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Afterhours's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Correlation to theme | #27 | 3.722 | 3.810 |
| Overall | #39 | 3.675 | 3.762 |
| Composition | #41 | 3.815 | 3.905 |
| Impression | #43 | 3.768 | 3.857 |
| Quality | #44 | 3.675 | 3.762 |
| Creativity | #82 | 3.396 | 3.476 |
Ranked from 21 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
The image reference reminded me of lights that show up around sundown at school buildings when they're usually empty. I imagine this soundtrack to be for a kind of visual novel game about people that hang out around the school building after hours because they have no where else to be. I made a main theme track (After hours), a kind of idle track for walking around the courtyard (uncertain) and a tune for some tind of emotional moment (Confessions). I made it all in Logic.
Message from the artist
Thanks for checking out my entry :)
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
The lights in the image serve as an inspiration for the mood and the setting.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/mmagda-325222087/sets/afterhours-for-ost-composing-jam
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any non-commercial project
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Comments
Beautiful melodies, powerful drums and... bubbles? Definitely sounds like something that should make me drown, heh... Love the singing synths in Confessions
Good job!
P.S. Rawr!
Oh yeah I think I used some kind of convolver with a water sound on one of the synths or the piano (can't check right now now) but for me it was kind of so hidden that I forgot about it myself - wild that you picked that up! I can't quite pick up if you meant to say that it was a good choice or not but retrospectively I see I how that would maybe feel a bit out of place (if that's what you meant)
Well, I liked those "bubbles" in the track :>
ahh i see - well that's great :) and thank you
i think what really ties everything together is the usage of piano arpeggiations through each track; there's a sense of cohesion that results from using said technique consistently. i was very satisfied with how "Confessions" turned out; i was looking more for something of a mysterious/darker side, like the characters in said visual novel confessing about the internal troubles they have which is why they'd hang out at school still. :~)
very good work overall! i wonder, as much as i enjoy the piano arps, if it'd be nice for them to sit back a bit more in the mix for "After hours"; i do appreciate that they give lots of space for the strings to dominate, however!
Really awesome submission!
Very reserved, but also exciting when it has to.
I like the piano melodies, and the strings that acconpany it.
Great wor!
:]
Really liking vibes here, it's not quite edgy or brooding, it's like a more gentle version of those that captures the vibe of the image perfectly. Personal favorite's probably Uncertain as I really, really like investigation/mysterious themes and this is such a great example of one. Confessions is a great way to close it out smoothly too, softer than the other two but twice as emotionally pulling. Super solid work here great job!
After Hours slaps, I was immediately drawn in just from the drums, then the piano and droning bass kicked in and I was hooked. It's the sort of main theme where I'd just sit with the game on without playing to listen to. Uncertain has a great vibe and energy to it too, very Persona 5 reminiscent. Also overall a really neat take on the theme; fading light shining into empty places that are usually thrumming with life has a unique liminal feel to it, your swelling and pausing/stop-starting melodies and instrument choices capture this so so well.
After Hours has some gorgeous string accompaniment. The lead lines are well thought out and evocative, and the mixing throughout is really solid. This is a great track to kick things off with; shows your chops and really stands on its own. Ended up listening to this one twice before moving on because I was caught up in the orchestral crescendo building so seamlessly from the mid-point onwards.
Uncertain is wonderfully befitting of its title, wasting no time in providing just enough rest to give the listener time to contemplate their surroundings. Really nice melodies in this, and the patches for the pads are brilliant. The tremolo adds some really nice motion to the side of the mix, and the percussion does a great job of holding down the rhythm.
Lastly, Confessions is absolutely laden in ambience and vibes. The post-production here is phenomenal, and the way this track develops as it progresses is nothing short of fantastic. The focus being kept on the piano while other supporting elements occupy the side and gradually wash in and out to provide harmonic support or emphasize a specific note is genius. Once again the orchestration in this is really well done.
These were a blast to listen to, and all so distinct. You've a knack for voicings. Thoroughly enjoyable listen. Best of luck!
Thanks for a very thorough feedback! I appreciate it :)
Really nice vibes! Great variation to keep things interesting, and great use of sound choices!
A very nice listen! You definitely capture the vibe of how a school looks at night with the lights still on. The instrumentation was very pleasant, though I think you could bring up the low end a bit more in all three tracks. Nice job!
oh yessss really nice dnb here with the first song here.
the other 2 tracks are really nice and great to have for a background track to a game for sure.
Yeah this submission was nice!
I appreciate that you only went with the photo inspiration and focused on the setting rather than shooting for a vague concept like freedom.
and all 3 tracks were a lot of fun!
I liked the piano on "after hours", but I found the track to be a bit repetitive.
Really like the vibe you're going for, and I totally get your inspiration by the lights of the image!
I think my favorite track was 'After hours' for being very smooth, but I also liked 'Confessions' a lot, it was very beautiful!
Great work!
You didn't need to go that hard damn, one of the best I've heard so far!!!
aaa thank you that's a huge compliment