Artist Listing Screener Feedback ?

[divacat]

OK I'm new here and learning so please bear with me ...I submitted two songs for a Female Alt Country listing. The feedback I got suggested a "dobro, banjo, mandolin, or steel guitar overdub to mirror more of the kind of music this listing is asking for".Now maybe I don't understand Taxi or Artist Listings, but it seemed to me if someone liked my material, in an Artist context, we would end up rerecording the songs, or at the very least adding some overdubs with involvement of what I'll call a "industry pro producer."It seems to me for an Artist they would be looking for passion, great lyrics, basic song structure, marketability, not expecting a product that can be sent direct to mastering for inclusion on a CD.What am I missing? Your thoughts appreciated.

[edteja]

Can you post the listing so we can see what it says?

[divacat]

Paraphrased but I think I have all the salient info ....FEMALE ALT-COUNTRY ARTISTS along the lines of Kasey Chambers, Gillian Welch, Lucinda Williams, Nanci Griffith, Allison Krauss, etc. are wanted by and indie lablel that specializes in film/TV placements[they do not distribute your record to radio nor for retail]. You must have a body of work to be considered (more than one song). Those on their label are pitched individually to film/TV projects. No instrumentals. Want full songs with vocals. Original material only. Broacast quality but great home OK. Submit two to three songs, include lyrics, photo, bio. Listing # S061017FC if that can be pulled up electronically.

[matto]

Hi Divacat,you'll get the most useful feedback if you post the entire critique (verbatim), as well as a link to the songs.It's almost impossible to provide any meaningful help in understanding the screeners mindset without having all the pices of the puzzle. So I'd encourage you to post that stuff if possible. That being said, if you look at the listing carefully, this particular company is looking for "broadcast quality", meaning they want to pitch your existing recordings to film and tv opportunities, NOT re-record them. So it's a different situation from a major label that would re-record your songs from scratch if you got signed.In that light, I think production related comments are valid and make sense.Hope this helps!matto

[arkjack]

Just off the top of my head..... Its a listing for afilm TV placement and broadcast quality is called for. I think the sugessted instrumentation is saying that the songs need the additional sound to be pitchable as is. I also gather from all my reading (not actual experience) that they don't forward material that needs to be re-recorded because the company placing the listing doesn't want to be caught with their pants down if there is a deadline you can't meet on coming up with the "changes". BQ means ready to play as is..... Michel Laskow wrote some articles that you might be able to find in the newsletter archives that would be worth reading and helpful in understanding the nuances of this segment of the business..... hope that helps...ArkJackBTW welcome to the board...

[divacat]

Thanks for the quick responses. I think I'm getting the idea.It appears the key is "Broadcast Quality". Not only does it mean a quality recording, but the song must be finished and complete in every way.The song in particular which I truly believe has hit potential (OK who doesn't believe this?) was recorded a year ago. I've been performing it in practice and live for a year now, so as a result it's much stronger now. I plan to re-record the lead vocal in a month when I have some studio time booked. Perhaps that would be the time to add the overdubs and take another shot when the right listing comes along.