That oscillating synth thingamabob was just me trying to find a way to add tension to the track haha. I do quite enjoy it as well myself. 2:27's climax... I just had to put it there. I know this is background music and all but I am really really bad at making ambient, soft tracks. I tried to restrain myself as much as possible in that climax. I don't think it'll sound too out of place in a visual novel though.

You're right, it DOES sound like a mystery theme. Totally unintentional haha.

Thanks a million, this review is so encouraging.

Whoops... forgot to reply to this. So busyyyy.

I'm glad you like the drums! Honestly I don't think I'd ever make them louder than they currently are. I don't think they're OUT OF THIS WORLD or anything but I would like to keep them fairly soft and understated in a few of the sections.

Thanks for the review :3.

Yeahhh, those drums. I don't think they're BAD personally, but I do think they really aren't anything special.

Got to say, I totally appreciate all these reviews you're throwing my way. I really enjoy reading them! Thanks a million.

JOHNFN. Man, I missed your reviews. Thanks a million for leaving a review!

"Real nice. I appreciate all the sound choice/design you did, and I think it's all pretty solid honestly, feels pro and would definitely be at home in a visual novel like atmosphere..."

That's great to hear. This is my first time making an OST this size, so I'm having HUGE amounts of trouble trying to follow the requirements for each piece. Ergo, (I feel like such a snob using that word) every bit of positive feedback is a huge breath of relief for me haha.

"with the exception of the drums. I think the drums could be a bit better maybe, they feel a bit muffled. Better samples perhaps. I never know what to say about drums."

I'm not huge on the drums here either! I wasn't quite sure what kinds of samples to use. 0:23's drums are supposed to be muffled as they're mostly an atmospheric element, but when the actual drums come in I agree that the samples aren't quite fitting.

"Also the big heavy hitting crashes e.g. 2:27 are great but maybe a little out of place in an otherwise chillaxing piece."

I COULDN'T HELP IT, MAN. I feel like my music is almost DEFINED by those huge cymbal roll transitions into the climactic sections. I'm a one-trick pony, it's all I can do well :c. I think I did go a little overboard with it, but still, since this is the first track to appear in the OST, I also think that it won't be entirely out of place to have a more eventful piece of music in the background.

"Also the little section at 1:12 is SO Step. (so are those crashes I just mentioned :D)"

Hahaha. I need to vary my style more. You know what, one of these days I should make a track involving a smooth synth lead with subtle portamento and a bunch of reverb playing uplifting melodies with grace notes, and I'll give it a lowercase song title.

"Mixing is fine. I like how the strings swell in, that feels very pro to me."

The wonders of volume automation! Nowadays I actually don't write any string patterns without having an automation clip on their volume, in fact.

"Definitely has an eerie feel, like I'm exploring a haunted house, but the house isn't VERY haunted, it's haunted by like the ghost of a dog or something."

Yeah it should have a somewhat eerie and slightly tense vibe, as if you're expecting something to happen, but shouldn't verge on being too tense or too eerie. The haunted dog thing certainly wasn't what I had in mind but it's definitely interesting haha. Woof.

"Despite you saying the song is very melodic, I don't really think that it is - it feels more atmosphere driven to me. I don't say that as a criticism though, it still works well."

I think it's pretty melodic for atmospheric BGM but what do I know :3. Thanks a lot for the great review!

Good to hear. Thanks ^_^.