full title = "the first snowfall in an empty land"
really somber moody piece that might be what it sounded like if you were alone in an empty land and it started to snow.
experimental sound design piece. lots of little details, put on headphones and listen carefully :)
getting piano to fit in a dense mix is really hard... i struggled with mixing that one section forever.
Nice vibe
Greay rythem some nice vibe and flavour really good work here You have a new fan here and will look for much more of your sound because this has some nice quality about it some nice vibe some nice flavour, so please do keep gracing your talents for us all to enjoy
~X~
pretty emotional, nice!
NICE.
That is the only word I can think of to describe this.
Nice Job, keep it up!
Thanks dude! What a nice review :D
Yay! Another great song from johnfn! Since it seems like everyone else has covered all the big stuff, this review is probably going to be really full of nitpicks.
The bad stuff:
You know what annoys me? Constantly having to change the volume on my earphones. Basically, I think the buildup at 1:35 is a bit too loud. I guess it's hard to transition that, but I probably would've made the white noise volume lower. Speaking of transitions, I think the one at 3:09 comes a little abruptly. Perhaps you could've had some other pads or strings in there, subconsciously building the ambience up a little. I also think the little synth trills at 1:58 and 2:07 are sort of unnecessary, mainly because they don't really fit with the tempo.
I can see the piano break in the middle as being the 'empty land' part of the song, but if the first snowfall is the transition at 3:09, what's the first part supposed to be? Personally, I think the 'empty' part at 2:43-3:08 is a bit too empty. Sometimes, nothing happening can be really effective, but I don't think this piece quite pulled it off. It was done pretty well, but it just doesn't feel... complete, for some reason. Stupid inability to express my inner feelings through vocabulary. In the same vein, this is probably the ending of yours I have the biggest problem with. Normally, they're fun gimmicks, but this one just seems empty. I know that 'empty' is even in the title, but I just don't think the ending fits.
The good stuff:
The part from 2:43-3:08 was quite empty, but you did have a really cool atmosphere going on before that. The pads you used really made it sound desolated and bleak. The pads seemed really well mixed and fit in perfectly.
As usual, the sounds you used were amazing. One of the standouts was that sexy piano thing at 3:59 and 4:16. I also particularly enjoyed the plucky noises at the beginning, simply because they remind me of the intro of a Waterflame song I really enjoy, Slipping Into Madness (which has a COMPLETELY different mood from this one, but pluckity pluck nonetheless).
Basically, this was another great piece. All the compliments people have given you already for this song are echoed by me, and it seems you just keep getting better. I know this review seemed a bit negative, but I've just gotten back from a long trip and I'm tired and rambling and there's probably going to be tons of grammatical mistakes and I should stop typing now.
OH jesus I always leave your reviews for last BECAUSE I HATE YOU... or something. I actually wrote out a long response to this... which I then lost. <_> <_> <_>
> Constantly having to change the volume on my earphones
Yeah buuuut on the other hand have you ever listened to classical music on headphones? The dynamic variation puts my songs to shame... It could also be a problem of which headphones we're using and mastering perhaps... but I mean, soundcloud definitely shows that the volume is all over the place, so it's not just you. I dunno why I do it, I just like the way it accentuates climaxes I guess.
> 3:09 transition
Yeah that could have been done better, for sure.
> synth trills at 1:58 and 2:07
I kind of liked these because they gave the synth some character, though they could have been in tempo, you're right haha.
> the 'empty' part at 2:43-3:08
I secretly loved this bit, but I can understand how other people wouldn't. I dunno, I just liked the somberness of the chords. I like when everything goes away and you're wondering if it's going to come back or not.
> ending
It's funny how my least contentious ending is itself contentious. =D If you didn't like the empty part up above, it makes sense you wouldn't like this either hah
> atmosphere and sounds
YES I was putting a lot of work into both. I thought it worked really well. A lot of the noises were designed by hand.
> sexy piano
Oh yes. MY SPECIALTY
> Slipping Into Madness
Yeah this song is TOTALLY different but the intro is similar you're right.
> a bit negative
Meh it's kind of boring to have people go "zomg ur the best ever!" when I'm actually not because then I feel a little directionless. On the other hand a bunch of critique from everyone is kind of tiring to read. What I'm really trying to say here is that I AM NEVER SATISFIED :D
I'm glad that you liked it! Thanks for the extensive review :)
Kinda like this experiment. Somehow it reminds me of a remix tune from remix.kwed.org. The one I mean is the remix of Trick Bag by Mordi and DJ Skitz. If you'd like to listen to that, it can be found here: http://remix.kwed.org/?search_id=4839
(remove spaces, if newgrounds is still putting them in there automatically)
It's the acoustic piano at the beginning that reminds me to that.
HAHA WOW
Yes I was TOTALLY inspired by this. In fact, I had initially listened to it a lot years ago, but then stopped and in fact I totally forgot the name of the song! Now that you point out it's a Trick Bag remix I found the one that initially resonated with me:
http://remix.kwed.org/files/RKOfiles/Dafunk%20-%20Trick%20Bag%20(modified).mp3
Such a beautiful song... Dafunk (the guy who made it) is just amazing.
In fact one of the main reasons I switched up the chord progression in the second part is that It was feeling a little too samey to that song. Also, I couldn't write anything nearly as good as the main melody line in that piece, which is adsfjbeautiful.
Anyway thanks for the review and blast from the past :D
Please contact me if you would like to use this in a project. We can discuss the details.
johnfn 
![43 (Burning Skies) [Alternate Demo]](https://aicon.ngfiles.com/1317/1317385_medium.webp?f1714129224)
