Spencer Beasley - Doctors, Lawyers and Politicians

Hear The Track Here

Sounding suspiciously like a character fresh out of Hogwarts via Harry Potter (sorry Spencer gotta start somehow...) Spencer Beasley is a new name to me and - as it happens - a 16 year old acoustic guitarist from Florida. Now when I say acoustic guitarist, I mean 'xact'ly that. Now when I was recording my own songs like this, I would have been proud to have come up with something like this, and I recognise the work Spencer has put into this very enjoyable track. Providing that you like acoustic guitar and a dab o' vocals of course. There's a definite 'boominess' on the recording that is almost off putting but if you can put this aside you may very well enjoy this track.

Uh, oh. I bet you think I'm getting ready to unload on somebody right now eh?

The point is, I DO like what Spencer is doing here, in a very, very lo-fi kinda way. There are, however, certain things it's impossible to keep quiet about. Uploading material like this does has certain advantages to the artist; it gives them exposure they wouldn't have otherwise gotten, it gets them much needed comments from every peanut gallery in town and much more importantly it gets them comments that may be of some use. First off, let's talk about what the guy is doing right. Doctors is a really good song, although it's performed in a decidely unsure way. Some of the chord structures are of passing interest to another guitar player, but outside that there are too many other things weighing on the negative side.

I'll sum it up in one word: competition. Soundclick is a HUGE music site with thousands and thousands of different indie artists of all stripes, and some of them are so good it's positively poo making. I mean, have you heard some of the tracks you are up against? What we hear on Doctors, Lawyers and Politicians is the bare bones of what appears to be a really good song delivered in the most basic 'demo' way. Where the internet WILL pay off for budding artists like this is to put together people to make music. Spencer Beasley is a good songwriter and arranger who is looking for a production team to shape and define his musical vision. If he gets that, this could turn into some serious business. Definite potential but way too lo-fi to garner much interest outside friends and family.