Broadcast quality?...yes/no...Got an answer

[rld]

For you Steve, since you're such a groovy guy... MODERN ROCK/ELECTRONICA/METAL SONGS are needed immediately by a Music Supervisor who is currently working on an Independent Film. They are looking for songs in the range/style of a modern day version of Ted Nugent’s “Stranglehold.” NO COVERS please. The music will be used during a comedic “club fight” scene in the film. Stylistically, think of a sexy/low/dirty “rock growler” groove. They DO NOT want classic rock songs, 70’s jams, slow rock songs, or extremely heavy metal songs. They will mostly be using the song as an instrumental for the background of the fight scene, so the instrumentation should be strong enough to stand on it’s own. They prefer songs with vocals, but exceptional instrumentals will work. Broadcast quality needed [excellent home recordings are OK].

[rld]

Mine is faster, yes...but that's not the point.

[sgs4u]

Mar 6, 2009, 10:59am, rld wrote:Mine is faster, yes...but that's not the point. Yours is twice as fast. That might not matter to the BQ thing, but it might matter a lot to a screener. And I agree, it's not the point. Call the office.

[rld]

Mar 6, 2009, 11:10am, sgs4u wrote:Yours is twice as fast. That might not matter to the BQ thing, but it might matter a lot to a screener. I totally agree Steve, and if "Stylistically Off Target /Material Not Compelling/Distinctive Enough" were the reason for the return, I wouldn't have given it a second thought.Like I said, I've posted in the "screener shoutout" forum, so I'm gonna give that a day or two.I appreciate your help bud.

[sgs4u]

ps: I have never had a return that I agree with, when I get it. Not once.

[mojobone]

Well the guitars seem a little hot/harsh in the top end, and while it's not lacking punch over my monitors, it's certainly broadcast quality, IMO. The vocals and guitars could sit a bit better in the track, again, doesn't take it out of contention. It's certainly not the tempo of the a la, but probably more appropriate for a fight scene than Stranglehold, in any case. Could maybe not be deemed 'modern' enough, but "not broadcast quality"?

[rld]

I'm updating this as I appreciate everyone's comments and thought you might be interested.I emailed Robin asking for a clarification...this is the meat of the reply....The screener's concern has to do with the drums. He felt that the overall feel of the drum track was too programmed, that it could be humanized more...Needless to say I don't agree with that assessment, and I don't think anyone commenting on this thread thought the drums were "too programmed".In fact Big Blue Barry, who is a drummer said,"REALLY good job of programming the drums" So there ya go...I got an answer...not the one I expected, but such is life.

[bigbluebarry]

I'm glad you got an answer, sorry it wasn't better Now, I probably listened to this track at least 20-25 times the other day. Not once during that time did I think that the drums would have been the reason for the return.So after reading Robin's response, I went back and listened to the song again, with the intent of being OVERLY critical of the drums. While I still believe this song IS broadcast quality and should have been forwarded (as long as it was stylistically on target), I think I might know why the screener said that. I noticed that there is one particular drum fill that you used several times throughout the song: 0:28-0:29 mark1:12-1:13 mark1:26-1:27 mark1:53-1:54 mark2:07-2:08 mark2:50-2:51 mark3:04-3:05 mark3:17-3:18 markThere was one other section, during the guitar solo at the 2:24-2:48 mark where I could see where the screener might have felt they were programmed, not because of the sound quality, but because the drums didn't do anything other than just keep a simple beat.Again... I still think the song is up to broadcast quality standards, and I'm just speculating as to why the screener felt that way about the drums. My guess is your screener was also a drummer and he was listening VERY intently to the drums. That's the only reason I can come up with as to why he/she would have said that.Sorry man - Big Blue

[rld]

Thanks Barry,I appreciate you taking the time, but if you previously listened 20 times without thinking the drums were off, well...they're not off. I'm not trying to berate the screener...I know listening to music is somewhat subjective, and if he/she didn't like the drums, fine.I just wanted to know why this didn't meet BQ standards, but I still don't see how the drums would keep it from reaching that.Thanks again everyone.

[andreh]

Mar 5, 2009, 8:08am, rld wrote:...The screener's concern has to do with the drums.He felt that the overall feel of the drum track was too programmed, that it could be humanized more...Must be those dang double kicks...they sound robotic even when they're played by an actual human being. They're also somewhat out of style (except in some metal circles).My guess is the screener is too young to know or remember when this sound practically defined a genre. Without knowing what the actual listing called for it's hard to say whether or not a return was warranted, but it seems clear that the "Not broadcast quality" reasoning just went out the window.I guess people can be robotic (like when they play 64th note double kicks) or human (like when they misjudge a song's broadcast quality). This one will find a home somewhere for sure.André