Aalasteir's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[ADAM DIX | CREATIVE BLOCK #185]

Amazing episode!

Sean, there's too much gain on your microphone—it sounds especially distorted at the beginning. Great discussions, though, about how ugly drawings can sometimes be more appealing. Very insightful with many amazing points!

1:30:34 - Thank you so much for answering my question about; "Is overworking a necessary part of the creative process, or is it possible to organize a project pipeline in a way that avoids those stresses?"

Super thank you Adam Dix! You are right.

It's crucial to build the habit of resting and maintaining a consistent schedule of work and rest. Burnout is incredibly difficult to handle, and it causes me immense pain. The hardest part for me is actually being able to rest, as there's overwhelming self-imposed pressure to keep moving forward. However, the quality of work diminishes when you're tired, losing critical thinking and focus. High performance is directly linked to being well-rested, and people often end up in a bad mood because they’re physically drained from not getting enough rest.

CreativeBlockPod responds:

Apologies. Sean's mic will be fixed for the next episode. Thanks for listening!

[9:32 PM]

Great melody! The atmosphere is fun and happy, and I really like the DnB style—it's very cool. I'm impressed you did all of this in OpenMPT. The breakdown is fantastic, and the way you combine the instruments is excellent. They complement each other well, which shows that you're strategic in your instrument selection—a great strength to have!

@wineplume, how did you discover Newgrounds?

@wineplume, how did you get interesting creating music?

@wineplume, what are your inspirations?

wineplume responds:

thanks for such an extensive review, glad you like it.

1) stumbled across newgrounds because... flash games! i used to play flash games a lot back in 2011-2012 on my mom's laptop. then ~10 years later i decided to become a musician and create an account on this website to post music (my current account was registered on 11/19/23, but this isn't my only account, i have older ones (e.g. @ravestarGT))
2) (i suppose "interesting" should be "interested in"?) i've always liked listening to music and dreamed of creating it myself. music in general is a very huge part of my childhood and present day life.
3) aphex twin, venetian snares, cardopusher, squarepusher, s3rl, basshunter, waterflame, nemesistheory, bt (brian transeau), halley labs (FKA lapfox trax & vulpvibe), bomfunk mc's, vangelis + my friends & acquaintances who are also musicians: dem0n1x, djlomka, silnava, xnothsis, meuny, mixxy, lgmusic, unimportance, g2961, octopus58, aalasteir (look it's you!), hushfox, etc etc etc etc... pretty much everyone and everything inspires me in a certain way.

[Tunetober24 #05]

Your song takes the listener on a great journey, with excellent rhythm and creative sound design. I can completely understand why you enjoy color bass music. Your drum and bass are fantastic! I think it's really good. Your music has incredible energy, and I think you should be proud of being able to create so much.

@larrynachos, how would you recommend building the habit of creating music?

larrynachos responds:

Thank you for such a kind review!

I'm not qualified to answer your question, but giving myself the challenge of making a song every day, and having a friend to work alongside me and hold me accountable (cyberdevil) is a powerful source of motivation.

Fundamentally, the way to build the habit is to not think about wanting to make music, but to actually open the program and start playing

[Inktober #4 - The Freeze]

Great song, awesome vocals, and amazing music from Larry. A fantastic collaboration! I like the sense of progression. I think it would be cool—though I know this isn't possible due to time constraints—but adding glitch effects to the vocals could really help set the atmosphere.

@Cyberdevil, how do you create lyrics?

@larrynachos, how do you process drums?

Cyberdevil responds:

Aw yeah, that'd be an idea for a remix, if @larrynachos is up for it sometime maybe? ;) He's good with that type of stuff!

As for the lyrics I just write, I really don't have a process. Sometimes it's easy, sometimes slow. I try rapping what I'm writing as I go to see how it sounds; if I need to change words, or shorten something, make room for a breather, maybe improve the rhyme schemes. The fast part here for example took some tweaking to get right, much easier with the latter half.

Thank you Aalasteir, good to see you here too!

[The Québécois [ft. TeffyD] (Steam Demo Version)]

Happy Spooktacular! And Happy (early) Halloween!

Another amazing composition and collaboration! Yes, I’ve wishlisted the game Croak Crusader: Spawn of the Spore Spectre. The track absolutely captures that classic horror motif. Thank you for listening, sharing your inspiration, and for your comments. I’m excited to read more about how you created such an elaborate arrangement, and I’m so happy you’re planning to post your wonderful music on Newgrounds!

@TeraVex, what do you think about Halloween, and what specifically do you enjoy about spooky music?

@TeffyD, what was your favourite songs on Rocksmith?
I also tried Rocksmith, but I couldn’t quite get the hang of it. I’m shocked to hear that you played for eight hours a day for years! That explains why you’re so skilled—it's really amazing. How did you manage to stay focused on training, especially being self-taught? That sounds like a huge challenge.

TeffyD responds:

Favorite song on Rocksmith? Hmm, maybe Hanger 18 by Megadeth or Thunderkiss 65 by White Zombie, it was a lot of fun to play, could never get the solos down though.

I never treated it as "training" so I just ended up doing it way longer than I expected. Its relaxing just messing around, and I guess eventually you get muscle memory.

[Coolchasm]

Fantastic use of panning! The placement of the sounds is excellent, and the spacy sci-fi effects really accentuate your composition, adding a great level of depth. I appreciate that immensely—very well done on this great song!

@joeyvfx, how did you decide on the name "Coolchasm"?

@joeyvfx, when did you become interested in creating music, specifically IDM? Why do you think you gravitate toward electronic music, and how has your perspective on the genre changed compared to when you first started?

@joeyvfx, would you say that your work with effects blends into your music in terms of inspiration?

joeyvfx responds:

Glad you liked it! I think the name came from me thinking about a "cool mechanism" & somehow it was shortened into "chasm". Which is a totally different word. But it's fine

I've been making music since middle school. Was inspired by Sam Gorski from Corridor Digital & always wanted to make soundtracks like he did for most of their early videos. I always liked synth music, but seriously got into it around 2018-2019 when I began listening to pilotredsun more. I was very drawn to the idea of designing my own synth patches. Feels very powerful to essentially forge the majority of the track from scratch. As I've progressed I've just learned how important it is to finish sketching out ideas as quickly as possible. Working with haste is crucial while the spark of the idea is there. Ideas are worthless if they stay in your brain forever.

The VFX stuff is mostly a subconscious influence/association, although I like the idea of somewhat procedural computer generated music being accompanied by somewhat procedural computer generated visuals.

[SCRATCH OF DOG - WALKER COUNTY Official Soundtrack]

There's a really good sense of progression in your song, with a great choice of instruments.

@CARVEDSPINES, how do you decide to create Sega Genesis-style music specifically?

@CARVEDSPINES, what is your process?

CARVEDSPINES responds:

Sega Genesis soundfonts just fit the tone of the game, being about kids roleplaying these imaginary fights in their head. They're playing pretend! I love old video game soundfonts and the Megadrive Soundfont sounds very bouncy and playful.

My process usually boils down to Music First, Gameplay Second. So I base the respective scene or battle on the vibe of whatever track I manage to create. Toby Fox did this with Undertale and I thought I'd follow suit.

[Void]

Wow, yes! I like your song a lot. There is a great atmosphere, and the way the beat hits is just right. The old-school power mixing and mastering are amazing, with a nice subtle richness that really accentuates the warmth of the sounds. You've made the right decision!

@JAME24, what do you like about old-school hip-hop, and how did you become interested in it? How would you describe your experiences with music, and what led you to decide to start producing beats?

@JAME24, how did you get interested in Newgrounds?

JAME24 responds:

I started producing almost 9 years ago just for fun and it turned into more of a love than a hobby. I used to make edm u can look back years ago on my page I started producing because of geometry dash and I wanted my own music in that game. I started working on hiphop with producing for my old roommate and never really looked back. I love how "raw" old school hiphop is and I believe hip hop is almost more about being grimey and dirty than having a perfect hollywood mix. Being a perfectionist at heart I tend to use that power more towards my sample chops and drums. I was a drummer before I even started producing! I became interested in this style cuz of producers I love like The Alchemist, Cookin Soul, and Dibia$e, along with countless others. Sampling is an art form and a great one at that.

I found newgrounds through geometry dash as a kid and its a shame I have yet to find an elder mod to get my songs usable in game. But I think newgrounds is an amazing community to share music in anyway due to the dope feedback you can get from reviews and the communnity that I'm able to grow through my music. I've tried soundcloud but its just not the same as ng when it comes to community!

[big blue love]

Thank you for creating your music! You have a unique and personal style, with an atmosphere that is rich and very personal to you.

@FreakFormal, what skills do you feel are unnecessary for songwriting, and what songwriting techniques do you utilize in your productions?

@FreakFormal, I would say one of your biggest skills is the ability to listen to and appreciate music. What amazes me is how many skills you combine in your work, including songwriting, production, playing instruments, and vocals!

FreakFormal responds:

I don't know if there's unnecessary things for songwriting, I like utilizing whatever I can, and every song has a different approach. But I always do the usual hum melody and try to come with lyrics later, gravitating to words that come naturally and building from there.
Thank you for your kind words again!

[Misconnection]

I enjoy your song, and I can fully confirm that the mix is good. Your vocals are great; you are a skilled musician!

@AveragePhoe, what is your story behind getting interested in creating music, especially in the alternative pop genre? How do you define your process as a songwriter, and in what ways has it evolved over time?

@AveragePhoe, do you consider creating music therapeutic?

@AveragePhoe, from your perspective, what are some common pitfalls that musicians make in songs, and how can they avoid them?

AveragePhoe responds:

1: I've always loved music, even if I didn't always have the desire to create it. At some point, I picked up the guitar and that was it. I made Instrumental music at first, but my pivot to Alternative Pop was a rather incidental one. It's just what came natural to me when writing lyrics. As for that process, it really depends from song to song. Sometimes an idea will pop into my head, sometimes a melody or a phrase, and I'll work on it till it turns into something more. I think, over time, I've learned to better visualize what it is that I want to make, so the whole process is a lot smoother for sure.

2: Most definitely! Even if it's a song that never comes out, just the making of it brings me peace (and rage, from time to time).

3: I think it's easy to let yourself get lost in the idea of what you want a song to be, as opposed to what it could be. Sometimes your first idea sucks, and you gotta to let go of it to create what you really want to create.