first couple of critiques

[cmrmurray]

So, I got my first couple of critiques, both returns, mostly 7's or 8's, liking the music but looking for a little extra something in melody and structure - an extra nuance here or there, perhaps. I was pretty pleased when the screener said we had 'attitude' as it's a vital ingredient and hard to know if you're getting right.It's a hard game, isn't it? Got to keep plugging away I suppose, hoping the next Quantum Leap will bring you where you want to be.

[foglyte]

Hi cmrmurray,I am not sure what scores are needed to get a forward, assuming all else is met. I haven't had a forward when there was a critique, so I can't comment on how low the scores may be and still have the song forwarded. I am curious though.My critiques have stated similar things to improve on, which are appreciated, though this type of advice seems to carry weight only with the current Screener and listing you submitted to, not necessarily for any future submission you may make with the same song in its present form. So... even though it's too late for these suggestions to help for the listing just submitted to, I am slightly concerned that these suggestions may not have any real bearing on future submissions either.My original plan was to submit my songs and get them forwarded, end of story! When that didn't happen , I thought I would get a few critiques of the same piece of music and then look for a common theme between them as far as critiques go. I can then hopefully re-work the song trying to address what may be a "common" problem. But... I haven't had much luck getting similar suggestions, either due to a different standard for the particular listing or just the Screener in general. One Screener may like a particular aspect of the song, while another may find fault with the same aspect. I do realize the particular listing does have some bearing on the scores and the score differences from one submission to the next for the same song, but sometimes it's hard to know where to begin to fix something.I find this process slightly frustrating, but... like you state, I'll keep plugging away and try to make my recordings the best I can and write good thought out material. I'll target with a firmer resolve too.I firmly believe that if we keep pushing ourselves because of this ambiguity, we will get better as songwriters and/or any other aspect we may undertake regarding our music (recording. mixing...), and hopefully we'll gain more understanding of what it takes to be successful through Taxi. But, if even if we don't get though this "barrier"... we'll have killer songs that will stand on their own regardless of whether it fits what the listing may be asking for.Music is subjective as we all know, so this is not an indictment on Taxi and its process, just the nature of the biz I suppose.I wish you luck with your Taxi experience.Fog

[cmrmurray]

Hi Fog, thanks for this considered reponse, and yes, it will improve our songwriting in the long term, so it always works on some level if we're receptive to constructive criticism. I'm sure we won't always feel so generous towards our screeners on cloudy days though!All the best,Chris

[allends]

Hi Chris,We hear over and over again "good isn't good enough in this business". I have faith that you'll figure out what "great" is very soon.If you want to know what the music world really thinks about your stuff, submit it to Taxi! They'll tell ya.And, by the way, if you want to discover each and every one of your personal flaws in a hurry, get married! She'll tell ya.Allen