ALBUM RUBRIC

A
At least 2-3 songs that are “10″ material
Overall, all songs are strong — including the B-sides
Strong composition of songs and album as a whole
Strong continuity between album tracks
Strong vocals
Minor problems could still exist in the album’s track-listing

B
Around 2-3 songs that are “10″ material
Weaker B-sides
Minor problems with the vocals, continuity
1 or 2 Breaks might exist in the organization of songs on the album

C
There could be many possibilities that an album/single would get bumped down from a B to C. Either:
No strong “10″ songs
Lackluster B-sides — low quality or not fitting in with the album’s organization
Below average vocals
Poor organization of tracks on the album

D
2-3 of the problems under “C” exist in the album.

E
No quality.

SINGLE RUBRIC

Singles are graded much less rigidly, and sometimes more how I “feel” about it overall. The starting grade is usually at 95% for a 10/10 A-side song, and can go up or down varying on my personal opinion. For example, I might give a single with 2 ballads a lower grade than a more well-rounded one.

When grading singles, A-sides have a lot more weight than B-sides. For example, if the A-side to the single is an 8.5, even when the B-sides are 9’s, the single grade will still be around 80-84%. For double or triple A-side singles, A-sides are averaged together but a low overall score will still drag down the grade. A-sides are expected to be 9.5’s or 10’s, which is why the grade of the single starts to dramatically decrease with a lower A-side score.  Bonus points given to double/triple A-sides where all are 10s! =)