Aminet 22

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Text File | 1997-10-21 | 107KB | 1,877 lines

WMR (Reviews [week #08]) __ __ __ | \ __ ______/ |_ | | | o \ | | | / o | \ |o | | \| o| |o _/ | o\ []=======| |==| \ |=| |/ | \========[] []=======| |==| \ |=| | |\ \=======[] []=======| |==| \|=| | |=\ \======[] :: | | | \ | | | / / :: :. | | | |\ \| | /| |/ / :: : | | |/\ | \ | |/ | | / : | | / \| |\ | | | | / :. | | / \ | \ | |__| | / .: :: | |/ \| \_| | |/ : :: | /\ | | __| |\ :: []=======| / \ |=| |==| | \==========[] []=======| /| \ |=| |==| | \=========[] []=======| /=| |\ |=| |==| | \========[] |o / | | \ o| |o | | |\ o\(mansooj) |_/ | o | \_| |__/ | o | \__/ |___| |___| (Originally compiled and added on December 30, 1996) (last updated 09.29.97) -----========================================----- -----================================================================----- "King of the Rainforest" by ToalNkor of RealTech (16ch IT, 05:14) (forestki.zip [339K/480K]) [Jungle/Ambient] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Rebriffer 84= 80 70 70 80 Fanta C 81+ 82 83 85 74 MING 77+ 85 60 80 65 Peraphon 69= -- -- -- 80 ESP 68= 73 69 75 74 Mansooj 63= -- -- 65 60 CCerberus 50= 43 53 55 52 /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Initially this sounded like a promising module, with its somewhat slow jungle-ambient opening, but early on, one gets the impression that there's something a little incongruous between the sounds you hear and the implication of the song's title. First off, there are both wave, and I think, wind sounds in here, what the heck were those supposed to relate in this context? Shouldn't they have been RAIN and perhaps the subtle calls of jungle fowl and animals (note the word subtle...)? Secondly, most people relate rain forests to the Amazon in South America...and to be fair to ToalNkor, this is a failing of many people not to recognize the fact that there are rain forests in many locations, including parts of equatorial Africa. However, the problem stems from the fact that the song's overall tone seems more inclined towards an Amazonian mindset, but there are some VERY annoying native style voice samples used here which are clearly African in origin. Often, mixing ethnic sounds is a clever move, because it can add effective contrast, but in this case it destroyed the song as a whole. It wasn't the use of voice samples, which in this sort of song is perfectly valid, it was the very poor quality and presentation of those voices. They were far too loud, sounded discordant and flatly out of context with the underlying music. To me this problem was so blatant I can hardly believe ToalNkor would sit back and say to himself, "this is just fine!" Of course, by way of giving a little slack, in his sampletexts he did mention that the African voices were an experiment (miserable failure, in my opinion), and that this module was done in less than 2 hours. He also apparently thinks this is sufficient as a disclaimer for people not to "take it too seriously." Okay, fine. MY disclaimer as a reviewer is that it's my obligation to take it seriously. Frankly, my main response to this attitude is "why the hell did you bother to release it if you felt it probably wasn't very good?" This rush-it-out-the-door attitude is responsible for two things: a huge outflux of pure garbage (this isn't pure garbage, but it does smell some), and a morass of modules that may otherwise be quite good, but are partially or completely destroyed by simple composer apathy. The WMR project could be considered an advocate for the listeners by taking this sort of laziness and slapping a scarlet letter on its chest for all to avoid. Or to be more kind, for all to be aware of before potentially wasting one's time. Now all this aside, the remainder of the module was pretty good. There wasn't a lot to it, as if it served as a foundation for those horrible voice samples, but it had a good junglish rhythm and was pleasant overall...but only in its own context. A tempo increase about two-thirds through was well placed and effective as things were beginning to drag, and the voice samples, already grating, were becoming intolerable. Perhaps without the voice samples I would consider this worthy of something more than "pretty good," but with appropriate voice samples, appropriately placed and appropriately used, this could easily have easily been presented far better than it did. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-------------------------========[ ESP ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This sounds a little out of control at times, which is a shame, because it's an entertaining piece otherwise. It begins and continues with a sample of the roaring sea, foamy breakers washing up a steep beach, and this does sound pretty good. Far too lo-fi, though, because after a while (particularly noticeable when the main parts of the track are also present), the waves sound far too insistant, rough and crackly. A smooth washing sound would be far easier on the ears, and, I think, would be far more in keeping with the lush atmosphere which ToakNkor tries (and succeeds at times) to create. The rain sample could be equally criticised: too harsh, too much like static, not organic or individual enough for rain. The title is aptly chosen, for the lush tropical greenery of the living rainforest is indeed an image which is summoned. There's a good, almost pizzicato, pitter-patter effect employed for parts of it when the rest of the noise gets too prominent. This effect creates a sound which is reminiscent of heavy raindrops escaping from leaves, and superbly reinforces the theme. Respect is due to ToakNkor for having the guts to sample his own voice, it does sound decent at times, but unfortunately, the off-timing which manifests itself when the vocal samples are pitched up or down does spoil the effect, and it is quite plain that the samples are not professional. Nevertheless, really quite cool. It really starts moving with a big beat about three and a half minutes into the track, and this gives it a new lease on life. The water sounds which were really getting too much to bear, lose some of their insistance (unhappily, it does return later) and intrusiveness, the track taking on a far more uplifting feel. The ending is a disappointment, it just kind of fades out uneasily, just as it was really beginning to fizz. On the whole, more level control is needed. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Fanta C ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Question: What does the sea crashing against the shore have in common with a rain forest? Answer: nothing (errm, as far as I know). That's how this track starts but, fortunately, it gets better. This is a clever track in its own way, combining a nice jungle sound, with 'African'? voices which creates a suitable atmosphere. But, like all 'vocal' tracks, when the pitch of the voice alters, the timing changes too, which just sounds a little odd. Naturally, some of the voiced phrases either do not complete, or are simply dragged out too long. The only way round this problem is to sample at a different pitch, which adds to the size of the track, so sometimes this isn't an option. However, in this case, maybe the author could have dropped the sea crashing on the shore in favour of another voice sample (or two) at a different pitch, thus improving the vocal timing? Bitchin' aside, I'd guess from the text in the samples that the voice used is that of the author and you have to admire that! Progressionwise, it works very well. I loved the change towards the middle of the track, where the tempo increases whilst subtle instrument placement changes and fadeins take place simultaneously; very smooth and quite original. Instruments used are as you might expect with a track with 'jungle' in the title: bongos, flutes and woody instruments, but also some well mixed electronic, flanging sounds, which I always find interesting. The Bongos/percussion are played very well right throughout, creating almost two tunes in one; indeed all the instruments are handled confidently. Maybe this track _might_ have been better without the vocals? I feel that without the timing inaccuracies introduced by the neccessary pitching of the voice this could have been quite an outstanding piece of work. Even so, it's quite refreshing and may be worth a download. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Rebriffer ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ The track starts with some very gratifying seashore sounds, and then heads straight into a long, drum driven intro sequence that makes full use of IT's stereo facilities. Good start, I scribbled into my WMR Reviewer's Complimentary Notebook, I hope it stays like this. It does indeed, and then some, or rather, it gets even better. The sounds used throughout were excellent choices, although the "flute" sound (which I loved) tended to break up a little when I tried to do anything else in Windoze. There are a lot of extremes of panning in the mix, and although it mainly worked I found it grating after awhile, probably because I prefer the mix to *breathe* and move about a lot more than it did. The African vocals sounded as if they were homemade, but not too bad for all that, and seemed to fit into the track well enough. The music itself didn't really do a lot for me, all a bit to epic for my liking, but there again I'm a weird cuss like that. Real good effort, though, and well worth downloading for something slightly off the beaten track. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ I'm not sure I've heard anything quite like this before. The song has a definite tribal feel to it, mainly from the drums and the use of certain vocal samples. It also feels somewhat ambient, and these particular bits are very smooth. The samples used are of a very good quality also, and it is good that the speech samples do not make the module exceedingly large. I'm not really sure if I can recommend this one based on previous experience, but if you, as a listener, react well to music that's a bit divergent from the norm, then by all means get this module and try it. Don't try playing this through Cubic 1.7 with the IT loader...it does not react too well. It sounds as if the music has been put through the wringer and then had a heap of white noise added. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Seems like a better name for this song would have been "King of the Seashore"--I think it's way too "whooshy" to relate a rain forest setting. Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't the rain forest areas in South America, not Africa? This song uses several African voices which seem out of place to me. While I'm on that...the voices are poorly synchronized with the music, and they detract from the overall sound. This isn't a terrible song, but it's not very good, either. It DEFINITELY doesn't take advantage of the IT format. This is a classic example of using as many channels as possible to no apparent musical end. The song could have been done in 8 channels. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Okay, here's the short version: nice concept and composition with a few major technical bloopers. And the long one: a total lack of panning or at least a channel neutralisation is annoying, but if I don't care about that part, the idea behind this mod is simply great. The vocals sound very homemade, but that doesn't stop me from hearing the chanting of an old tribal chief somewhere in front of a bonfire out there in the bushes. Nice congas and a nifty flute too. -----================================================================----- "Endless Heaven" by Karsten Koch (20ch S3M, 03:05) (im_heavn.zip [232K/395K]) [Dreamy/Soft Rock] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Fanta C 100+100 100 100 100 Peraphon 91+ -- -- -- 85 Mansooj 89+ 75 -- 80 88 TheKid 80+ 80 80 70 70 MING 72+ 65 90 70 80 CCerberus 67= 70 70 61 78 /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ What we have here is a very pretty soft rock song with a lot of character. It might be a little too sugary for people who are locked into the techno/rave/etc. mold, but to me, as one who likes melody and dreamy style synths and such, I must say this is a creation that bears the marks of an expert hand. Karsten floored me with his cover version of Jarre's Chronologie Part IV, which to this date, still represents the single best cover piece I've ever heard come from my computer (and I've heard legions of them by now). It's also one of the best modules I've ever heard, period...but, this isn't that module. However, this one also represents the high quality that Karsten routinely aspires to. All samples are perfectly harmonized; the relative volumes are balanced; each sample does its part to further the emotion of the song (angelic choir, sweet bell tones, clear low-tone synths, excellent percussion...); nothing seems out of place...it just drips with skill. There's a lot of imagery involved with this, ultimately, somewhat simply constructed song. You get a sort of cloudy, weightless feel along with an upbeat triumphant emotion. This would serve as a good tonic for people in a foul mood. I can't imagine someone not lightening up and calming down after hearing this song (of course, there are a lot of naturally dark spirited people in the world who don't react well at all to anything with positive emotions...). One more to add to my sadly small assortment of KK modules. I think the bottom line is that I flat out love Karsten's work, partly because he usually hits an emotional spot in me, and partly because his output is so consistently polished and classy. Endless Heaven is just another in a litany of such gems from this German maestro, get this one, and hunt down anything else he's blessed with life--this particular example is great, but there's even better to be had.... --- References --- Jarre:CHRONOLOGIE P4 by Karsten Koch ([download]) /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Fanta C ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ I'm sorry, but I just _love_ anything by Karsten and this track is no exception. I've had this one for yonks; it still get's played at least three or four times a week. So now you're thinking this is a completely biased review, and therefore not worth the effort. Hopefully, I will explain the reasoning behind why I love this track. To the review already! This is simplicity incarnate. Really, I have slagged off so many tracks for picking on a melody and repeating it over and over ad nauseum. And do you know what? That is _exactly_ what this track does. The difference here is that the melody seems completely designed just for that purpose, which is why, in this case, it works. Not only does it work, but it works fantastically. The second reason it works so well is because the production and composition style also suits the melody to a tee. Karsten seems to instinctively know how to orchestrate around a melody to produce the perfect result. The final reason this track works so well is because Karsten simply puts so much energy and professionalism into the track. Each and every repetition of the melody is different. He has literally used every trick in the book. There are little FX samples, multisampled voice choirs, seagulls, key changes, little spot instruments, tempo changes and more. All this coupled with a real catchy melody results in a true winner, as far as I'm concerned. Thus, at first sight, it appears quite simple but after listening to the track a few times you will realise that you are actually listening to quite a masterpiece. As with all great tracks (and make no mistake, this is), it's a case of making something quite complicated appear and sound simple. Just listen to the string section about halfway through and you'll, hopefully, see what I mean. Alternatively, listen to the bass and percussion. True music. True orchestration. Download. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This piece of music is, in a word, fantastic. I can only describe it as a kind of heavy atmospheric with a somewhat spacey feel to it. The song is full of vibrance and energy, which makes me, as a listener, feel full of enthusiasm about this piece. 20 channels are used here, which may seem slightly extreme to some, but I guarantee that all channels get a thorough workout in this song. The composer has made almost full use of all resources available. The samples used are of a high quality, and fit the ideology and purpose of the song perfectly. Notable are the background samples; at all times, they complement the song and do not interfere with or overpower the foreground set. Perhaps the best of the background samples is what sounds like an angelic choir; excellent. The percussion could have done with a bit more variation, but this is a very minor point in an overall sense. Some of the loop points in the samples are a bit dicey too, but are hardly noticeable. Never boring, this song is definitely a must. Yet another to add to the collection! /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ TheKid ]========------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Gee, I think I have heard this song before. Was it Kitaro, Yanni, or that french guy, Jarre? It is amazing how close this module came to perfectly capturing that New Age/Techno sound. Take a repetitive, synthy bass and add a generic drum machine beat. Then lay some happy major chords down and a synthy twinkle-fairy melody, and you have a New Age Synth song. Hey, don't take this the wrong way, that formula is EXACTLY how it is supposed to be for this type of music, and it works! This style is not supposed to stand out with an "in your face" attitude, it just has to be cohesive, and it is. The 16 tracks and massive swapping from the fills does lower the overall volume, but at least the samples were clear enough that pumping my amp up did not add any unnecessary noise. Karsten Koch has done the job of making a mod NOT sound like a module. There are no errors that can be attributed to the fact that this is a music module done on a computer. You will not find any timing loops, sample cut-offs, or poor fades. You will, however, find a good stereo mix and quality samples. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Mr. Koch has once again proved that he has one extraordinary skill, and lacks another one totally. The weave of sounds and harmonies are nothing but perfect, and the result is very beautiful and very enjoyable--for about twenty seconds. Then he fails totally in building on it something more lasting and interesting. It just keeps going and going, the same notes and the same loops over and over, with hardly any distinguishable variations. To make a long story short, this is the most beautiful of all the boring songs I've ever heard. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Hmm...this is difficult to explain. This song has a very COMMERCIAL sound to it. It sounds like it would make excellent background music for a game, or perhaps a "flying scene" in a fantasy movie. There's good coverage of all frequency ranges, and the panning distribution is great. I'm not a HUGE fan of this sort of music, but I would have to say it is good overall. -----================================================================----- "This E's For Me" by Schizoid (13ch S3M, 08:21) (jbthis_e.zip [182K/363K]) [House/Acid] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== CCerberus 82= 79 88 91 84 Ka'PQat 80+ 80 90 60 95 Skullsaw 75+ 70 80 70 75 ChroMix 74+ 79 80 84 57 Mansooj 72= -- -- 60 75 MING 61+ 52 62 67 67 Rebriffer 60+ 60 65 60 70 /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Ka'PQat ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This module is a very mellow, sorta trancey acid-house tune that mainly uses those rounded-buzz samples, in this case, very wet and juicy-sounding ones. It begins with them in the bass register, where they sound very warm and velvety, with a precision, crystal-clear house beat. The bass line reminds me of the AdLib music that plays in the game Tubes, a feel of mild or slightly humorous, self-conscious dark but warm intrigue. Then in the higher register, a precision-syncopated 5-note tune very reminiscent of old Depeche Mode (DM) is overlaid, and more DM feel is added by a sample sounding like a cross between a bounce-bowed cello and blowing on a bottle, stiffly pecking on minor 3rds. Chords of a muffled, soft and throaty house organ add more punch and ricochet. Minor variations on this theme continue with no repetition of patterns, it builds a little with the pluck/bottle sound doing a solo of tongue-rolling retrigs at octaves, then it collapses to just bass and percussion. Synth strings fade in, also adding to the DM-ness of the tune. Then they begin to arpeggiate noisily, kinda like an old demo tune, and they are a bit out of tune on the flat side. Once again, it collapses to bass only, with a hissing cymbal joining the rhythm, and this time the bass line takes on a more ominous and gothic tone, the arpeggiating strings fade back in, then jump to the foreground purposely detuned to give a little more wild-haired touch. This continues with various elements fading slowly in and out. The strings end on a note wavering and bending downward as it fades out, the organ punch returns, and there is a nice moment where the syncopation of the organ with the round buzzy bass coming out from muffled to hard gives a moment of more rolling fluid, unfolding, snake-rising-out-of-the-darkness feel. A retrigging snare fades in, then all the previous elements except the strings begin to return, building the complexity, the pluck/bottle sound goes to a higher register, now seeming more to be an instrument plucked by human fingers, to an unusual and intriguing rhythm and tone. A ride cymbal and more percussion elements build a bit of tension into this laidback piece, and the mellow, wet, buzzy sounds syncopate away in 3- and 4-part harmony echoing the organ. Then, one by one, the elements fall away until just one soft buzz is left bouncing on one note for a few seconds, then it abruptly ends. This would have been perfectly satisfying if it had ended echoing, but the sound just abruptly cuts off. Minor goof, it sounds like. I notice in the above description I rarely mention percussion. It is, in many ways, almost unnoticeable because it is so perfectly done. Once you start listening to it, you do notice a lot of variations and tricks that are used to greatly enhance the other effects, without which they would not have been able to convey the feel that they do. I would not call this piece terribly original, but there is a lot of originality simply in the absolutely impeccable tracking, and certain elements you almost don't notice on the first listen I have never heard anywhere else. It is in a well-worn style, but I guess, makes itself subtly original in things such as the exact tone qualities of its samples...like an old song sung by someone with a bit of an unusual (yet beautiful) voice. Very good musicianship in the cohesive flow and sound dynamics of the piece. One strange thing about it is that on the first listen, even though no 2 patterns are exactly alike, it seems rather monotonous and long-winded. But once you have heard the whole piece and the direction it's going, especially the last half, which is not monotonous at all, it then doesn't seem that way on the second listen. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ ChroMix ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ When I first heard this song, I didn't like it, but now that I've heard it a few times, it's kind of grown on me. There are some good things about it that I really like, and some things that really bother me about it. The song is basically a collection of movements, which, despite being of almost completely different styles, are all strangely related. The first is a distasteful little acid/swing kind of thing that really would have been better with some other nicer samples. The acid samples used are terrible, but underneath you can kind of hear a really cool melody develop, which also would have sounded better had he been more choosy about his instruments. Next comes a rather nice house sounding movement using some house-organ sounding chords that really work well, and are a strong basis for the movement. After that enters some cool demo-esque synths that have a rather cool build up, but nothing much at the other end--very disappointing. The song is filled with stuff like that. Schizoid's development techniques are cool, but could really use some tweaking in various places. There are still other movements after that, but they aren't quite as clear-cut, so I won't go into them. The ending is kind of cool where elements from all of the movements combine to form a sort of off-the-wall "movement reunion," creating a sense of finality that the song needed. A very original piece. It's good to note that the author appears to be staying true to the style of music that he loves. However, his sample choice and overall development really brought the song down. Altogether, though, it's nicely done. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Rebriffer ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Schizoid is yet another artist who writes a special note to humble MOD reviewers like yours truly, asking us to be nice and not put people off downloading the track. Honest, what is the point of reviewing otherwise? We at WMR pride ourselves in being as fair and straighforward as possible in our reviewing procedures but, let's face it, a dog track is a dog track. Let's get one thing straight, we *all* release this material for ourselves, it's our own egos that demand that they be treated fairly. Fact of the matter is, as many people are going to hate your track as like it, so it's just something we all have to come to terms with. It's part of the cost of releasing your own material in any form. Uh oh, is this going to be a slice-'em, dice-'em exercise, you may ask? Well, Schizoid narrowly avoids the ultimate bloodletting, but only just. The track is propelled by some neat percussion touches, especially a hi-hat/clap combination that works real well. Synths burble along nicely, moving the track towards what I expect should be the track proper. It doesn't quite resolve itself, so I experienced a sense of "Okay, where's the hook then?" After a third of the tune had gone by, it became apparent that it doesn't have such a thing, unless, of course, you like extended rave/dancey type exercises. Even that doesn't always work because I wanted the samples to be several degrees more solid than the samples used in this track--the tune certainly demands it. In summary, this isn't as bad as I'm painting it. Sure, it has some niggles, but if you happen to like extended rave tracks then this may be right up your subwoofer. The samples, particularly, are bright, well defined and well placed. For this reviewer, however, I would have preferred samples with a little more 'toughness' in them. Still, not a bad effort, but not one I'd want to listen to a million times... /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Skullsaw ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ House with a sprinkling of acid is what I hear in This E's For Me. It's all quite routine but well executed with some nice touches here and there. The usual suspects are present, namely simple bassdrum, fluttery hihats, clap and organ stabs. Twitchy acid synths pepper things up throughout as well as some very tasty percussion flourishes. Included is an impressive breakdown where a ride cymbal is thrown in and an ethnic percussion sample does a bit of a solo. What kind of brings the mod down for me is the melodic synth parts that are introduced about halfway through. Luckily, a nice change in the bassline is introduced for a change. There's some nice coding in here including a lot of volume slides, rapid retriggering and some echo type effects. Well, there's nothing all that new here but what there is is executed very well. Extra points for the excellent drum parts--a lot of variety instead of the usual endless thumping. As far as the samples go, their quality is just fine, though they're not all that fresh. Yeah, go ahead and give This E's For Me a spin if house is your thing. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Okay, okay, okay, it has a nice, twisty sound, a simple but good rhythm and a kind of an attitude, but must it go on like that forever? The first ten patterns or so are great, but then it just seems to be eating time, trying to come up with lame excuses for continuing. Throw in a new sound, play it for ten seconds, then switch it for another sound. And on and on and on.... Some parts here 'n' there are really good, but couldn't Schizoid skip all the looong trips between them? One thing's for sure, though, judging by the attitude of the song and the included text, I get the feeling that it's made by someone who isn't schizoid, but rather someone who knows what he wants. The problem is that I can't quite figure out what that is. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Is Ecstasy a form of acid? I think so, eh? The title is appropriate then. You get hit with acid from all sides for the early part of this module. There's also a definite house overtone which I rarely care for, and fortunately, that part doesn't last too long. Instead, it climbs into a more appealing acid/techno style sequence accompanied by some synthwork. The house bits resume somewhere after this part but are less distracting by then. All parts taken together provide a pretty good result. Not a great deal of originality, but it is wholly listenable, albeit a bit long for this sort of music...though this does have a smidgeon of trance-jungle feel to it as well, so perhaps it's not...you decide. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Let me start off by saying that right smack in the middle of this song is one of the coolest synth interludes I think I've ever heard in a module. That aside, the song has lots of other strong points, not the least of which are the really interesting samples. There was enough variety in the song to actually keep me actively engaged in listening to it the whole time (which is difficult for music of this sort to do!). Overall, the song has a genuinely UNIQUE sound, and that's something I really appreciate in music. It also sounds dark at times, which is another thing I find attractive. -----================================================================----- "Hypnosis" by Kotivalo (16ch XM, 03:06) (koti_02.zip [346K/613K]) [Light Rock/Demo] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== WolfSong 72+ 77 60 72 79 Mansooj 72= -- -- 60 70 Peraphon 73+ -- -- -- 60 CCerberus 68+ 74 59 66 50 MING 55= 60 65 30 50 Skullsaw 50- 60 50 35 85 Fanta C 45+ 65 63 50 68 /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ WolfSong ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ With a name like "Hypnosis" I was half expecting something boring with some kind of sound that was supposed to have a hypnotic-like effect. I'm glad I was wrong. No folks, this is an actual song with actual music in it. Realizing that that isn't necessarily saying much, I should add that it is a good song with good music. The thing that struck me immediately was the sound itself. The samples, while not of slightly more than dissapointing quality, seem to compliment each other very well. I'm particularly fond of the bass samples here. It is sometimes difficult to get a bass sound that can have enough high end overtones to be distinctive and yet have enough body to fill the low area and hold the chords nicely. Whether the composer ripped the sounds or made them himself, this is a good example of a bass end that covers everything. Actually, the instruments seem to fill out the song very well. There is a perfect balance of highs and lows, background and foreground, the main result being that everything can be heard very clearly and it just plain sounds good. The song itself seems to be a bit dancey as well as hinted with rock. In some areas, it seems that some rock techniques are used, but with sounds you might hear in a dance song. The chords are dynamic and are great for supporting a melody, which they do...and a catchy one at that. On a catchy scale of 1 (forgot it already) to 10 (it's even playing in your dreams), I'd say it's somewhere around an 8. Actually, there are a few different melodies here, each with their own main instrument and theme, and all are quite nice. Why do I call them melodies instead of solos? A solo is an obviously instrument-based line of notes that form the focal point and are what the chords support. There are a lot of slides, textures and effects that are caused by hands or breath, and the notes are usually faster and have a good bit of a "show-off" factor. A melody (at least in my definition) is almost the same thing only it doesn't have all the effects and quickness, and actually is something that you could be filled instead by a voice singing lyrics. What does all this mean? I have no idea, but either way the melodies were a pleasure to listen to and were very much a part of the song rather than being something that might seem to have been an afterthought. Speaking of effects, I think that's the low point of this song. There could have been quite a bit of improvement to the melodies and the overall sound if some carefully placed effects had been put in. As it is, it might as well be in mono--there were no panning effects that I could hear. Perhaps adding some vibrato or volume effects to some of the sounds would have added some character and a bit of excitement. From what I can tell (and I could be wrong, of course), this composer has been a musician much longer than he's been a tracker. Overall, I thought this was a good song. It has its little pitfalls but they might not even be noticed by someone who's not hunting for something to pick on. Thumbs up on this one. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Fanta C ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Well, it starts great, and you think you're going to get something good...you don't. You're kept waiting for the big "break" which never comes. On the plus side, it's reasonably well put together, and there's nothing wrong with the samples (as you would expect for this format), but on the other hand, it's a simple melody extended through some 3 minutes via a series of key changes. I found it got boring after some 27 seconds, and after about 45 you've heard the whole thing barring some effects samples. I think the basic problem is that there doesn't appear to have been any "work" put into this. The melodic structure is underdeveloped; the drum pattern seems to be straight out of an early 80's drum machine (as is the bass line); the synth "horns" are about as original as electrosynth horns can be in the 90's (i.e. not very original at all). It just didn't do much for me. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Skullsaw ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Welcome to the '80s. All of the sounds from that synth-crazed decade can be found right here in Hypnosis. Yes, hear the Simmons toms go "dyew dyew dyew." Hear the Juno 6 arpeggiator as it spits out a stream of sixteenth notes. Revel in the glory of simple chord changes played by impeccably sampled synths and a drum machine. Seriously, this could be the backing track for an ABC or Frankie Goes To Hollywood song. It certainly is an upbeat little number with familiar progressions and sounds. There's nothing to shock or surprise a listener, it's all very safe. This module is well crafted in all ways. The samples are very clean with a full bodied sound. The arrangement is precise and orchestrated with taste. The big problem here is that this music sounds dated. It's not bad by any means, it's just not all that inspired; still, I think there's a certain charm about it. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Not bad at all, it just didn't seem to have a kick to it. It moves along well, and is a mostly demoish tune with some light rock influence. For whatever reason, I can't find a lot to comment about, good or bad. Many of the samples seemed familiar...as if ripped from some of the better old Amiga 4-channelers. Although this isn't really a down point, as the samples aren't inherently bad, a selection of newer, higher quality samples would have improved the presentation if not the composition. In general this is a good solid bit of module music, but it doesn't stand out from most of the somewhat above average stock. I suppose the most appropriate terminology to use would be "pretty good." /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This song is pretty good. I found that I had to turn the volume up on my soundcard though, because the sound volume was a bit too low. It may be that the composer was trying to achieve a quiet effect, but the song itself doesn't really seem to fit being quite so quiet. I don't know how to categorise the style, but I would call it a light rock piece...nothing else seems to fit. There seems to be an adequate amount of changes throughout the song to keep it interesting. The samples are not too bad, but the low sample volume led to a bit of breakup in the lower frequencies. All in all, this is a good, solid piece of composing that is worth a listen. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This song had many of the same strengths as the old 4-channel MODs: a pleasant theme, an engaging rhythm and simple sound. However, it is from that same "simple sound" that the song suffers the most. I feel that the song sounded a bit underdeveloped on the sample side of the story...like the samples were actually old rips from 4-channel MODs. That's not really BAD in and of itself, but if I have to complain, that's my complaint. ;) /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Basic; very basic demo material. Simple, yet effective drumming. Quite complex and effective background. Very simple and not at all effective melody. This is just yet another, although well-tracked, tune that passes by without a trace. Give me a day, and I won't ever remember what it was called, and even less what it sounded like. Minor hint: use it in a demo, and it might be worth listening to. -----================================================================----- "Crimson Eyes" by Pariah of V.S.L. (14ch XM, 03:47) (p-crimsn.zip [217K/467K]) [Rock] If you haven't heard it yet, it's a rock song. I'm not a rocker (no offense to those who are) yet I appreciate and respect all forms of music. Most of my inspiration came from Aahz The Demon's [CARCASS] song "Daydream" which is a rockish type of song with wild solo work, and a hard driving feel...so all due respect to Aahz. [Pariah] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Peraphon 87+ -- -- -- 65 CCerberus 83+ 90 88 89 46 Mansooj 83+ -- -- 75 73 MING 83= 85 60 75 75 Fanta C 78+ 80 80 82 70 WolfSong 76+ 88 80 79 63 FrizFry 65+ 76 68 71 25 /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ WolfSong ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Here we have a heavy metal song that's both a triumph and a tragedy. It has everything that metal fans need (except for vocals, of course) from a very articulate drum performance to crunching guitar riffs and bass characterizations. The composition is pure metal and very deeply thought out, weaving in and out of heavy, head slamming drives and spacious, bridge like rests. The composer kept the energy up throughout almost all of the song, leading right from one arrangement to the next with ease and style. Solos were smoothly executed with the use of portamento and volume effects, and the balance of the song, as far as volume and panning was concerned, just right. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if Pariah has had a lot of experience with a real metal band. The whole construction of the song has an experienced flow that you just can't get working exclusively with a tracker. That was the triumph. If you've read some of my other reviews you might have guessed already that the tragedy is...yup, the guitar samples. I've said it before and I'll say it again: it's nearly *impossible* to make a sampled guitar sound anywhere near decent. Because of the make up of the electric guitar sound, it cannot be sped up or slowed down without it coming out sounding manipulated and very fake. So unless a composer is planning on using the guitar samples at the exact same speed it was recorded, you can count on it sounding nasty. Unfortunately, this is not what the composer had in mind. In fact, he deviated the guitar samples from their original recorded speed by whole octaves at times. Now others might not share my opinion, but for me this lowered the enjoyability of the piece by a great bit. Had the guitars sounded more natural this might have been among the best heavy metal modules I've ever heard. However, if you find that this doesn't bother you then definitely go and get this one. Almost every other aspect besides the guitar was put together very nicely, and I have to admit that I like it quite a bit despite the guitar problem. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ FrizFry ]========------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ From the start, it's obvious that this is a serious rock song. Not quite metal, but definitely hard rock. From the excellent leads to the generic rock rhythm, this tune is pure ROCK. The use of the solo guitar in the song is extensive, and in most cases is used effectively. The drum work, however, needs a little polishing. I think this is more because of the LOUSY drum samples Pariah used. They are, quite frankly, crap. From a high pitched, fake sounding snare drum to a computer generated-sounding bass drum. As a matter of fact, the whole song suffers from a mean case of bad samples. In his sampletexts the author said he was trying to make the song sound as real as possible--I'm sorry, he didn't succeed with those samples. The rhythm guitar is very weak, sounding computer generated and downright out of place. The lead solo guitar, while sounding VERY computer generated, actually sounded good at times...but at other times also sounded out of place. If this song had some GOOD samples, it would have been twice the song it is. Overall, I would recommend this song to anyone who likes hard rock because there's a shortage of quality hard rock/metal tunes out there and this one, while the samples lack, is a good example of how to TRACK a rock tune, but it's also a perfect example of a good composer's song going south because of bad samples. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Fanta C ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Okay, let me come straight out with this: it's quite good, but it would've been excellent with a little more work. Pariah does easily manage to infuse variation throughout the whole piece, which is a creditable achievement with this type of rock/metal style. There's classic drum work, well thought out harmonies, a reasonable melody and a full sound stage. On the down side, I have two minor complaints. First, the lead sample gets slightly monotonous about halfway through the track. Very Rick Wakeman rather than Lead Fender. Secondly, I feel another "rhythm" sample should've been taken "further up the neck." Don't get me wrong, I struggled to find any problems, but I can't help wondering why these rather obvious "faults" weren't fixed before release? Worth the modem time? Yes, but you'll need 300 watts to appreciate it. :-) /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Hey, Pariah is right when in his accompanying text he says his lead guitar sample sounds like a synth. In a way this is sort of an interesting effect, but it's still essentially ineffective in helping to convey the rocking nature of the song (it dulls the rock edge as most synth sounds would). Even so, there's some very good music here, and Pariah manages some interesting percussion moves to jumble things up and infuse more life into the piece. Pariah says he tried to give it a live feel...well, I don't think he managed it. The synthy lead guitar is definitely the most detracting point here, since it has the usual sub-echo ring to it that makes it sound like the "live" band is in a ten by ten recording room. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ I love this! This song is great! It's been a fair while since I've heard a metal piece that matches the calibre of this one. The construction of the guitar is very good indeed, and very realistic. The percussion is pretty good also, but I think it's let down slightly by a cymbal sample that could've been better--a little bit "crackly." This is an isolated thing, but it doesn't diminish the fact that the whole percussion routine would've been much improved by a better version of that sample. One thing I noticed was the decay on the lead guitar sample...it seemed just a little bit too high. The rest of the samples were good. Overall, if you are an afficionado of fine metal, this is definitely one to download. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ The composer claims that the goal was to make it sound as close to reality as possible...in that he failed almost totally. Except for the drums, I'd be VERY surprised if I heard this song being played by a live band anywhere. Soundwise, it's even more plastic than most -techno- releases I've heard. Anyway, this doesn't mean it's a bad piece of music, the opposite is the case really. In fact, it's great! Speedy, catchy, and musically very well constructed. Rock 'n' Roll a la demo scene. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ HAHAH! YES! A straightforward rock/metal module! However, I can't be all smiles about this one, because although I thought it was compositionally terrific, the samples were not so great. The snare sounded like crap, the rhythm guitar sample could have been much better, and the lead guitar was absolutely terrible. But please don't get me wrong: I really, really enjoyed this song, and I do feel that, overall, it's a good one, and is definitely worth the download if you collect metal modules. -----================================================================----- "Obsession" by Stinger of Streamline Vision (20ch XM, 03:28) (sv-obses.zip [217K/387K]) [Acid/Techno/Trance] (Emotional Trance) Here is tune which is dedicated to all you people out there you who have been in love with someone for ages but haven't been able to achieve anything else but personal anguish and torment in loving this person. [Stinger] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== ChroMix 82+ 74 -- 85 76 MING 80+ 75 75 80 75 Rebriffer 75+ 80 60 70 60 Mansooj 73+ -- -- 75 75 Skullsaw 50+ 50 60 30 70 /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Rebriffer ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ I looked at the coding on this boy before actually playing it, and approached it knowing that I was dealing with a track from a relative FT novice. As far as I could see, the amount of coding was virtually nil, and I suppose that contributed in some way to my making a misjudgment about the track itself. As I started it, I was fully expecting to hear something not quite 'finished.' Which all goes to show that in this coding-obsessed MOD world of ours, appearances can be incredibly deceptive. What actually emerged from the speakers, however, was a very competent, and surprisingly mature, rave track that proves once again, that it really is the music that counts. Okay, so it's fairly standard fare for the genre, but I think anyone with even a passing interest in the ever-growing league of 'dance' trackers that Stinger is well worth a looksee. Obsession is the kind of track you could well imagine being played on an ad for the perfume of the same name. Very nicely handled. More to the point, I could have sworn I heard an old Who riff in there.... However, I do have a couple of negative things to say. I don't think people will appreciate being told that "I don't give a fuck whether you like this track or not" as is done in the accompanying sample notes. Most MOD fans I speak to already know this to be one of the immutable laws of MOD--it is, after all, how it all started. Secondly, the choice of samples is more than a bit dated and finally, I understand all about the brown stuff life hands out freely, the last thing I want to see is you displaying yours. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Skullsaw ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ "I don't give a f**k if you like this or not...." says Stinger, the composer of Obsession. Phew, that's a relief, I'd hate for him to hold this review against me. Stinger seems to be a tormented soul, at least that's what he implies in his comments. Cool, I thought to myself, as I do tend to like my music dark. I soon found that he wasn't the only one who was feeling tormented. The tune does indeed start off on a dark and foreboding footing with an ominous rolling synth line followed quickly by a low-end synth drone and four by four bassdrum. Soon we have another synth over the top with what sounds to me like a slow, gentle filter oscillation. A splash of sampled speech here, a drum voice drop there and we're done. The main problem with this trance(?) tune is nothing happens once all of the pieces are built up at the beginning. Just dropping out parts now and again does not, in my opinion, make good techno/trance/etc. I like a good droning trance tune, hell, I make a lot of them myself, but I just found this one lacking in ideas and compositional technique. The saving graces of Obsession is it's fairly short running time, good, if uninspired, samples and its truth to its form. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Acid to the left of me, acid to the right of me! Where's the techno? Oh, there it is! Despite the fact that this module's heart follows a well-beaten path, there are some good transitions involved, as well as some nifty cameo samples that show up rarely and give it a push in the filling out department. It's nothing to rave about (although with enough drugs...), but it's not hard to get into. I actually can't see why 20 channels were needed. This definitely sounds like the sort of module that could fit comfortably into 8 channels and probably even in 4. In his sampletexts Stinger states flatly, "I don't give a fuck if you like this or not. I made it for myself." Bullshit. If you didn't give a fuck you would never have been moved to mention the point. Good thing one can ignore the occasional juvenile attitude and still enjoy the music for its own sake. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ ChroMix ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Hmm...I kind of like this piece. I've written songs like this as well...out of frustration, out of pain, out of loss. Stinger did a good job of expressing that, and it's duly noted. The sampletexts potently describes those feelings, and really gives the song a deeper meaning. Well done. My only complaint, of course, is that the song isn't as powerful as it probably could have been, although, don't get me wrong, it's still not bad. If I were to remix it, I probably would have added an overkill section allowing that desperate-sounding melodic synth to totally whisk the song away and create a sort of explosion of emotional depth. That, however, never really happened in the song, but it came close. As I said before, good tune, but there's a bit of room left for improvement. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ A seemingly endless loop of blip-blop just keeps going and going; eventually some drumloops and beats are added, some strings and some plinking. What do we get out of all this? More than you'd think from the foregoing, rather dry sounding progressions--a very good piece of acid-techno. The effectiveness of this sort of music depends entirely on one basic thing: timing. If parts of the song come up too fast, it won't have the hypnotic effect it needs. If, on the other hand, there's too much time between variations, it risks becoming boring. This one didn't fall into either trap because the timing was right, and it's consequently able to keep a grip on the listener all through the song. -----================================================================----- "Moonwinds" by Garfield of Radioactive Design (14ch S3M, 04:07) (vmc1moon.zip [226K/305K]) [Soft Rock/Ballad] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Peraphon 88+ 77 -- -- 80 CCerberus 80+ 76 71 80 82 WolfSong 76+ 69 60 74 70 Mansooj 75= -- -- 76 75 FrizFry 74= 72 67 70 80 Regulator 70= 73 65 60 80 MING 70= 55 70 70 80 /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ WolfSong ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Ahh, this is a nice song. Very easy to sit back and relax to. Possibly one of the only things that separates this from an upbeat New Age song is the percussion, which, I must say, is nicely done. Often, the things that makes a song sound good or bad are the parts where the composer goes out on a limb to be original or impressive and either gets away with it or bombs. It sounds like the composer wanted to stay "safe" in this song. He stuck to what he knew would work and left it at that. The result is a smooth, solid piece with nothing that seems out of place and nothing noticeably "wrong." The problem with staying safe is that because the composer didn't seem to want to take a chance with it, there's nothing really outstanding about it either. To write an excellent song you have to throw it all out in the open and either sink or swim. Garfield seems to be content to stay on the beach. Honestly, though, it's good to see someone out there with a sense of moderation and what might make a better song as far as the general public is concerned. Of course, style is good, but it's considerate of an artist to attempt to create a piece of work that can be enjoyed by others too. The song does do a bit more than just "work." There is quite a bit of character and emotion in it. The arrangement of soft pianos, soaring strings, breathy flutes and synth bass make it a visual piece. Enough to stand out from the crowd. I thought the samples could have been better. A sacrifice on quality really stands out in the song's most prominent bass instrument. The song also seems just a bit repetitive. Though, in this case, it's not all that bad because what's repeating is quite pleasant to listen to. Checking this song out would by no means be a mistake. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ FrizFry ]========------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This song, while not excellent, does have a good beat to it, but is still essentially an ambient song that kind of makes you feel dreamy/dreary when listening to it. The sample quality is good, however, I find the use of a "tick"-sounding bass drum doesn't work for me, though it's not bad enough to be a problem itself, it just could have been replaced with a much better sample choice that would have filled out the percussion sound overall. The synthesizers are all quality as well, as is the snare and the majority of other samples. In general these samples were used well, with some really nice synth work, but I think Garfield stumbled a bit on the drum track. The beat gets somewhat repetitive, and he overused a ride cymbal sample that became a little annoying after a while. Better to have turned the volume down, or just have used it less often. Overall, this is not an awe-inspiring piece of music, nor is it technically superior, however, it is decent, quality ambient/dreamy music with the rather unusual addition of a noticeable beat. If you're at all into music like Dreamscape or most of Skeeve's work, check this tune out...it's worth the download. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This song is brilliant! If I had to put a style to it, I'd be inclined to call it atmospheric rock. I've always been a great fan of piano pieces, especially when they're done in such a way as this song's been done. I feel that there are aspects of the song that have a spacey kind of feel to them, and this helps create the overall effect of this song which is excellent. The song construction and execution is great; very solid indeed. I was able to listen to this song for over 40 minutes without it boring me in the slightest. The samples used in this song are of a high quality and all samples used fit the song well. A strings sample used in the background gives the song its atmospheric feel, a feel that is very mellow and relaxing. I think the composer did a fantastic job in converting the idea and vision of the title into a piece of music. I would recommend this song for downloading without hesitation. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Classical moody stuff, but with a sound that's a little bit different. Nice flute, organ and bass instruments are shown off, but the flute and organ definitely could have had more complex melodies to spin on. It has an easy feeling to it and that makes it very enjoyable to listen to. I really can't make up my mind here...does the good bass make up for the crap flute melody? Or does the great drumming stand alone as a reason for liking it? Hard to say. Since I'm responsible for providing some sort of judgment for the benefit of those reading this, I'd have to say this is a good song, but one that could have been somewhat more complex. In a way, the fact that it is still good, without being very complex, and having main melodies of somewhat questionable quality, probably means something.... /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ At only 30 patterns one would think this song wouldn't last more than a couple of minutes or so, but it toddles along beyond the 4 minute mark. The tempo is fairly slow, but not plodding, although it just barely managed to dodge it a few times. A deep bass synth accompanies the various lead instruments throughout, serving both as tonal support and the main conveyor of most of the song's obviously intended emotion. Lead parts include flute, synth-organ and piano, all of which were used fairly well. However, the sample quality of each wasn't stellar. The high and low tone synth mixture that enters about two-thirds of the way through came off the best of the set, and also served to lead into the simple, but effective piano conclusion. Overall a worthy attempt at a soft rock ballad. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Regulator ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ A contribution for Infinity Music compo 1, offering a slow and romantic piano driven theme; one that manages to wander easily across the listener's eardrums. A warm background and well fitting piano/synth leads unveil a smooth harmony. Unfortunately, there's no self-sampled instruments in this song, but you could say this shows the tracker's fine sensibility in selecting samples. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ The percussion in this song immediately struck me as being intelligent and "real-world correct." Also, the distorted bass guitar sample is one of the coolest I've heard (so I promptly ripped it, of course! ;)). Nice orchestration. My only complaint is that the song tended to get a bit repetitious at times, with some parts of the song being looped a little too much. -----================================================================----- "A Song Without Words" by Porus (16ch S3M, 03:09) (withoutw.zip [224K/540K]) [Soft Rock] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Fanta C 88+ 86 89 85 92 MING 85+ 75 90 85 88 CCerberus 80+ 84 91 91 89 Peraphon 72+ 81 -- -- 67 Regulator 72= 63 70 75 80 Mansooj 71= -- -- 75 70 Rebriffer 65+ 70 80 70 65 /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Rebriffer ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Wooahh, some extremes of pan here...but some very, very good acoustic guitar samples (made by the composer, even!) I must say that I have a certain amount of respect for composers who take the time with the sounds used, and obviously Porus recognizes this essential requirement. But, wot o wot about the song? It's a nice noodle along Acoustic Alley and pretty much the sort of thing you would expect from a guitar player--in other words, it's nice but not that nice. A pleasant kind of laziness comes through the song but even that will not be enough to sustain interest. Taken from another standpoint, however, the track really shines. The sample and coding work is extremely good, so obviously this is a composer who knows what's what. Therefore, the only conclusion I can come to is that this is just not one of this composer's *better* MODs. It's worth checking out, mind you--but only if you just happen to come across it.... /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Not too bad at all. The number of channels used allows for good utilization of the guitar samples, which results in a song that sounds very close to being "real." However, I don't think it comes very close to the standard set by Jogeir's Guitar Slinger for acoustic guitar mod-realism. The song sounds very well structured and tracked, though there are some sudden cut-outs in the guitar, which detracts from the realism of the sound. The samples are pretty good, and seem quite appropriate to this type of sound. This song does get a bit boring after awhile, as riffs continue to be used and reused throughout. Nevertheless, this is still a good song. Worth trying, for sure. --- References --- Guitar Slinger by Jogeir Liljedahl ([download]) /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ An acoustic guitar soft rock piece all the way, although at a point just shy of 2 minutes it gains weight for a brief period through a slightly incongruous drum solo. Generally, there's a nice consistent sound to this piece, but I fear it remains a little too consistent for its own good. That roughly translates into the fact that it is a bit mono-dimensional. Unfortunately, it was also a little bit dull and sleepy. These two points taken in combination nearly equate to saying this song is boring. One sample note to tie things up: there were a few spots where the guitar sounded sour; most obviously when the "second" guitar sample gets used at pattern 27 or so. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Fanta C ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This track causes me grief. It's almost perfect in every way. The grief comes from the fact that it simply requires too much listening! This is its one downfall; the complexity of the composition detracts from the music. If this song had a slightly more accessible melody, it would probably be more well received. This is not a track that you'll find useful if you like working whilst playing modules in the background. If you're looking for a quick melody, forget it, however, if you're looking for masterfully designed composition and nigh on perfect samples all wrapped up in expert timing, then download this one immediately. Well played Porus! /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ A very realistic sounding mod which could easily be reproduced on stage with two, maybe three acoustic guitars and a drumset. Trackers go unplugged! Amazing. Still, the sound is not being kept up by a melody worth mentioning. It has some good qualities, but still, a seemingly somewhat randomized set of notes causes it to never gain any real hit potential. It remains on the same level, with the same feeling all the way through, which makes this excellent song simply boring in the long run. Yes, it does sound strange to use those terms together, but you'll have to grab this one and see for yourself what I mean--it'd take forever to explain it clearly.... /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Wow...this song strikes a truly intriguing, and at times somewhat uneasy, balance between wanting to be a chilled-out, soothing guitar song and wanting to be a hard rock tune. The melodic and harmonic constructs are unusual, and clearly deliberate, a fact for which I have great appreciation and to which I NEVER tire of listening. I was quite impressed to hear a DRUM SOLO out in the middle of this song! As a former drummer myself, I like for my favorite instrument to get some special attention. :) I have some doubts as to whether or not the drum solo played in this song is physically possible, but it sounds cool nevertheless. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Regulator ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ I like to see tracked music featuring guitar samples, because I know about the difficulties with dealing with such samples. Porus made some fine calm guitar samples for this tune, unfortunately he failed to put these samples together in a way that would flow easily through the listener's ears. More than that, in my opinion, the tune lacks clear structures; there seems to be no conceptual "order" within, or I'm just not recognizing it. Even so, the song is still good, it just doesn't realize its potential. -----================================================================----- "Future Survival" by D.Lusion of Lodge (4ch MOD, 06:29) (futuresurvival.lha [356K/508K]) [Industrial/Other] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Skullsaw 85+ 85 75 90 70 Rebriffer 65+ 60 60 60 50 CypherMonk 65= 55 55 65 65 Peraphon 64= -- -- 85 67 Mansooj 47= -- -- 75 50 JRice 40+ 30 40 60 45 PanDuh 40- -- -- 67 85 CCerberus 22= 4 28 64 82 /----------------------------------------------------\ )---------------------========[ CypherMonk ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ It's kind of hard to know where to begin with this one. I guess that I should first say that I did like the the song's theme, and altogether, I found the module interesting. Unfortunately, I don't know if this is exactly what one would call music. I mean, it has a beat and a progression, and there are chords and a melody, but they never quite come together enough to make you feel that you're listening to a song. Instead, it feels like you're listening to a clip from a sci-fi movie. Now, I liked the drumbeat and I also liked the bassline, and those two elements are one of the few things about this module which grabbed me *musically*. Everything else, though well done, did not affect me remotely. Future Survival picks up briefly about a third of the way through, and also again towards the end, but both times seems to lose direction as D.Lusion attempts to intigrate the elements of his *story*. (I'm sorry, but the laser fire has got to go; they don't mix well with what music there is, and totally interrupt the flow.) Both times, the song changes direction just as it starts to get interesting, and leaves you wondering, "Why did it do that?" Now, please don't get me wrong. The module itself is interesting, and there are some pretty kewl samples and F/X that D.Lusion uses to add an atmosphere of futuristic intrigue. Also, what music there is, is not bad. Eerie, off-key whistles and a subdued drumbeat add some nice dimension to the whole thing. However, I think everything would have worked out a lot better if D.Lusion had kept his 'cut-scenes' completely separate from the music itself, and left the listeners to make up their own images about what the song is trying to say. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Rebriffer ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Hey, my favourite: a 4 channel MOD, ripe for the basting. :) This is quite a long track at 6:35 but it manages to raise a couple of interesting ideas. It starts with a space fighter simulation and a voice declaiming "you are the only chance we've got" which is just a tad presumptuous. Still, the intro builds extremely well, giving just the merest hint of danger instead of falling into the more typical "let's make it blindingly obvious" trap. I also welcome the reappearance of the classic Alison Moyet (Yazoo period) laugh sample which, surprisingly enough, is very well placed for effect. Mind you, by the time the track nears the halfway point, I'm beginning to ask where the tune is. Sure, there's some nice key changes and a couple of nice riffs going on but that just doesn't do it for the bulk of committed MOD listeners. The beat finally gets off the floor a short while before hitting the two-thirds through mark, but only for another little wander about. My essential problem is that the track really comes across as a collection of samples strung together, the track appears to have no center that you can hang your musical hat on. The samples too, leave a lot to be desired and I have an idea that they are the original ST samples currently doing the rounds of MODdom. A little more thought on creating a viable track would have garnered a much more favorable review. Most of us like our MODs to have beginnings, middles and endings. It's only awkward ^&$^*£($£'s like myself who like the odd and the different. Unfortunately, this track can't even be counted as either. Workmanlike, but nothing special.... /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ An atmospheric opening, laden with suspenseful tones and eerie sounds presents just about the only thing I can find that garners any plus points at all. The tone tells fairly clearly that this is an audio-story rather than a song per se, and that in itself is fine as it can make for a very engaging piece, but this story is just plain boring. If it were a book, I would have slammed the thing shut before the close of the second chapter. Essentially, Future Survival relates the idea of being on a spaceship or in some sort of metalloid/industrial complex, possibly being pursued by...something, and having some trouble escaping. This story just takes too long to get moving and when it does its imitation of moving, it bears a frightening resemblance to cold molasses. I.e. this is a very dull and lifeless module, period. No saving graces with regard to musical involvement. I suppose the general tone of this module would put it into the industrial category, though the industrial lovers might resist such categorization, since this thing is not at all impressive as industrial or any other style. There's silly, out of place, usage of tootie-flute samples, and occasionally, additional video-game/bad sci-fi movie dopiness from the boopy sounds used to emulate someone punching a code into an access hatch panel. Well, after six and a half looooong minutes, I am happy to hear it come to an end. I suppose -that-, in and of itself, would have been about all that was necessary to relay my overall thoughts on this oddity. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ JRice ]========------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ An interesting mix between ambient and soundscape, Future Survival is aptly named, with obvious influence from Star Wars and the like. As a musical piece, it doesn't stand out, though D.Lusion shows some talent with setting up a distinct mood using several well-orchestrated samples. The story seems to revolve around a futuristic spy, breaking into high-level security areas, leading raids against the enemy, and eventually coming to an untimely demise in one final explosion (perhaps of his own making?). It would have helped the piece, as a whole, if he'd lowered the volume on the bassdrum (which he introduces midway through the song), and removed the shakuhachi sample altogether, sticking to the soundscape end of the spectrum. Several of the (musical) samples were from the 'st03-' family, and thus, low-quality, though there were a few nice samples. One, in particular (an industrial-ish drumloop), could've been used a bit more--it was quite nice. There were a few motifs using a synthy-whistle which were enjoyable as well, but were not taken full advantage of. All in all, there were a few diamonds in the rough in this song, and with some polishing, this piece could have been quite enjoyable. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ PanDuh ]========------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Have you ever seen the introduction to the original Twilight Zone series? Well, it's basically just a starscape, and images float past you to the left and right while the theme plays in the background and Rod Serling narrates. Well, this song, and I use the term loosely, sort of reminds me of that intro, except the theme music is mostly a bassdrum and cymbal and narrations are actually some very nice sounding voice samples from I don't know where. I was kinda interested in the beginning by the random, unusual samples, but it turned boring very quickly and I basically sat around waiting for the end of this journey into god knows where and what. The minimalistic style of this mod is just not impressive, and it's really just much too empty to be considered a song, exactly, more like an exploration into various sound effects and sub-consciousness (or perhaps, more appropriately, unconsciousness.) /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Skullsaw ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Listening to Future Survival is like driving with a bag over your head...you don't know where the hell you're going. Machine sounds, human vocalizations and sound fx abound. For the first two minutes, it's basically a free form sound collage which works very well in setting things up for the rest of the piece. Eventually, some very unusual, angular melodic elements enter above a simple bass drum part. A haunting bowed bell-like synth, strange gurgles and plucked synths come and go unexpectedly. The music evolves smoothly into different sections, and there's a lot of dynamic and textural range throughout. I really like this mod. It's unpredictable, which is very rare in the mod world. The samples aren't of the highest quality but this fact doesn't detract from the music. Download this if you like your music original, not stamped from a mold. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ What style of music is this, anyway?? I must admit, I don't think I've heard anything quite like it before. Different, very different. It has quite a lot of voice samples at the beginning, and the speed of the song at the beginning almost made it sound like a movie theme. There are a few electronic sounds in there too, and what sounds like a factory "nearby." Industrial. The samples are pretty good, and seem to fit in with the idea and implementation of the song. They do, however, seem to suffer at low mixing rates, though. I think with some more channels the composer could have expanded nicely on the idea of this song, but it's been left somewhat thin in terms of presentation. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ CCerberus ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This song is chock-full of interesting and entertaining samples. Unfortunately, that's ALL that this song has to offer. Musically, this is total garbage. Any melody that might seem to pop up sounds like it was totally accidental. There's WAYYYYY too much attention paid to making a big thump with the kickdrum, and almost NO attention paid to actually giving the song any "songlike" qualities! Call me a traditionalist, but I don't care. The only reason I even call this a song is because it's in a song file format. I'm not even really sure what exactly was happening in this song's storyline, so it quite clearly didn't do what it obviously set out to do. -----================================================================----- "Street-Surfin" by Yannis (4ch MOD, 04:11) (ybstrsrf.zip [175K/286K]) [Light Techno/Ambient] Samples -----------------. Originality -------------. | Technical ---------. | | Composition -----. | | | Overall -. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ==================== Rebriffer 90+ 95 90 90 75 ChroMix 89+ 86 89 85 87 MING 82= 84 88 75 70 Mansooj 77+ -- -- 75 75 Peraphon 72= 80 -- -- 80 Skullsaw 60= 60 65 35 50 JuiCe 50+ 50 85 -- 85 /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ ChroMix ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Yessa!!! I love it when I am, by chance, assigned one of my favorite mods. This one in particular I love for its cool, happy melody layered over stylish synths and cool transitions, all backed up with a well-used drum loop. What a tune!! Anyway, down to the nitty-gritty reviewing stuff. The song starts out with some cool-sounding chords and a cool melody that I'll be humming in my head for the next two days. It then rocks into some of that stylish synth and street-sounding stuff I mentioned earlier with those nifty drums that carry everything nicely forward. The best part about this section, which becomes a core part of the piece, is the "du-da-du" horn synth, that really give the whole song a really jazzy kind of undertone. It goes back and forth between the main melody and some breaks, some of which were, I must admit, different, but unfortunately, disappointing. Overall, though, the development was okay, and ends by looping to the beginning, which, as noted by the author, was done just to get the song over with. Technically speaking, this song is a true masterpiece. It makes appropriate use of just about every useful sample I can think of. Very spiffy. Most impressive, though, is his use of the drum-loop which he bends and conforms to whatever is best suited for the piece at the time. It's a nice drumloop just on its own, but he turns it into an entire rhythm section! Well done. Sample-wise, he uses a wide variety of different things, everything from horns to beeps to flutes to guitars, which all come together very well under his fine-tuned tracking skills. Overall, I'd have to say that this song is nothing short of a classic, and, since it has been on my drive for a year (and I still listen to it every now an then) how can I, of all people, deny that this song is worthy of whatever praise it receives? Kudos to Yannis for this great piece. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ JuiCe ]========------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Here's another melodic electronic demo-style song. A very catchy theme backed with sweeping chords opens up the song, then a weak drumloop drops, and we're back to the theme, followed by some variations. And then more theme, more variations, and so on and so on. After a while of this, I got the feeling of "gee this tune has been playing forever." I took a peek at the timer, and it was only 2 minutes into the tune?!!? I don't know exactly what it is, but there is something terribly wrong in the overall structure of this song. It sounds dragged out, boring and uninteresting, although, actually, the bits that make it up are very good. Perhaps all the little (and not so little) flaws in the structure add up to create this negative impression. There's the lack of contrast, because the stuff just keeps on coming; there's not much in the way of breakdowns and buildups, not to mention a climax. Then there's the constant repetition of the main theme in between the various bits, and the lack of variation in the chords. Finally, the song just changes too often. The variations just come and go, before you can get into any of them. All that manages to make a lasting impression are the constantly repeated main theme and the chords. It's really a shame because this song is full of excellent ideas and sequences, technically well executed, and boasting high-quality samples (except the drumloop). I won't be keeping this one, but if somebody remixes it someday, to improve on the structure, I'd love to have it. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Rebriffer ]========----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ One of my favorite trackers, and a long term ABSM contributor, Yannis delivers consistently interesting MODs with a style unmistakably his own. Based firmly in the 'classic' MOD mould, Yannis shows MOD production can still be done properly in a 4 channel format. The track itself is worthy of anything by U4ia, PM or Skaven (his peers, as he notes in the sample blurb) and, as such, is as worthy of download time as any of the above named trackers. Yeah, yeah, but wot about the tooon!!! This is most definitely a 'compo' type tune, full of inventive moves and swirls all based around an electro-techno backing that just sizzles with well-defined drums and stomping bass. Somewhere shortly after the song has run half its course, there's a DYNAMITE breakdown that had me going back a few times to check out how Yannis carried it out. Very, very clever little track and one I can only recommend very highly. Double thumbs up, even. My only quibble with it (yes there's always one!) was that I thought the track could have been somewhat meatier than it turned out to be. A more powerful kick and a beefier bass would have helped. All that said, this is still a knockout track and one that shows just how good a well done MOD can be. On a separate note to Yannis: Yep the ending is strange! On my abused kit, it just stopped abruptly, almost in mid-phrase. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Skullsaw ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ It's 1977 all over again in this fusion outing. From the minimoog solo lines to the Stanley Clarke electric bass, this reminds me of Return To Forever. The addition of acid type synth sprinkles update the sound somewhat but it still sounds about twenty years old. The synth soloing is precise but not all that memorable. The drums are okay until about halfway through when they become way too plodding and simple. The overall sound quality is harsh to my ears, whether it's my computer or not, I call it as I hear it. This is fusion, pure and simple mid 70's fusion. It's a decent representation of the genre to be sure, but it leaves me cold. This music died a long time ago, rightly so, as its main attraction was the musical masturbation of various instrumentalists. If you're unfamiliar with the style then give this a listen. On the other hand, if you know RTF, Corea, The Crusaders, etc., then you won't find anything new here at all. /----------------------------------------------------\ )----------------------========[ Peraphon ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ This is a very light, easy moving, funky light dance song. This is a pretty good tune that sounds like it should be theme music for a video game or something. A good song, yes, but it just doesn't have "it"; that intangible and indefinable commodity that makes a person like a song and continue to like it throughout repeated playing. Without "it," a song is confined to mediocrity. I'd say this was made before Yannis moved to ScreamTracker and then on to Impulse Tracker. Structurally, this module seems very sound. The samples used are of very good quality and are very appropriate to the song and its genre. Overall, I think this module will require a judgment call on the part of the listener. Worth a try. /----------------------------------------------------\ )-----------------------========[ Mansooj ]========-----------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ A lively beat coupled with some light jazz and electronic elements describes, for the most part, this somewhat demo-like piece from Yannis. This one's not at all hard to get into, and it may tend to hit one unexpectedly. I sat motionless for the first couple minutes then suddenly found myself bouncing around in my chair in time with the rhythm. I really like the use of lots of little sounds to form the overall shape of the music, as opposed to enormous samples used slab-like. This lends itself well to a light techno/jazz like this. This is yet another 4-channeler that is hampered by its very nature, it is a definite candidate for multichannel expansion. /----------------------------------------------------\ )------------------------========[ MING ]========-------------------------( \----------------------------------------------------/ Yup. He does it again. A catchy, funny, boppy and bouncy song that sticks to the roof of your mouth for hours. Surely one of the more full-featured 4 channel modules I've heard, and one with a hint of loads of skill and experience behind it. But not all the good ideas, the innovation and playfulness that could have made it outstanding. Yannis has made some killer melodies in the past, that stick in your memory like epoxy. I kind of miss that feeling in this one. This one is still very good, and I'll probably go humming it all day, but only due to a lack of better things to hum. -----================================================================----- "