TAXI.com

Before I begin, let me state that I understand that the word "supercool" DOES have some rough connotations in a limited commercial context; that is, it usually represents things that: tend toward being more up-to-date (except when it's "supercool retro"), or sound more "contemporary", or skew toward being more urban (except when it's "supercool" country), or have a certain "cache" in certain "knowing" circles, or reside on the cutting edge, or have an "indie" flavor that's on the verge of about-to-break, or are cultish, or have a certain moody, often minor-key flavor, or possess a style that is informed by in vogue or exotic musical styles, or have an "underground" sound that those in the know listen to, or have a menacing, chilly, and aloof vibe, or utilize the latest dance sounds, or blah, blah, blah, a thousand other examples. Yes, I get it.



That said, I still wish that taxi would refrain from using words like "supercool" (whether it's copy-pasted or not) as justification for a rejection because:

(a) In my whole life, there have been very few things that people told me were "hip" or "supercool" or "sophisticated" that actually WERE. To be honest, most of the music in commerical mediums comes across to my ears as either cloying, obnoxious, calculated, "lame", trying-too-hard, or some combination of the above. Very seldom do I hear music that is genuinely "supercool" on my sonar, and my sonar is just as valid as anyone else's. In fact, I tend to stay away from words like "supercool" because I realize they've been generally perverted and reduced to meaninglessness.

(b) It's an amorphous word which still comes down to individual taste, and as such there's no need to include it - at least not in a return, anyway. If someone wants to say a song doesn't sound like X artist, that's something that can be meaningfully debated. To just say something isn't "supercool" enough (copy-pasted or not) doesn't help me. I've mentioned the copy-paste thing to the taxi folks before, but it doesn't seem like it's going away. Oh well.

(c) The context of "supercool" is constantly shifting. Bryan Ferry is supercool in a way that is totally different from Johnny Cash, for example. As such, it should be sufficient to use the musical references; "supercool" is superfluous in my mind, at least on the return /feedback form.

(d) Yes - music IS an inexact science - which is why I'm so wary of the word "supercool" being bandied about regularly as if it HAS some concerte, absolute meaning - or constitutes a meaningful reason for rejection (copy-pasted for emphasis or not).

To illustrate my point, taxi recently sent me a survey asking how I would like to see the service improved. Regardless of what else I write around it, would they be satisfied with someone saying, "Sorry guys, you aren't being SUPERCOOL enough!"

I realize that taxi is probably just quoting what some of their clients ask for, and I suppose the word could have some legitimate uses depending on the context, but in general I wish the words "supercool" (and "hip" for that matter) would just be semi-retired, already! Especially on returns (copy-pasted or not) where I feel they add nothing concrete/of value.

And I DO so wish that someday someone would realize that there is nothing LESS "supercool" than anything that explicitly sets OUT to be "supercool" (even with great skill and craft) and nothing MORE "supercool" than the artists who don't spend so much time worrying about whether they ARE "supercool."

After all, I'm sure Johnny Cash never asked himself, "AM I SUPERCOOL ENOUGH????"

Man walks into a bar, "Hey are there any Supercool musicians here?" ....Man is ignored for the rest of the night.

talk about setting expectations for Taxi hey - "get me some supercool music godaddamit!" haha

Avoid listings like that if they rub you the wrong way , hardly inspiring to you by the sounds of it. Let others have them ones : )

I think you're bashing the wrong word Almost nothing called "enough" ever is.
Work hard, follow the rules and you will be successful, if you don't it's because you didn't work hard enough.
Good, but good enough?
Rich, but rich enough?
Supercool, but supercool enough?
And then if it's enough but not spot on it is said to be "too much"!
Too much reverb.
Too much money.
Too soft.
Worked too hard.
Life is like a recipe, you have to have enough of certain ingredients, and not too much of certain others,lol!
Supercool?? I think ya either is or you ain't, I think most words shouldn't be qualified by quantity, it's probably best to just choose another word. I mean if someone told me I wasn't supercool enough, why don't they just say I suck?? If they didn't think I worked hard enough, why didn't they just say I was lazy?? I suppose they could say they were being nice, but nice enough or too nice??

Welcome Glenn,

...I found this amusing & enjoyable. Thanks.

Are you a Sienfeld/Larry David fan?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQb1ZEYmZHc

Stuart

Glenn
I didn't think your post was supercool enough.

Casey

Thanks for the feedback guys. Glad you enjoyed the post.

Cardell - YES... I am a Curb fan! LOVE that show.

GlennPageMusic wrote:Cardell - YES... I am a Curb fan! LOVE that show.

Me too!!

I could tell by the way your original post was written...you've got a Supercool writing style!

Stuart

Just saw the listing that uses two reference songs that are FIVE years old as being "current" and "hip" sounding (!)

Very dismaying.


Assuming the listing doesn't mean "retro-cool", can you imagine someone in 1973, 1983, 1993, or even 2003 saying such a thing?
The mind boggles.

Are we to just assume that the sub-genres of popular music don't change or evolve anymore? Or it changes at a snail's pace since the turn of the century? (Not outside the realm of possibility, mind you - post-modernism and all that.)

And again I'm troubled by the use of the word "cool" without any qualification or context as to what is meant.

Cool as in what is currently popular with young people "in the know" of the latest fashions and trends? Cool as in the traditional signifiers of cultural cool (Sunglasses, jazz fashions, stoic poses)?
Cool as in dark, moody and minor keyed? Cool as in timelessly cool? Cool as in having a rebellious attitude? Cool as in being truly underground? Cool as in a tiresomely ironic stance? Cool as in a marketing tool cynically wielded to shape public tastes and consumer behaviours?

No one knows.

I will have to piece it together based on context clues. I find the word "cool" completely unhelpful, even if I can (usually) piece together what is intended by the word.

sedge wrote:
Avoid listings like that if they rub you the wrong way , hardly inspiring to you by the sounds of it. Let others have them ones : )

I agree. Pick and choose the listings that resonate with you and focus on those. You may only find one suitable listing per quarter. But that listing could be the one to accelerate your career!

I think one of the cool things about Taxi is that there really nothing to lose by submitting music. Even when you are rejected, you learn more about how the business works. Also, you still keep all of the rights to your music. The value is tremendous once you realize that this is a business first. Without coming to that understanding, it will be exceedingly difficult to succeed with or without Taxi.

Good luck, mate.