Rastamun21's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[We Walk On Fire]

Very, VERY, solid.

Just to start things off I would like to say how nice it is to hear something with a real, legit, mix here on the audio portal. I do eventually get sick of everyone recording their guitars through shitty compressed mics, while recording vocals at the same time. This is a song with some real production, and the effort you put into your sound has really paid off. With that out of the way let's get into your song.
The thing that is most striking about this song is really the verse motif you've got going on. I'm not sure if it was intentional or not, but the verses have a very distinct country flavor. It's only a small touch, but it really goes far in giving the song more of a personality rather than just being a generic 5 minutes of rock. That country motif is also what kind of holds the song back from getting a real 5/5. While it is by far the best portion of the song, it really sticks out like a sore thumb. The fact is that all that cool southern flavor goes away the moment you hit your chorus. It goes from being really cool and unique to just being kind of "ehh", and the lackluster harmonies (and vocal trading) really don't help anything. The chorus is supposed to be the biggest best part of the song, and for it to fall flat on it's face like this is a little out of place in a song of this quality.
Back on the positive, your guitar sound (while a little genaric) really fits the song well. It really shines on your Zeppelin-esque intro riff. It even gets the job done on the guitar solo, which few people here actually pull off, though it could have stood to have even more power. All in all this is a song that I really did enjoy despite its flaws. Keep on doing what your doing and I'll keep listening.

[Shattered]

Ultimately sub par.
Before delve into my list of critiques for this song, I would like to say that you do in, fact, have the components of a good song in here. However I can't whole-heartedly say that this song is above average, or even on par with what constitutes quality music, because unfortunately it is not. There are a myriad of issues with this song, but for the most part they all boil down to they way you present your sounds. The mix is awful, the lead guitar overpowers everything, and the bass and drums aren't fully support your song all the way through. Even the vocals weren't safe from the guitar's wrath, which for a blues song is a little more than unfortunate. I didn't look at the lyrics the first time I listened to this, and I couldn't make out what you were saying, in part it was because your voice itself could have used a little more "power" rather than just volume, and the poor mix doesn't help anyone. You also need to be a little more sensitive with pitch, as your blue-notes tend to go a little sharp and sound a little strange. The lyrics also are not perfect, and could use some work. Not the content of them, no matter how cheesy they are, but the actual spacing. Lines like: "When it does it's you begging for another fling" just don't fit into one measure and you end up having to rush the phrase. On the bright side most of these issues could be fixed by spending a little more time on the mix, and getting some better sounds. like I said at the top, the core isn't bad, but everything else just feels kind of cheep. Look forward to hearing your stuff down the road.

DragonX016 responds:

This is exactly why i submit here before I go and share it with all of my expecting facebook friends. You guys are fucking brutally honest.
This submission is my first in ages- and all I've got to work with is my mexican Strat, modded accordingly to attempt a shot at making even with the American version. That and Garage Band, my macbook's mic, a Yamaha bass that I got for free, a MIDI keyboard I picked up for 20 bucks on a whim, a horribly broken heart, and (as of now) one last Keystone Ice 16 ouncer. This was a direct attack on my lady that wronged me and it does need work. Duly noted. But all in all, I feel better now that i shat some music out and have a good enough idea to not use use an entire package of toilet paper cleaning up the mess. I think I can clean it up and then some.

For the record-I'll take a guitar over a synthesizer any day. Thanks for being honest.

[Ride Under the Storm]

To long for what it is

You've got a few good riffs in here, but the problem is that this song is just to long for what it is. Don't get me wrong your main riff is damn catchy, you just need more to support it. You could go one of two roads with this song. First you could pair it down to a shorter length to give the individual riffs more punch and meaning. Less is more would be a great strategy for this song, if it aint broke don't fix it. The other more indulgent option would to be to add a lead guitar track. Some real full guitar solos would fill out the song great, and let it fill up not only this space, but an even larger one if you have enough ideas. This one of those songs that I would like to see get some more work, or at least another similar song, because you really do have some great ideas in this.

BERSERKYD responds:

Great thanks for these tips ! Kinda hard to make a perfect song ! And yeah Its been maybe my 40e song.. I dont really rework them I prefer make new one with better structure and riff. For the lead I know I could get one over the top, but Ì always expect vocal to replace the emptyness that you kinda feel. I mean a 4min song without lyrics and power solo can be annoying sometime, but what ever, I'll keep in mind your review and try to make something better next time. Thanks for the support !

[Dream of my life]

Fine for what it is.

What you have is a very solid piece of solo guitar work. The chords are nice, there is a fluid sense of time (which can be a little rare on the audio portal), and overall it works fairly well as it is. The only problem is that, by nature of being solo guitar work, it is not nearly close enough to what it has potential to be, for me to give it a high mark. The problem is that there is no infrastructure for the song to really ebb and flow because there is nothing supporting your melody. What this song really needs is a few extra parts to help flesh out what is there, and really bring it to life. My biggest recommendation would be to add a dedicated bass line. This would give something to the listener to latch on to whenever your chords, or general chord structure, changes. As a nice little bonus it would add another dimension to your sound just because you would have new notes being played because of the lower register. You could add another harmony part to this, but before doing that I would recommend putting in some form of percussion, or light drum track, into the song. Percussion is one of the best ways to round out a song and give it life, it's simply a sonic color unlike any other instrument. Like I said there really isn't anything wrong with the product you've put out for us, there are many songs that have many more core problems here on the audio portal than this, what you have is very strong. This is just one of those things that I would really like to see get pushed up to the next level.

gamejunkie responds:

Thanks for the great review. I do agree with some of your comments, although care must be taken not to overdo anything that is added to this piece, thus taking away from the Solo piece it was meant to be. Personally I would like to re-record this track. We will see how it goes. Thanks very much for your input, much appreciated.

Cheers gamejunkie.

[Stargaze]

Overall good, but a little lacking.

The main riff you got going there is great, it's got some real weight to it. The rest of the song needs work though. First off, I suggest turning down your distortion on the rhythm guitar, it's a little much. Your lead guitar sounds really wimpy, once again take some of the feedback from your rhythm and put it on the lead. Your rhythm guitar and bass are playing the same thing, this is lazy song writing and can bore your audience. It is okay to have the rhythm just ride the roots for the song, but the bass should be doing something else, try making an actual bass line that moves around the chords a little more instead of playing just the roots. Your drums sound fake as hell, that just bugs me, if your using real drums record them better, if not, get real drums. Overall I'd say this song is a good effort, I'd just like to see a little more in it. Fix the drums and bass, and get your guitars balanced and you'll have a great tune.

[=Grooveh=]

Nice Pocket Groove

A nice experiment with a strong pocket. I would say that this track has a very classic R&B vibe to it right down to it's core. Overall a nice track, there could have been more to it, but it's a loop.

[Cosmo Canyon Symphony *New*]

It was OK....

The peice itself was ok, but the tyle was way off. Cosmo Canyon was probably one of three tracks in the FF7 soundtrack that I actually liked, it had a distinct tribal feal. It is a piece that you would expect to see indians dancing around a fire, it eventually grows from it's tame start to the climax of the dance. The adaptation you made was more "mesterioys" and just didn't grow, there just wasn't any tension at all, the big ending felt not as "big" if you compare. Now I liked the peice, it just wasn't Cosmo Canyon thats all.
-Rastamun21

[_-={The Tanks Thunder}=-_]

By no means is this piece bad, it's just lacking.

With a name like "The Tank's Thunder" I was expecting a much darker and powerful piece. Instead I got a piece, while still dark, was much "brighter" than I was hoping for. The main problem was: it simply flowed to for its entirety. In most cases this is good, but this is another story. You didn't really recreate the raw power of the tank, and that's because it simply didn't have a point that reminded you of the pure might the title would suggest, as it flowed right on over where those points would have been. Now as I said the piece itself is not bad, I just felt that it needed something more, just to push it over the figurative edge.

- Rastamun21

MaestroRage responds:

Quite true Rastamun. I am not the first to agree and won't be the last. In my mind the story I had was... quite different and I saw a much more nobler, more symbolic degree then what is appropriate. More admiration then fear and destruction.

There is much i'd have liked to change about this song, sadly I have lost the original file and time constraints leaves me with no time to even attempt it. I am glad however that you enjoyed the piece.

Thank you for the review, I promise you will not find yourself thinking the same for the other pieces, or at least I hope you don't :D!

[Song of Storms: Zelda(Z.O.O.T)]

Great work, the song really works well.

The song works great with the piano, not much to say about this, but good work.

[O.O.T. : Gerudo valley METAL]

It just doesn't work...

The song itself is ok, but or a song like Gerudo Vally, witch is laid back, you can't use the whole Metal mindset really just doesn't do the song justice. The song Gerudo Vally is suposed to be light, and as I said the metal mindset makes it a bit thick for my tastes. On a side note, the song really needs that brass refrain after the main line, it just keeps the song's mood relaxed. So like i said before, what it all boils down to is the fact that you took away the basic element of the song, and tried to replace it with metal. All in all you get a 1 out of 5 and, a 2 out of ten... Better luck next time.

Gorekiller responds:

...Nah, it didn't need any brass. Or maybe... different distortion... I'll see that...