Quarl AIM 2022 Review
Composition/Structure (0-10), Production (0-10), Emotion (0-10), Relevance to Artwork (0-10)
Siberg, The Journey: 8,8,5,10 (31/40)

A smart piece of art to choose for some downtempo minimal house. The song is moody and drones which really works for the setting in the pixel art. Boring highway drives can get me listening to music I wouldn't normally listen to and admittedly I have a few house tracks in my highway driving mixes. To be honest with you the song is a little boring but so is driving across the country at night hence my high relevancy score.

Despite the positive qualities I can pick up on, I'm just not very impressed when it comes to down-tempo minimal house, artists like Sequenced can fight me. You could have toyed more with your panning data to make the track a little more engaging. Panning an instrument can give off illusions of volume and movement. A sound that's panned will give off the impression that it's a little louder and can be turned down to make more room in the field for other instruments, tones, and samples. Panning will also literally create space on the opposite side of the field. You can engage listeners more when you have tones introduced from unexpected directions. Though you perfectly managed to convey the feelings of the art, boring might not have been the best outcome. There's a lot of standout talent in this competition that got me out of my chair and drooling. Additional panning data might have grabbed my attention some more by emulating the motion of passing cars on a highway.

Though I'm not taking off points for the next bit, I'm going to say that I'm really hounding people this year for not writing more about their work, their creative process, and their feelings. We are a community of nutty artists and content creators. We learn from each other and overtime become familiar with each other's ticks, drives, and desires. I love this community a lot, even though it can sometimes get slightly petty or combative. We're like a family that bickers around the dinner table once a year. Having the courage to say a little bit more about yourself and your work can endear you to others. Regardless of that, thank you for your participation. This is the first time I'm taking notice of you and your work. I only have one "token-house-friend" on Newgrounds but you could teach the rest of us how to love the genre as much as he did for me.

Bit loud (especially in the beginning), but man...does this fit the pixel art to a T, and I love the smooth, rich House beats. It's very Hotline Miami, or that real Euro-Disco / Eurobeat with a subtle hint of 80s synthwave groove. I can almost hear lyrics to this song, and it is reminiscent of driving at night, on a long journey to anywhere and nowhere.

It's real lovely, and had me listening to it more than a few times. <3

Good luck in AIM 2022! Have a good one. :3

Now this entry is just perfectly suitable for driving at night on the highway. There's that very constant rhythm that even applies to the longer held notes at 1:10 pulsating through the phrases and that continuous driving melody (no pun intended) that keeps the whole piece moving forward. Listening to this entry while focusing on the art was mesmerizing and I can only imagine what it would be like actually listening to this while driving on the highway at night.

When replaying this piece, I found myself not being as into the introduction as I am in the main part when the percussion kicks in. It feels like it could have been half that length, especially given that the second half of that introduction is basically identical to the first half - melody-wise and the subtle buildup could be moved to the first half while still being within that 3-6 minute limit for AIM entries.

That aside, the main part of this track is solid and fits the art inspiration by being both a driving piece and getting the setting and time of day down musically. I really enjoyed the resonant buzzy bass - kind of made me think about the engines of a car revving and it was a cool detail.

I became entranced by the motions of a Sunda - SunNight drive. After a night to myself on the road with nothing between me and the city, clear skies with starlight and building lights as a beacon home. The radio on. Every turn of the wheel taking charge almost as if the car has autopilot with a single directive of getting home safe. I am at peace.

The accompanying picture really fits the bill with this track. I can truly picture myself taking a journey of my own from within. I am pleased to state this quickly became 1 of the 4 songs I'm rooting for in the AIM competition. Good luck!

Pretty sick EDM Bladerunner vibe going on here. Definitely fits the animated pic to a tee. Good jorb! Not a judge though, so don't get your hopes up too high hehehe.