DJs: how much prep time do you put into your sets?

toa$t

toa$t

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I have recently come to realize that some DJs put a TON of prep time into their sets. Figuring out which tracks go together, editing tracks so they phrase correctly with each other, pre-set loops, have particular mixes between tracks that they practice etc. I NEVER did this. I basically just get up there and just let 'er rip. Sure, I have few tracks that I know sound good together and have played together before. But I really wouldn't say that I prepare any more than that. I often haven't even decided what genre I am going to rock until night of.

So what are some of the things you do to prepare? How much time would you say you put into planning a particular set? Down to what level of detail?
 
it varies wildly depending on the gig. some performances are really low pressure, sometimes i'm playing a genre i'm really familiar/confident with, and sometimes i get booked for a short set, and in those cases i might not prep much if at all. my camp also used to run a weekly internet radio show (hopefully returning this spring) and i would hardly ever prep for those. usually i would just play all of the new tracks i had purchased that week, and those sets would kind of function as the prep or review for gigs outside of the radio show.

if i'm playing a high profile gig, a genre i haven't played out in a while, in front of a big crowd that's never seen me before, or something along those lines i'll often prep quite a bit. this could include identifying the key of all new tracks, experimenting with which ones sound good together, actually practicing instead of just winging it, setting loops, adding useful comments so i know if a track does something weird in the middle or has an intro i'd rather skip, etc.

it's funny how prep can sometimes work for you and sometimes work against you. i had two gigs in hawaii about a month ago, and i prepped heavily for the friday night club gig and not at all for the saturday night beach party. i wasn't even sure what genre i was going to play on the beach until about 10 minutes before i went on. the set on the beach was by far my superior performance of the weekend. i think sometimes prepping too much can stress you out and make things feel overly rigid. the show starts to become more about impressing people and less about having a good time. it's definitely a fine line.

i also have to agree with mdmahead, as i'm totally a cross-genre dj and this makes me more inclined to prep since i rarely play any style consistently enough to make it feel like second nature. i have a friend who uses a controller and auto sync in traktor and plays almost exclusively minimal techno. it's kind of hard to fuck that up - the software and the predictable structure of the tunes almost do the work for you. most prepping beyond the initial assessment and purchase of the tracks would be a waste of time.
 
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OK, I also add comments to my tracks (actually, I have a really complex filing system for my comments). But say you're playing for an hour. Do you go in with 20 tracks in mind that you are going to play? Do you have an order in mind?
 
yeah, I have never ever prepared for any of my sets. I usually just play on a whim. The only thing I do though is bring records with me that I might feel like playing that day.
 
when i was playin on FM radio i usually just had an intro 2 tracks pre-planned then just played whatever after. Bring my entire cd book and play whatever felt right.

for an event i try to pre-plan it a little more. but in the end i prefer to be more impromptu..if i get caught up in mixing certain tracks i end up not paying as much attention and do a worse job than if i get "in the moment' and just throw down
 
97% or so of my sets are done without planning&thinking about it. at least when im at home and got all my records here. sure when im playing at a party it takes a bit of time to decide which records i take with me, but i never really plan a tracklist or so.
 
I havent played out, but if im recording a set. I either spend about 45 minutes picking out songs I like that go together but half the time I just pick 2 good songs to start and freestyle from there.....
 
^ same here... i usually have a crate of my favorite songs put aside, and just pick whimsically as I go. Its good fun.
 
I put as much time as I can into a set. Some DJs could honestly care less about a stellar tracklist and just toss out tracks that are generally good. Who wants to be mediocre, not me. I dedicate a very long time selecting tracks before I even by them. I will go through multiple hundreds of tracks just to find a precious few.

When my tracks are bought, I listen to them all again and arrange them before burning to see what sounds good and what will most likely mix together. After that, I practice mixing. I feel the more practice you have, the better it will sound. I like to know when and where to mix and effect.

I don't know much about ableton, but I know your tracks have to be warped before hand, so that is preparation right there. Warping is fairly time consuming.

Psytrance FTW!!!!!!!!


I will add, depending on the time slot you have goes to which tracks. I don't "feel" the crowd. Psytrance is psytrance, groovy dancy, hard raving, or mellow tripped out goa. The psychedelic community is far different than other EDM groups. We appreciate the music you bring rather than having hard hitting bangers all the time in the club. Mehhhhh, fuck house music
 
JuicyJay said:
The psychedelic community is far different than other EDM groups. We appreciate the music you bring rather than having hard hitting bangers all the time in the club. Mehhhhh, fuck house music
Click to expand...

what narrow minded thing to say. I've been to many psytrance events. The people and the vibe there are not much different from any other underground electronic music events. Just happy people dancing to music they love. House music rules, and so does psytrance. :)
 
its like with anything really you as much as you put into it your gonna get out of it. if you practice more on sets your get better. ive recently been getting more booking so for sets i plan out what im gonna play before and mix that till im comfortable. if you want to chance up you can later its just nice to have that confidence going into the gig that you know what your gonna play for the most part.
 
I don't have much experience, but I feel you know what feeling your mixing at the time, and I like to have different energy levels.

I just generally go with tracks of similar energy/style/type... but i'm amateur hour... so don't ask me :)

Prep work could kill it, you need to be able to adapt to the crowd for sure.
 
If its a demo for a gig I really want, I may play and practice a set... but very rarely do I. I like to just imagine the sounds in my head and go for something that will sound good off the fly, I like to be able to do it with any song... at any time.
 
depends on if its something big or not. normally i just like to play whatever i feel like i wanna play, that's usually tho if im spinning ragga jungle tho( which is my main thing ) if its dubstep then i kinda try to plan a head a little bit.
 
The best sets I have ever played are spontaneous - pick out a track and start from there! Over time you get to know which tracks go together anyway and you can use that to your advantage any time.

If I had a serious gig or a more high profile situation I'd spent a little while going through keys and whatnot before though.

I forget who mentioned it, but the number one rule is ENJOY IT ... my sets are the best when I'm actually having a good time!
 
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