KKSlider60's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Antiskill- Caribbean Sand]

A nice piece

I thank you for this chilling track, I'd say I needed to relax a bit with Trance. I'm no expert of this style, but it's a very good beat. It still sounds pretty minimalist at some points where it seems you struggle to give the track some variance. A second variation on the theme was a nice move to "refresh" things up, but I'd still suggest to work more on different patterns and mini-themes. It ain't "flat", but it ain't stellar either, IMO. You still deserve a 10, though, for not having fallen into generic one-chord soundscapes and attempted to give this track a proper deep atmosphere. :D
KKS

-Review Request Club-

YakovlevArt responds:

Yeah, i don't even know how to respond to that one.
But i understand what you mean. I will try to fix these problems in future tracks.
Thanks for the review man =]

[Aphotic Oasis - Melting Shadow]

A new dawn

Lovely and dynamic, that's how I would describe this song, from a technical point of view. The minimalist intro, to the climatic build-up, to the gran finale... and then again looping endlessly, almost flawlessly.

But it's not one of my favorite tracks just because of its "surface". The depth and richness of its soundscape, the multiple sounds and layers, each with its own characteristic is what makes this whole piece dramatic and special. Cinematic, I'd say. I applaude you for being able to make a Lord Track after tiny multiple dead-alley experiments, this is the doorway to a new journey of atmospheres and enigmatic soundscapes.

Well done,
KKS

AphoticOasis responds:

I agree with every point you have mentioned. Thankyou for your thoughts.
It definately will be a new beginning for me thats for sure.

[~SW~ Shadows in the Gem Forest]

Awesome

Needless to say it's a great track. It has that ethnic/tribal vibe that I found to be just great. The piece is also varied, starting from the atmospheric intro to the delightfully developed first theme. And then, after 3:34, the change and the climax brought by the second theme. It's almost Trance-like.

At some points, though, the sound seems a bit too distorted or screeching and I don't know if it's a wanted effect. It could probably represent the "gems" you mention in the title, and their light reflections, I'm not sure about that.

I definitely digg this "Soundscapes" project, and I look forward to more songs from it. :D
KKS

-Review Request Club-

SkyeWint responds:

Yeah, I know the distortion bit, I think that might be the resonance I added to the guitar and synth that has the "ringing" quality - comes in every once in a while.

Personally, my favorite part is the intro from the opening to the first section. Second-favorite is the opening at 3:34. Just love how it seems like a second song bursts into the song that's there.

I love soundscapes, and want to make a lot more of them. ^_^ If made right, when you close your eyes you can "see" things with your mind.

One last thing I can say. This was REALLY hard to make with FLS. I think I have something like... 35 patterns, about 30 instruments/sound effects, almost as many automations... Then putting them all together, I had four patterns that were just one note: The bass kick on each 16th note in a measure.

Anyway... Thanks for your review! I do hope to make more songs like this (as soon as I get the requests I have out of the way).

[Spirited Steed (Piano Improv)]

Gorgeous

Aah, the sheer beauty of piano. All those notes open rivers of images, vivid pictures of the deepest and most poetic aspects of everyday life. An endless stream of thoughts in the perpetual night, crystallized within our conscious mind, breaking mirrors of deception.

I like to imagine myself as the wind, gently riding on the prairies on a sunny morning, when listening to this track. It blows and it storms until it dies, kissing a flower.

Outstanding work, and frankly I didn't even care about the minor mistakes scattered through the track.
KKS

MrMusicalLion responds:

I love the way you describe my music, it is poetry to my ears. Thankyou for listening - I am glad you enjoyed it ^_^

[_Zephyr_]

Great

Feels very light-hearted. Everything seems to work just fine in the mix, as well as in the overall atmosphere. The pads, synths and the indie-like drums make up most of the main soundscape, and I really have nothing else to say about them.

It reminds me a bit of Gran Turismo 4 - the soft smooth jazz tracks with gentle hints of electronica. It brings a serene atmosphere, fully dedicating yourself into passion for something.

Very nice job, loved it
KKS

Birdinator99 responds:

Passion was actually one of the words that came to mind when thinking of a title for this piece, it's cool that you interpreted that!

Thanks for your feedback!

[M3- The Alchemist's Study]

Awesome

This is lovely, and it gets better each second.
It's dynamic and I can really have a vivid image of strange wizardry and Middle Age-like themes, probably even Harry Potter-like ones.
The tune is simple but effective, I'm just getting carried by the awesomeness. XD
Keep up with the great job,
KKS

-Review Request Club-

MeteorManMike responds:

Haha, I love Harry Potter and its music. Wasn't an immediate inspiration, but I can see where you might think so. Always glad when someone says my work is awesome. Thanks for the review!

[Reconcile [A-C]]

Easy-listening

Almost like Buckethead's Shadows Between the Sky, it's simply great and relaxing, makes you want to fully live your life's best moments again and again.
Thinking positively, being optimist for a brief instance.

The mix is very good overall, and I love the final build-up. I'd say that drums are a bit below the other instruments, like a background layer. If they were more prominent, the track would truly be beyond perfect.

Awesome stuff,
KKS

Autumn-Collapse responds:

KKSlider60,

Thanks for your review! We're glad you like it! It took us a while to get a sound like this. The last draft we made pretty much sucked, so I thought about changing out the guitar strings and practicing a bunch more and this is what we came out with!

Yeah, we noticed it too that the drums are kind of pushed to the background. I'm not sure if that's what we intended but it sort of just happened. We'll play around with the balance a little more to see if we can produce that track that is "beyond perfect."

Thanks for your time :)
-Autumn Collapse

[Igloo]

Great

Brother! I haven't heard you in ages! Where have you been? :D
----
Gotta love this track, for its shortness, for being concise and straight to the point. It has variance, character and atmosphere, couldn't ask for more.
KKS

Tokolos responds:

/ thank you Claudio!!! :)

[Chills [WIP] {Dj_Abbic}]

Great

Minus one point for being WIP. :P

It's a nice step, and I'll give you props for trying to experiment a different approach to this peculiar style.

I would enhance the atmosphere by adding more effects to the instrument at the beginning, or maybe adding a background pad. Sounds a bit too minimalist, IMO.

Everything else is very well made
KKS

-Review Request Club-

DjAbbic responds:

You know, the intro could use a pad couldn't it? I'll try it out. Thanks alot for the compliments :)

[Auroras over Mount Revenant]

Very nice

Pretty calm tune for being House and that's nice. At least for me.
It has ambiance, atmosphere, something that most House tracks don't have for sure.

Kicks sound a bit weak compared to the overall mix, but hey, I wouldn't dance to this track, rather close my eyes and imagine the vacuum of space.
Synths are a bit repetitive but I guess that was on purpose. Try putting a second theme in order to give more variance next time, but again, this track is perfect the way it is now.

Great job mate, looking forward to hear more
KKS

-Review Request Club-

RetromanOMG responds:

Because of the kick sample pack Isomatic recently posted on the forums, I've remade the kicks in this song to sound stronger.

As for the ambiance (again with the ambiance), I decided to add it in after the fact, since the song seemed really empty without any background noise.

Thanks for the review.