I'm Confused - Please help!

[makintunes]

Hi everyone,

I just got one of my submissions shot down. I was pretty happy with the song I submitted, and the screener seemed to like it as well. They shot it down because of the sounds I used in the main melody section. Here's the critique:

I like this tune, so many great elements. The place where it falls down is in the choice of sounds for the main theme line. This sound gives the track a more dated sound, more like a retro video game feel.

Now, here's the listing:

Y170831QM
COOL, QUIRKY, MODERN SOUNDING INSTRUMENTAL CUES are needed for an (up-to) $10,000, Direct-to-Music Supervisor placement as the Theme Music for a new Cartoon Series on a Popular Cable Network. They’re looking for fresh, Mid-to-Up Tempo Instrumental Cues that would fall in the general stylistic ballpark of the following references: “Friday Night Funk” by Flying Lotus: https://youtu.be/Zh44ghgHAeA “When Irony Wears Thin” by Prefuse 73: https://youtu.be/xw3RRUxhZqc “Quibb” by Yalone: https://youtu.be/7LnGfP_iAd4 Quoting the source: “We’d like to hear The Jetsons theme song meets a more contemporary Top 40 sound.” Seriously??? We don’t think the references they gave us sound anything like “the Jetsons meets a more contemporary sound!” The Jetsons (Theme Song): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTq6Tofmo7E Here’s how we’d interpret this request: Give them something that reflects the cool Jazzy swing in the Jetsons theme (but don’t copy it, obviously), but with a quirky, cool, modern-sounding beat. Break some quirky (but not silly or childish) new ground, while doing it in a way that sounds like what you’d expect emotionally upbeat, Up-Tempo theme music to sound like. The checklist: Cool, hip, trendy, quirky, forward-moving, and building to a climactic (tah-dah!) TV theme-style ending. Do that while somehow finding a way to give them the essence of what they like about the Jetsons’ theme is your mission! We THINK their reference to the “More contemporary top 40 sound,” means the sounds (literally) and not a top 40-style. When you think of it like that, it makes more sense. Getting clarification from the executive producer -- who probably made that comment -- would be impossible. Your submissions should be at least 90 Seconds long with a stinger ending that sounds like a TV theme ending. You know…. an ending that implies, “Here comes the show!” Please do NOT copy the referenced music in any way, shape, or form. Use it only as a general guide for tempo, texture, tone, and overall vibe. Broadcast quality is needed (great sounding home recordings are fine). The estimated license fee for this placement is (up-to) $10,000, depending on the ultimate use. This is a Direct-to-Music Supervisor pitch. This will likely be an Exclusive deal, with the final deal points being negotiated with the TV show’s production company. You must own or control the Master and Composition rights to pitch for this opportunity. Please submit as many Cues as you’d like online or per CD. All submissions will be screened on a Yes/No basis – Short critiques only. Submissions must be received no later than 11:59PM (PDT), on Thursday, August 31st, 2017. TAXI #Y170831QM

Okay, so here's my confusion: If you listen to the example songs, they seem to have a whole bunch of "retro video game" sounds in them. The Flying Lotus song seems like it's almost entirely made up of old video game sounds. One of the comments under the Prefuse 73 song tells you to listen to the sound at 3:00 minutes, and says that it's from "Sonic (The Hedgehog)." The link cuts out before you get to the 3-minute mark, however.

Anyway, I understand that this is a subjective thing. I'm just trying to understand how I misinterpreted the listing. Here's a link to my song on Soundcloud:

"Future Tense" https://soundcloud.com/makintunes/future-tense

Thanks in advance!!!

Tim

[cassmcentee]

I agree with the screener in that you have a really good tune!
I'm getting more of an "Underscore" vibe from it though...
To my ears it seems to be missing a definitive "Catchy Theme" for a "Theme Song"
When I think of The Jetsons or The Simpsons I can immediately recall the Main Melody/Theme and they are both very busy establishing the Theme.
Like I said, it's a really good tune and you have a very good mix on it!
Sincerely,
Cass

[makintunes]

Thanks, Cass. I'm happy to hear that you like my tune and my mix. I've been hunkering down and really working on some technical aspects of my composing over the last couple of months (based upon some feedback I got from other users). I even made up about half of the synth sounds on this track from scratch!

Anyway, I guess it's the "too vintage-video-game" thing that confused me. I appreciate the feedback.

BACK TO THE LAB!!

Tim

[LOCK88]

Cool track man. I would suggest checking out these tracks below that were forwarded for that listing. In particular, compare the instrumentation they used, to the instrumentation which the screener mentioned in your track. IHTH
Forwards for TAXI # Y170831QM

“MONDO HOLLYWOOD” – Chuck Henry

“Mr Spork’s Frenetic Adventure” – Von Newcomb

“Jack a Dit” – Nina Zeitlin

“Clic Clac Fun” – Pedro Costa

“Flying High” – Mike Riso

“Whistle” – Edward Dickey

“Electro Space Jazz” & “Electro Space Jazz (With Intro)” – Liz Hennessy

“Are You Sirius?” – Darren Fletcher

“Hipbot” – Brahm Genzlinger

“Chip Choon” – Jamie Caesar

“Up Town (Inst)” – Neal Fox

“8bit” – Timothy R Juliano

“QM01 Junebug on a String” – Thomas M Hayes

COOL, QUIRKY, MODERN SOUNDING INSTRUMENTAL CUES are needed for an (up-to) $10,000, Direct-to-Music Supervisor placement as the Theme Music for a new Cartoon Series on a Popular Cable Network.

[makintunes]

Thanks, Robb. I found a couple of these on Soundcloud. I have (2) different questions that I've been trying to find answers to all morning:

1) How can I link to another member's Taxi.com page? I've been clicking the links below peoples names in the message board, but I'm only taken to Taxi's home page and then asked to sign in.
2) Where can I find the "Taxi Forwards" page? Somebody linked to it from another posting I made a while ago, and I saved the link to my favorites. The link is now dead.

I would love to be able to hunt down other Taxi members' music so that I can educate myself a little more. I can seem to figure it out though. I'm sure it's pretty obvious, but I'm somehow missing it.

[annayarbrough]

I have (2) different questions that I've been trying to find answers to all morning:

1) How can I link to another member's Taxi.com page? I've been clicking the links below peoples names in the message board, but I'm only taken to Taxi's home page and then asked to sign in.
2) Where can I find the "Taxi Forwards" page? Somebody linked to it from another posting I made a while ago, and I saved the link to my favorites. The link is now dead.

I would love to be able to hunt down other Taxi members' music so that I can educate myself a little more. I can seem to figure it out though. I'm sure it's pretty obvious, but I'm somehow missing it.

Hey Tim,

Nice to meet ya! Not sure about your first question, but I think you may have to sign in first to see the profiles.

As for the Forwards Blog, you can find it at http://blog.taxi.com/forward/.

The Forwards section of this forum has always been a great educator for me, too.

Hope that helps!

[makintunes]

Great, thanks Anna! I think I added it to my favorites correctly this time. I'll see if I can't figure out how to stay signed in to Taxi.com so that I don't have to sign in every time I open my browser.

[mikehamm123]

agree with the screener--great tune, but the lead sound was really dated.

[mikehamm123]

I agree, nice tune, but the patch is dated.

I'm a little confused, I've had at least two forwards over the last month, but I'm not listed on the 'forwards' blog.

[annayarbrough]

I'm a little confused, I've had at least two forwards over the last month, but I'm not listed on the 'forwards' blog.

Mike, are they Dispatch forwards? As far as I know it's only the regular ones that go on the blog