frootza's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Network Intrusion]

Fyre,

It was a cool track, and more than likely a nice way to start out an album! Cool use of slight melodic variation, and nice usage of automation buildups. Production work seems good to me (though I'm not quite going through this track with a fine tooth comb so to speak).

Reminiscent of early Chemical Brothers which I was a huge fan of back in the day. You seem to have a lot of control over your VST, and showcase it from head to toe, which is a good thing!

I mention this to a lot of EDM artists, one, because it was good advice I received a while back (when I was making EDM frequently), and two because it seems to be a pitfall many of them fall into...

Percussive rhythmic variation is going to allow you to stand out greatly among other EDM artists (if that is the music you choose to progress with). But, the shakers which you introduce in the beginning at around pianissimo (then reintroduce), don't change, at all throughout the track. It's just 1e&a2e&a, without any change ups :( More variety with something even as simple as this will help you out greatly in my opinion.

Don't get me wrong, I know you want to keep the thump and want the listener to get hooked like a fish into the rhythm, but high hat/shaker variety is key. You can go nuts with the rhythms here. It's okay to make the listener do a bit of work in their own head. I hope this analogy makes sense.

You were onto something very interesting at around :45 where you introduced the seemingly jazz-like spastic noise work. I think this could work greatly to your advantage in the future! Just something to keep in mind since it's not something I've heard very often.

I did enjoy the track, I don't listen to much EDM anymore but I must say this was a nice breath of fresh air to hear! Keep up the good work mate! You are a unique artist with a lot of potential :)

Fyresale responds:

Hey, thanks a lot frootza! I'm not used to getting feedback that detailed, it's really nice to see something that constructive on my work! I think I definitely could've used a bit more variation in melody and percussion, I'll work more on that in future songs!

Super glad you enjoyed, too! Thanks again! ^u^

[Awake (Horror)]

WOW! This was amazing. Horrific, truly bone chilling, excellent ambiance, perfectly suited for the horror genre. You did a superb job and have great control of whatever VSTs you are using (which VSTs were you using btw if you don't mind me asking?) It was probably the creepiest track I heard so far. I very briefly looked at some of Penderecki's tunes and it's pretty clear that you put some serious effort into studying his style (although he is just something else all together). There could have been a few more STARTLING moments throughout the piece which would have literally made me jump, but it was a suspense filled track. Following now for sure!

Phonometrologist responds:

Hey I'm glad someone such as yourself can enjoy this type of music. I can't imagine too many people wanting to sit through this more than once, but that is fine too.
The VST primarily used here was from the 8dio Cage library. The slides starting at 2:50, though, could be done with any string library while messing with the Midi options.
Jump scares in music might just piss people off lol, but yes this could have been creepier in my opinion. Not the worst I can do, but thank you for the love!

[The Basement Sessions]

Was definitely a beautiful song. I hear heavy influences of the Beatles during the Sergeant Peppers era (vocals/key change choices/guitar work) mixed with a bit of Danny Elfman's lighthearted approach to Halloween compositions. While the trumpet outro was cool, and Felix is a very talented player, it seemed out of place in the mix.

It wasn't exactly bone chilling, it came off as a much more relaxing song, but I did enjoy it. The production/engineering work was certainly excellent, and you have a nice way of going just to the tip of your head voice before slipping into light falsetto. Great job though, it's a shame you missed the deadline last year but this piece certainly stands out among the others this year.

newhansen responds:

Thats right! The trumpet is amazing. Felix is very talented. I feel so sorry I didn't gave the guy a longer solo. Man, he really can improvise. Hope to work with both Sam and Felix again one day.
It's a shame I missed the Halloween deadline >.<

[Party Crashers]

SJ, you always have a knack for creating these really cool power driven video game tunes, and that's what I really enjoy about your music.

I enjoyed the "disco beat" choice that you went with, it gave David's composition a new dynamic that takes it away from this fairy like bounce to a head bobbing pulse.

Only critique is the air sweep at 1:10 could have used with a percussive volume decrescendo to accompany it but it doesn't take away from the piece much just something I happened to pick up on.

The staggered sample was a fun idea, and the build up towards the end was a cool interpretation as well. You guys should send me the file of the game you were making!

Great work!

frootza

SourJovis responds:

Thanks for the review and the kind words.

I'm not too fond of remixes, but I'm happy with how it turned out, and glad I could give a new dimension to a good song.

If you want to see the game file, please ask the Wolve Guy.

Thanks again!
SJ

[Ice Coffee]

I really digged this track SJ. I think I mentioned before in my initial review, but it reminded me of something they would include in a game like Mario Party. It has this reggaeton thump pulsing throughout it. Anyone can really groove to this. I can definitely picture someone singing over this in one of the romance languages with some gang vocals thrown in. Sweet jam!

frootza

SourJovis responds:

Thank you! That means a lot coming from you.

[Lover's Lament]

BFJ, this was a very interesting composition. The bass has such a dreary tone. It represents the darkest of the colors, while the harmonic harp represents the lighter end of the visual spectrum. Great acoustic boomy-ness. The harp was so percussive, as such it was the only thing that took away from the piece in my opinion (verses the low legato double bass passages). I heard the intonation problem come to light around 2:50. If I'm not mistaken, I voted for your track and as such was happy that you made it to third place. The fact that you recorded a live instrument really set you apart from the other composers. Great work, I really look forward to enjoying more of your tracks.

frootza

bassfiddlejones responds:

Thanks frootza! I really enjoyed writing this piece. There's something freeing about limiting yourself to only a few instruments. The harp was probably a bit percussive because I used the harmonics. Thank you very much for your vote, I appreciate it greatly!