ValveDriver

Spiv. How are you doing, man?

I like this one. If I had to describe it to someone who has never heard your work, I would tell them to imagine as if Nivek Ogre and Mothersbaugh founded RevCo. Not to minimize your creative talents by comparing, but rather to say your abilities sit in good company.

I like the sense of urgency in this. It's like a manic feasting, or compulsive consumption.

I'm still amazed at your abilities to use full analogue. I might be able to figure out how to produce a sound. (singular), but I'd definitely get lost trying to figure out routing, and patching. Therefore, I have a healthy respect for your work. I tip my hat to you, sir.

Take care.
Aaron.

Neo.

Dude.

Seriously, man. This track spoke to me. It's the perfect amount of psych, space, and melody. It's droning sub, the slow movements. Your use of atmospheric synths are impeccable. They are placed so well, that you don't really notice all of them. But if you were to take them out, you would definitely miss them. It's super wide open, spaciously speaking. It's nice and mysterious. To me, it's like what I imagine being adrift in space without a ship is like. But, not one of those Major Tom mishap drifts. The kind you'd take if you could, just to be completely isolated from everything, while being totally at one with it all.

I had to download this. Funny thing is, it's over 4 minutes long, but it could easily be another 4.

Highest praises from ValveHalla on this one brother!

Take care.
Aaron

Hot Damn, Bromeo!

This is like Primus fell into a Vat of Van Halen and used Edgar Winters' towel to dry off.

Funny thing is, if someone said, without telling me who it is, to "listen to this" I would have known right away that it was yours. You have a signature sound that you take with you on every track. That's a good thing. It makes it yours and yours alone.

Good lord, that ending is a heavy one. Bravo! Yes. this is definitely your heaviest one yet. At least of the ones that I've heard. I need to get caught up on everyone's new tracks. Link me the ones you think I need to hear for sure!

Talk to you later, Dewd.
Valv...er, uhhhh. Sloe.

This is good. It's not exactly my preferred style, but the mix is clean, and sounds nice and clear. The panning is good. Nothing overcrowds anything else, and the vocals sit well. The bass sounds a little heavy, but that might just be these headphones. They are a bit bass rich.
Overall, good work.

Welcome back to producing!

Take care.
Sloe.

Orlando, How are you? Well, I hope.

Often times, I begin a track with no idea where it's headed. A lot of the times, I try to build something similar to thi in the sense that it's a minimalist, drumless soundscape. But that creative force that lives in me always brings forth the driving beat. Just once, I'd like to create something as ethereal, and captivating as yours. Maybe you're much more at peace with yourself that I am. Which leads me to ask the question: Does the creativity reflect the state of mind, or does it influence it? When you create these pieces, do you let the music channel through you, or do you bend the ambiance to your desire? Myself, I believe that music has always been here. Long before we were, and it will be here long after we're gone. We are nothing more than a vehicle for it to be presented to us. We give it it's voice. But, there are those who simply let it flow through them, and then there are those, more like myself, who, although let it flow, bend it to fit my own agenda. Your pieces are almost always so calm, and reflective, where mine are always aggressive and driving. Even in the more "fluid" works. It's interesting that yours, and mine, evoke such strong emotions in the listener, but they are so far apart on the spectrum.
At first, I didn't really listen that deeply to your work. But much like a truly good cup of coffee, there are so many complexities, and elements that go into it, that it takes time to fully learn and appreciate everything involved. I'm glad I kept coming back.

Thanks for sharing, my friend.

Take care.
Aaron.

Topvega, how are you, man?

This is a great track! I kept seeing comments about vocals. Personally, I don't think it's really set up for vocals. There's a lot of guitar in there! That's not a bad thing, either. Funny thing is, when it first started, my brain went to John Lennon, then to Iggy Pop, into Mick Jagger, and then finally Josh Homme. The music is such a perfect blend of all of them, that any of them could fit in perfectly.

Excellent work, man.

Take care.
Sloe.

Such a commanding intro!

Your layering here is impeccable. It reminds me of an oncoming storm. I like the introduction of so many different instruments, as if they're all just waiting in line to perform their hearts out.

Honestly, Orlando, I think of all of your work that I've heard, which is quite a few, by the way, this one might just be my favorite.

The mix/mastering is super clean, spacious and rich. Excellent work. Keep it up, my friend!

Take care.
Aaron.

Evan, Mister Evan. What's happnin' your way, man? How was your Thanksgiving? Pleasant, I hope.

Remember that time I said you're on the verge of breaking through into that sound that's all your own? Well, my friend, you are well past that threshold. Granted, this one still has some pretty hefty nods to those who's name shall remain unspoken, but it's like the equivalent of my "Red On The White" in that sense. It's got a strong Floyd vibe, but it's not intended to sound like them. Ya know?

I have to agree with Tumbleweed, man. This one is clearly your best yet. I kind of feel like saying this on damn near every track you put out cheapens the meaning, but when you come back with each track, it's improved far beyond the last. The composition, the mixing, the instrumentation, all of it is exactly how it should be.

I have no critiques, criticisms, or suggestions, man. You nailed it as far as I'm concerned!

I'd still love to do a collab one of these times. You know, put in my synths real Sloe like right into your Bass hole...er, uhhh....NO HOMO! I need to go wash off the filth now.

Later, man.
Aaron.

"War. War never changes.

Since the dawn of human kind, when our ancestors first discovered the killing power of rock and bone, blood has been spilled in the name of everything: from God, to justice, to simple, psychotic rage."

-Ron Pearlman as the Narrator of Fallout3.

As frightening, and devastating as it is, war is necessary. While I don't welcome war, I welcome the potential it brings afterwards. It's like a forest fire. It may burn the forest down, but the ashes leave the soil enriched for a completely new growth of healthy life. We have reached a point in our time where our understanding of technology, and social equities have outgrown the primitive attitude toward them. Mentally, we still live in the dark ages wielding pitchforks and torches at anything that seems "different to the masses." The generation coming up now has an advantage that those of us born before 1980 don't have; Understanding. An understanding of fairness, simplicity in work ethics, technological advancement, and I believe, the ineffectiveness of the old world political beliefs. If we are truly on the brink of another world war, I have high hopes that the "millineals" will rebuild the human race as it was meant to be. With compassion, kindness, and peace at the forefront.
I've always said, "Times change. People don't." I'm hoping to be proven wrong."

Oh....wait, this is supposed to be a track review. Not a philosophical ranting platform. Let me just climb back down off of my soapbox.

Onto the track review.

The concept:
A good one. It's obviously thought provoking, and touching. Which is exactly what art is supposed to be. There is definitely a story told, and the music is fitting for the emotions you're trying to convey.

The composition:
You managed to pack in 75 years of war into under 5 minutes. It wasn't rushed, and everything played it's part well.

The mixing:
I think, mainly due to, what I assume is a lack of experience, the mix was a little crammed. Almost everything sits directly in the center. If you had panned them out it would have created a much more spacious, and dynamic sound. Which, let's face it, war is spacious and dynamic.
The laser sounds, some of the synths, and a few of the sound effects are, however, panned nicely.
I think some of the levels could be brought down a little. There are some things that overstep others. Remember, when mixing, it's always better to bring the volume of one thing down, than to raise the volume of everything around it.

Overall, man, I give this a thumbs up. You're doing good things here. Keep it up!

Take care.
Sloe.

Hey, man. What's happnin'?

I think your definition of "heavy" and mine differ greatly. But, with all that low end going on, I can definitely agree that this is a heavy one.

This is a clean track. Everything is placed exactly where it should be. Nothing crowds anything else, and everything is buried in the mix. You have a great balance of sounds that cover the range. There's heavy low ends in the subs, good mids in the pads, and synths, and highs in the chimes/bells. There's actual melodies, not just a bunch of spliced wubs, growls, and screams. it almost reminds me of something I would do. Like Soundhound said, "This is musical..."

Excellent work, my friend.

Take care.
Sloe.

I wouldn't say it's the worst track ever. Incomplete, but not the worst.

Hey man. What's happnin'?

This is great. It's got a late 80's/early 90's industrial feel to it. Which was exactly the time I was into it, so I tend to like this one quite a bit.

It's definitely a pretty dark tune. The beat is solid and drives along nicely.

I agree with Cru. The phone samples are a nice touch.

As far as the mix itself, it's very clean, and everything is spaced perfectly. I don't hear anything crowding anything else.

Good job, man!

Take care.
V.

Yeah. You may want to think about investing in licensed software. It generally doesn't come with the glitches that cause your projects to crash, or make things more difficult than they need to be. Oh, and the lawsuit stuff. It doesn't come with the threat of lawsuits, either. All that, plus, it's not looked too highly upon around here.

I'll swing by later to give a more indepth review. I use FL studios, too. So, I should be able to get pretty detailed.

Again, Take care.
V.

Keep it. Just spend a little more time with it. It's not a bad track at all. It just needs a little more attention.

There's a lot of clipping in it. Which means it's too loud. I know loud is good in Dubstep, but too loud is not. I'm assuming you have your instruments, drums and synths assigned to their own mixer tracks. If not, do. From there you can adjust and balance out your levels. pay close attention to which frequencies are the loudest in each instrument. For example, if your kick drum and your sub bass are both peaking in the 30-50hz range, cut that range a little in your kick, You'll still get the kick drum pop, but it won't be competing with the sub bass. Ya know what I mean?

Also, from your mixer, you'll be able to play with the panning. Because, as it is now, everything sounds like it's just piled up in the center. Not only will individual panning and stereo separation give you some sweet dynamic movement, and fluidity, but it will create a more spacious mix. But most importantly, it will clear up some of the overlapping frequencies that contribute to a lot to that clipping.

I'm not going to go too far into detail on the specifics, because I don't know what kind of set up you're using, or if you'll even reply to this with anything more than, "Thanks bro. Laterz!" But, if you seem genuinely interested I'll add more.

Take care.
V.

Evan. Dude. This is now completed badassary.

The Wah section is much better. It fits in there like it's supposed to now. Good job.

The ending seems to be more clean. The added guitar over the fade out works.

It's definitely much more solid now. Not that it wasn't before, though.

Thanks for the extra guit-fiddle tips. That's the kind of stuff most people don't think to tell you. They just say, "Get this pedal. Get that Pedal." or "Buy stuff for making the things do the stuff." or, "you don't already know how to play, so I can't help you." Assclowns.

Anyhow. It sounds like you enjoyed your 4th just fine. If I could still burn the green, I would. My wife can, and it kinda makes me envious sometimes. We had a decent time. We had a group of friends and family over for a big-##### BBQ and blowout bonananaza. Everyone went home full of food and beer, and with all their fingers still attached. So, I'd say it was a success.

Again, awesome reworking here, mister!
Take 'er as she comes. Easy, with any luck.

Aaron.

Hey man. What's up?

Normally, I don't click on the Hip-Hop genres. But for some reason, I just decided to go ahead with this one. Totally at random. But, I'll tell ya what man, I'm glad I did. This is a pretty sweet tune. The panning of the pads and accents give it a lot of motion and dynamics. The mixing is crystal, and it's, overall, a pleasant tune. It's nice and bass heavy, but it's not aggressive. This could probably fit in the Atmospheric and Chill Out genres as well.

It would be interesting to hear this piece with some of Tumbleweeds fluid-like guitars weaving in and out of it.

All in all, excellent work, mister. Keep it up.

Take care.
V.

Hey man. What's up?

It's kind of cool to see a horror based dubstep track other than mine floating around the ol' Loop. Your choice of horror samples is from an excellent source. I think there were about 3o zombie movies before Romero's Night Of The Living Dead, starting with "White Zombie" back in 1932. But, Romero's was the one that changed the face of Zombie flicks, though.

Not a bad little tune here. It needs a little work, but it's not bad at all. I think for me, the thing that stood out the most was the lack of variation and breaks in the drums. But I like the more laid back approach to Dubstep. It works for me, too.

Question: Are you creating this all from scratch, or are you using loops? Or, a little of both?

Take care.
V.

Mr. Evan. How it be, man?

First, I just want to say this is a solid track. Everything, so far, is quality. The composition, the mixing, the instruments used. I have quite a bit of good, (and a minor suggestion or two.) to say about this track on it's own, and a few opinions related to things covered in previous comments. But, as it is, I've been awake for about 20 hours now. To try to attempt any intelligible word usings with the brain and the face and the typing of the things that make words and stuff...would just lead to the equivalent of a literary version of a Jackson Pollock painting.

Or the musings of a schizophrenic.

I will be back in the very near future to construct a coherent review.

Take care, Amigo
Aaron

Eyedye, hello.

This is a quality piece. Mostly. I would suggest bringing the volume down just a touch. I sounds like I can hear some clipping throughout the whole piece. Super easy fix, though.

As far as everything else goes, excellent work. I would absolutely vote against additional vocals. The choral work that's in it now is powerful enough to carry it through. Adding anything else would completely take away from that power, and end up minimizing the rest of the track.

If you don't mind me asking, what are you using for the choral samples? Is that a Soundiron product?

Take care.
V.