Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Did you get a deal through TAXI? Lets hear about it!

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Casey H
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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by Casey H » Wed Jan 12, 2011 12:59 pm

fret17 wrote:Way to go Casey!.....emm....curiousity has the better of me at the moment...I was wondering how you convey a composition to Keith for him to play...do you write out the notes?
It's the same way you bring any song to a demo producer. You record a rough of yourself playing and singing it and give them that. Some of my roughs are rougher than others, LOL... :roll: If you work with a good producer like Keith, they can hear the "song" through it and apply a lot of vision to the production. I've been lucky in that most of the demo folks I've worked with have had that "vision" skill-- not just regurgitating my rough which often would be a bad thing.

If you heard some of the roughs I've given producers, you'd really laugh while being amazed at what the right producer talent can do for you.

:) Casey

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by fret17 » Thu Jan 13, 2011 6:27 am

Interesting....I might have a little bit of trouble with a producer's vision if it strays too far from my own....if it turned out better than mine, then I think I'd probably have to split the rights...that would only seem fair

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by Casey H » Thu Jan 13, 2011 6:40 am

fret17 wrote:Interesting....I might have a little bit of trouble with a producer's vision if it strays too far from my own....if it turned out better than mine, then I think I'd probably have to split the rights...that would only seem fair
Actually thats really all up to you in most situations. You can direct a demo producer to make it very tightly match your direction or use their own creativeness. Of course, the producer can't read your mind so there's no guarantees that it will match your vision.

I've done a lot of these and I've found they key is to have a very open mind. It's easy to be stuck in the paradigm of how you think a song should sound when, in fact, commerically it would be better with a slightly different approach. I almost always hate my song demos when I first get them because they are different than what I'm used to in my head. Most of the time, a week later I'm in love with them.

IF you wanted to give this a shot, my recommendation would be see if you can hire a Taxi member with a good track record of forwards and, even better, placements. There are a few top notch foks right here that are willing to do work for hire. Since your goal is to make a placement, why not hire someone who knows what it takes, especially with film/TV? I've tried different things and I prefer a one-on-one relationship with a successful home studio guy to larger scale, commerical demo services (not that they don't do good work as well).

Best,
Casey

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by fret17 » Thu Jan 13, 2011 6:51 am

I've been thinking along those lines for a while now Casey...Been thinking of working with a pro studio here in town for mixes...cash is the problem...but I'm open to working with Taxi members as well....I'll post a request when I'm ready ...Thanks again!

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by Casey H » Thu Jan 13, 2011 7:06 am

fret17 wrote:I've been thinking along those lines for a while now Casey...Been thinking of working with a pro studio here in town for mixes...cash is the problem...but I'm open to working with Taxi members as well....I'll post a request when I'm ready ...Thanks again!
And there's no reason you can't keep working on your own home demo production skills. :D Many go that route because of the pro-demo cost and the desire to have more control, which is a good thing. There are hybrid models-- maybe you can do the instrumental track but need to hire the vocalist, for example. One thing I've notice the past few years is there is a lot of demand for acoustic singer-songwriter, so the amount of instrumentation needed is sometimes light.

For me, I've decided not to go the home production route-- it's just not something I enjoy. However, getting familiar with home recording- learning my way around Cubase, has really helped me understand things better, interact with producers better, and make special edits from what producers send me. And my 'rough' recordings are less rough, making the producer's job a little easier.

IF you use a pro demo service of any kind, make sure you get (1) signed work-for hire, (2) a no-vocal mix and (3) the stems exported from their DAW. You might have to pay more for #3. Having stems and a DAW at home opens up a wealth of opportunities to make special instrumental edits just like the one that got me this deal.

:) Casey

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by fret17 » Thu Jan 13, 2011 8:31 am

I do enjoy producing tracks and creating what I feel are marketable demos at home...unfortunately , I've been falling short of industry standards in sound quality and, at times , compositionally.....but taxi has inspired me to learn and get better with what I have to work with.....my main problem seems to be with the different aspects of BQ.....I need to up grade from hard gear DAW to Pro Tools and get in the game properly....I spend as much time on my music as becomes available, but I do have a day job and other responsibilties that keep me from the luxury of full time effort...It can be a little frustrating at times to know my submissions will get shot down for engineering, especially on the Y/N 's with no critique as to my progress....but I at least have a clear picture now thanks to Taxi and it's members and I know one day I'll get there with something...Thanks for the info on the contracts...I've recorded in pro studios before and just paid for the time and engineer and never had any problem...

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by Casey H » Thu Jan 13, 2011 9:02 am

fret17 wrote:I do enjoy producing tracks and creating what I feel are marketable demos at home...unfortunately , I've been falling short of industry standards in sound quality and, at times , compositionally.....but taxi has inspired me to learn and get better with what I have to work with.....my main problem seems to be with the different aspects of BQ.....I need to up grade from hard gear DAW to Pro Tools and get in the game properly....I spend as much time on my music as becomes available, but I do have a day job and other responsibilties that keep me from the luxury of full time effort...It can be a little frustrating at times to know my submissions will get shot down for engineering, especially on the Y/N 's with no critique as to my progress....but I at least have a clear picture now thanks to Taxi and it's members and I know one day I'll get there with something...Thanks for the info on the contracts...I've recorded in pro studios before and just paid for the time and engineer and never had any problem...
You really don't need to spend the money for Pro Tools is you want a home DAW. There are plenty of lower cost products that will do the job for you. For example, a free version of Cubase LE4 now ships with many products such as USB front ends (e.g. Tascam 122/144). You could buy a fairly inexpensive piece of hardware you need anyway and get free DAW software. Folks here can tell you what they use and what it cost (Sonar, Logic, Cubase LE versions etc, etc)...

:) Casey

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by cherbear » Fri Jan 14, 2011 2:58 am

Casey!! Woooooo Hoooooo!!!!! Hooray on dealio #2!!! Awesome, Mister!!

Cher :)

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by ochaim » Fri Jan 14, 2011 2:15 pm

wow! great news, casey! Congrats on the deal!

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Re: Just got contacted after a forward off a Dispatch!

Post by jparker » Fri Jan 14, 2011 2:55 pm

Congratulations, Casey!

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