pitbulljones's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[I Can Smell the Greed on You]

LONG LIVE THE KING! BASTARD!

Well ain't this some meaty, ambient, grimey and angry soundwork! Over all the years i have listened to you angry has never really been something I would ascribe to you. This track though, it's mean, it's nasty, it's pissed off. It's excellent, the mix is bang on, maybe lacking bass thump on the bar. It all works so well together. I'm just in awe of how brutal this track is. It would sit well in a cyberpunk setting for an antagonist.

great work

Kingbastard responds:

Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to listen/comment. I’m enjoying playing with a little more distortion in the mix at the moment. Probably going to head in that direction for a little while. See what comes out:)

[Hidden From The Storm]

OOOOOOOO I think you have access to the same thunderstorm samples i used way way waaaaaaaaay back.

I'm a bit iffy with this. I appreciate it as an ambient piece. I like the bassier synths, your koto (is that right?) Sounds off, i can tell it's at a lower octave than it's natural tuning. The general eq is leaning to low mids and the volume of the synths is surprisingly low.

It's a middling 6/10 as is. I have heard significantly better mixes and compositions from you. Onwards and upwards :)

Midnights-Ocean responds:

Thanks for the info. This one is hard to balance mix wise. There's very little mid-high and high band program, it's mostly thundering base and the one zenzula (kalimba-ish type instrument) that I guess you thought was a koto. It's not tuned standard so, some of the intervals are odd sounding. I think one of the high landing notes is actually a half step off. I thought it matched the feel of the piece though. IMO the mix is kinda bad but there's not much I can think of to make this better. It's just one of those odd pieces I happen to like but didn't expect anyone else to heh.

[No Days After Tomorrow Came]

Okay then......

Always in for an 808 kit. 57 seconds in. Brilliant. 1.08 your gate is causing cross phase. !.36. loving it. Just brutal analogue tone, lovely tri and the back sampling is great. You should have a listen to some Gary Numan, you will realise how similar you are to 80's synth wave.

Your tune travels on gracefully. It's full of little riffs, a/b responses, it all works so very well together. I'd be proud if I made something like this. Yeaaaa, it could be a tad wider, the eq could be tighter just to separate it all, but it's minor stuff. A vocal of sorts would amazing on this, just a speaking voice, with some bit crush and verb and harmonic ooohs and ahhs.

Love it. Keep up the great work.

LostChronology responds:

DUDE THIS IS AMAZING, I ONLY SEE NOW THAT IT'S FRONTPAGED hahaha!

Thanks man, I feel that there has been a lot of improvement in my tracks over time and I consider it as a compliment that you say that you'd be proud if you made someone like this, as you are someone whom I look up to in music production.

I have heard of the name but I seriously need to look it up.

[Lights]

Biiiiiiiiiiig verb. The back fx sounds more hissy than ambient. We can forgive the string fart....but i would maybe try again. Your vox are nice with the octaved backing. I actually think less verb and a cleaner take benefits this track, the verb highlights your errors. its dreamy, simple and there is a lot to love.

JoeliusNG responds:

Super helpful dude, thanks!

[Sunset Dr.]

You know i love your stuff. This is no exception. There's a definite tightness on that bass supporting. Even the guitar lead, that rhythm section sits nicely. Timing has got a whole load better. I guess it's going to be a case of just letting you grow on your own though. Vox need to be more upfront, the backing helps. Compared to your earliest work this is leaps ahead. Every part has meaning and develops your track. One day you will get pre and post and then the world is yours.

ConnorDeVaux responds:

Thanks, yeah I'm tryin' mane

[On Solid Ground (iisma colab)]

Sorry for the late review.

Congratulations on front page.

This is a rather modern, upbeat piece of breaks. The vox is really clean, now it may just be me but it seems to have a left lean, but then there's so much pan and tilt on the backing it's hard to get a fix. It's strong as hell though.

Now the instrumentation...everything is pretty much perfect, my gripes come down to personal taste on balance, that late acid arp at 4:14 is too strong for my taste, your string swells get over powered by it.

It feels a tad compressed, but it aligns with genre. I enjoyed it but couldn't find something that was your tone innit. 10/10 though, vocals are always difficult to work with and you did a great job.

Midnights-Ocean responds:

No worries! Thanks man! Yeah this is actually a much older piece I did years ago, tailored to fit his vocals, which were superb and a joy to work with.

I agree about the strings. I wanted both the arp and the strings to be on equal footing. I'm going to readjust the balance of the arp and strings in the end vamp next mixing pass.

Yeah I hear you about the slightly compressed sound. It's hard to get such thick vocals to sit properly without compression on these types of genre. It's definitely more mainstream than my usual stuff but that was the point. It's supposed to be more pop oriented.

I was very pleased it got front page. I'm glad you liked it and hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. : )

[We Can Give Up, Quit Together [JAMUARY DAY 11]]

Congratulations on fp, this is some nice work. I have some things I would like to pick out. But pm me for feedback if you want it.

this is blissful and I respect where you took this

Quarl responds:

If I fix any of these Jamuary tracks it will be at the end of the month before compiling them all on Bandcamp. One track a day is a stressful schedule that doesn't result in flawless work but your intentions to be helpful are appreciated. Would hate to come off defensively, thank you Pitbull :]

Edit: how about I send you a zipped stem folder/MIDI/samples and you can show me how it's done c:<

[Star Links Village (Mastered)]

Haaaaaaaaa, yea let's get chromatic :)

It's nice, that flutey/oboe thing from 0:40 sounds out, can't put my finger on it. Maybe its timbre just doesn't sit. Love the deep bass pads, that is serious wash. The percussion is ok. Those low tri's hmmmmmmmmm i appreciate them.

I am not sold on this, it feels like a nice exercise, but something in me finds it a tad clashing tonally...and it SHOULD be sitting right. I may need to go over this again with cans and monitors but I feel confident nothing much would change.

So yea. I'm kinda meh with this lol.

(btw mate i have posted a bit of work, nothing exceptional but I would appreciate your thoughts)

Midnights-Ocean responds:

Thanks for the feedback! If memory serves, I used my concert kalimba, which is quite large and has very distinct odd order harmonics. Sometimes that can cause issues. The other instrument is a sampled Atari system. I don't know what the harmonics are on that but I HAD assumed it was also odd order. Maybe it's just something that isn't mixing well with the kalimba.

Cool beans. I'll take a listen and leave a review for you before bed. : )

[Humboldt Hill]

My man.

Your work is getting cleaner. I dig this. Drums a clean, your rhythm cuts well. It's a shame you are lacking a bass, just to beef up the range. Nice chorus, the verb'd delay and flange work well. It's overall a solid track.

I think your mix could benefit from being a little wider, your guitars should be floating around 33-50 on left and right, allowing your drums and vox to sit mid without competing for clarity. Sadly, I think your vocals are the weakest part of the track. They sound detached from the tune and a little bit whiney. I'd advice to maybe tune to the basic roots, project some more, a touch of verb, maybe a multitrack too.

Love it though.

ConnorDeVaux responds:

I'm still playing around with it, thanks a lot.

[This Is The Way]

Lovely. Really clean reverb on this which is mighty impressive. Nice glitchy bit crushed drums. Tune is incredibly relaxing, though it's rhythm really helps to propel it from a passive experience to something that is incredibly engaging and full of energy. As a meditative piece it's positively motivating. That drone from the minute mark is beautiful. The syncopation in pattern, the use of call and response, every aspect of this track is working in harmony. This is genuinely a sublime piece of ambient music. The mix is perfect stereo with a deft touch in pan and delay. Clean as a whistle, eq is superbly balanced. To find fault with your work on this would be a fools errand. This is for all intents and purposes a perfect recording. Well done.

Midnights-Ocean responds:

Holy fook! Truly a mountain top compliment!

It's more than encouraging since I intentionally did no editing and very little post processing. Just straight live takes with just a touch of polish on the mains before bouncing. I know some people might think me arrogant but I really DO listen to critique. I purposely thought twice about all my settings BEFORE I hit record. I'm guessing it's why the main instrument didn't need a multi-band comp and the reverb didn't muddy up. I applied what I had learned and it worked.

It's my belief that, a well thought out recording/performance, shouldn't need hours of production afterwards. I still have a long way to go but this was one of many first steps I've been attempting to really hone in my technique, as to get consistently GOOD results with little post production needed.

Thanks again for the feedback. I Really appreciate it!