Reviews for A Night in the Attic

[Step]

This is an NGADM Round 2 Review.

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This is one of the most unexpected tracks of this round. Not only is it in a genre and style that isn't explored very often on Newgrounds, but it's by a person who very rarely makes this kind of music. I for one love this approach, and your execution of it is surprisingly adept. There are some immensely nice touches to this piece, such as your use of sound effects, your extremely fitting humming, the slight but very present ritardando that plays during every loud glockenspiel note (such as at 1:09), and the section around 4 minutes in where it turns into a more peaceful and cheery vibe, while still retaining the subtlety of the previous sections. In a track which takes a more simple route, it's touches like these that really become all the more appreciated.

Now to get down to the meat of the track - the composition. You've done it again - I absolutely love your chord progressions played eerily by the piano, and your control of motifs is once again unmatched. Your transitions are wonderfully solid, which makes for a very atmospheric listening experience with an uninterrupted flow. One of my favourite things about this would be how you used the instruments you had at your disposal. It's no secret your samples aren't the best, but this time round I actually think you used them very well. You were able to overcome the barrier of sample quality to the point that I don't even thing better samples would greatly improve this track. It sounds great as it is.

Like others have mentioned, your production is certainly improving. Your voice sounds more full-bodied, and overall the mix sounds more balanced. I think some sounds stand out a bit too much, such as the glockenspiel in particular. It feels too upfront at times fix this, and somewhat dry too. I would add more reverb to it, EQ out some of its highs and turn it down just a notch. My main issue with this is that I feel like there was a lot of room for you to diverge and really have a lot of fun with what you've got. While I do enjoy the subtlety in this track, there was room to add more warped effects and eerie sounds that add to the chilling atmosphere, and more room to add distinctive sections and new melodic ideas. For a piece that runs for nearly six minutes, while you did a good job in its execution, it feels limited in what it offers.

Either way, this is definitely one of the more memorable pieces this round. I loved your approach and I think you did a great job with this!

SCORE: 8.7/10

Troisnyx responds:

It wasn't memorable enough to everyone on the panel bar Neon-Bard, from what the scores tell me. Helpful as the review is, I cannot help but feel absolutely deceived. One year on, the sentiment still hasn't quite changed...

[Krichotomy]

Good night! That first xylophone hit scared me! You really set the mood for it, too. Consider me spooked. :)

I think I would have added more reverb to the foreground vocals. Maybe.
I really like the quiet background vocals that show up in a couple places.

I always treated my toys very respectfully, so I have nothing to be afraid of! Right? Right?!

[Phonometrologist]

This is my favorite piece that you've uploaded here mainly because it's touching into more of the darker sounds than you're accustomed to writing. Because it took a lot of you in writing this, I would like to encourage you to take all the time you need away from this style just so you can return to this way of writing later. You then should be able to build a tolerance and get deeper into it without it being a burden to you.

I find nothing wrong with this--great use of effects and glockenspiel, and I'll even defend the piano part. It works very well despite it being a bit bland for some. Peter is on to something when he mentions 80s, because with the effects, I'm reminded of Vangelis.

At minute four, it has become quite lighter in character and I can certainly hear your own style of writing that we all can associate you with, and that's a good thing. I like the spin you have on your compositions with these influential chord progressions.

Troisnyx responds:

I'm going through these reviews a year after it all happened... surely there has to be something *wrong* that caused me to be left out of the competition? I won't question these matters anymore.

[MetalRenard]

This is a NGADM "Round of 16" Review!
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Well Troisnyx, this is definitely an interesting piece and your mixing has improved a lot. In this one you've managed to almost completely avoid distortion and you've begun to truly explore the possbilities stereo shaping offers you.
Where you lost points with me is that the piano is very unoriginal - I've definitely heard it more than once before. While it's ok to do that, I know you're capable of making things that are much more unique and I wish you'd gone for it and tried something else with the piano.
There are quite a few sounds that don't quite fit into the mix either and sometimes volume levels are off.

Where you did get points is pretty much everywhere else. The vocals are good, they could have been spookier if you'd messed around with reverse reverb effects and other things, but your performance is solid. The sounds you used work well together and on top of that the piece had depth thanks to more judicious mixing choices that in your previous work.

I've already given you feedback on better recording techniques for future songs so I hope you take those into account too and continue to improve. You've come a long way and the road is long and arduous.
Congratulations on making it this far, it's sad to see you out of the contest but you definitely left your mark with the pieces of music you made for it. Keep it up!
8/10

[iLifeMusicDude]

I like how you picked your sounds for this one. Every little thing counts. And oooh boy do i love a little spooky here and there :D