building a set...

[laurent__duval]

whats everyones preference when building a set? tracks that blend together really well or quick cuts. working on a set for tomorrow night and i'm trawling through my tracks trying to get a nice flow to the set but i'm now thinking its better to jst play the tracks i know will get people dancing and sack off the progressive mix.

[kstof]

I think it's definitely better to play a set which progresses to big well known tunes. If you play well-known banger after well-known banger the effect is lost. Play some standard dubstep tracks, throw in some big ones, fall back on some more chilled out yet dancable tunes and then back to banger etc. I guess it depends who you're dj'ing though. I once mixed Pussycat Dolls - Jai Ho into In for the Kill Skreamix and felt like a pathetic excuse for a DJ, but the people (read: kids) i was playing to loved it :p

[Stay Forging Paths]

it should flow to some extent.

When I say "should" I mean "what I like to hear/do". *shrugs*

start off with something not too aggressive....build it up. say your set is an hour, have perhaps the first 10-15 min of something dance-able but also on a chiller vibe. then from 16min-30min all the "hype" and "filth"....then perhaps some juggling between different sounds for the rest. Nice to end off on a stranger tip.

But that's just me.

[hipnotikk]

yeah it makes the mix stand out when you have some sort of "movement" i feel. starting with slower paced dub tunes and long subtle mixes in the beg. and gradually getting harder and faster with the tunes and the mixes. NOT trying to plug or anything but i feel like the winter mix i did had a really cool pace to it, it's called "snowsteppaz" in the mixes forum and i won't post a link cuz i don't want to threadjack.

[laurent__duval]

cheers for all the advice. at the moment i've got 3 sections with mixes that i know go and that all flow really well. some good blends and a couple of double drops. nothing too hard. but theres a load of tune i've got off here that i know not many people will be playing (not because theyre bad tunes!) but its juts tough finding the right linking tunes. i like the idea of 15/20 minutes of good progression, then a bit of bangers, then back to the progression. feel like an hour isnt long enough for such a journey, though!

[hipnotikk]

feel like an hour isnt long enough for such a journey, though!

that's the beauty of it isn't it

i usually can fit 20-25 tracks in an hour ish (remember CD's are 70min, some 80 i think?), so maybe break it down to a certain number of track for intro, build, peak, etc.

[the wiggle baron]

For me its all about a few hours before, fitting as many records as you can in your bag (with the epic process of "which ones would be less painful to leave at home") then just seeing what happens! Unless ive got a plan or know an audience ill generally try and pack ready for anything, then keep drawing for the stuff that seems to be working! Often for me thats more accessible tunes first, then once you got the audience drawn in see how far you can take em

Oh, and I aaaaalways carry a nice side helping of garage. If all else fails, pound them with garage till they move again

[musiclive3]

the thing i say is you cant fully plan out a set, if your going be playing out. if u do that ur not playing to the crowd, If you have a host as well, like if u was lucky enuff to get graced with Sgt Pokes u know he would cool to talk over ur set with some added banter and jokes. Im not a huge fan of crazy but he is so recognisable to dubstep, Rod Azlan and Dread would bring pure fire to your set and hype it up nicely and then u could have g double or spaceape, for vibes. and same with a crowd if you played at Exodus you know u could build on a quality set but if it was something like stink like socks expect mostly bangers. I have seen Djs playing opposite sets of what i was expecting. Appleblim dropping techno minimal dubstep beats then funky and grime tracks, and then heard a set with LD that was different constant bangers that was also good. U can have mixes that work and then work around that with the place your at and the people listening.

[Funk Eh]

If all else fails, pound them with garage till they move again

This.

[dirt]

Depends on the state of the dance floor... never plan cos it will always change. No point getting to your raved out section when everyone's having a cigarette outside! Watch/feel the mood of the headz inside and play to them... take a range of stuff so you can respond to whatever goes down. If you've planned for a minimal progressive start but its kicking off when you get on your a bit fucked! I always thought it was DJ 101; never pre plan a set. Have an idea what to play, but not a play list, otherwise it doesn't match the mood of the night just the mood of your mind when you created it, out of context (if that makes sense?!)

God luck tho fella!

[FackOff]

dmz last night = how to do it

EDIT: dmz every time = how to do it

[pkay]

I always just record when I practice or play at home and then throw the MP3 in my ipod.

Especially helps when you're getting lots of new tracks or dubs. Helps you to get to know your tracks a bit more. If you know your tracks then you can simply read the crowd and see what they're getting off on and adjust your set based off of what's doing well that night.

[laurent__duval]

so much good advice, cheers.

in the past whenever ive played at parties etc, i've just done it on the fly. but this is my first PROPER set in a club. so i thought i'd plan. got a bit panicked last night, went and had a mix with my mate on his tunes that i dont know, all came off pretty good. i thought "i can mix, i can EQ, what am i worried about?" ive got a couple of good mixes that i know i'll do, some garage (for just in case) and loads of possibles. got a tonk funktion 1 too! which is always nice.

[boy_arena]

Its all about key matching mate so id prefer to go with the "blending"

[promo]

An hr is definitely long enough ... that's like 20+ tunes. Lets be honest you're most like gonna switching every 2.5/3 mins so yeah 1hr is fine.

[jack opus]

Know the structure and musical key of your tunes, learn harmonic mixing theory. Bend the rules.

I don't really plan as someone else said it makes it difficult to adjust your set to what is working on the night. Just my preference though.

[dirt]

I've always wondered how much going from a small system to a massive fuck off rig will change how you mix... with so much more power and EQ range I imagine the smallest errors get magnified but you can also do a lot more blending and really get a deep mix going. Is it quite a shock or do the monitors keep you safe/sane??

[DRTY]

Each to their own, but I don't really like planning sets, it takes the fun out of it and it becomes something clinical and robotic, plus if you plan a set you won't enjoy it as much, I think it's best to take a few 'pairs'; tunes you know go like strawberries n cream, and fill the gaps according to the crowd.

[jikay]

I have a few 'blocks' of say 5 tunes which always work really well together that I'll often play / mix the same but even when i've planned full sets i've totally changed it on the night. As everyone said, gotta work the crowd.