So when people tell me that they are in a band or involved with music in some way, my interest is piqued. Mainly because my total suckage at playing/singing means I am immediately envious of them.
So! Imagine my interest when one of the guys I now work with tells me that he wrote a song. "I play rhythm guitar in a band, but this one time I wrote and recorded a song. The stuff I play is normally pretty heavy but this is more of a ballad. Really out of character for me."
Ooooooh! goes my brain.
"Can you sing?" I ask.
"Well I didn't think I could, but my friends say that I can," he replies.
I immediately started hassling him. "Send me the song! E-mail it to me! Go on! Here's my e-mail address! Go on! Please! I strongly advise you to send me the song, or I will annoy you about it forever more! Song! Send! To me! Yes!"
So he does.
Dilemma: the song is, well, really not that good. And by that, I mean that it's actually pretty awful. When somebody says "well I don't think that I can sing that well..." they are either being honest, or being modest, and I didn't think for a second that it was going to be the former. And now I am faced with this situation. Should I:
- Pretend I didn't receive it. Pro: don't have to give any feedback, Con: he will most likely send it to me again, and I'm not sure I could use the same technique twice.
- Be honest. Pro: won't go to hell, Con: will offend him and cement my reputation as Bitch Extraordinaire.
- Lie through my teeth. Pro: he will be happy, Con: is dishonest, and secures me a place in hell for being a dirty, filthy liar.
- Be vague and non-committal. Pro: avoids discomfort and lies, Con: would need a back-up plan in case he prompts me for genuine feedback.