Reviews for Coin and Haggle

[Step]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

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Let me just start by saying that the atmosphere and mood are just NAILED. I absolutely loved the subtleties like the coin sounds, the castanets, the vibraslap, the grace notes, and how you make a song sound somehow mysterious and almost urgent-sounding in its pace while still sounding light. Props for the live instrument by the way! It's exquisitely played and sounds fantastic. All your other instruments also sound awesome (and very East/West-esque may I add), and fit wonderfully with each other. And the composition is lovely! I loved hearing the melodies of each instrument - from the subtle to the upfront - work together so well.

On the other hand, as I'm sure you know, this song is REALLY short. I mean, the track's current melodies are sufficiently fleshed out, and the ending feels very much like a conclusion, so I'm not left feeling as if the melodies are underdeveloped or anything (which is often the case in short tracks), but since there's that little content and not many dynamic/mood changes, the wow factor of this track is abysmally low. This would fit beautifully in a game, and on its own it was a remarkably pleasant listen, but ultimately with such a short track there isn't much substance to leave a lasting impression, and I'm sure there's plenty of room for the introduction of different sections to make this longer.

I can only begin to imagine how great this track would've been, had you been a bit more ambitious with it. It sounds fantastic as it is now though. Keep up the great work!

Score: 7.7/10

[bassfiddlejones]

This is an NGADM Round 1 review.

Excellent atmosphere. I really enjoy the mood you're creating. I also love the violin! You're lucky to have such a talented player with you! It could really give you an edge in future rounds if you employ it correctly. Great coin sounds! I love the rhythmic change at :36, it adds a neat layer to the piece. The sound design element to this piece really gives it character. It portrays the feel of a medieval fair of some sort. Composition and production were both great. A well executed piece. My main complaint is that it isn't long enough.

Score: 8/10

[johnfn]

Ah dang. I was listening to this one and then I was going to click away from the page but then I accidentally clicked to vote 3 instead, which is not what I intended to do at all! And I took it down from it's perfect 5.00 average so I felt double bad. So I'm going to write a quick review to make it up. And vote 5 on it once the day rolls back around so I can sort of cancel out the damage...

Anyway I really like this one. The violin playing is really expressive and beautiful, and the melody is very nice too. On top of that, I really enjoyed the subtle incorporation of money into the percussion of the song. The whole piece has a really interesting vibe to it - it feels light and mysterious. Subtle flourishes with the harp and pizzicato strings in the background add a lot.

My biggest complaint - and I'm sure you saw this coming - is that the piece is very short, and of that length, it takes even less time to develop its theme. I found myself wishing that it would explore the melodic space a little more and perhaps go somewhere else.

Aside from that though, I liked it a lot. Keep it up.

MichaelJ responds:

Oh, how could you!?
Haha, it's alright! Thank you for the review. I definitely saw that coming - I have been working on this piece for a while, and I can't figure out how to extend it. I decided it was time to move on to a new piece.
I am thinking about studying music theory when I go to college. I really have no idea what I am doing!