Liontamer Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 (edited) The Mad Gear Cameron Chiles Sonic Spinball "Toxic Masculinity Caves" Toxic Caves https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkWUJfIotfU Originally composed by Howard Drossin Edited January 21, 2019 by Liontamer closed decision Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 The brass timing felt behind, exacerbated by that part being so upfront & loud compared to any other instrumentation, as well as the delay effect. The panning was also too wide overall. Otherwise, this was a good cover with nicely personalized instrumentation. Structurally, this was repetitive, but none of the performances were cut-and-pasted, which was a plus. That said, more melodic interpretation somewhere would have been nice, or at least a real resolution around 2:23 for the finish instead of just stopping. Even though it's short, this is most of the way there because the instrumentation was personalized and expanded; now you need some combination of even more dynamic contrast in the performance, more substantial melodic variation, and a genuine ending/resolution to put this over the top. Adjusting the volume and effects on the brass writing as well as not making the panning so wide would also help. Nice work so far, Cameron, definitely don't drop this one, you could definitely get it passed; it's just a combination of smaller arrangement and production issues adding up to hold this back as is. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MindWanderer Posted August 28, 2018 Share Posted August 28, 2018 I can't disagree with anything Larry said, though I'd weight my concerns differently. The brass feels slow and the overdriven bass guitar feels fast. I did feel like it was overly repetitive; at 1:41 I thought there was going to be a creative solo, but I had to wait until 1:59, and it was super short. And the ending is certainly a letdown. I also felt like the drums were too loud, especially compared to the basses. It's a good foundation, but more than anything else, those teases of more creative content should be taken to their natural conclusions. The drum writing is great, and there are some nice riffs that just peter out too quickly. Have fun with it, tweak the balance and timing a little, and I think you should be gold. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkeSword Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 Spent too much time on this game as a kid. I like this track but I have some issues. The delay effect on the trumpet reminds me a lot of Thievery Corporation, which I love, conceptually. But I feel like the problem with the trumpet line is that it all sounds slurred. Need some stronger articulation not just on the attack, but also on the RELEASE of the notes. I get what kind of sound you're going for here but the timing on the trumpet's really gotta be tighter. There's a sloppiness to the performance that's really exposed by the delay; all the flubs are amplified. Performances were good but I feel like the bassline and the kick+snare got lost in the hats and cymbals. Could use some attention on the mixing/levels. NO, resub Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts