It seems like we have a lot of people on the forums who are very down in the dumps about a recent rejection. It’s totally understandable, but it’s definitely not the end of the world. It’s probably not even that big of a deal. I think most people get tripped up on the wording. If you take it the wrong way, it sounds something like, “this track is not worthy, ye peon!” When really, it’s supposed to read like, “This track simply won’t be viable in the specific vibe and feel of the Envato marketplace.”
I thought I’d share a track of mine that was recently hard rejected. I put a lot of work into it, and I like it just the way it is. I have no intention of changing it and I totally understand why it was rejected. There’s no way Sam Adams or eHarmony would ever use it, nor was that ever my goal. My target audience is hard to hit here, as I’m mostly looking to work with indie game devs and indie film devs.
If you’re like me at all and your target audience is a little off base, don’t get discouraged. Audio Jungle is exactly one destination for stock music, nothing more or less. It’s a cool place to submit and find music, but don’t let it completely determine your musical self worth. Some tracks will sell really well here, others need to go elsewhere to hit their mark. Whatever you do, keep writing whenever and whatever you want!
Without further ado, here is my rejected submission, a quirky little electronic track called Thermosphere Dreams:
A raucous romp through space and time, this track takes after the NES and Super Nintendo era space shooters which inspired it. Equally at home in a retro side-scroller or cutting edge iPhone game, this track is designed to be exciting in both a mono mix and full stereo. Reminiscent of sounds from Life Force.
quirky, different and i like it! i have over 120 songs on AJ and have only had 2 or 3 hard rejects. one i kind of understood why, the others i didn’t agree with but… oh well, move on, there are other places that will take them.
Thanks! Yeah, the rejection doesn’t worry me in the slightest. AJ is brand new to me and I’m in the process of testing the waters. I thought I’d try something a little different first before uploading more of my library so that I know what flies here.
Hi, just listened to your track. I agree with caffiedillie, it’s clearly stated that AJ doesn’t need chiptune/8bit
Besides that the track has some mixing issue: there’s almost no panning, all the parts are bulked in the center (or maybe is the infamous “big mono” resulting from the bulking of stereo parts in the mix), and there’s no apparent work on EQ, resulting in a mass of sound in the Hi Mid frequencies…maybe you can add a little air in the high frequencies, it would be a little more crisp and fresh.
Just my 2 cents
Audiojungle has Chiptune/8bit under “Files we don’t need”.
Hmm, interesting thought! I suppose it could have been considered chiptune, although it doesn’t include any raw waveform synthesis. Perhaps too close in style though? Ohwell, not a big deal either way. Thanks for the input.
MValentino said
Hi, just listened to your track. I agree with caffiedillie, it’s clearly stated that AJ doesn’t need chiptune/8bit
Besides that the track has some mixing issue: there’s almost no panning, all the parts are bulked in the center (or maybe is the infamous “big mono” resulting from the bulking of stereo parts in the mix), and there’s no apparent work on EQ, resulting in a mass of sound in the Hi Mid frequencies…maybe you can add a little air in the high frequencies, it would be a little more crisp and fresh.
Just my 2 cents
I definitely appreciate the mixing advice. However, listen again on a smartphone or laptop speakers; that’s the intended environment. The raw, narrow pan stereo sound is part of the vibe - and I do understand that’s a mixing style that can rub some people the wrong way. Unfortunately most listeners don’t have nice expensive speakers to listen through, so I try to be conscious of the most common listening environments.
Audiojungle has Chiptune/8bit under “Files we don’t need”.
Hmm, interesting thought! I suppose it could have been considered chiptune, although it doesn’t include any raw waveform synthesis. Perhaps too close in style though? Ohwell, not a big deal either way. Thanks for the input.
MValentino said
Hi, just listened to your track. I agree with caffiedillie, it’s clearly stated that AJ doesn’t need chiptune/8bit
Besides that the track has some mixing issue: there’s almost no panning, all the parts are bulked in the center (or maybe is the infamous “big mono” resulting from the bulking of stereo parts in the mix), and there’s no apparent work on EQ, resulting in a mass of sound in the Hi Mid frequencies…maybe you can add a little air in the high frequencies, it would be a little more crisp and fresh.
Just my 2 cents
I definitely appreciate the mixing advice. However, listen again on a smartphone or laptop speakers; that’s the intended environment. The raw, narrow pan stereo sound is part of the vibe - and I do understand that’s a mixing style that can rub some people the wrong way. Unfortunately most listeners don’t have nice expensive speakers to listen through, so I try to be conscious of the most common listening environments.
It’s not a good idea to mix in a more mono stereo field or without carving out appropriate EQ spaces for your sounds just to fit on low quality consumer speakers. Listening back on a laptop or smartphone will “mono-fy” and limit the EQ spectrum for you. It’s probably better to mix with a high quality approach for a high quality sound setup and then like I said people utilizing your music on low quality speakers will by default here a lower quality sound but you would still have a good sound for a higher end client if need be.
A great example of a similar “8-bit videogame” style music but with a super high quality approach to the music would be this Aqua Kitty Album.
Thank you for reiterating what was said previously. I really do appreciate the mixing advice. I understand that all of my peers here are producers and I have no doubt that this track could be better mixed. Thanks for sharing that album as well, I’ll definitely have to check it out. Per my original post I have no qualms about my track being rejected. I already know the “why”, and it doesn’t bother me. Once again, thank you for chiming in!
I have a a few 8-bit tracks myself but fear that they would be rejected due to the non-need for such tracks. I really enjoyed yours though! Good Job! I love chip-tunes. If you want to check out some of my stuff my Soundcloud is:
I have a a few 8-bit tracks myself but fear that they would be rejected due to the non-need for such tracks. I really enjoyed yours though! Good Job! I love chip-tunes. If you want to check out some of my stuff my Soundcloud is:
Thanks! Loved your portfolio - really nice mix of genres and they’re all done really well! Yeah, I suppose 8bit is a niche market anyways so I get AJ’s decision on that, but it seems like they love orchestral stuff so that’s where I’m headed next.
I have a a few 8-bit tracks myself but fear that they would be rejected due to the non-need for such tracks. I really enjoyed yours though! Good Job! I love chip-tunes. If you want to check out some of my stuff my Soundcloud is:
Thanks! Loved your portfolio - really nice mix of genres and they’re all done really well! Yeah, I suppose 8bit is a niche market anyways so I get AJ’s decision on that, but it seems like they love orchestral stuff so that’s where I’m headed next.
Thanks Tyrule! I won’t ever stop writing 8-bit stuff either it’s just not everybody’s thing but I love it and I’m glad other people like yourself enjoy it. If you ever need any tips on orchestral music feel free to ask! Happy composing my friend!
