The primary focus hear is great songs, written and recorded by someone over thirty years old, who is not doing it “professionally”. It’s a nebulous criteria, I know. We’re going to rule out folks who play in famous or semi-famous bands (for example, Jack White is 37 years old but will not be featured in NOS). Someone with more cultish success – say Fred Cornog of East River Pipe, for example – won’t be a viable candidate either: he releases his modest records on Merge, gets written up in the New York Times. Although, he meets a lot of the criteria that we’re talking about: he’s 45, married, works a day job at Home Depot, and just has a little bedroom studio where he periodically makes a record.
So let’s enumerate –
SUBMISSION CRITERIA:
(1) Songs must be written and performed by individuals or bands with members who are 30 years old or older. We’ll allow the occasional 22-year old bassist or whatever, but not Mom and Dad playing backup on their 20-year old child prodigy’s song. We’ll probably take you word for, for the time being, at least until we get hoodwinked by some kid pretending to be 40, which will inevitable happen – then we’ll need you Social Security Number and bank account
(2) By submitting the song or songs you agree to allow us to post it on the site as a free download. It might be used for future purposes. It won’t be directly sold for profit. If we monetize the blog, you won’t get a share of the ad revenues if your song is featured.
(3) Submit as much as you want, as often as you want, but don’t change your name every time. Just cause we didn’t pick one song, doesn’t mean we won’t like something else. You can send us a link to your entire concept album and your meticulous recording blog – just know that we’d prefer to listen to one or two songs you think are best. We know, we know: we’re asking you to pick your favorite child. But you know you have one: its Jenny – she’s smart, funny, good at sports, and looks just like you. We’d prefer 2-3 mp3s and some links to your Soundcloud, Facebook, Bandcamp. etc., in case we want to dig a little deeper.
(4) Give us to some fun facts. We want to tell your story – just a little bit. The awesome college band you played in, the years of failed attempts in your mid-twenties, the MBA you received, the Assistant Vice President of Regional Management job you took, the Gibson SG you bought with that fat salary, and the subsequent rekindling of your love of music.
Here’s the need to know:
(1) Your Full Name and Age (let us know if you don’t want us using your full-name – for privacy purposes).
(2) Band/Project Name
(3) Band members, ages, what they play.
(4) Short Bio or links to Facebook, Soundcloud, etc.
(5) Your MP3s – your 1-3 favorites.
Send it to SINNERSREPENT [at] GMAIL[DOT] COM and include in the subject line:
NOS submission: Band/Songwriter Name, Age of Primary applicant
Our Complete Right to Subjectivity:
We’re sorting through songs, searching for what moves us, what thrills us to the core. Our ambition is to post purely positive reviews and insights. We’re not going to post about songs that suck. But we’re only going to post to songs that appeal to us – and that will undoubtedly be a very narrow criteria. There are a half-dozen people involved in selecting the songs, largely on an individual basis. While I (Josh Maher) intend to inhabit an editorial position, I also want this project to be representative of the tastes of the people involved.
In short: if we don’t pick your songs, its not you – it’s me. Or us, rather. And maybe we’ll love some other song you write down the road.
Our real sincere hope is to find some great talents, languishing in obscurity and giving them the chance to have their music heard. To find people who’s passion for music continues to make them write and record – even as they do it in obscurity, even after they’ve stopped playing show, in spite of their aversion to competing in a thick-skinned, youth-centered entertainment culture.
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