Be
Good To Your Anchor Clients.
In
order to have a successful run at landing
shows (Gigs), or demo submission of
your songs to record companies, you
will need a great quality demo. There
are a variety of ways or recording a
demo to pitch your songs to venues,
club owners, record companies, and booking
agents.
The
following are some ideas on how to make
your first Demo CD/Tape:
Home Recording - You
may want to rent or invest in a portable
home recording unit. Most music equipment
stores rent and sell these units. Some
are more complicated than others. Make
sure that you use one with a good amount
of memory so that you don't have to
stop recording and dump your material
on CD or tape to early.
Once the demo recording process is complete,
it is usually fairly easy to burn your
songs to CD on your home recording systems.
You will want to read the instructions
on mastering your music before you burn
your demo CD. Maybe you would like to
add effects to your songs, equalize,
double your vocals.
All are good techniques to use before
Burning the CD. Most home recording
units come equipped with CD burners.
Try reading some home recording magazines
to get some tips on perfecting your
sound for your demo CD.
Studio Time - Your
band may want to book studio time. Check
with other local bands whose CD quality
you really like. Make sure the company
is reputable. Also, have your material
practiced and ready before you enter
the studio. This will save you time
and money in the long run.
Most studios will give you a few master
CD's from the sessions. You can then
burn more CD's on your computer or CD
Recorder, or have them done through
a professional CD duplication firm.
CD Cover and Jacket
- Also, you will need a good Quality
CD Cover and Jacket for your demo or
CD. If you just need a small amount
of CD covers to send to local venues,
why not try a computer program that
prints CD Labels, Covers, Jackets, and
more on your color printer.
You can find these programs at most
music stores or department stores. Just
be aware that if your using color, your
color ink will deplete quickly with
a lot of graphics of pictures. Therefore
you may just want to do a few, and maybe
go to your local copy center and see
what they would charge to print out
a larger quantity for you.
You may also want to try a professional
CD Cover company. Do some research on
the web and price out the best few companies.
Demo Contact Info -
It's a good idea to have your contact
information on your demo, especially
if your sending to clubs or venues.
That way they will have your info in
the event your press kit is lost in
the shuffle.
3 or 4 Song Demo Limit for submission
to Record Companies - In general
it's a good idea to keep submission
demos to Record Companies, Publishers,
Producers to a 3 song limit. Include
only your best material and make sure
the songs are copyrighted. Visit www.copyright.gov
for copyright information.
Quality - Make sure
that your demo is of professional quality
even if it has been done through home
recording. Rest assured, the competition
is putting great amounts of work into
their demo, and you don't want a rejection
due to poor quality.
If your having trouble mastering your
demo through home recording, try getting
your material mastered by a studio or
someone you possibly have networked
with in the past that records music.
Many computer programs can help with
mastering your music.
You know what sounds good and doesn't.
Keep at it until it sounds as good as
it can get.
Back
to Top
