Aalasteir's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Nechromatic - Breeze [Outtake 1]]

WOW! I was very shocked by the disorienting intro, and then your song became organized and well-structured, which is very brave and a strong statement you made in your auditory narrative. There's a lot going on.

How did you get interested in making electronic music in the way you do?

ARAMort responds:

It's just fun to do it that way! A lot of my favorite musicians do very wacky unconventional shit, so I try to do some wacky shit of my own.
I love toying around with synths and manipulating sound, so I always start out a project making sounds first, and then I try to make it make sense later. As long as I keep on making new sounds, I'm bound to make new stuff in new ways!

Listen to OPN - Zebra!!

[Afternoon Latte]

There is a great balance and placement of the instruments, and the rhythm is super good.

MissFluentOfficial responds:

Thank you so much for listening I appreciate it <3

[Don't Feel Anymore]

Skilled. Hyperpop rap is a combination I haven't heard before. Super cool, extremely well-constructed trap track with lots of variation and lots of fun.

YeahimNoble responds:

Thanks you so much man!

[HANDS UP - Da Chief's Quarters... Theme for Colton Morgan]

You and DJ Chidow make an amazing team!

DJChidow responds:

Bless your soul...

[Foggy [Live]]

Awesome! Your intro has an interesting synth beginning that is really immersive and atmospheric. Super cool, very nice drum sound. Cool mix of trap beat and synthwave.

You can try the FL Studio trial version and see if it is a good DAW to work with. You don't have to use any of those paid applications. LMMS can be much better if used correctly. It's all about knowledge, and the tools are much less important. It's about having knowledge and utilizing that knowledge correctly. Tools are not that important, especially when people buy things they don't know how to use. Then, that's a bad idea. It's more important to learn. The process should be the goal.

oChron1cTQ responds:

Thank you, @Aalasteir!

Sorry I didn't see this earlier..

The synth at the beginning you mentioned is actually an instrument called a Foghorn, got it from Spitfire LABS. They play the chords throughout the whole song, and you're right when you say it's atmospheric, it definitely is. There is some basic stereo-enhancement on this, and also some basic EQ!

Got the cool drums from 4 years of drumming irl, I'm glad it sounds good :D

I honestly didn't know that this would have some synthwave feeling in it tbh, I just made it as dark trap; but now that I think about it, typically this kind of trap is orchestral, not utilizing any kind of synth at all..

Thank you so much for this lovely feedback!

(I already bought FL studio, it actually proves to be better than LMMS, I used to have a ton of CPU issues that have been resolved with FL)

[Zoftle x Vixage - Synergy]

Rise up, OTT Multiband Compressor Squad!

[Poison - Hazbin Hotel (Metal Cover)]

Song structure is good, the guitar is very nice, and the vocals are good. The vocal tones, I feel, are too harsh, although the overall song is very good. Perhaps that is just a personal gripe of mine, as I am used to listening to Punk songs which don't have a harsh "S" tonality to them. The mix is generally well-done, though I feel the vocals could use a de-esser.

Please, I wouldn't be able to mix guitars and have this one be as well as yours, so make of that what you will. In my opinion your song is very close to being perfect, what is fact is that this was my experience with your song.

Thank you, you are both amazing musicians!

Anjer responds:

Thank you!! I don't use a DeEsser because I don't understand how it works. It tends to kill the vocals, so I prefer not to use it.

[everything must go]

Jazzy, bluesy intro and the drums, snare, hi-hat have a great rhythmic pattern, very distinct. The synths are presented with great clarity, and the mix has good balance. Bell tones are interesting; I didn't expect your song to go in a horror movie direction.

trevor8 responds:

haha; neither did i! funny how these things end up sometimes! thank you!

[Song For the Rain]

Beautiful! You have amazing tonalities, combining an old-school with a modern style. The ambiance of the rain and utilizing the thunder give a really good atmosphere, and the vinyl cracks are utilized well.

sorohanro responds:

Thanks for the review. You can download the solos (see the link in the description) and put them in your own mix/tune/composition.

[Through the Mangrove]

The bouncy rhythm melody speaks clearly, the synth is sharp, and with a light, almost pitch-bent-like quality. The delay effect incorporated in the melody is fascinating, with varied instrumentation and a strong bass.

The song structure is super good, keeping momentum going. There's a jump-like quality that is really uplifting to listen to. The song feels quite happy, and it is really cool when there are variations kick in and the background of the song is still moving along. That is cool.

@Random-storykeeper which element do you usually begin with when creating a song?

Random-storykeeper responds:

Thank you for your thoughtful comments! Sorry for the delayed response.

For most tracks, I typically begin with the piano - this particular track, for instance, I came up with the chord progression heard at around 1:30 - 1:50, then built the composition around it. For other tracks, I sometimes start within FL or other times, I might have a melody going around in my head that I'll use. Other tracks may factor into the starting process, especially for the tracks I make for a specific game.