Wish Denied (pip-wishdenied.it)

Overall Impression (8/10)

Grind on :) This piece rushes in with a gruesome guitar riff complemented throughout the piece with transitions and contrasting sections. Fast, slow and paced. Overall, it works, which is interesting because tracked metal is and has been done a lot before but the actually good pieces are rare to come by. This is one of the fairer pieces out there.

Technique, Arrangement, Composition (8/10)

A strong understanding of how metal pieces tick is demonstrated somewhat competently here, the ubiquitous guitar riffs and double bass-drumming shouts out clearly from the start. Drumming is done well and the overall piece looks and feels like it's had a reasonable amount of time put into it. Panning is effective, giving a wide stereo image for the guitars, while the drumming and bass sits comfortably center stage, where I feel it should be.

Development (7/10)

The progression through the piece is broken up between a couple of breather sections, which really helps to break up the monotony of the chord progression. Repetitious use of the main riff does eventually get a bit old towards the end but as the piece is only 3 minutes long this isn't really a major problem - but there could be improvements here.

Creativity (6/10)

This is a hard one to put a finger on, I guess because a lot of this piece is inspired, and doesn't sound like something that has not been done before. I would say the creativity shines brightest with the interludes placed between the heavy riffs, although not that bright.

Enjoyment (8/10)

Fair. I wouldn't expect this to hit home with anyone particularly hard because of it's fairly generic sound in the genre. However, having said that, the track is certainly a recommended listen nonetheless.

Additional Comment

Good work Pip :)