Sending demo's

[Opuswerk]

Coming from the dnb scene, and not knowing a lot about minimal in general, i find it very hard to send demos.

In the dnb scene it mainly works via aim. Which is very nice, as it avoids label owners to have to go to a crappy yousendit link or to go to a myspace page where the player won't load. it also allows them to quickly send the tunes they've received to their mp3 player, etc etc.

Does such a way of sending tracks out exists in the minimal scene?
Anyone would mind sharing a few of the labels aim?

As for the topic title i guess it says it all. What is the best way of sending demo's in the minimal world ?

[mlexicon]

hahah

man your gonna get some shitty answers, but the best way is usually a cd in the mail since it means you might have actually gotten off your ass and went to the mail and paid for it to get sent to people, which means you really believed in your music in the first place. as opposed to just making something and sending it out to whoever on aim or msn or whatever because you can and its free.

[sorgenkind]

for me emails with links worked

but some lables asked me to send the CD instead, some of the "CD" answers were standard emails so for some lables it is really common practice to ask for a CD.

But again a well written email with a link to download soem tracks can work too, at least to "break the ice".
Another thing is avoid to send too less many tracks at once, only one is too less and more than 4 I think is too much.
Good luck with your demoes!

[Keagan]

for any serious label you're going to need at least a cd in the mail.

[tone-def]

You can send me tracks however you want. I do like a CD more than anything else though.

Aim for Alt Recordings netlabel: toneguinnessdef

[pheek]

for any serious label you're going to need at least a cd in the mail.

Definition of a serious label please

----------------------------

For the record, I've discussed that topic many times in boards and blogs. Here's a post I did a while ago. Might be useful:

I see from times to times some people asking how they should proceed to send a demo to a label. I answered a few times and I think I should post something for everyone. Ok, so you made music and you think you should share it with the rest of world? You’re ready to go for a release? Let’s see how to proceed (well, at least, how most of the labels like people to do it).

* When you have done at least 3-4 tracks, you should do an important test: make other people listen to it. Maybe you want to go to a little bar or club and ask local DJs to play it. This will be a test drive to see if it sounds good in a club. A lot of people are not at ease with mastering, which is ok but a test on a bigger sound system will reveal a lot of the imperfection; also, you will get feedback from the DJ and/or the crowd. Quite important part.

* Your music has passed the test of feedback, now you think you should send it to a label. This is where it all starts. Do you have a few labels in mind? Do you have and collect records or know your artists by heart? This is quite important because you want to send your music to the right place. Many times labels get music that has no link to the music direction they have in mind and guess what, if you’re not on it, you’re wasting your time and theirs. So here, you might want to read about the label, its discography, its artists and make the right choice. If you’re not sure, go to your local record shop and ask for someone to listen to it to fill you with suggestions.

* After selecting a list of labels, get the contact of its A&R. Important here: get in contact with the label first. This ice breaking operation make things easier. You can introduce yourself, link the label to your web page/Myspace (good idea to get one if you dont) and ask what’s the label’s plan for the upcoming year. Maybe the label is booked ahead or not looking for artists, but then, when you create a relationship, you can start to work on something.

o Do not send a mp3 attached to an email. Very annoying and it’s not practical.

o Do not send a one liner email with a link. Impersonal and rude. I almost always ignore those emails as they reveal a lack of personality.

o Do not send a mass email to 1000 different labels. Again, this is impersonal, it makes the label feel you’re a junk food artist who is desperate to get signed.

o Don’t harrass the label’s A&R with long emails and repetitive or intense demands to be on the label.

o Be polite, use a readable email to get in touch. English is usually the main international language and if you barely speak it, ask someone to communicate for you. It will make you get a better first impression.

o Don’t send a CD to the label before getting in touch first. It might just end up in a pile. You can email them back to see if they got it.

o Don’t call (on the phone) a label out of the blue. Always better to get in touch by email first.

* Once you got the Ok to send a demo, there’s 2 choices:
o Some labels insist you send a CD, then no need for a fancy presentation. Just use a clean cover and make sure to put all information in the package.

o Send mp3’s only if the label is ok with it. Use 320 kbps format to encode.

* Last but not least, don’t ever send unfinished music. This is actually something I often see and don’t understand. Would you serve your guest a uncooked meal? You want your music to shine and if you send something undone, most of the labels will believe you’re either insecure or clumsy (considering an unfinished track will not sound that good).

You should be set to get some action. Good luck to all!

[Kilevox]

I think the most labels don't listen to the DEMOs.

[hydrogen]

I think the most labels don't listen to the DEMOs.

haha... kilevox but richie hawtin plays yours! lol!