[Harbidge]

Hi

Has anyone on here had any experience with Taxi?  They claim to be a middle man for record companies and TV production companies on the look out to sign or licence artists and songs. 

How it works:

They will get a brief from a TV production company looking for specific types of songs to use in their TV shows and then Taxi will send a bulletin out to its members asking people to submit relevant songs which they then vet and forward the songs they think will be of interest.  The site is pretty convincing and I have been aware of the company since the early 90s.  The catch is its about £300 a year to be on their books.

I am toying with the idea.

Anyone got any thoughts?

http://www.taxi.com/

[Ramshackles]

Total and utter rubbish (sorry!). Just a money making machine. Unless you are paying for recording time (producer, engineer, studio or all) or gear, dont trust anything that requires money upfront. Hell even when recording you pay after.
IMO the best way to get ahead is the usual route. Although I'm not ahead in any shape or form so not a good source at all. But read about your favourite bands etc, you will generally find that the way they started to make a career from music was playing gigs, getting to know people (and proabably maxing out a few cards on gear and recording), and this leads to management and eventually record deals. Just be active.

[Harbidge]

Thanks ramshakles

Ive trodden the old path for 15 years, I have played thousands of gigs, been played on radio 100s of times, met with numerous record company people.  Ive had my songs used in ad campaigns, I got into debt in 2003 when I maxed out cedit cards and bought all the gear I needed for a recording studio and other things but I never seem to get anywhere or come close to making a living out of this. I even had a guy who writes with James Morrison promise me the world and nothing ever happened.  Everyone in this industry is full of BS.

I would make more out of this busking which I am in the middle of putting a set together.

Ive come to the conclusion the old way doesnt work.  All my old A&R contacts tell me you will never see an A&R guy at any unsigned shows anymore, they only go on what has been reccommended to them by trusted people or scour the internet hour after hour. It seems putting your stuff on myspace or reverbnation increases your chance of being spotted these days not gigging.

Im probly just jaded with the whole industry.

I used to say never pay up front but that hasnt worked either.  Im probly just desperat, bitter and jaded

[Paul]

I feel for you.  I've been writing, recording and gigging for 30 years now.  I've had many of the same experiences with industry contacts.  I often curse myself for developing my songwriting ability and sometimes wish that I had never begun this journey.  However I love to write and at times  am filled with great satisfaction that I never experience with any other activity.   I think that I'll never achieve any real success as a writer and his can be very difficult to accept. However, It's important to accept this and get on with other aspects of your life.  I have some good quality recording equipment and have developed my ability over time.  Experience enables me to get on with my musical projects quickly.  I have a huge back catalogue of songs that I'll never find time to record. I'm just starting to send the odd demo out to Publishing companies for their consideration.  If like me, you're not interested in pursuing fame then I see this as a good opportunity to get your music heard.  I'm not going to pay anyone to listen to my material.

I had a Taxi membership about five years ago.  It was expensive  and I felt that it was tailored towards the American music industry.  I think that as a taxi member,  you're required to familiarise yourself with many artists that you may be unfamiliar with and then tailor your writing accordinggly to be in with a chance.  I thought that the whole process was expensive, i.e membership and then submission fees on top. You might strike it lucky and I hope you do if you decide to go own this route.  However, I'd advise you to be cautious!  It's easy to get jaded with the music business.  All I can say, is try to enjoy your writing and don't become  a slave to it.  Enjoy other aspects of your life and you never know something wonderful might happen when you're least expecting it.   I hope you don't mind that I've shared this with you.  I was genuinely moved by the thoughts that you expressed in your post and wish you well for the future.

Paul

[Cowbell]

I have heard of it and from what I can remember they encourage you to submit songs no matter what the quality of recording / production. You could look at that in two ways. Firstly that it encourages raw talent or secondly that it is a money making scam. I suspect the latter given that  publishing companies wish for songs to be submitted to sound as close to the finished product as can be. I personally believe that a good song should not be overlooked because of the quality of recording and production. However, the music industry is the way it is. It shouldn't stop anyone writing though as it is a passion and I would encourage anyone to record their own music regardless of equipment / resources.