Is Taxi Geared for Original Sounding Music?

[wta]

Matt, I was one of those grunge/alternative artists, sorry bout that. I had an inroad with Polygram though some friends who where signed with them and things looked really good but the deal didn't come through for me either. I of course have found a way to blame Taxi and Michael Laskow... Where were they when I needed them?! I just turned 40 this week and its funny I've got the gear, the time, the aptitude but I'm looking from the top of a hill that seems to only lead down as far as having a shot at doing anything serious with original music. Then again if the Who can still get booked... wta

[matthoggard]

Oh dont get me wrong, I Loved the grunge movement. I too turned 40 this year. It so happened that the band I was in and our sound got overrun by the Seattle steamroller.Dude some of my fav music is still the Seattle stuff.Temple of the Dog is one of the BEST rock records ever recorded." I wanna reach down and pick the crowd up"!!!M~

[wta]

I don't mind stealing bread from the mouths of decadence I can't feed all the powerless cause my cups already overfilled I'm going hungry...

[onoffon]

Oct 10, 2008, 6:17am, davewalton wrote:COMPLETELY UNIQUE PUNK-ROCK/POP-PUNK/DANCE-PUNK ARTISTS in the range of Social Distortion, Bikini Kill, The Offspring, Bad Religion, Le Tigre, LCD Soundsystem, Blink-182, The Go! Team, etc.Dave!!!!This listing cracks me up! How can they be asking for something "Completely Unique" and then say "in the range of Social Distortion..."?If you are completely unique, you won't sound like ANYONE else.I would have to say that, for the most part, you will do better at TAXI if you can chameleon yourself and sound like a hundred different bands. The advice that is consistently given by all the panel speakers at the rallies is that, to increase your possibility of getting a deal, you must write music that follows a distinct formulae, i.e. your intro can't be too long, get through your verse to get to your hook, don't make the listener wait... They admit that, if the music takes too long to develop, they simply move on to the next selection.I personally believe that musical composition formulae detract from the creative and innovative process.That being said, this isn't TAXI's "fault". They only reflect what the industry wants from them.If you are too unique, you will only appeal to a VERY small clientele.IMHO.....

[davewalton]

Oct 10, 2008, 2:48pm, onoffon wrote:Oct 10, 2008, 6:17am, davewalton wrote:COMPLETELY UNIQUE PUNK-ROCK/POP-PUNK/DANCE-PUNK ARTISTS in the range of Social Distortion, Bikini Kill, The Offspring, Bad Religion, Le Tigre, LCD Soundsystem, Blink-182, The Go! Team, etc.Dave!!!!This listing cracks me up! How can they be asking for something "Completely Unique" and then say "in the range of Social Distortion..."?Well, I wondered about that but I think that there's a common thread between all these bands. In other words, I'm guessing they're not wanting anything as bizarre as whatever the Punk versions of Cannibal Corpse, Carcass, Entombed or Dismember are (yes, these are all bands for those that think I'm making this up).I'd guess that if they wanted "sound-alike" they would have said so (like the other listing). It's the listing company that writes these things, not Taxi so they must want what they say... original and unique material but stylewise within the range of bands they specify. If you're not one of those (not you personally... anyone), then you'll say "Aw! Taxi is stifling my creativity" but there's LOTS of bands who's natural style is in the neighborhood of those they mentioned in which case they'll say "Wow! Perfect!". Nobody is so unique as to not sound like anything on the planet, past or present. Everybody has basic roots and gravitates towards certain styles.I imagine that there's even a band or two that is totally unique yet still has a basic natural style of progressive jazz fusion.

[mazz]

As musicians, I think we can easily fall in to the trap of thinking like a creator and forgetting to, every once in a while, put ourselves in the shoes of the consumer at the other end of the production chain. That consumer could be a music supervisor, a film director or someone perusing the aisles in a retail store or iTunes or whatever.The question to ask is: "What style bin would I want my music to be placed in so the consumer can find it easily?"This is tough for artists to do, which is why God made producers and marketing people and, shiver, A/R execs!! But, IMO, one of the best things an artist of any kind can do is the mental exercise of trying to hear their music as a brand new potential fan or client might hear it. Of course, it's impossible to exactly know what they're hearing, but the exercise is really an "out of my own little universe" practice which can help emotionally de-couple from the music for a short time to get a reality check. This "category-speak" is the language of the mortals that have to deal with the licensing, marketing and purchasing of our music. It's something that we'll never get away from and something I've grudgingly learned to accept. ("What kind of music do you write?" "Good Music!!" )Sticking to one's guns artistically, and stubbornly refusing to learn, are two different things. I believe that one can have a distinctive artistic voice and can learn to make it marketable. IMO, they are not mutually exclusive.I applaud wta for wanting to learn more about the business and where he fits or can fit. I think you'll do well, man.BTW: 40 is the new 30. Mazz

[liamkelly]

Oct 10, 2008, 2:18pm, wta wrote: I can't feed all the powerless cause my cups already overfilled I'm going hungry...Respectfully.... I'm not with you there, wta. Don't understand that line, I'm afraid. Sorry.

[matthoggard]

Oct 10, 2008, 3:32pm, liamkelly wrote:Oct 10, 2008, 2:18pm, wta wrote: I can't feed all the powerless cause my cups already overfilled I'm going hungry...Respectfully.... I'm not with you there, wta. Don't understand that line, I'm afraid. Sorry.Its a line from a Temple of the Dog song. "Hunger Strike".

[liamkelly]

Oct 10, 2008, 3:42pm, matthoggard wrote:Oct 10, 2008, 3:32pm, liamkelly wrote:Respectfully.... I'm not with you there, wta. Don't understand that line, I'm afraid. Sorry.Its a line from a Temple of the Dog song. "Hunger Strike".Got it. Thanks, Matt.

[flood]

I would assume (maybe wrongly) that when the listing says TOTALLY UNIQUE, but in the sound of (insert band name):They want a sound that would have a strong appeal to that named band's audience. Not a copy, but in a vein that the specified audience may enjoy. Of course it is impossible to quantify any further, and no one really knows.It's a tough way to gauge things, but if there were better methods we would probably see them in listings.