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Tektonix
02-13-2012, 12:40 PM
Hey fella's

So i have a gig coming up this spring break, no biggie im used to gigging. However this gig is a fair bit longer than the normal 2 hour set's. I have a whole room of a club to myself from opening to close, so thats 6 hours D: I accepted to do the gig, Im just a bit concerned on how to play a 6 hour gig.

Im concerned i may not have enough material to keep the crowd occupied for the night, The amount of songs is no problem, Im just not sure how much different material i have so i dont bore the crowd ynow. ie: You can only listen to dutch house bootlegs for so long haha, Its okay with a 2 hour gig but for 6 hours? D: How do you guys keep the crowd engaged at longer gigs?

Also how do you go about not getting bored yourself and keeping cool and not stressed while playing this long? I mean 6 hours is a long time to be standing there mixing in a booth. Obviously keep snacks and drinks with you, But as time goes on i notice i get a bit adgitated and blehhh and i get a bit sloppy. So how do i go about keeping it cool and putting on a great show all night?

Any other pointers on this would be supper awesome C: Thanks in advanced guys

Somedj
02-13-2012, 12:44 PM
Kinda depends on the time to be honest. I play 4-5 hour gigs pretty regularly, but for the first couple hours I can kind of relax and not focus too much on crowd because there really isnt one yet. So, at that point the 4-5 hour gig turns to 2-3, which is easily manageable.

So, is this gig like peak hour till the wee hours of the morning? Or, is it early evening to peak time?

Jason Cerna
02-13-2012, 12:53 PM
playing that long, you gotta change genres. when you need to take a break, play a long track.

Tektonix
02-13-2012, 01:06 PM
@somedj, Its from 11pm-5am so peak time till wee hours of the morning

For sure ill need to switch up the genres, Oldschool eurodance seems to go over well (corona, realmcoy, nex, neo cortex ect..) so thats one option. House and electro i can play for a bit too, I'd do dubstep but no one really knows how to dance to it so ill have to pass on it. Progressive house i can spin, im just a bit concerned its to similar to the elctro house and i may bore the crowd. So id have to break up the electro and proggy with the euro or something, Hmmm....

DeadPhr0g
02-13-2012, 06:40 PM
Hey fella's

So i have a gig coming up this spring break, no biggie im used to gigging. However this gig is a fair bit longer than the normal 2 hour set's. I have a whole room of a club to myself from opening to close, so thats 6 hours D: I accepted to do the gig, Im just a bit concerned on how to play a 6 hour gig.

Im concerned i may not have enough material to keep the crowd occupied for the night, The amount of songs is no problem, Im just not sure how much different material i have so i dont bore the crowd ynow. ie: You can only listen to dutch house bootlegs for so long haha, Its okay with a 2 hour gig but for 6 hours? D: How do you guys keep the crowd engaged at longer gigs?

Also how do you go about not getting bored yourself and keeping cool and not stressed while playing this long? I mean 6 hours is a long time to be standing there mixing in a booth. Obviously keep snacks and drinks with you, But as time goes on i notice i get a bit adgitated and blehhh and i get a bit sloppy. So how do i go about keeping it cool and putting on a great show all night? These 6 hour sets should be how new DJs pay their dues.

Any other pointers on this would be supper awesome C: Thanks in advanced guys
Eliminate the first two hours of the gig while the venue fills. Anything deep, mellow or funky. Cross out the last hour, people will be tired and ready to go home. Encourage them and play whatever you feel they like the least. So really, you have a 3 hour window to use the material you do have. Even then, assuming the venue hired a headliner, you might be able to cross out an extra hour or two. Chances are you will play for small crowds that move from place to place often (usually the ones on drugs). Assuming you're not in the "main" room, when these small crowds start to form, read them and play what they're in there to hear.

Make friends. You are the center of attention for some. Make good use of it and branch out. Meet people, enjoy yourself. If six hours is "too long" for you to keep your cool and posture, maybe a different hobby will yield better results. The love for the music itself should be enough to keep you entertained for a very long time -especially on these long set, it gives you an opportunity to reach out and really grasp a crowd, furthermore, if you lack experience reading crowds, this is perfect practice. These long sets should be how the newer DJs pay their dues...they are beneficial in many ways.

djkvg
02-13-2012, 07:18 PM
play the first couple of hrs like u would if u were to open. it just there just to set the mood and get people into the music. your later hrs is where u drop your sick tracks and get people raging to it :P

LoveBass
02-13-2012, 07:52 PM
11-5am is real easy, welcome back techtonix!

this is my favorite gig to play! You get things going right, consciously being aware of whats too heavy or too hard for the time period. We usually get harder and harder and then end with dub techno.

Standard progression

Old school vocal house
slightly less vocal
tech house (maybe some tribal in there)
Techno
Minimal
dub techno

thats an easy 6 hours. Think about a journey no one wants to hear the exact same sh*t for 6 hours straight. I think you should see a 6 hour gig like that is relaxing rather than stressful. For a 1-2 hour gig its just not enough time to get everyone into the groove you want to be in. IMHO of course

Hygro
02-14-2012, 05:09 AM
@somedj, Its from 11pm-5am so peak time till wee hours of the morning

For sure ill need to switch up the genres, Oldschool eurodance seems to go over well (corona, realmcoy, nex, neo cortex ect..) so thats one option. House and electro i can play for a bit too, I'd do dubstep but no one really knows how to dance to it so ill have to pass on it. Progressive house i can spin, im just a bit concerned its to similar to the elctro house and i may bore the crowd. So id have to break up the electro and proggy with the euro or something, Hmmm....It's not hard. I remember 2 hours was my limit, the 3rd hour was tough. Then I got booked for 5 and found it really easy and way fun. Granted, I had a pop-meets-house gay crowd, so it was easier.

Progressive house is sufficiently different from electro, particularly dutch house that it's a legit genre switch. Add some breaks in the mix too btw. Get your hands on indie-dance electro also, some nu-disco even. Also find stuff that's not 127 bpm -.- Moulinex and Knightlife and others in the past two years put out a lot of 116 dance music. Go find some of that.

Additionally, learn to rotate the dancefloor, or give them breaks. Don't be afraid to play, at times of the night, all 8, 10, 15 minutes of a track. All of Strobe by Deadmau5 is appropriate if it's 4 am or you need to take a dump. It's also appropriate if you just banged them out for the peak 90 minutes with dutch house and need to reset.


Cross out the last hour, people will be tired and ready to go home. Encourage them and play whatever you feel they like the least. .
I agree with everything you said but this. The last hour is for the hardcore sober (or reallly pilled) dancers. This is the fun hour and the part they will remember!

Adzm00
02-14-2012, 05:46 AM
^^ Don't listen to Justin, you will end up ejecting the wrong CD.

Hygro
02-14-2012, 06:54 AM
A mistake only gigging DJs make.

MeowMix
02-14-2012, 07:40 AM
What kinda crowd are you gonna be playing to?

You mention dutch electro so the crowd can be really into EDM or just chasing the trendy club sound.

If its a real EDM crowd you can do:

house
tech
progressive
electro/dubstep
breaks
prog/house (for a mellow send out)

If its a trendy crowd:

top40
electro
skrillex
electro
top40

DJ ATX
02-14-2012, 09:29 AM
top40
electro
skrillex
electro
top40


:lol: Skrillex is a genre now?!?!?

Hygro
02-14-2012, 10:06 AM
yeah, the main band that makes it is dubstep

Somedj
02-14-2012, 10:45 AM
yeah, the main band that makes it is dubstep

lol, cant count the number of times Ive thrown a dubstep track on, have someone ask what it is, and I reply "its dubstep" and they go "oh yea, I know, i like that band/group...."

#facepalm