I like the upbeat mood and synths at the beginning. The chord progression is a little generic, but the melodic content at :23 is fun. I think the drums could’ve been a little stronger in the mix, and the snare sounds like it doesn’t have quite enough lower frequencies. Still, I like the energy and drive this piece has. There are a lot of great melodies in this track, but at some point I wanted to see you offer some structural contrast by dialing back the intensity a bit. An atmospheric breakdown or minimalist bridge would serve this piece well, giving the composition some shape and allowing you to reach a more emotional conclusion at the next climax. Instead, the different sections of this piece don’t seem quite distinct enough from each other after a while, and it also couldn’t hurt to consolidate some of your harmonic ideas, as there are a lot of different fast-paced riffs in this piece. It’s a little hard to stay grounded in the structure after a while. Still, I appreciate the return to familiar content towards the end, even if the fade-out ending came across as a little lazy and abbreviated. Still, the sound design and atmosphere of this piece are really cool. I especially like the instrument at 1:53 - it was probably originally meant to sound like brass, but it’s so inauthentic that it comes across as just another quirky synth, and it blends into the texture here wonderfully. Cool piece overall. My nit-picky compositional concerns probably constitute my main issue with the piece. Keep up the good work, Pheanir! :)
Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.25/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8.25/10