Tzunami's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[When I Return]

It doesn't sound too bad. You have yourself a nice start, but you'd definitely want to look into learning the basics of mixing and music theory if you don't them by now. Besides the leveling issues, adding variation to your track, with changing melodies and harmonies, would work out well as well. Keep practicing and experimenting and I'm sure you'll get it.

vishalhd responds:

Thanks for the review man. :) I thought it needed some mixing and mastering. To tell you the truth I did this track like 2 years ago. I only recently added in the guitars. :)

[Reset]

I've been wanting to play Okami for the longest time, I really wish I had played it so I knew the original song (though it doesn't hurt to look it up on YouTube or something). Anyways, the lyrics feel right at home in this track, the instrumentation and production by Step and Buoy is spot on (great work on the mastering Mrmilkcarton), and everything just fits together so well. Definitely adding this to my favorites and downloading it.. and looking into finding a copy right after.

~Tzu

Shanath responds:

Okami is a great game. I hear an HD release of it is coming out soon. If you haven't played it yet that's the definite one to get!

[Trinity]

You sir, have become my favorite orchestral artist on Newgrounds with this beautiful rendition of the various themes and songs in Monster Hunter Tri. I've been a fan of the series since it's beginnings and the soundtrack is definitely the one thing that brings the game to life. From the humble opening of the game, to the character selection and the wandering through the village to grabbing a quest notice off the board, even diving into the depths of the ocean to battle the fearsome but elegant Ceadeus... each melody fits perfectly with each encounter.

I'd go into complete detail on each and every section, but the amount of time, effort, and dedication that went into recreating a melody for each part you've covered is amazing. I can easily feel myself at each of these locations. I hope to hear more orchestral renditions from you on this scale, whether being this franchise or a different one.

~Tzu

Step responds:

Hey man, I appreciate the support! This review's awesome.

"You sir, have become my favorite orchestral artist on Newgrounds with this beautiful rendition of the various themes and songs in Monster Hunter Tri."

Clearly you haven't heard BrokenDeck's, Echo's, NickPerrin's, MaestroRage's, Breed's and Tomppaah's orchestral music yet. But thanks :3.

"I've been a fan of the series since it's beginnings and the soundtrack is definitely the one thing that brings the game to life."

I had no idea you played the game man! We should totally go online sometime haha.

"From the humble opening of the game, to the character selection and the wandering through the village to grabbing a quest notice off the board, even diving into the depths of the ocean to battle the fearsome but elegant Ceadeus... each melody fits perfectly with each encounter."

Good to know! I wanted to achieve a majestic but mystical effect with the Ceadeus music. I would've remixed the third part of the battle as well (when he actually starts fighting back) but when I tried to remix it I just couldn't get it to sound right, or transition to it properly for that matter.

"I'd go into complete detail on each and every section, but the amount of time, effort, and dedication that went into recreating a melody for each part you've covered is amazing. I can easily feel myself at each of these locations."

Thanks! I did put a tonne of effort in this so I'm glad it paid off.

"I hope to hear more orchestral renditions from you on this scale, whether being this franchise or a different one."

Don't be surprised if there does end up being one in the (distant) future! Maybe not now though, making a medley like this has drained every slither of musical energy that I had stored up in my body :(.

Thanks a bunch for the great review, I really owe you one!

[Dimrain47 Tribute ~P~]

A great tribute to the classic tracks that you've picked out. Easy to hear the originals and your personal style mixed together to make one great song.

Phyrnna responds:

Yep. I just took the main melodic motif and ran with it. xD

[Nav - Binkers (Short Ver)]

I'm a big fan of this style. Dubstep is a pretty loud and straight-forward genre, but as fast as it grows, it's already becoming more and more complex with each new popular song. Even with my own experimentation, it's nice to cut away from most of the loud and party anthem feel that you get in dubstep and make something that sound whole as a song.

The synths are soft and inviting and the patterned thumps from the bass/bassline fill in the quiet synth gaps. Sometimes the melody doesn't even have to be all that to add a certain feeling to the song, especially with that almost awkwardly placed synth in the later half.

All in all, it's a nice track. Very calming and respectful to a constantly evolving genre of music.
~Tzu

Nav responds:

Thanks! I agree that dubstep is a very flexible genre and I don't think enough people fully take advantage of that. I was drawing on downtempo influences here, and later I hope to draw on some jungle influences to make a song.

I agree - the synth near the end is almost out of place. Unfortunately, no other options seemed to fit better into the mix with the pattern I was using, and I didn't feel like changing.

I appreciate your review :)

[Sanctuary]

I don't even know what I can say about this track. It's so intricate and well done. All the humanizing that you've added to each note and the complexity of this track really stand out. It's relaxing, but powerful. Just another great song by you Supersteph, and I could agree that it might just be your best song to date.

Step responds:

Aw thanks man. Glad you liked it! I've just decided that I really like it when people call my songs intricate :3.

Thanks again. Very much appreciated!

[-A New World-]

Amazing Work

Besides the 70's afro-rocking vibe, haha, this song really brings out a great amount of talent and skill that you have to create such a atmosphere. The subtle flute sounds here and there and the horns really bring out the dynamic end of the song, the string and piano add a nice orchestral touch, and the drums have a old school groove to them that just bring the song all together.

Real great work and I can't wait to hear the next song you come up with (after college work of course).

Step responds:

Thanks! I got 9 new reviews in less than a day after sending a PM to you and some of the other guys who added me to their favourite artists list. That is awesome, I'm really grateful!

"Besides the 70's afro-rocking vibe, haha"

Don't forget the "walking in slow motion" part :P.

"this song really brings out a great amount of talent and skill that you have to create such a atmosphere."

Thank you! Atmosphere's one of your strong points too, I loved the atmosphere and progression of Astral Hypnosis.

"The subtle flute sounds here and there and the horns really bring out the dynamic end of the song, the string and piano add a nice orchestral touch, and the drums have a old school groove to them that just bring the song all together."

Awesome, glad they all work out!

"Real great work and I can't wait to hear the next song you come up with (after college work of course)."

College work won't be so lenient in that case, but perhaps this song marks the end of the all-summer-long writer's block I had. Kinda sad that I only got inspiration back AFTER summer ended, but what can you do? :P

I really appreciate the feedback, thanks!

[*In Her Eyes* / ZeRo BaSs]

Amazing.

First off, welcome back to Newgrounds again Zero! Those long hiatuses definitely keep your fans waiting for your next release. Anyways, right off the bat there's a lot of energy in the song, the lead really giving off a heroic feeling. Everything else just adds on ever so smoothly, especially with the synth break at 2:20. Other then that, there's not much I can say besides another song well done.

~Tzu

ZeRo-BaSs responds:

Thank you Tzunami!

[Plains Theme]

Calm, Relaxed, Peaceful, Well Placed...

I'd have to agree with the feeling of hearing Toto by Africa. The combination of instruments that you've used in this piece blend very well with each other, after all, anything can mix with anything as long as it's done correctly. There's nothing really too overpowering: "lead" instruments are loud enough without pulling too much from the whole song, the surrounding ambiance from the strings and nylon guitar especially add to mix and give the song it's sound, and the drums stand out on their own level without drowning anything out.

The piece in general is a real soft but powerful melody that really gives you the feeling of being in the plains, a relaxing sound that I haven't experimented with in so long. It's hard to say what someone could consider as"best", so many different reasons and factors can come into play. I can agree with you, stating this is one of your best songs, if not the best, because of the feeling and story-like properties it gives off. All in all a real nice track from you.

~Tzu

Step responds:

Thanks for the review. Very grateful for it ^^.

"I'd have to agree with the feeling of hearing Toto by Africa."

I've never heard of it before actually. I heard it when TheKeyboardGuy mentioned it and it does have a similar feel, it's true lol.

"The combination of instruments that you've used in this piece blend very well with each other, after all, anything can mix with anything as long as it's done correctly."

I very much agree with that. I used to think that only certain instruments match with each other, so if I planned on making a rock song, then you can be certain that I'd refrain from adding any other instruments which aren't in the standard rock genre. Now you see me adding saxophones to techno songs, rhythm/plucked guitars in soundtrack songs and trumpets to rock songs :P. Glad I got out of that mentality.

"There's nothing really too overpowering: "lead" instruments are loud enough without pulling too much from the whole song, the surrounding ambiance from the strings and nylon guitar especially add to mix and give the song it's sound, and the drums stand out on their own level without drowning anything out."

Glad to hear that, especially because after hearing this song on my new (read: better) speakers, I thought the congas and kick drum were too bassey, rough and loud. Unfortunately I can't fix anything in this song though because as luck has it, I lost the project file when my computer died...

"The piece in general is a real soft but powerful melody that really gives you the feeling of being in the plains, a relaxing sound that I haven't experimented with in so long."

That's exactly what we were going for!

"It's hard to say what someone could consider as"best", so many different reasons and factors can come into play. I can agree with you, stating this is one of your best songs, if not the best, because of the feeling and story-like properties it gives off."

Personally I'm mostly proud of the blend of the instruments. This is the only song of mine so far which makes use of a steel (rhythm) guitar and it probably has my most original instrumentation. That and I got my ego boosted by a lot of my friends hearing the song and liking it :P.

"All in all a real nice track from you."

Thanks man. I really appreciate the detailed review!

[-Dancing Flame-]

I'm really feeling this.

This small song feels like it could be a lot longer. For being completely out your zone, you did a great job covering the feel and sound of latin music. The guitars are on spot and the "sax" section feels right. It actually makes me think a little less of it being one genre and maybe pushing into another, but that's just me.

Percussion is on spot, melodies are right where they should be, everything is in place. A very good job you've done on this track.

~Tzu

Step responds:

Thanks for the compliments. I'm particularly happy that you think the 'sax' section sounds good, it's by far the hardest part of the song which I worked on.

Glad you like it, and I appreciate the review :).