Constructive Criticism Needed...

T

~Twitch~

New member
Hello

Im new to the home recording scene and had posted this link over in the mp3 mixing clinic, where I was told that I should post the song here for feedback on the song itself as opposed to its recording quality.

Sorry it sounds so muddy(its on soundclick)

Heres the link: --> No Goodbyes Lullaby

Alternatively, you can download it from here: --> No Goodbyes Lullaby 224k Some people have had a hard time downloading from filefront for some reason but if you can get it to work Id rather you listen to the 224k version as opposed to Soundclicks 128k.

-Thanks :)
 
Nice beat with a relaxing feel. As I was listening I started adding a melody line and lyrics. Then I saw what your opinion of lyrics is. I think you're short-changing the possibilities of what you are creating. That's just my opinion, of course.

Regardless of that, the track shows potential for soundtrack or multimedia project use. You might want to look into that line of the business. TAXI has current postings for that sort of thing. Basically, it's a matter of licensing your tracks to a music library who in turn supplies them to professional users for anything from advertising to movies.
 
Hugo H wrote:
I think you're short-changing the possibilities of what you are creating. That's just my opinion, of course.
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Is that just because its instrumental, or are there other things fundamentally wrong with the song?

Hugo H wrote:
Regardless of that, the track shows potential for soundtrack or multimedia project use. You might want to look into that line of the business. TAXI has current postings for that sort of thing.
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Really? Cool, thanks. Im just getting into this, so I have to do some studying on licensing and how exactly to get into it. Any links, suggestions?

Oh, and what is TAXI? I'll try and google it.
 
~Twitch~ said:
Is that just because its instrumental, or are there other things fundamentally wrong with the song?
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It's because of this quote from you on Soundclick: "Lyrics are mans failed attempt to mimic the beauty of music." Since you think that then you must not appreciate lyrics much and therefore you don't write or want any. I think your track would do well with a melody line and lyrics. Of course, it really depends on what you plan on doing with it.

I hope you found TAXI ok ( http://www.taxi.com/ ). You'll find a lot of differing opinions about the value of their services. The reality is that if you've got something worthwhile submitting to a current, active lead they can be useful. Currently people are most successful with the music library route. You can subscribe to their listings for free to get a preview of what they are searching for.
 
~Twitch~ said:
Hello

Im new to the home recording scene and had posted this link over in the mp3 mixing clinic, where I was told that I should post the song here for feedback on the song itself as opposed to its recording quality.

Sorry it sounds so muddy(its on soundclick)

Heres the link: --> No Goodbyes Lullaby

Alternatively, you can download it from here: --> No Goodbyes Lullaby 224k Some people have had a hard time downloading from filefront for some reason but if you can get it to work Id rather you listen to the 224k version as opposed to Soundclicks 128k.

-Thanks :)
Click to expand...

Its flows well musically. I dig the piano, and I love the tension in the drum beat (<coming from a drummer), I even like the reverse crashes. I just don't like the annoying synth-like sounds playing 'lead' over it all. Would much rather hear some lyrics even if only of modest quality.
And whats with the oriental sounding part 1/2 into it? Out of place to my ears.
 
goodbyebluesky wrote:
I just don't like the annoying synth-like sounds playing 'lead' over it all.
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Synth-like sounds? :confused: What part are you talking about. Could you be more specific, like "the synth sound that comes in at 0:12". Thats just an example but the time that what you're calling "synth" comes in would be appreciated so I can tell exactly what you mean. The only thing I can think that you mean would be the cello+violin part, as far as "synth-like" sound goes, but thats not the lead, its accompaniment and gets kind of hard to distinguish later on in the song.

goodbyebluesky wrote:
And whats with the oriental sounding part 1/2 into it? Out of place to my ears.
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Really? Everyone who Ive had listen to the song personally says thats their favorite part. Oh, well. I guess no matter what, not everyone is gonna like my stuff.

Thanks for the feedback though. Get back to me on what you meant by "synth-like" though.

-Peace
 
song

Hi i am also new to this forum. I love the music, but as usual there are a few things I would change were I wrtiting it. For a start, in the oriental part, there is a high note at the end of every bar, that doesnt seem to fit by my ears. Kinda ruins the tranquillity (IMHO).

Secondly, I share the opinion this would be better with lyrics, even if they wernt any good. If you want I can jot some ideas down for you. If you want to leave it instrumental then thats fine to, its makes a great realxing song.

All of this is my opinion, feel free to take or leave the advice.

Jon
 
I especially like the sound of the acoustic guitar lead. If instrumental is going to be your thing then TAXI is probably the way to go. It's an annual subscription though so make sure you have several songs that you can send them in one year. Otherwise it can get a bit pricey. ($300/yr)

The lyrics people are right on track though. If it's not in your heart then consider a collaboration. Years ago it worked out OK for Rogers and Hammerstein and many others. Of course this is all just my $.02 ;)
 
Hey Twich i heard your music today again, and its indeed very beautiful
My constructive criticism goes for you to actual explore more of that.
I found that this music is "perfect" wich means to me, to leave the way it is.

The personal opinioms is a very subjective thing. We like to point out our ideas and preferences and we always have something to say, something we are missing, but that doesnt mean necssary that your music is missing something

If Roger Waters came here asking for constructive criticism about Dark side of the Moon, people would say "dont overuse the slides", "Time has a too long intro" and so on.
Obviously i am not comparing your music to Pink Floyd, cause they shouldnt :p :) .

I am just saying that the criticism and feedbacks help to understand more about the listener mind, not your music
Thats why i say that this song is beautiful, cause thats the way i felt the first time i heard, and i had felt the same way again :)

I wish you good luck :)
 
~Twitch~ said:
goodbyebluesky wrote:

Synth-like sounds? :confused: What part are you talking about. Could you be more specific, like "the synth sound that comes in at 0:12". Thats just an example but the time that what you're calling "synth" comes in would be appreciated so I can tell exactly what you mean. The only thing I can think that you mean would be the cello+violin part, as far as "synth-like" sound goes, but thats not the lead, its accompaniment and gets kind of hard to distinguish later on in the song.

goodbyebluesky wrote:

Really? Everyone who Ive had listen to the song personally says thats their favorite part. Oh, well. I guess no matter what, not everyone is gonna like my stuff.

Thanks for the feedback though. Get back to me on what you meant by "synth-like" though.

-Peace
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What I mean is, it sounds very "organic" to me- the beautiful keys, the laidback drums, until this instrument comes in at 0:36 and again at 1:47. Maybe its heavily processed acoustic guitar (yea now I realize thats what it was), but at first listen it just sound synthetic and kind of cheesy. I love what the keys do at 2:30, and then the oriental stuff comes in at 2:42 and it sounds kitschy, like its there just for novelty's sake.
 
Hugo H wrote:
You might want to look into that line of the business. TAXI has current postings for that sort of thing.
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up-fiddler wrote:
If instrumental is going to be your thing then TAXI is probably the way to go.
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Is TAXI really worth it? Have either of you had experience with the company's service?

SoundofMind wrote:
Hey Twich i heard your music today again, and its indeed very beautiful
My constructive criticism goes for you to actual explore more of that.
I found that this music is "perfect" wich means to me, to leave the way it is.
Click to expand...
I think right now you're my biggest fan, and goodbyebluesky is my harshest critic. :D Thanks to everyone for all the feed back though(including bluesky).

Heres another song of mine. ROUGH recording of an acoustic piece I wrote awhile back. Once again sorry for the muddy sound (128k :( ). This is just guitar instrumental, with e-bow accomp. I hope to do a better recording sometime soon. Oh, if you dont know what an e-bow is, its a device that you place over the strings of a guitar and it uses a magnet to cause which ever string you have it over to resonate until you pull the e-bow away.

Anyways...

Listen 2 @ Soundclick --> Constellation
 
I haven't used Taxi but I know people who have. For music library work, you must have the ability to produce finished, produced tracks, hopefully in a number of different genres and tempos. That's because the library distributes your work; they don't do production.

You'll be in competition with all of the other Taxi subscribers, not a bunch of slackers or wannabes (for the most part). Stuff that gets raves in online forums generally hits about 5 (maybe 6) on a commercial scale of 10. Taxi uses screeners (who vary in quality and ability themselves) to pick out the good stuff for forwarding to the publishers. That means at least at 8 on the scale, broadly speaking.

There's a lot of competition. But you've got an ear, talent, and time. That puts you ahead of the crowd. From what I hear you do, I think you should give it a try. But put together a bunch of tracks before you sign up. I know country songwriters who'll tell you to have at least 30 tracks available if you're marketing songs, for example. And of course for library distribution, the more quality tracks you can place, the more likely you are to make a sale.

Take a look at it, follow their listings, but don't sign up until you're really ready to make a big push with a solid portfolio.
 
Thanks for all the helpful advice Hugo. You've been very helpful over the past few days.

Hugo H wrote:
...have at least 30 tracks available...
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30 tracks?!?! :eek: I guess I need to get busy. Its going to take alot of work to come up w/20 or so more songs that dont sound like i was just trying to fill a quota. :) Its gonna cost me a bit to copyright that many songs.

Does anyone know of a good online service to copyright music? Ive been going the "snail-mail" route so far.

Oh, yeah has anyone listened to 'Constellation' yet? Remember though, Its a ROUGH recording. Hope to do a better one soon.

-Thanks
 
Twitch,
You're welcome. Just passing along accumulated knowledge; I've had all the same questions in mind at one time or another. And logicaldove's correct: gather your stuff onto one CD and copyright it as a collection. You can find more info on the government's site http://www.copyright.gov/ and scattered around the web.
And yeah, a lot of tracks is a lot of work. That's why it's the music Business :)
-Hugo
 
~Twitch~ said:
I think right now you're my biggest fan
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I guess i am :)

I really liked the second track too. I really love instrumental music just like you Twich. I think you are a very talented musician

I wish you the best of luck on puting that album :)
 
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