Battle of the beatz 2007 - I: reviews by Noctuary
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 16:36.
Nicely atmospheric intro. Loving the edits n reverse hits. The half-time drums: a bit o' variation would be good here, just a few changes in the kick drum pattern, or even a hint of dnb-speed hats or something. Vox sample fits well.
Fucking hell...Those synth bass parts are incredible. God knows how you got the sounds for that, but they're fucking top notch. Liking the change in drum sounds at the end of some of the phrases (the introduction of the ride n whatnot). Bass is pounding my head to bits .
Back into the half-time...I still think that these drums let the track down a bit, esp. since the other drums are so expertly programmed. A bit of variation and edits/cuts on these half-time drums'd raise this track up another notch.
Chuffing excellent stuff. This compo's getting harder n harder to distinguish between the outsandingly good stuff and the expertly good stuff. Fuck...
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 16:30.
I was just about to sit back and chill for the intro to this track, but the beats n shit kicked in before I had a chance! Would o liked the intro pads to be extended a bit longer, maybe for 8 bars, then drop the beats. Pads're lush though.
Awesome drum sounds, proper rolling beats; loving the ride. Are there two drum tracks going on here? If there is, or multiple snares/kicks were layered, I think there's a slight delay (talking ms here) on a few of the hits...something sounds a bit flabby, but I can't say exactly what it is; it's def. the kick or snare...Anyway, doesn't really matter, it's a minor point!
Bass is nice n round, sits perfectly; not too loud and not too quiet, just right.
Sweeet vibes on this one. Proper wake n bake music, kudos.
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 16:25.
Loving the intro atmospherics on this one. That 16th note bass synth part is some heaaavy shit. Some awesome distorted mid-synth lines, too, wkd sounds. The snare sounds a tad too loud, though...somewhat overpowering when I whack the volume up high, a poss. pitch up on the snare would be good too, sounds a bit too low/deep atm.
Mm, nice breakdown.
Haha this is some crazy shit...Really loving the sounds in this, top notch stuff. It does sound a bit too busy in places, but that's probably just a personal thing more than a production thing.
Damn good first track in the compo, sets the standard pretty high. Excellent stuff. Would o' given it a 9/9.5 if it wasn't for that snare 
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 17:02.
Ooh, quite a High Contrast feel to this one. Maybe that arp synth is a tad too loud...just waiting for it to drop to see. Yeah...it is. Drums need to be brought a bit further up in the mix, too.
This is another case of production problems faulting an otherwise awesome tune. I can definately hear the potential this track has, esp. with the chord changes in the synth/bass and the way they play off each other, but the track as a whole just sounds a bit stunted because the drums're too quiet, the arp is too loud, and there's not enough bass to the whole mix.
Don't mean to sound negative; I find it much easier to criticise tracks I really like.
Oh, and it was too short . Maybe another section (poss. in the middle) with some rising strings chords (with a bit of attack on them) and variation in the main arp synth would've brought a proper sense of catharsis to the track.
Still, all that aside, I like it. A lot. Damn good track!
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 16:57.
Wow, I liked this one from the moment it began. The synth line is a bit like a huge slab of stilton to the face, but I like it. Vox samples are wkd. Kick's got a hell of a punch. In fact, the whole drum track is pounding my head to pieces, love it.
The track is a bit too 'jump-up' for my liking, but I can appreciate it nonetheless. The production is so sharp and crisp...Absolutely nothing I can fault with it.
Liking the breakdown, esp. that LFO'd filter synth (haha, not sure if you know what I mean, but it's the only way I could describe it), a nice bit of chill in the middle of a dancefloor stomper.
Yeah...another good one! Nice work dude.
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 16:46.
Rrrrroll the beaaats. Sweet drum track.
Mmm, liking the bass. Was hoping that it'd expand into something with a lot more variation, and it did. Brownie points for that 
Pads're lush...they give the whole track a more liquid vibe and provide little moments of chillaxment, but for some reason the growling bass still fits in with the pad. Strange mix of liquid and dark, but it works.
Hm, there is something missing from this track...I don't know what it is, but it sounds a bit empty in places. Maybe a mid-high/high lead would fill in the gap?
Still, that said, it's another fine track, nice work man 
Submitted by Noctuary on Mon, 2007-04-16 16:40.
Hm, the pads n efx flying around in the intro are great, but the drums let it down a bit; some hits sound a bit *too* obviously programmed...not sure why, but they do.
Loving that squeal of a synth.
Hm, the drum track is a bit too quiet...the kick comes through nicely, but there's just not enough punch to the snare; in relation to the high squeal synth part, the drums're just pushed too far back in the mix.
Haha, loving the vox sample treatment...though the main vox sample is repeated a bit too often; a bit of efx variation (filter cutoff or something like that) would be good.
Despite the lack of punch to the drums, and a few other production issues (volume of different parts mostly), the track shows promise. Good stuff
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