Before I say anything, I want to say that in no way am I a professional music critic of any kind. And it's really tough for me to be critical of anyone else's work, because I'm not even sure that I could do any good at all with this challenge myself. So be sure to take anything I say with a grain of salt. I'll just try to give my initial thoughts that come to mind as I listen to each song.
Ok, here are my judgements!
RayWonder - From The Shadows - I love the instrumentation in this song. It definitely has a very epic feel to it. As I said before, it sort of seems like a boss battle sort of song, which is suitable for the challenge. I like the intro and outro percussion sounds quite a lot. One very minor complaint would be the repetitiveness of the main rhythm part, but the melody is fluid enough to make up for it. And given how quickly this was entered, that is hardly anything to feel bad about. This is definitely a great piece!
KeepItSimple - Escalation - I like the synth sounds in this, especially the bass part. The pitch shifting and "laser" sounds give this an interesting feel. Sort of whimsical, maybe? The ending, with the tempo increase and the sort of frantic way the melody is playing with the pitch wavering around is a cool effect that gives a good sense of urgency. The transition into the tempo change was done nicely as well. Again, maybe a little repetitive on the rhythm side of things, but since it's a fairly short song, it's not a big deal. Great entry, overall!
Lauchsuppe - Escalation Rag - This style of this one caught me off guard, in the best possible way. The mix sounds great, with the crackle of an old timey analog recorder, and I like the piano sound quite a lot. I like the melody you came up with, and the tempo increase and franticness at the end is just great. I guess my biggest complaint would be the robotic feel of it. But I hate to be picky about that, because it also sort of gives it a unique feel as well. So maybe it depends what sort of situation the song was being used for (maybe like a steam punk robot racing game? lol). This was cool though. Unexpected and very interesting.
pgil - Act 2 - It helps a ton that you had a clear vision as to where you wanted this piece to be in relation to another (presumably) imaginary "act 1" music. It definitely put me in the right mindset for this song, and it helped me see what you were going for. I like the percussion going on. The pads are very nice and pretty, and I like how they fade in and out. The flow of the song is nice, it never gets stuck on one part too long. Cool instrumentation, I like the little things mixed in from time to time. I can see this in an exploration type of mission in an open world style game. This is definitely one of my favorites from this challenge! Great job!
Judah Roydes - Things are Heating Up - intensity right out of the gate, I love the orchestra sounds used in this quite a lot! I'm not going to lie, I'm a sucker for a nice guitar riff, and this has some very nice guitar riffs in it. Mixed in quite nicely with the orchestra as well. Nice job interchanging the guitar solo with a string section lead to end the piece. I like the rock drums when they come in, but a very minor thing I would like would be for an occasional cymbal crash. Of course, that's minor, and isn't something that dramatically changes the overall feel of the song. I can see this being used in a action game boss fight sort of situation. This was great, well mixed and well written. Keep this up!
Peregrinus - Sin Revealed - I always love a well done orchestra sound, and this is no exception! Cool piece. I like the build up, and the ending doesn't let down. It really gives the feeling that some bad stuff is about to go down. Like things are opening up, and it's time to get into action! This is good. It feels like cut scene music to me. I'm not sure if that's a complaint, but I still feel like it fits the challenge very nicely. Very good!
- A video is cool, I wouldn't mind seeing more things like this in the future! Since you didn't expressly write this for this challenge, I won't criticize it with respect to how it fits with the challenge. If it were to be used in a video game, it feels more like a cut scene or credits rolling type of song. I do see what you mean with the increase in intensity though. But anyway, I like the song. It's nicely written, and nicely played. Good job, and thanks for posting it here!
SabreDance - Escalation - I can definitely see what you were going for with this one. It works quite well, because there is a frantic pace with the song. I like the filter on the drum part. The sort of string sounding melody part sounds nice once it comes in. This is pretty good. It is a little repetitive overall, but of course it all depends on where this song would be used as to whether or not that's really a bad thing. Very nice!
And The Winner Is:Judah Roydes - Things are Heating Up!When it comes right down to it, this was the song I came back and listened to more than any of the others, because it's a fun and intense piece that really establishes the idea that... well... things are heating up. Also, personal taste is a large part of it, as I said, I'm a sucker for a good guitar riff.
Honorable Mentions:RayWonder - From the ShadowsI really do love this song. This was a really fun listen, and impressive how quickly it was entered. I wish I could pick multiple winners, 'cause it was very tough for me to pick anything over this song.
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pgil - Act 2This song did a great job of putting me in the mindset that I was looking for with this challenge. Such a well written piece for the challenge, and I really did enjoy listening to this song.
Great job everybody though! It's certainly no easy task to enter one of these challenges. You should all be proud of yourselves for sure! Now Judah, get on with the next challenge already!
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