Beautiful.
Reviews for "Shinjitsu"
I like the song, especially the piano.
I, for one, applaud your experimental NGADM entry, dj-Jo! That's a pretty ballsy decision in this contest, and for that very reason I've been avoiding things that exist way outside my comfort zone. I hope that taking the risk works out well for you!
Yes, shinjutsu means truth or reality. A good name for this Asian-influenced piece, I think; simple, yet effective. It is quite short, as you state in your Author Comments, but it also does feel complete. You could probably add more to the body of the music if you so desired, but the beginning and ending feel very appropriate. I kind of wanted that last note to just fade gently to nothingness, but that is merely a personal preference.
Some of the orchestral moments feel reminiscent of Joe Hisaishi of Studio Ghibli fame...especially your build-up and subsequent transition from :23 to the :30 mark. The amount of reverb felt somewhat superfluous, however; I would suggest possibly toning it down a little.
Overall, this is a truly excellent song! 4.5 stars, and that always translates to a vote of 5 from me. Congratulations on being the third person to submit in Round 3! Best of luck!
dj-Jo responds:
Ah, thank you very much (: I hope it works for me too haha
ohhh alrighty thanks for clearing that up :D
It doesn't fade out O: I didn't notice haha I might change it before the dead line.
:) I love his work!
Hmm, I check out the reverb before it's too late
Thanks a lot man! I wonder what Headphonez will conjure up :3
This really reminds me of good old Japanese Pop ballads like Otsuka Ai's Kingyo Hanabi. Take a listen to that song if you haven't heard it. Anyone who knows me know that I've got a soft spot for this genre specifically. Such a classic melody and I love the instrumentation in this.
Critically, for me at least, I found it to be a little repetitive. The same melody repeated four times, although I do love the build up and the key change definitely added something to this piece. It also sounds a little like too many things I've heard already, but it could be argued that you captured a traditional Japanese melody skillfully.
I think you should hunt up a little Japanese girl and get her to sing for you. It would be a wonderful collaboration. Kudos and thanks for bringing more of this stuff to NG! :-)
dj-Jo responds:
Wow, I just listened to that song. It's very beautiful!
:3 Thanks for telling me about it!
Hmm, I thought about the repetitiveness, but I decided to keep it and try to vary it as much as I can without changing it too much. I see where your coming from.
Yeah I know what you mean (sounds a little like too many things I've heard alread), I got this melody by playing the piano randomly. I thought to myself, "I fell like I heard this before." After thinking that, I got on my computer and searched up all Anime OSTs I knew and listened to them to find out if it was from them, and it turns out that it wasn't and I decided to make a song from it haha
I was thinking about lyrics (either vocaloid or a real voice) but I didn't really know where to start on lyrics haha Oh well :D
Thank YOU for the review :3
Good song overall. Makes me think about Naruto. The composition is great. I would've preferred other instruments though. I like the piano and the strings, but not the synths. Percussion for the more climactic parts is a good idea, but I think the drums you use from 0:57 onward sound out of place. I would've preferred more traditional timpani rolls with cymbals instead of the groove you made. And some brass to add power. I like the oriental feel. The oriental percussion helps a lot to add to the mood. I think you could've perhaps used more oriental instruments, like a koto, shamisen, shakuhachi, erhu and such. Once again, I'm in a very Naruto influenced mindset right now.