OK...this is getting a little ridiculous

[BradleyHagen]

So I feel you on this one Brad. Gloves sounds like it's about 95% there to me - great Riff A section and the B section keeps the energy up.... The 2 minute issue is nerve racking, but easy to fix.

In terms of the "modern" and "ear candy," this is really tricky here. The Vulpeck didn't have any ear candy to my ears, and a hallmark of the style is often minimalist (I didn't take the time to re-listen to the other two references - deadlines!) And it can get crazy-making if I think on it too much... Funk stuff like this was over the top in the 70s... the retro new stuff is often very minimalist as that fits with the "modern" aesthetic. But then you hear some new stuff that's also over the top like the original 70s stuff - I've heard some publishers refer to it as "Epic Funk..." so..

That being said, what I did hear in Gloves is that each time you returned to that killer A section, you could give it just a touch more - I was hearing bongos in my head subtle in the back, and a chicken lickin' wah guitar too. And there are probably other ideas too that you could come up with.

Just some thoughts... great work man! Keep your head up...

Great advice and thoughts Dude! I really appreciate it!

[BradleyHagen]

Also, the 10 seconds short wasn't the ONLY reason for the return. The screener mentioned it lacked the contemporary ear candy, etc. they were looking for. If the 10 seconds was the ONLY reason for the return, I could see contacting Taxi about it for clarification. My impression is even if your track was 2:00, it would have been returned. But the time thing is a good learning experience.

Well, please shed some light on the "modern" comment in the feedback if you could Casey, because there is nothing "modern" about any of those reference tracks IMHO.... To me, It is just a bunch of dudes trying to imitate 70's style funk (like me!) lol! I made a joke about putting in "trap drums" or "stomps and claps" to make it more "modern," but I really have no idea what they mean by "modern" in this instance. This should come as no surprise, as I continue to have difficulty reading between the lines and gaining a working understanding of these briefs !

I haven't had much time to listen in detail but let me put it back on you. What do you hear different when you listen to the reference tracks vs. yours? Do you A/B things in your DAW? I'll try to come back to this later. Hopefully, others will chime in.

Casey- Don't worry about it brother..... You have already spent a ton of time with my nonsense! This is officially water under the bridge. I have been in "Synthwave" land for the past few days! lol