I’ve been sort of operating in a vacuum for the last few years working on new material. I released a Christian album that really didn’t go anywhere, but that really didn’t matter to me because I’ve always felt funny about profiting monetarily from spirituality. The album’s still up on iTunes (if you search on “Brendan Delumpa”, you’ll find it), but I don’t really pay attention to it. That was something that I simply had to get out of my system.
After I did that album, I went on a bit of hiatus in writing, then got the bug again. But this time (it was late 2008), I didn’t want to do another religious album. I wanted to do something with a bit more of a classic rock feel. So I put together a few songs, laid down some tracks, and “kind of” liked what I produced. But I wanted to get some professional feedback. So I entered a few songs into an annual songwriting contest put up by a company called SongDoor.com. The deal was for $10 per song, you could enter your song into the contest, and also get a professional critique.
I actually didn’t care about winning the contest. I knew that the winners would be the ones that write mainstream stuff. While some of my material crosses into the realm of pop, most of it is just stuff that I like to listen to myself, and that’s not really modern mainstream music. My true aim was to get some critique on my songs, and that’s exactly what I got, and that feedback helped guide me in my later writing.
That was back in 2008. Unfortunately, SongDoor got so popular that they couldn’t afford to pay the judges for all the evaluations. I didn’t know that when I submitted a song this round. Oh well… But they recently released a new song evaluation service. For $25 they’ll do a much more in-depth evaluation of a song you submit. That was the answer to my prayers!
The bummer about entering my songs into the contest was that I’d have to wait several months before I got feedback. But with the new service, I could get an evaluation within three to five business days! How cool is that! So I paid for the service and uploaded a song with a lyric sheet yesterday… and got my evaluation back this morning!
Apparently, I was the first person to use the service, so I got mine quick. I have to tell you that the evaluation I got with this service was 100 times better than the feedback I previously got from the contest. It’s honest, and the evaluator doesn’t pull any punches, though they’re pretty nice when hitting you with their honesty. 🙂
The song I submitted was actually a work in progress. I knew going in that my lyrics were bad. They were just filler lyrics. What I really wanted was an evaluation of the music to see if my musical direction was sound. As expected, the evaluator said the genre I wrote the song wasn’t that popular (it’s a jazz/funk piece), and that the lyrics needed work but that musically, it was a good song with a catchy beat. That’s exactly what I needed to move forward with the song.
So this evening, I totally re-worked the lyrics except for the chorus that I thought was good enough to keep. Here’s the new version of the song:
Frankly, I’m not looking to create the next big hit. But it’s great to get validation and critique on something I love doing, and more importantly, get feedback on how I can improve my song writing. I really dig the service that SongDoor is providing, and if you’re a songwriter, I highly recommend submitting a song or two, and get an evaluation!
GoofyDawg, my friend, I have listened to your songs… One thing that you are probably missing is advertising… Try advertising your material.