Yeah I'm such a sucker for songs like these. It's just pure beauty and fun
Hey guys! It's been a while...I'm busy! I promise that better days are on the horizon, though, and I'd like to assert that notion by uploading more music. Made in Garageband 6 for my music tech class, mostly in March. Inspired by my vacation to Florida in February. I've done A LOT of creepy ambient tracks, so I decided to do one that's a bit more soothing. It took a long time, though, as I tried a new mixing technique that miserably failed, so I did it over again. XD Also, I promise to catch up with the reviews I owe everyone in a couple of months. Until then, well...I'm busy! The short description is true, btw - this is the only piece I've ever uploaded to NG from away from home. I'm currently in Virginia Beach at a family reunion. :) Anyway, hope you enjoy, and ALWAYS USE HEADPHONES FOR MY MUSIC TECH TRACKS! ^^
EDIT 4/11/15: This is my first song to break 500 hits since 2013! Thanks so much guys! :D
Yeah I'm such a sucker for songs like these. It's just pure beauty and fun
Thanks so much! This is one of my more popular ones, as I recall.
I didn't... use headphones... now I will... Hmm the intro yells back at. Me Blackened, Iris, see it go steppin onto new paths, which I hadn't discovered.. yet!! An as of yet, a touch of xylofone is added.. Hmm , maybe not your best work, It is the first I hear of thou though.. Och wat zou t ook. Yeah I'm from holland, quite a dutch guy But speak english proper, hope we can enjoy each others writing, or typing anyhow.. AAnd have lots of enjoyable moments doin that in the future! Hmmn...
Thanks for the review, man! I agree this isn't my best work. After the intro, the cheesy Garageband samples take over, unfortunately. :)
I'm digging this. Thank you for sharing and thanks for running this competition and the things you do. :)
Thanks for the review, man! And believe me when I say it's my pleasure to run the competition. ;D
Whoa crazy chord change at :41.
Also that transition at 1:40... I know you can do a better transition than that given how much you complain to me about my transitions hehe ;-)
To me the first half of this track is definitely ambient, but as soon as other instruments other than that watery synth come in, then it loses it's ambientness. (that's a word) It almost like it's two separate songs!
The melodies could use a little bit of help. Try singing/humming to your song (I do this where no one can hear me :P) and then transcribing what you just sung. Sometimes that can help.
I really liked the ambient first half! The watery synth is just awesome. Makes me feel like I'm floating in water, illuminated by sun... drifting around. It feels really nice, and I almost wish you spent a little time just on the chords rather than bringing in the other instruments as early as :20.
Nice job!
So nice to see you've been more active these past few weeks, Johnfn! :D Yeah, I love doing crazy chord changes. :3 I agree about the transition at 1:40. There's actually this massive crescendo in the bass at 1:36, but it's really hard to hear because I suck at mixing in Garageband. I'll do better next time! I totally recognize the "it's two separate songs" complaint too. I tried to tie it together with that melody at 2:16 and the chords in the background, but I understand that it still may have not sounded that coherent. That's a helpful tip with the melodies! I might just use that... Glad you liked the ambient part. I try to keep my intros under 30 seconds, but maybe that's a bad thing in this instance, haha. Thanks so much for the review, Johnfn! I'll review your latest track as soon as I get the chance. ;D
I agree with LSD that ambient is your strongest genre. Clairvoyance and Erasure were both great, and this is another amazing piece! Also, you and johnfn with your awesome creative poetic names. Grr.
I also agree with LSD in that your title is pretty fitting. The first few synths give the idea of a calm ocean, and that bit at 0:41 gives the idea of some sort of cool tidal disturbance! Personally, I love the ocean. Especially the animals in it! They're awesome! The second part of the song has a great drum beat, and the open snare (or maybe it's just a really high tom) helps give it a sense of lying on the shore, watching the waves roll by. You're pretty good at creating ambient atmospheres!
As for issues, all the reverb at 0:41 made it sound a bit dissonant at first, and it sounds to me like there were a couple balancing issues, since some synths sounded too loud (like the one that enters at 2:16). Then again, my earphones are quite crappy, and you've commented that they don't give me the best image of your music before, so that critique probably doesn't have a lot of weight. :P Great job, and hope you're having fun at your family reunion! Happy Easter!
Thanks so much LunacyEcho! :D I'm glad you like the title. I tend to overthink naming my pieces a lot because in a way it's the first impression someone gets of the song. :) I believe it is a high tom at 1:37, but for all practical purposes it's the "snare" of the piece. ;) I totally agree with your complaint about the balancing issues. I'll continue to struggle with finding good ways of mixing diverse textures in Garageband. As for :41, I love using dissonance, but I understand it's not for everyone. This is a really positive review though, so thanks for all the encouragement! I'll review a TON of your tracks in a couple weeks, I swear, haha! Thanks again for stopping by, LE! ^^
Please contact me if you would like to use this in a project. We can discuss the details.