Ouch, that's a tough one. In not attempting to deny the results of your empirical research, I'm thinking rather if it i a case of finding your audience? I mean, like, I am not really your target audience, as your bass magic is a tad too eclectic for my simple tastes, whereas when I played your stuff for my ex a few years back she was all in, comparing it to Red hot Chili Peppers and I could 4 sure notice she for a moment pictured shagging a sexy singer/bass-player.
With running the risk of being an arrogant snob, I think I've made an observation regarding the audience on this here site, which is that they're probably averaging a somewhat younger age.
I am making this assumption based on at what level a majority of productions are at, like, even if they're rather good, I can hear that it is a product of someone who has been at it only for a few years. There is a typical beginners structure with not so much detail, attention to detail etc.
Yet, when I made a comparison of my own latest trance track, and a few others in the same popularity range, tracks that are far lesser in originality and overall substance are at least equally but often more popular than my production.
I am quite certain that this comes down to the makeup of the audience, and this is where my snobbery comes in: Appreciation for my stuff require a slightly more refined trance palate than what most young folk have (myself included, I would have made the same scoring 20 years ago as the crowd on the site). They masses in general like pop music, that's why it is popular.
Easily digestible etc.
Now this of course could be argued by someone who's actually just bemoaning being a misunderstood genius, all the while being a fucktard of an artist.
That being said, as an artist, I feel, a huge part is to make something that is a true expression of one´s vision, the extra dimensional communication ontop of verbal language and so on. However, at least I, am driven by adding to the world something nice and with that it has to on some level have availability to people, and I might have to make lil compromises in the production as to tickle fancies of any part of the masses.
Would it be possible you think that you can find a way to maintain your artistic integrity while, merely a smidgen, cater a little to the tastes of the masses? Like, hitting the golden line between artistic integrity and crowd pleasing?
FarFromSundown
I used to. But I decided awhile back, that I'm doing the music I want to do. Everything I write is to either help me process something or tell a story. Of course I hope others will like it and am open to criticism (I feel that's the only way to improve), but when it comes to 'well I would do it this way, not the way you did it', I look at this way:
I'm grateful enough they cared enough to not only listen to my song, but really took it in enough to think of other ways to write it.
I personally don't think you should ever sacrifice your creative expression for the sake of publicity. I would suggest building off your own style that you already like and find ways to reach the audience that will appreciate your work the way you intended it.
I hope this helps!
SkankyMojo
Thank you for that, that's genuinely helped.