TAXI.com

Is Taxi for me???

I’m on my second year with Taxi. These aren’t sour grapes. These are observations. Give me your honest feedback all of you! 
Michael. Would love to here what you have to say.
I’ve sent 30 some odd songs to listings and crossed my fingers every time. I have had two forwards on relatively simple pieces where taxi wanted simple instrumentals but I am guessing hundreds made it through the gauntlet of screeners and then it was simply a matter of “odds” if I received a call and a deal which I did not.
I have since sent other various music including a movie trailer where I moped around for two days after getting a return because I thought I had nailed it. http://www.taxi.com/paulbelair "une seule chance"
I then picked myself off my feet, dusted myself off and started again. I sent the same “movie trailer” soundtrack to another listing and then received a very vague return saying that “the drums should have been a more integral part”, which in my view was more “nit picking” then proper criticism. The melody and build was spot on as far as I am concerned but I’m starting to feel like those poor American Idol hopefuls that think there great singers but actually suck! My confidence is beginning to shrink big time. Out of the 200 plus screeners which taxi has I believe that some would have forwarded that piece and many, of course, would not which further frustrates me as a member because it is another hard maze to filter through...Human Opinion. Plain and simple regardless of there supposed expertise!!!
Well, I guess my final straw, which instigated this letter, was this latest piece where I decided to experiment. On listing #U130225AR

ALT ROCK/POP SONGS with MALE VOCALS are quickly needed for an Independent, Romantic Comedy, Feature Film's A-LIST, HOLLYWOOD MUSIC SUPERVISOR. He's looking for ANTHEMIC, CONTEMPORARY, MID-to-UPTEMPO SONGS with momentum that builds to a crescendo in the style of:

"RUN" by Snow Patrol  http://bit.ly/darKHm
 
"HOME" by Phillip Phillips  http://vevo.ly/NdBu62
 
"Tongue Tied" by Grouplove  http://bit.ly/r7kUpH

Quoting the Music Supe: "This is a highly emotionally charged, and energetic scene. We need a song with DRIVING ENERGY that BUILDS into an epic, emotional CRESCENDO. The song needs to add intensity to the proverbial "Boy-Gets-Girl" scene."  

Your song should have a strong INERTIA that will keep the energy of this scene moving forward. Songs with a ROMANTIC VIBE will work best, but AVOID overly sentimental, or sappy love songs. Themes about, LIFE, WONDERMENT, MAKING THINGS RIGHT, etc., will also work. Keep the mood OPTIMISTIC, UPBEAT, and most importantly, TRIUMPHANT! Your instrumentation must sound authentic (like a real band or artist), and your VOCAL performance must be OUTSTANDING.

I decided to pick a song referenced that I was most comfortable with and dissect and copy every nuance of the song. I’m not going to tell you the song because it is so obvious. I copied the tempo. I copied the vibe. I copied the verse, chorus, build. I copied the chorus progressive and the notes but of course changed the notes and words just to see what kind of return (always expecting a return) that I would get. At this point in my “taxi career” my drive and hope has become more cynical then anything else. Here is what I received. Now remember that I did this specifically because so many of the returns I received said that I was stylistically off target so I wanted to make sure that my experiment worked and I had nailed without question the style and vibe and much to my, well, not surprise, this is the comment I received.

“Paul, this song is not similar enough to the style and energy of the referenced songs. The Music supervisor needs songs with more of those same elements and energy.”

http://www.taxi.com/paulbelair "stars"

You be the judge. If you say you agree then I bow down to you! I am not saying my song is as great as the referenced artist or should have been chosen for the movie but I would have loved to have had the chance for the movie supervisor to make the call with what I feel was a deserved "shot".

Please, someone, convince me to keep slugging here with Taxi!

hey Paul,

bummer to hear about the return - that always stings especially when you feel you have gone the extra mile, or have made a new personal best.

I would like to offer my thoughts:

To answer your question - "Is taxi for me?" - that depends..... Do you feel you are growing as a composer / producer by working on these listings? Are you taking chances that you might not have otherwise? Or are you just disheartened?

Only you can ultimately make that decision.

As for the tune you wrote:

I A/B'd against your ref. Yes it was obvious which one you chose. But it was also interesting what things you chose to change about the song to make your own.

one of the main comments was about energy:

the ref has a steady 1/8th note pulse on guitars during almost the entire song. The verses have a cleaner sound, less guitar parts, the chorus a heavier dirtier sound pounding 1/8th notes, one or two other guitar parts with a heavier sound arpeggios on the chords, bigger production, strings are big.

the ref has a steady bass sound in the verses. Might be very legato 1/8th notes, or it might be broken up to match the kick. then in the chorus it goes to a very obvious 1/8th note pulse to match the guitars.

In contrast, you have the similar drum feel, but almost no bass part at all to speak of in the verses. And the guitar part is a mellow strum of the chords instead of the insistent 1/8th note feel in the ref.

You do take things up a notch in the chorus, but in terms of relative energy, your verse should have the energy of your chorus, and then the new chorus energy in your tune should feel like its blasting into outerspace.

The other thing for a listing like this one, and maybe the hardest thing of all, the mix has got to support that huge feel. It has to be a top notch mix.

Do some A/B comparisons with the ref track and yours.

Listen for:

1. How loud is the lead vocal compared to the drums?
2. where does the lead vocal seem to float in the Phantom center between your monitors? Is it "in front of the band"? Is it "in the band"? If its sitting "in the band", can you still make out every word the vocalist says?
3. The sound of the vocal, how much high end, how much (or rather how little) low end there is? Why would the vocal be eq'd that way?
4. How many rhythm guitar elements are there in each section of the song? How many melody or lead parts?
5. How loud are the guitar parts compared to the drums and vocal?
6. Compared to the tempo of the song (~75 bpm) what is the primary rhythm that all the instruments are playing in each section? Does that amount of playing result in "high energy"? what would happen if you had them play 1/2 as much? is that more or less energy? What about twice as much?
7. Is the guitar solo single notes or octaves? Why would you choose one or the other? which one has more energy?
8. song form - its a vocal song so its pretty customary to have a bridge or a middle 8 even though guitar solos aren't that popular these days. Why would there be that guitar solo at all?

It sounds like honestly that you are on the right track, and experiencing the same growing experience as everyone here. Which is the same thing I go through every time I write a track. Its always tough.

I would encourage you to keep at it, but again its up to you. Good luck!!

Seems to me that you have a lot of talent and a lot to offer.

Just my opinion here ... Why stick with Taxi? Because it works, if we give it a chance. I believe we all need some guidance. Even the Beatles needed George Martin to help develop their songs and their sound.

Jim

Well Paul, I listened to both of your examples, and no matter what anyone says, you have talent and there's no reason you shouldn't be confident! I think it must be human nature to blame others when we are frustrated, but that only leads to giving up, which is fine unless you are not ready to throw in the towel, in that case I suppose you try and learn in order to push on. It's tough to write really great songs, if it were easy, my favorite singers and songwriters would have more than a handful of songs that I truly love!

"I decided to pick a song referenced that I was most comfortable with and dissect and copy every nuance of the song. I’m not going to tell you the song because it is so obvious. I copied the tempo. I copied the vibe. I copied the verse, chorus, build. I copied the chorus progressive and the notes but of course changed the notes and words..."

"...but of course changed the notes and words..."
Imo, the words are the foundation of the song. The words determine the melody. Of course you could begin the song with a harmony or groove, something impossible if you are building a house maybe,lol, but the words and melody are still the foundation.

"Stop, stop" vs. "Light up, light up", or variations, "stop, light up", "light it up. light up"... you can imagine the possibilities of melody and the differences in the choices you might make.

I've personally decided not to try and parse human opinion as much as I have tried in the past, I would rather use my limited energy,lol, trying to understand and write better songs, it might be easier!

I don't know whether or not Taxi is for you, imo, it's probably the path of least resistance for most people marketing their music.

Paul, I think you are getting sidetracked and focusing on the wrong things out of frustration. And I'll say it again, you have talent and there's not a reason whatsoever to doubt that!

It's an in for possiblities you may find it hard or impossible to get on your own. Peer to Peer has a bunch of great guys willing to help point you in the right direction as far as your mixes. Follow their advice, and if you get a return, you may have a mix worthy of sending elsewhere and potentially getting your foot in the door there. HOnestly I find Peer to Peer more helpful more often then the Taxi reviews, probably because of the inundation factor. Use that.

Paul,
hang in there. You surely HAVE what it takes to make it. Just keep honing your craft and use
this forum (peer to peer) for feedback. Try to focus and keep things in perspective. Even the
most successful TAXI members get returns-many many returns!
cheers
Adonis

Even the
most successful TAXI members get returns-many many returns!


As Adonis said



I am stunned sometimes when people who I regard as amazing composers and are `Taxi household names get returns.

I can tell they are angry and upset yet their posts will be measured and respectful.

The are still here,doing it and successful.

I listened to your song and references on the listing in question. I will tell you this: Your song is just shy of the target. I can't put my finger on it...it could be the vocal performance, or mix, or energy. But there is something that falls short of the references. That being said, you are so close so I can see why you are frustrated. YOU HAVE A LOT OF TALENT! I would not give up. You have enough skill to be successful...keep going.

Just stick with Taxi. I see no reason for you to quit.

Echoing what DI says, knowing you are close means you are almost there. Hang in. And no, I don't have a problem with people getting upset, the successful guys on here aren't getting angry or taking it personal because they've learned returns are part of the business. Success is the greatest revenge, I've heard said,. No that anyone needs revenge, but you know what I mean. If you are that clsoe look at what you need to do to clear the hurdle. BTW 1 forward and 30 returns this year. And yes darn it, I do keep count:). But am way more rounded im my opinion then this time last year.