F A N D A N G O R E C O R D I N G
All about demos
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F A N D A N G O R E C O R D I N G
All about demos |
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1st scenario: You want to get signed by a label, be it a major or an indie, right? Cause you really want to land the record deal! So you have to have three things: you must have good music, you must look like you will bring in the money and you must have a professional looking demo package. Part of this package is the demo CD, and it is this CD that A&R guys will listen and it may be the only time when they listen to your music! 2nd scenario: You are a songwriter and you need a demo to showcase your songs. 3rd scenario: You are looking for work in your area, so you need to have the demo CD for the booking agents, club and pub managers, etc. 4th scenario: You plan to compete in a major classical music contest, or enroll into a music University/College/School. Part of the registration is to send in a demo… … and many other scenarios. While they’re different, they all have in common one thing: the demo CD. If you need work, you have to have it! Unless you want to do it just for yourself, a demo CD is basically a business opportunity. This opportunity is not only your opportunity, it is also the opportunity of the other part (A&R people, publishers, agents, managers, etc), and this much more important than it seems. The demo CD is basically the tool to facilitate the opening of a business, with the purpose of making money, because selling music is a business! Regardless of what your scenario is, think of the other side that you want to reach, think the way the other side sees the business opportunity in dealing with you! So, make sure you make the life of the person receiving you demo easy! There are many options to make your demo: from a professional studio to a simple 4 track recorder! You have to choose and judge the pros and cons! Let’s go over some options: 1st scenario: You better have great original songs and an original sound! The record labels will show interest in your music to the extent as whether they can sell it or not. The demo should have three songs, not more or less, this is the industry standard, show that you know and play by the rules! The best song should be the first one- your demo get evaluated in the first 30 seconds, make sure the special thing about your music can be heard right from the beginning! I know a demo is not cheap, but remember: you get what you pay for!!! A demo is not a big price to pay if it gets you signed to a label! It may be tempting to do the demo at home, with your computer, or with a minimal set up, but that will give you a demo that is not in the same league with the professional demos. If you’re serious about being an artist, you have to do everything right from the beginning. The harsh reality is that your competition is out there, it’s the artists that are already on the radio and are playing the big venues! So you better think twice if you want to send something of a lower quality that can compromise the chance of getting people to pay attention when you have something great to show. One more thing: read music business books, check the internet and find out how you want to present yourself to the record labels- there is a whole package, the demo CD is a big part of it, but there are other important parts! 2nd, scenario: These demos do not need to be overproduced, with full orchestra! A good rhythm track and a great vocal could be all you need! Try to match the gender and style of the vocalist with the gender and style of the artist you want to pitch to! The lead vocal is very important for song pitches! You need a great performance, not flat notes! Sell the song! While these demos should not be overproduced, vocal correction (pitch especially!) is mandatory! You may record the tracks at home – see DIY Recording - try recording the vocal and do the mixes into a real studio! 3rd scenario: It may be a good idea to record a live performance and then select the best moments (snippets), because what you really want to get here is contracts to play and make money! A club manager will be more interested on how well your band can play live! If you have some studio demos, that’s fine, but I would recommend adding at least one song recorded live. You may even think of a video, but a CD is the best idea, just because most of the places have a CD player! A demo of a live performance is excellent to get gigs- especially for bands. You can have it recorded out of the console (a live to two tracks), or hire somebody to do it professionally, as a multitrack recording and then do the mixing in the studio. Another way is to go in the studio, set up the gear as you play live and play and have it recorded, and then you can remix if so you wish. If you’re a singer/songwriter looking to get gigs in clubs/coffee shops/etc, you can either have it recorded live or in a studio or even at home, but if it doesn’t sound right, check at least with a studio and see what you can do to improve it! 4th scenario: applies more to classical music. You can do it either in a studio, or hire somebody that can do recording on location, so you can record into a place that you know and like the acoustics. If it’s an important demo, check at least the credentials- see if the studio has some experience in classical music, it is quite different to record it than the modern music! The choices of what to put on a demo are quite logical: if you want a solo/songwriter career you have to record only originals. If you want to showcase your voice, you can use covers, but it would be a good idea not to use the most known hits, unless you can really bring something exceptional to them! f you want to work in cabaret, theater, pub/club circuit the demo should be a compilation of your interpretation of the type of songs that you will be performing. In plain English, the demo CD should be tailored to the market that you want to tap in. Do not underestimate the mastering stage: you may have spent a lot of money for recording/mixing, but mastering is quite important: imagine that somebody is listen to your demo and the volume is really low. Do you think that the A&R people will turn up the volume? Chances are they won’t, they will pick up another CD and listen. The same goes for any demo whose purpose is to get somebody’s attention! You may not want to do it into an expensive mastering studio, and that’s OK, there are options, but make sure that your demo stands against the others!
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