dj-Jo's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Moonlight Sonata (Cover)]

Dang, well played :)
Though you said you used EZKeys
Did you play this on a midi keyboard connected to the Vst? I would like to know what midi piano you have if you did this :3

Good job!

Back-From-Purgatory responds:

I use an M-Audio Keystation 88es as my midi keyboard... Not the best... missing quite a few features you'll find on the more expensive stuff. But I got it because it's a full 88 key keyboard, and it was only like $300. My only real complaint about it is that the velocity triggers are kind of shitty.

One day I hope to have something with aftertouch and weighted keys... but those things are freaking expensive as hell.

[Absurdity]

Was getting confused on the key signature at the beginning haha But it turned out to be 4/4... I think lol
oh wait I think it changes at 1:20.... O:
Well anyways xD I like it! The addition of the orchestral stuff really adds to the piece, awesome! Just a question, what Vst did you use for the strings?

oh and dat tempo doe.

Back-From-Purgatory responds:

Yeah... the beginning bit is timed kind of funny... but that's what I heard in my head, so that's what I did.

Pretty close to all orchestral stuff you hear in my submissions comes from Miroslav Philharmonik.

Glad you liked it.

[We Know]

Wow man, Gumi sounds great here, the words are nice and the piano gives the song a nice warm atmosphere :D and man, I never realized how good the english voice banks were!
I only have japanese ones >_< And trust me, trying to use japanese vocaloids to speak clear english is VERY hard. Oh well, time to start saving money.

And English Miku needs to hurry up, xD Can't wait for her to be released!

Back-From-Purgatory responds:

I know, right?

I've signed up for the newsletter for English Miku, can't wait for her to finally release.

[{dj-N} TransformR]

Very nice :D WUBWUBWUB

I liked the dubstep wobs very much\
I like how the Subs were used in this also, gives the song some nice vibes combined with the piano

The drums were nothing special, but I do like the snare and the panned hihats and cymbals

The choirs in the background are pretty nice for an angelic effect vs the evil wubs lol

But pertaining to the ending, it needs some work, unless you were going for a loop thing...
Otherwise, filtering the wubs out slowly accompanied by some light piano parts from the beginning melody and maybe some strings with the choirs in the background ending on a light note would be nice...

or

you could go for a hard ending and extend the wub wub wub starting at 2:20 with a different pattern of wubs with a more faster and harder melody with intensified drums.
As for intense drums, I always thought of imitating a metal type drum set using the sample VEC1 BD ReverbFX 02 and taking out the kick and maybe adding a Transient shapers to make the sample to appear to become more of a hit of an electronic crash symbol
I would then use that crash hit on each beat and add some double kick drum patterns and some epic snare hit's you've already mastered down :D

and then maybe add an epic lead synth in the upper frequencies, specifically the synth you used in you song http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/liste n/362352 (Indoctrinated) with an ending melody to accompany the wubs :P lol

well, that's the way I would to it lol

------

In all, this song reminds me of a dubstep version of Indoctrinated with piano - the lead + intensified subs :)

5/5
10/10
Fav once again

:D

Once a great producer
Always a great producer!

-----------

also, I wouldn't mind if you checked my track Oblivious Dream, it was kinda expirimental for me with the Wubs and a melody accompanied with it :o

dj-Nate responds:

Absolutely phenomenal review, thank you.

[{dj-N} [MD2010] Indoctrinated]

:), Lovin that lead!

Great work!

The lead synth is the best part I love this song :)

I love how it pierces through the other synths to bring out the melody

Well, I'm not sure if pierce is a good word to describe it, lol
I also like the drum work here

It sorta gives the listening a sense of the time signature changing but it doesn't really change
It stays in 3/4 timing all the way through, well, I think it's 3/4.

I really like the Synth Swells
It really gives Atmosphere the Piece in a whole
The complexity of the melody is great :)
Gives a nice Madness Feel to it IMO

and like Mr. Jazzman said, the ending needs work
Maybe add an "Exotic" ending like in Theory of Everything lol
How bout adding in the good old piano :D

9/10
5/5
fav
and already added you as a favorite artist :-D
DL

Great job Overall
Good luck with the Contest Nate :)
~Joseph F.

dj-Nate responds:

Haha thanks Jo! I love the detailed and awesome review man, thank you!

[touching the sky]

Nice!

I hear the hip-hop sense in it! Nice Drum samples

Interesting Dubstep synth, I lke it!

I also like how the piano continues on every beat.
The overall atmosphere is pretty chill, like this kind of style you have her :D
It gets a little repetitive, but its still great!

This is really different from usual dubstep, I like it

A Pretty solid piece overall

9/10
5/5
I like the chords you used! Sounds great!
:)

Review my latest song if you want!
Condemned Clown

superuberinsaneausm responds:

the reason why its so repetitive is that because my friend is gonna rap and im gonna sing over it so it needs structure . thanks for the review though glad you liked it!

[Boink FX]

hmm awesome!

I really hear the way you used the Automation.
very nice effects in the whole thing.
I really like the way synths come in through the song too.
(and nice build up effect in the begging)

And for the kick
Very Bouncy indeed

I don't really like house
But this song makes an exception
It isn't as repetitive as usual house tracks due to Effects and such
And thats what makes it special to me :)

and uhhhh

What are transient shaping techniques?
lol, I don't know that much about effects and techniques
Enlighten me please :P

lol

In all

10/10 not you everyday house song, I guess
5/5 FX to the max!

Nice one :D

-Joseph F.

axeFX responds:

Transient shapers are designed to bring out the attack or release transients in a sample. So a kick or snare with a transient shaper on it, set to a high attack, will make the first few transients of the snare or kick louder, so it pops or clicks.

[Bourne-worthy Dubstep Loop]

WOW! HOLY CRAP!

well well well, see you in the NGADM! lol

anyway
This song is so crazy sick! I know you get that a lot, but I myself really mean it. REALLY

I just sat there, listening to this song loop, over and over and over again!
I love it so much :)

The song it self contains a different kind of Dubstep bass synth. It's different from what I have heard in dubstep.
And the drums, as always, are fantastic! I love how to chose to use a natural sounding drum set, it makes a big difference in sound. I like our style :D

as the effects, awesome!
I just listened to Reflections and the song I lost to, (LOL) Closure, and I hear the effect that you like using. Panning
Panning makes an awesome effect in your song if you use it correctly. And can I can really hear that you have!
In this song, near the end of the loop, the yuk yuk bass synth pans from left to right and back, then the song loops over again
Very effective way of getting rid of repetition, and a nice ear please sound. :)

in all, YES

10/10
5/5
fav

Great song! loved all the 14 seconds (x40) of pure music!!
p.s. I can really hear that sub bass you got there, very nice :)

mr-jazzman responds:

Wow, this is some amazing feedback for such a small thing lol! Thank you so much dj-Jo. Yeah, I think the reason I decided to go with the natural drum kit is because it just sounds...cooler. It's also a lot easier to mix, in my opinion lol. And yes! Panning is an amazing effect, isn't it? I just kinda stumbled across it, longing to hear something in my stuff that I just wasn't with other effects. I highly recommend using it! =D Wait till you hear the song that I'm making with this bad boy...I'm pretty sure you'll shitbrix, because that's what I'm doing at this very instant listening to it (if you can even believe that I make stuff that sends a tingle down my spine)! Thanks again for the review, and keep your eager ears attentive for more! ;)

[Duke Nukem Dubstep (final)]

Pretty awesome! Practice makes perfect though

Very nice song indeed.

voice inserts, gives the song character
but watch some of the samples you use, specifically the on 3, 2, 1, one
Its okay, but it just seems... added in there...

Interesting hihat patterns, its one of the things I found interesting about the song

But, one of the main problems in this song is...... wheres the climax?

right at 0:32
would be really good for a great climax
But when the awesome voice insert was initiated, it built up, then, when back to normal..

how bout a BOOM!
and a heavier mix of drums and bass comes in

in all

Work on your on your transitions and format of a song
then, you would be a great song producer! but practice!
its the only way to get better!

superuberinsaneausm responds:

thanks, i agree i gotta make better drops, just need to get more samples :)

[Classical techno]

Good! Intersting! But not perfect

I love Melody in this song!
The mix between techno and classic is great, but there are some problems
When making Awesome Huge Crazy Breaks and builds, try not to make it too loud.
The break at 0:50 was a bit "distortion-ey".
Try mastering it more, AKA lower volume levels, adding eq ing, et (stuff like that)
FL Studios comes with maximus right?
Try using that for mastering
As for the ending
well
The song is not done, right?
so I geuss I can't really make any comments about that lol
Synths used were just fine
(And I love the piano synth you used!)
just remeber to adjust volume levels so it doesn't distort like I said above

in all
9/10 Just work on mastering
5/5 cause the melody is awesome :)

Keep goin like this plus finish this song, you might go big on Newgrounds :D

Kadadj responds:

Thanks man, i just inserted maximus into the song, sounds aweome. Thanks again:)