Dr. Barnabas T. Bynum's New School Musical Revue and Travelling Minstrel Show

I was recently saddened to learn of the demise of Jim Santo's Demo Universe. Demo Universe was a place where undiscovered/underexposed bands or solo artists could send their recordings to be critiqued by the very able Mr. Santo. Let's face it , when one sends out demos to the various labels; there's a 99.99% chance it will end up in a large mechanical device that's called an industrial trash compactor. If your cousin's friend's brother works in the mail room and gets donuts and coffee for the a&r people, your chances are only slightly better. At least Jim Santo would provide the would be stars with some constructive feedback. If he liked your stuff, he said so. If he didn't, he said that too in very blunt and often humorous terms. Imagine Simon Cowell with a sense of humor. An accomplished musician himself, Santo was well versed in many genres of music. But over the years, he began to get further and further behind in reviewing the voluminous amount of tapes bands were sending him. In fact, at the rate he was reviewing it would have taken more than two and a half years to get to the last tape received. He can now spend time with more rewarding pursuits. You can check out his band at www.myspace.com/thesharpthings and please people stop sending him your tapes.

With demo universe out of the picture, who's left to fill the void? Well there's an outfit called TAXI which solicits music for various record labels and assorted music projects. They will critique your music and forward it, if it is deemed good enough. But be advised there is a membership fee and a submission fee for each song submitted.

Other than that, the would be music critics at www.demorama.com will review your stuff for free (it appears they have nothing to do anyway). They sort of remind me of people you see working in the mall - perhaps somewhere like Hot Topic. They probably stayed on the job 10 years too long and they no longer look good in goth/punk attire with pink/purple hair. Just about the time mom decided to kick them out of the house, they had the bright idea of reviewing music. Look at me mom! I'm a freaking music critic. Yep you and the rest of the world.