I like the catchy pizzicato-y synth riff at the beginning and the energetic texture. I thought the fade-in at the beginning was a bit lazy, and I also thought the piece has a very fast pace that made it hard to follow all the changes. I think there are quite a few moments of dissonance, like :23 for example. Whatever instrument you have sidechained at :33 (almost sounds like a bass that’s out-of-range) came across as a bit harsh. Overall, the mix is both clear and loud. It just needs a bit of tweaking to facilitate blending and eliminate some excessive high-frequency tones. I thought your instrumentation was pretty good overall, too. My main area of concern is the composition. Like I said, the pace of progression is jarringly quick. It also doesn’t feel structurally complete by the end. I’d suggest thinking more carefully about the arrangement of your track. As a listener, it’s hard to discern where your piece is going at any given time. There was some nice filtering work and some sweeps, but I don’t think you fleshed out the structure enough to give the piece an overarching sense of directionality, shape, or conclusiveness. Overall, I’d say that you’re totally on the right track along most parameters, but you really undersold the composition here. Keep at it, 8LayneTech8!

5.75/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.5/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
5.75/10

Both halves sound too different to each other and unfitting for a song, and they're too unsettling for my ears. The instruments aren't really mixed well and they make the song sound kinda messy. I'm sorry but I really don't like it and I think it could've been mixed better.