We are the champions....

A sort of call to arms. I well remember posting stuff here and getting zip response. A pretty disheartening experience for a newbie and one, I guess, shared by many toe-in-the-water freshers to MeFiMu (or as unSane apty describes it the kitchen*). So - let's all make the effort to listen to at least two or three new posts per week and give some feedback to all our colleagues earnestly entreating thier muses..... Waddyasay?? * I'm well up for renaming this part of MeFi the "Utility Muffin Research Kitchen" in honour of the late Frank Zappa. I never liked his music much, but his attitude - particularly in terms of his resounding "f*ck you" to the music biz establishment - was inspiring.
posted by MajorDundee (16 comments total)

Consider these arms called.
posted by Doleful Creature at 4:31 PM on January 4, 2013

My thing has always been that I can't possibly listen to everything, and I go for long stretches without listening to stuff on Music. But then I'll listen to a song here or there or a bunch of them one night or an all-out binge on occasion. So I miss a lot of stuff and catch a lot of stuff that other people missed and that's just how it works for me, time-wise.
And I'll never, ever, trash someone's song, ever.
But I'm also not going to be patronizing. If I comment on something it's because I like it or it's piqued my interest in some way. The listening-as-homework model has never worked for me.
posted by chococat at 8:04 PM on January 4, 2013

That came out sounding kind of snotty, sorry.
Of course we should listen to new stuff, as much as possible.
For me, it has to be sort of organic; I have to stumble on things when the mood hits.
posted by chococat at 8:29 PM on January 4, 2013

Not snotty at all. This post is really having a pop at myself - 'cos I tend to not listen to people I'm not already familiar with. Which isn't great for the health of the site. I guess if everyone just makes a mental note to listen to others a bit more - when the mood strikes or whatever - that'd be cool.

I'd also had several sherberts when i posted this and awoke this morning with one of those "oh shit...." feelings. Happily it's not too incoherent!
posted by MajorDundee at 2:08 AM on January 5, 2013

Sherberts?
posted by chococat at 7:16 PM on January 5, 2013

Sherberts = a colloquialism for booze.
posted by MajorDundee at 9:31 AM on January 6, 2013

I love that.
posted by chococat at 10:47 AM on January 6, 2013

In my opinion one thing that would really help is to integrate mefimusic with Soundcloud. Right now we're our own little Balkan kingdom but if we could post Soundcloud links I think it would open us up to a wider community. I have a ton of friends on Soundcloud who never see any of the stuff here which is a shame.
posted by unSane at 6:58 PM on January 6, 2013

Also, sherberts.
posted by unSane at 6:59 PM on January 6, 2013

our own little Balkan kingdom

Excellent! I hereby declare unSane King of Votzefukania. I have taken the liberty of appointing myself Lagermeister Pursuivant and Chancellor of Whatever. If you don't like it I'll have you deported to somewhere really shite and backward where they probably shag farm animals and stuff - y'know somewhere like...uuugghh....England. Other royal offices are available on a first-come-first-served basis provided the bribe is acceptable - we are after all talking Balkans here guys so, hey, get over yourselves and don't come on with the sanctimoniousness and prissy hissy stuff already. That is, by the way, a capital offence. I just decreed it. Christ, I love my job...
posted by MajorDundee at 1:11 PM on January 7, 2013

King, best job in the world!

Throw him in the fiery pit!
posted by unSane at 1:50 PM on January 7, 2013

you've clearly got your heart in the right place, majordundee, so i hereby appoint you lord protector of farm animals in addition to your other titles
posted by pyramid termite at 3:47 PM on January 7, 2013 [1 favorite]

I'll never, ever, trash someone's song, ever.

This is my biggest problem with MeFi Music. That hand-holding special-snowflake crap that permeates every other page on the site stifles any honest feedback that could make MeFi Music a more fertile ground for creativity. I know my stuff is middling in quality, but what I need to know is not only what is really, really good, but what parts are really, *really* bad. Further, I want people's pure opinion, the words they actually think, not some touchy-feely rewording that dances around the point.

I am afraid that culture of brutal honesty is just too foreign for MeFi to accomodate.
posted by Ardiril at 7:30 PM on January 21, 2013

I want people's pure opinion, the words they actually think, not some touchy-feely rewording that dances around the point.

Awesome. Then ask for that when you post your song.
In my experience here, the default is to not bash people when they decide to share something they did. If you ask for critiques of your music you will usually get them, but unsolicited "that sounds like shit" comments are not a thing that happens, which I think is pretty great, actually.
posted by chococat at 8:07 PM on January 21, 2013

I have asked a few times for bluntness. It doesn't happen here.
posted by Ardiril at 8:19 PM on January 21, 2013

I've had plenty of helpful and honest criticism. It's not just how you ask for it but how you respond to it and your persona here. It can be very hard to comment on an individual track. It's much easier when you have a few examples and an idea of what target the poster has in mind.

In my experience the most effective way of getting feedback is either posting a work in progress are stating in the post what it is you're unhappy with or not sure about. Just 'what do you think of this' rarely provides enough context to say anything meaningful.
posted by unSane at 12:25 AM on January 22, 2013