10
5/5
Fav'd.

landscapers1 responds:

Thank you for the review my friend! Glad you liked it :)

I don't think PX9 looks like a little child in every ways, he's one of the AP Master!

[TCB - ZOMBEH]

Aw man!

Dammit, I thought I was the first one on NG to discover how to do that whole formant thing...damn, you beat me by a couple days! Oh well, good stuff. Quite heavy, although I'm beginning to see that the formant bass needs to be exchanged with another form of bass as well, cuz otherwise the song just encompasses the same sound (a.k.a., use it sparingly lol). Good stuff, I love how you mix the sound effects in at the right times. Keep it up man, this is badass!
9/10
5/5

thecokebitch responds:

Yeah - gotcha, it does get a bit full on after a while huh... But meh, ive knocked this tune on the head, time for the next one! ha

Altho, ive sortv known how to do that with the bass in the past tho =P, its just the downsampling envelope in a bitcrusher - set in to like 10x or 20x and it gives teh sound a bit of 'wah' haha

[Orchestral Theme 2]

Great stuff

In my opinion, it sound much like the other songs you've submitted (the superhero one in particular), but hell, I gotta give it to ya, it's dope. This is not gonna be an easy song to conquer lol. I mean, the mastering on this thing is just ridonkulously good, and seeing as I'm limited in some of my mastering skills, I highly doubt I can produce a track of such profound professionalism. Then again, you DO have EastWest, so maybe that has a little to do something with it. I also noticed that your song clipped at the very end (is this what you were trying to correct lol?). Dammit, I don't wanna be completely squashed by you...I'm gonna have to the ingenuity route, f!@# it. Be back in about 2 weeks (I know, I know, you'll just have to put up with the wait. Mind you, I'm doing this WHILE studying for college finals, WHILE trying to do homework, WHILE doing several projects for different classes, WHILE working, and WHILE trying to actually have a social life, such as hanging out with my friends from Nothing More...So, if my song isn't as amazing as yours, I'm sorry lol.). Great stuff though.
9/10
5/5
P.S. Your choirs are sick. I love the minor-2nd intervals and tritones you add. It really gives it this chaotic feel. And your percussion is A-quality. I totally wish I had the ability to REALLY match you, but that's rather impossible atm. You're the toughest competition I have, and honestly there's no way that I can even compete, even with my guitar skillz and what not. You've honestly got the better setup, you've got the pro tools (not the program), so how can humble I possibly compete with you? ... How can a someone who's never swam in their entire life compete with the likes of Michael Phelps? ... That's about how impossible this task feels to me right now lol.

Gravey responds:

Thanks a lot bud. I'm happy with how it turned out to say the least.

I've gone back and listened to the original mix and the final master and I don't hear any clipping anywhere. So I think you are mistaken about how it clips at the end, but I appreciate you listening and reviewing for sure.

Thanks for the lengthy review.

-Gravey-

[New Light (WiP)]

Not entirely sure...

In my opinion, it's lacking excitement. It's salvageable for sure, but it needs a lotta work. It sounds sort of like Zelda, for sure, as Rakoun pointed out (or even Pokemon lol) but it just doesn't sound...exciting...if you know what I mean. The melody isn't as passionate as I hoped it would be. In my opinion, it feels a little typical - just being honest man. I know for some ideas, you could look into the Lord of the Rings music (Howard Shore is a musical genius, and you'll see what I mean about "excitement" once you listen to his stuff...which I'm sure you've already heard some of it =P). In my opinion, the flutes on single notes make it feel "cheesy," like a high school marching band; the flute works well in third and fifth intervals, so try experimenting with that. Also, the song could DEFINITELY use a boost in the percussion section, because right now it just seems like a backdrop (once again, you should analyze how Howard Shore does it). One final thing: You could try implementing some choir into here, I know of a few decent free choir soundfonts (surprisingly, Gravey and I use the same ones =P); this will fill out your song completely, giving it this epic feel, much on the order of Halo...which is ANOTHER good source of inspiration, btw (although it's rather overdone on NG =\). One thing I did like though: Your entrance, with the cymbals. It reminded me of Dance Gavin Dance, the beginning of this song called "Open Your Eyes and Look North." I'd recommend listening to them too...and (I sound like a broken record by now! lol) Karnivool. I promise you, these bands will change the way you look at music!
8/10
5/5

P.S. You know what? I just thought of another band you need to check out. They blend orchestra with metal, great stuff. Check out We Came As Romans, I promise you won't be disappointed. I think they have more of that "epic" feel your looking for man. =) Wish ya luck with this, and hope this helps you out a bit.

Step responds:

Thanks for the review man! I totally agree with you on everything. It is pretty boring to hear, and I was never good with the flute either, and I know about that percussion. There are timpanis, bass drums, cymbals and snares there but they can barely be heard. I won't tell you why that happened since it's a long story and I don't feel like typing right now xD. But long story short: East/West has a glitch which resulted in the percussion being very quiet. As for choirs, don't worry, I have Magnus Choir and even East/West has a few choirs, plus I have some soundfonts with choirs in them too :D. As for the melody, yeah I see what you mean. I might actually take a few ideas from this song and make a totally new one. Anyway, thanks for the awesome review, man, didn't work too hard on this so I'm impressed you have so much to say xP. Thanks for the band suggestions too, definitely will help with inspiration! Thanks again :D.

[Warfar [Preview]]

Excellent!

For a preview this is impressive! The drums need some better mastering (i.e., the toms seem really "boomy," and the rest of the drums, like the snare and the cymbals, seem a little bit static IMO, but I trust they'll fill out in the coming weeks), but your build-up is really good. And your bass has this dubby wobble quality to it that I really dig. This is really good! Just give it more skin, if ya know what I mean (flesh it out a bit, not so hollow), and you'll have a masterpiece. Good stuff, glad I got to listen to it! =)
9/10
5/5
Artist Fav'd.
P.S. Thanks for the review on my preview, I'll keep ya in touch when I release my first legit dub song, and I hope you do the same when this beauty comes out too!

landscapers1 responds:

Thanks so much for the review my friend! The intro is still under construction because I think it's too repetitive and almost boring. I mean, it becomes interesting at the end of the preview...
Yes I'm proud of my mixed bass, it sounds crazy :D

I'll keep you informed duly ;)
Thanks again!

[TCB - Bit Down]

Very gritty, nice

I really love your samples man. It sounds really awesome. You may be what I call a pioneer in dubstep; everybody else seems to gridlocked with repetitive wub bass, whereas you make a melody out of that shit. Awesome! I also love how gritty it is, very ambient and dirty. You're one of my favorite dub artists here on NG; keep it up man!
9/10
5/5

thecokebitch responds:

Thanks for the wicked review man!

And i doubt im a pioneer... seriously haha =P

[Orchestral Theme 1]

Wow, fail on my part!!!! =`((( Great song!

Dude, this is freaking ridiculously cool; it blends elements from 2 different styles of soundtracks: I can hear Howard Shore mixed in there with an element that reminds me of Bourne Identity. It's very ethnic, and the mix is great. While it is a bit repetitive, it makes for some great background sound. I wouldn't say this suspenseful so much as action-worthy, which is perfect. In my opinion, this song kicks some superior ass.
Now, onto my fail comment: While trying to 5 your song, I accidentally voted it as a 2, and I feel terrible about it lol. So, know this much: In my heart, your song deserves a 5. =)
5/5
9/10

Gravey responds:

Wow, two other people on MSN and AIM also said this reminded them of the Bourne Identity soundtrack. I'm pretty amazed with the comparison because that is some top shelf music for sure. I'm just glad people seem to be enjoying it.

As for the accidental two, don't worry about it. But feel free to stop by the next couple days and five it to balance it out. ;-)

Thanks for the review bud.

-Gravey-

[A Piano's Testimony]

You crazy dog, you!

Beautiful, Gravey, congrats on the win in the NGADM man (not that there was really any competition, eh? *snicker snicker*)! So now, we've BOTH landed one on the #1 spot, but I like yours far better than mine lol. This track is so floaty, the melody is beautiful, the soft tabla-like drums provide a nice backbeat (wow, I'm tired, I can't think of their names right now...that's the only way to describe them), the strings are a nice touch with the execution of the piano. Dude, you're just an all-around good composer. No matter what happens in the NGADM, man, just know that your stuff really is among the best on this site! =)
5/5
10/10
Fav'd.

Gravey responds:

Now you are just being way to nice. ;-)

Thanks for the great review bud.

-Gravey-

[Colossus [Dubstep]]

Very, very nice

While the mastering could have been a little better (it didn't seem to encompass enough volume, space, aka there wasn't enough reverb at points), there is much to love here. You bass is nice and wubby, the drumwork is pretty good for it being so short, and the strings add this beautiful Middle-Eastern feel. This is in the realm of one of the most epic dub songs on the site. Good job!
9/10
5/5
Fav'd.

landscapers1 responds:

Thanks a lot! :)

[Rigs printer contest!]

Damn good

Something that I appreciate about all of your dnb tracks, loops, etc, is the fact that they all have this great background noise. For me, I've got the drums down, the bass and sub-bass are punchin', the lead's shreddin, but it sounds empty without that ambient stuff to glue to together (like the shredding sounds and bleeping in the background of this loop). While the lead was a little obnoxious (I take it that vodka really did wonders for your hearing lol; it sounds like a shredder, which is interesting, but a little annoying -- probably cuz it's waaaay too damn loud lol), it's f***ing intense man. Everybody lacks that intensity on this site, and you nailed it like no other. I take my hat off to you!
9/10
5/5

NeuralFusion responds:

layer your drums more and get Izotop Ozone 4 for mastering, should help you out quiter a bit more man, remember the hp with the resonance at 0 take it easy bro.

love from australia