Godly
Reviews for "Insurgent [MSB] (NGADM)"
yow grantbowtie
Some cool old Dubstep that (somewhat) aged well.
And this guy literally went from this to Dead Man Walking of Monstercat which by the way someone should tell him to upload all his Monstercat stuff here please.
First off (I'm posting this to everyone): Note that the scores might be a bit lower than what's typical for NG reviews - no one should expect a 10/10 unless their entry was absolutely incredible.
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This tune is packed with clever and engaging melodies and instruments that complement each other nicely, which is something I'm missing from most songs in this very - cough - mainstream style of dubstep. I have to admit I got pretty hooked as soon as the very Daft Punk-esque synth line at 0:13 started. I also notice how you take advantage of the tools the style gives you access to - very few instruments let you do sustained chords and melodic riffs simultaneously as well as a good bright modulated synth pad like the one at 0:45.
The mix is great! It is OBSCENELY loud, but I almost never hear anything that would hint to overcompression (there might be some involuntary sidechaining, but in that case you wouldn't have a hard time convincing me it's intentional anyway). Somehow moments like 3:04 manage to sound airy and open despite looking just as much as a square wave as the rest of the song in a waveform editor. Perhaps the only symptom of this loudness is that the drums don't have as much punch as one could want from a song like this, simply because there's no space left for a smacking transient. There are almost enough other percussive elements in the song to make up for that, though.
As is required in any song of the genre, there are little soundbites and clips and bips and bops in each bar. The effort is audible and the programmed sequences of earcandy are clearly thought through well enough. The song definitely has its share of cliched elements - the chopped up vocals, the bright simple pads with sustained chords and the bitcrushed wobbling synths (2:41 is almost as groan-inducing as a bad pun at this point in history) are all executed well in this song, but the influences are fairly blatant, possibly annoyingly so if I were to be in a bad mood. Thankfully, I am never in a bad mood when reviewing. ;)
In summary, this is definitely a solid song that shows off a lot of talent, experience and skill, with a satisfying structure and plenty of variety that keeps it an entertaining listen throughout. What more can a guy really ask for?
10 points for sounds and instrumentation.
8 points for composition and melody/harmony.
8 points for theme/originality/other things that might impress.
Overall impression: 9.0
Well done made :)! I like, how the arp's are going to remix or rotate and how the bass is pumpin'! Love it ;)