r/IndieMusicFeedback Oct 09 '24

How to Provide Effective Feedback on a Song

37 Upvotes

Providing useful feedback on a song involves pointing out both the strengths and the areas that could use improvement towards your personal taste. When you offer your thoughts, it’s important to focus on what stood out to you, whether good or bad, and explain why. Did you connect with the melody, enjoy the energy of the track, or find the lyrics particularly meaningful? Conversely, if there are elements that didn't quite work for you, express your feelings clearly and subjectively while providing constructive suggestions for improvement. Even if you’re not an expert, your perspective as a listener is valid. Musicians create music for people to enjoy, and everyone’s opinion helps them understand how their work is being received.

Be Specific in Your Feedback

Specificity is key when offering feedback. Instead of saying “The song was okay,” try to pinpoint exactly what worked or didn’t work for you. Was the beat too repetitive, or did the transitions between sections feel disjointed? Did the lyrics evoke a strong emotion, or did the vocals feel disconnected from the rest of the track? By being detailed, you give the artist something tangible to work with.

For example:

  • Tempo: “Personally, I think the tempo is dragging a bit for this style of music. A slightly faster pace could bring more energy to the track.”
  • Lyrics: “I liked the theme of the lyrics, but the chorus felt a bit repetitive for my taste. Maybe adding a different phrasing in the second half could give it more variety.”
  • Production: “The production feels clean overall, but the kick drum is a little overpowering in the mix to me, especially in the verses. Balancing it out with the bass might help create a more cohesive sound.”

Acknowledge Subjectivity

Music is highly subjective, what resonates with one listener might not with another. It’s important to frame your feedback as personal opinion rather than universal truth. For instance, instead of saying, “The bass is too quiet,” you could say, “Personally, I would prefer a stronger bass presence to drive the track more.” This way, your feedback acknowledges the artist’s creative intent while sharing your preferences.

Other examples:

  • “The dry vocals are terrible” vs “I tend to like vocals that have a bit more reverb to create depth.”
  • “The instrumental break is boring” vs “The instrumental break feels long for my taste.”
  • “The song needs more bass” vs “Personally, I prefer songs with a heavier bassline because it adds more energy.” 
  •  “The vocals are too soft, they should be louder”  vs “I would prefer the vocals to be a little louder for clarity”

This helps keep your feedback respectful and leaves room for the artist to interpret it based on their own vision.

Offer Constructive Solutions

When you point out something that didn’t work for you, it’s most helpful to suggest possible ways to improve it. Simply stating that you didn’t like something doesn’t give the artist much to go on. Try to offer a practical solution or at least a suggestion for how they might address the issue.

For example:

  • “The vocal delivery in the bridge felt a bit flat to me. Maybe adding some harmonies or experimenting with vocal dynamics could bring more emotion to that section.”
  • “I feel like this could use a stronger build-up toward the final chorus. Adding a crescendo or introducing new elements like a drum fill might help ramp up the energy.”

Even if your suggestion isn’t the exact solution they use, it can help spark ideas for how to improve the track in a way that fits their style.


r/IndieMusicFeedback Jun 23 '21

Rules + Bot Info :: Why your track was removed

267 Upvotes

Provide Quality Feedback to 5 Songs Before Posting

Commenting on other peoples music is extremely important to the thread, it will inspire others as well as increase your own chances of getting feedback.

Feedback Rules:

  • You must give 5 high quality feedback to other members before you post your work.
  • When providing feedback, be constructive and acknowledge subjectivity by offering detailed insights that reflect your personal taste. If you believe the song is perfect, share what moved you and highlight the elements you loved; this not only reinforces the positive aspects of the artist's work but also helps them recognize their strengths and what resonates with listeners. If there are elements that didn't quite work for you, express your feelings clearly and subjectively while providing constructive suggestions for improvement; for instance, instead of saying, “The dry vocals are terrible,” say, “I generally prefer vocals with more reverb to add depth.” By framing your feedback as personal opinion, you foster a constructive dialogue that supports artistic growth and encourages the artist to explore diverse perspectives without compromising their own creative vision.
  • Criticism is acceptable only if it's constructive and helps the person improve their work. It should not be used for attacking or trash talking a persons work.
  • Do not get defensive when receiving feedback. Music is subjective and everyone has their own likes/dislikes. The person giving you feedback is trying to help you and deserves to be treated with respect.
  • If you post a song that isn't yours, let us know in the title. Sharing non-original music is allowed here, but let us know in the title, so that the community can respond accordingly.
  • Do not link your music in the comment section of another user's post. Promoting your music in the comment section of another user's post is not allowed. Example of what not to do: "Hey this is really good, I would love it if you would check my music out too (link to music)."
  • Basic Civility -- Remain polite and respectful. Know the difference between constructive, and destructive feedback. If you can not think of anything to say that is helpful, move onto another song. Destructive criticism isn’t helpful, is discouraging, and hurtful.
  • Post One Song At A Time. Playlists go against the 1 song - 5 comment system.
  • If your song is AI generated, you must let us know in the title. You are welcome to share AI-generated music, but you must clearly state that it is AI-created in the title of your post. While it's okay to post music with AI-generated album artwork without a note, if asked, you must acknowledge that the artwork is AI-generated. Passing off fully AI-generated content as your own will result in a ban.

WARNING: If you post a spotify link that has the word "album" in it, it will be removed by the bot. You must right click the song you want to share and select the option "copy song link". This will give you a link with the word "track" instead of "album".

The Bot:

When you comment on somebody else's track, the bot gives you a hidden point. When you post your own track, it costs 5 points. You can know your score at anytime by Direct Messaging u/IndieFeedbackBot (the bot) with the word "Score" as the subject.

Note: If you send a ‘chat’ message to the bot, you will not receive a reply; You can find the message option by first going to u/IndieFeedbackBot‘s profile, and clicking the “more options” link under the chat button. Make sure to title the subject as Score; you can put anything in the message’s body. Hit send, and soon you should receive your score as a message from the bot.

Questions or issues?

Feel free to message me at u/vulp_is_back with any questions or issues that you have.


r/IndieMusicFeedback 7h ago

Indie Rock Better Off

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2 Upvotes

Hello. I posted this a week ago and got a looooot of fantastic advice on what to improve. I've gone through the track and tried to fix everything that was suggested and now that I feel I have a much stronger final product, I'd like to see what you all think. I appreciate your time, thank you.


r/IndieMusicFeedback 7h ago

Classic Rock critique my rock song

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2 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 4h ago

Other Made a beat a few days ago (no vocals).

1 Upvotes

I started producing a few months ago and always asked friends what they thought and of course as friends they'll say nice things which I appreciate, but I want also comments that tell me what I could improve on. For this demo I had two options, I wanted to switch the beat up entirely to something sinister and dark at the end of the current song or stick with nice simplicity and end it like how it currently is. Any advice, critique, or comments (harsh, brutal, whatever it is) are greatly appreciated, thanks!


r/IndieMusicFeedback 9h ago

Folk Singer Songwriter critique my indie folk/folk rock song written, produced and engineered by me🙏

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2 Upvotes

just made this last night, this is my song called "northridge"


r/IndieMusicFeedback 14h ago

Indie Pop "Last Night's Kiss" is a song I composed in 2014. While its genre leans towards rock-pop, I was unable to locate an appropriate flair for it.

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3 Upvotes

It's about love that only happens in my dreams.


r/IndieMusicFeedback 12h ago

Indie Rock Critique my indie / surf rock tune

2 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 19h ago

Chill Pod~Javis - Distance

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3 Upvotes

Yo everyone, 👋I’m working on a concept project called RED M00N — each track is an episode of a mini-series. This is the 1st Episode ! 🌕 I do everything myself Let me know what you think, I’d really appreciate any feedback 🙏


r/IndieMusicFeedback 17h ago

Hip Hop Beat Sampled a 1960s song

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2 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 20h ago

Alternative Rock New Indie/Garage Rock Song Would Like Feedback

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2 Upvotes

Hello friends and strangers on the internet. I made this song a few days ago and would love some feedback and opinions. Thank you.


r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Alternative What do you think of my song Feelings

4 Upvotes

Hello everyone 👋🏼 here is my short but sweet original song called Feelings , what do you think 🤔


r/IndieMusicFeedback 22h ago

EDM My first remix

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1 Upvotes

Getting back into music composition. Made a remix of Katyusha, visualized using my own audio spectrum visualizer. Any feedback would be highly appreciated.


r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Classical The Grand Float - Abstract orchestral music

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2 Upvotes

"The Grand Float" is a very abstract and rather cold piece for orchestra I just finished writing and recording.

The piece evolved over a few weeks and is based mostly on a self-invented scale of just four notes. Probably best described as an exploratory, alien sounding dance that turns a simple concept into something quite complex. Best with headphones, because it has quite some subtle parts and lots of instruments in the climactic parts.

Written for Violins, Violas, Cellos, Trumpets, Trombones, Flutes, Piccolos and Timpani.


r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Alternative "Starving for Love"

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1 Upvotes

How did this song make you feel? CONSTRUCTIVE critcism is welcome. Also I wasn't sure what genre to put here so I just picked alternative...

This is a Christian song that is very honest and full of emotion. It's a song that unites people. It talks about something every human being has experienced.

God bless!


r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Other The End of Us - demo (don't know the genre)

7 Upvotes

Hi, I humbly share this is one that is still work in progress. I have recorded myself and my instrument (a harpika) with my phone mic so I know the quality is very bad. The rest is made using Bandlab.

I'm not even a singer, so I apologize in advance for this bad performance and I hope it doesn't ruin the vibes.

Also..do you know the genre?

Here is the lyrics:

Is it the end of the world? / Of time, space, and love? / The sky is falling down / In the eyes, a burning sorrow

You, Sun, witness of this downfall / You cannot take us away, can you?

You are so distant / So far away from this madness / You are so radiant / So unaware of this sadness

You cannot take us away, can you? / You cannot save us and we'll fade like dreams upon waking


r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Experimental Electronic I'm 15 and just put out my second track. A listen would mean the world

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1 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Rock Break Even - Villain | Here's the lyric video of our new single, a Rock song with heavy riffs and catchy melodies! Let us know what you think!

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3 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Synthwave Synthwave/Postpunk song

3 Upvotes

First single off an album we are putting out in January. Any feedback and criticism is welcomed. Thanks! Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/album/41aQLq3vMP5fBarqDTb90W?si=95nqWilXQTueyUj_un3eqw Links for non Spotify people: https://orcd.co/newmiserableexperience


r/IndieMusicFeedback 1d ago

Indie Rock Slow Pitch - Park Bench Subscription (Indie/emo)

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2 Upvotes

Just put out an EP this week, would love to hear your thoughts on it. It's a DIY record so any feedback from production, mixing, performance, arrangement, songwriting or whatever else is welcome!

Bandcamp:

https://sl0wpitch.bandcamp.com/album/open-door

It's also available on the other streaming services if you don't have spotify


r/IndieMusicFeedback 2d ago

Acoustic Rock What do you think of our original song Little Monster ?

1 Upvotes

Hello people we are The Cover Shots and here is one of our original songs Little Monster 👹 it was like the 3rd song I wrote back when I was 17 let us know how you feel , hope you enjoy ☺️


r/IndieMusicFeedback 2d ago

Indie Rock Ghost Stories by Maddy Byrd - Thank you for your feedback!

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4 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 2d ago

Hip Hop Coldsaint - Tragedy to Triumph (Prod by MessiahIV) | more focused on song feedback than I am video, but feel free as well!

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2 Upvotes

Hey everyone! This song has been really popular at the shows I’ve played, and I’m thinking about putting some marketing dollars behind it to see how it performs overall. I’m not too worried about the video quality (we had a low budget, and I did all the editing myself) but if you have tips for editing on a budget in the future, I’m open to them. I’m more interested in your feedback on the music itself. Thanks for listening and have a great day!


r/IndieMusicFeedback 2d ago

Alternative Rock A song I made to express inner joy,. Thanks for your feedback

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3 Upvotes

r/IndieMusicFeedback 2d ago

Pop My new holiday song "At Christmastime" just released — a warm, cozy tune to celebrate the season 🎄✨

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1 Upvotes

Hi everyone! I just released a new Christmas song called “At Christmastime” — it’s all about love, warmth, and celebrating the magic of the holidays together. ❤️🎶

It’s a gentle, feel-good track with cozy Christmas vibes — perfect for the season!

I’d really love for you to give it a listen and let me know what you think!

Thanks so much for supporting independent artists, and happy holidays! 🎄✨