KVR Audio

Echo Voodoo · Post by **Echo Voodoo** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:28 am

napalmbob - Heartache -> #2 - That's a very crunchy bassline you've got there. A very minimal piece, would personally have preferred a few more sounds to vary the palette a bit. My favourite part is the bassline around 1:20 to 1:42 or so; like the drums too.

MaliceX · Post by **MaliceX** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:45 am

advaya wrote:MaliceX - Ambiguous Decision to Kill
So this is how that MIDI file was supposed to sound! Seriously good track.... seriously... Don't know what else to say. The intro from 0:13 to 0:40 gives me chills. Two minutes just isn't long enough! WOW... seriously.

Interesting you should say that. The low square-sounding part that slowly comes in was actually a gabber kick sample being pitched alongside the bassline. Thanks for le comentaries! (sp?)

napalmbob - Ah, finally something different. Somehow you managed to get the bassline to match along with your own beats in 4/4 as opposed to the 5/8 timesig it was originally written in. Although the rhythm is a bit repetitve for my tastes, I do like the vibe it gives out, very 'danceable' rhythm. It could may as well be some kind of rap beat or something. Heheheh. Great job on this.

EDIT: Forgot to review Frogs.

nursewithwound-wildchurch - Oh my God...That's one of the most twisted songs I've heard in this competition since the 9/11 Polka one... The vocals are creepy, it's got a bit of a subtle contemporary feel to it, but overall it's scary. Abstract indeed. :O

knockman · Post by **knockman** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 6:33 am

thanks for the reviews, and putting my mind at rest about the 'legality' of my track.

Echo Voodoo wrote:knockman - Frogs -> #4 - This song would be perfect for Kermit to sing on Sesame Street, though I doubt he could equal your excellent vocals. Love the leisurely pace and great sounds in your music. Great stuff.

thanks EV

advaya wrote:knockman - Frogs
Freakin hilarious this! Out of all the 'funny' in this compo, yours takes the gold (oh god, I'm now praying you meant it to be as such). On a serious note though, your singing is fantastic. Those ominous synth stabs that start up @ 0:30 are SOOOO DAMN COOL, and fit this track so perfectly... don't even get me started on the lyrical genius of the 'frogs are friends of mine, frogs are good bit'. This is really, really stellar work.

don't worry the humour is intended, though the sentiments are true - if the lyrics had been about anything else i don't know what people would make of it? anyway, this morning i took the kids to the park to "cheer on" the larvae in the pond.

MaliceX wrote:nursewithwound-wildchurch - Oh my God...That's one of the most twisted songs I've heard in this competition since the 9/11 Polka one... The vocals are creepy, it's got a bit of a subtle contemporary feel to it, but overall it's scary. Abstract indeed. :O

thanks maliceX, twisted is fine by me, though i wonder did you get the right file? there was a strange barf when i did some batch encoding and uploading, i discovered some files had tags scrambled when i previewed them, i thought i'd cleared them all up

the nurse with wound was a remix track about 5 mins long, though curiously mello's lyrics to his contest submission this month strangely echo a version of the entirely unrelated nurse with wound

i don't know wether i'll find time to review myself, it'd be nice to get back into doing that, but we'll see.

regards

advaya · Post by **advaya** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 6:59 am

Legion Hush wrote:
advaya wrote:Horn section is great (wish there was more of it)
Yeah me too considering there is no horn section in this song. I suppose you are referring to the string section or???

Hmmm... OK... My bad then!

In my defense though, the stabby instrumentation that is present at (if I recall correctly) 1:30 or so, has quite a brassy character to it (it did on my headphones anyway). It's a subtle accompaniment, but I really like the way it complements the driven guitar. Kinda reminds me of some Joe Cocker piece.

Anyway, whether it be brass or strings, it still sounds great.

Ixox · Post by **Ixox** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 8:53 am

advaya wrote:Ixox - A celle qui est trop gaie
This is fabulous. Really it is. Everything is just so perfectly executed. Vocals are OUTSTANDING. The violin break @ 0:55 is beautifully played. TALENT ALERT! Superb job mate.

That makes my day !!! Thanks a million !!!

Xavier

advaya · Post by **advaya** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:08 pm

Here's some thoughts on the few tracks that I missed yesterday.

--------------------
core - Off the Road
This one stays pretty true to the original MIDI file (the best part of it though, so no matter). The one thing that grabs me right away is the wise choice of instruments used... Sounds really full and wide. I also like how the glitchy drums are present, but never dominating. Leaves me much space to enjoy the richness of the synthwork. Ends a bit abruptly, but it's not too jarring. Definitely a drifter piece. Nice.

--------------------
sttjelle - Fuletrip
This was actually the first submission I listened to, and what can I say... The overall craftsmanship of the track is, errr... intimidating. The rockin piano playing is nothing short of amazing, and the guitar work is tops. I like how the busy piano transitions into the more laid-back organ solo @ 1:05. You've taken a very somber downtempo piece and turned it into something incredibly uplifting and triumphant. I pretty much had to pick my jaw up off the floor after hearing this one. A Truly magical experience.

--------------------
napalmbob - heartache
Definitely the biggest departure from all the other entries so far. Some good drum programing and mixing going on in there. I've not much experience with this particular genre of music (the last time I attended a D&B gathering, I think I was older than everyone else by at least 10-15 years). The synthwork grabbed my attention right away, but quickly became overbearing. I'd have liked to have seen a bit of a break from it somewhere (but again, I'm not overly familiar with this type of composition).

napalmbob · Post by **napalmbob** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 6:00 pm

Thank you Echo, I had listened to everyone else's and thought going down the chilled/orchestral route would lead to obscurity (or at least more competition), so I went for a very simple style. The crunch comes from the mdaDetune. I love that detuner.

Thanks malice, the timing is in 4/4 for most, but the climax is in 4/3, I just couldn't rearrange the midi to match the beat, so I rearranged the beat to match the midi. And it is a rap beat. Not that I actually listen to much rap these days.

And thank you advaya. The synth is me trying to stuff the good bits of the midi in, but still having the feel of early 80's electro/funk/hiphop. 2 minutes is always a challenge. Especially when trying to get that Man Parrish feel.

Anybody seen Shaun Of the Dead?

And I'll review everyone's when the submitting stops.

Echo Voodoo · Post by **Echo Voodoo** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:30 pm

oddbods finger - I Got No Time -> #3 - Well, at least you had time to make a song! A fine merging of real and midi instruments, great lyrics, and solid vocals that make for a very entertaining entry.

Legion Hush · Post by **Legion Hush** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:30 pm

Hey good one Odds! My number one so far.
Just send the money to my paypal account.

oddbods finger · Post by **oddbods finger** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:32 pm

napalmbob wrote:Anybody seen Shaun Of the Dead?

yes, but not Hot Fuzz (also Simon Pegg & Nick Frost)

I'm back from a couple of weeks away and missed the end of the prog contest.
Thanks for everyone who voted for my rather lazy effort and well done the worthy winners.

My April entry is in.
Made up of some sections of file 3 with a bit of note editing, but I think you can still recognise the parts I used. I kept the accordian, banjo and bell sounds and added some "real" stuff and ended up with a kind of Cajun thing. Nothing startlingly daring but it was fun to do.

oddbods finger · Post by **oddbods finger** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:35 pm

Legion Hush wrote:Hey good one Odds! My number one so far.
Just send the money to my paypal account.

cheers....the usual amount?

Legion Hush · Post by **Legion Hush** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 1:10 am

oddbods finger wrote:
Legion Hush wrote:Hey good one Odds! My number one so far.
Just send the money to my paypal account.
cheers....the usual amount?

That would be great, of course considering it's ok with your sugar daddy.

sttjelle · Post by **sttjelle** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 10:53 am

Advaya, thanks! Your comments send a shocking grasp through my house.
-sttjelle

Laguna Rising · Post by **Laguna Rising** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 11:16 am

oddbods finger wrote: Nothing startlingly daring but it was fun to do.

Very nice indeed, this is bound for the top of the list

cheers

spirulence · Post by **spirulence** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 8:08 pm

This is an AWESOME month!

Thanks for the reviews advaya and others! I can't quite manage to find a good gated-verb snare to match my tunes, I would use it extensively if I did find one.

Right now I'm stuck in SF typing this from a cafe with no headphones, so I can't very well write reviews from the preliminary listening I did a few days ago, but I PROMISE I'll send some reviews everybody's way soon!

April Contest: Gossip