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Is a 3 hour set too long?

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  • May 3, 2012 at 7:16 pm #1003957
    VinnyBlanc
    Participant

    3 hours should be somewhere arond 100 songs.

    I would start grouping my music into 1st, 2nd, and 3rd hour songs.
    Thats how I started. My first few gigs have been 3 hours+ on a limited music library and managable if you plan accordingly.

    I hope this helps.

    May 3, 2012 at 9:12 pm #1003958
    ellgieff
    Member

    VinnyBlanc, post: 19751, member: 737 wrote: 3 hours should be somewhere arond 100 songs.

    Doesn’t that depend on the style of music, and style of mixing?

    That being said, it’s good advice. 3 hours should be easily doable on a limited library with planning.

    Personally, some of my favourite sets have been 8 hour marathons. Lots of time to move around in genre / tempo / feel …

    May 3, 2012 at 9:19 pm #1003959
    Corin Halliday
    Participant

    VinnyBlanc, post: 19751, member: 737 wrote: 3 hours should be somewhere arond 100 songs.

    I would start grouping my music into 1st, 2nd, and 3rd hour songs.
    Thats how I started. My first few gigs have been 3 hours+ on a limited music library and managable if you plan accordingly.

    I hope this helps.

    Yeah, I’m sure this will probably be the best solution , thanks Vinny 🙂

    May 4, 2012 at 4:51 am #1003973
    Phil Morse
    Keymaster

    Bar gigs can be 5, 6+ hours. You need to structure things and have twists and turns. Have fun!

    May 4, 2012 at 7:28 am #19673
    2SHAE!
    Participant

    I typically do a 3-4 hour solo DJ set as well. For the first hour or so, I usually dont quick mix songs and at least get at least 2/3 the way through them before transitioning. This way I will never fear of playing my best music early in the night, and can save it for when the venue is full.

    May 8, 2012 at 4:48 am #1004114
    Tero Nousiainen
    Participant

    No it isn’t. However, I don’t agree on the grouping- just go with the flow of the crowd but spare some bangers to the last hour. 3 hours will go before you know it and you’ll be wanting to play just a few tracks more…

    May 8, 2012 at 2:39 pm #1004139
    Hee Won Jung
    Participant

    9-12 is a pretty weird time, usually most places i goto dont really fill up until 12…with that said, go with the feel, and have a few different styles and genres on hand.

    May 17, 2012 at 5:50 am #1004543
    Steelo
    Participant

    Its not out of the ordinary to play sets that long unless you’re quite well known, especially in pubs/bars as opposed to bigger clubs. Somewhat have a rough plan but be prepared to be flexible. Follow the feel of the crowd. Don’t smash out anything too heavy till later on.

    May 17, 2012 at 2:14 pm #1004559
    J-Zed
    Participant

    My first gig last week, I ended up playing a solid 5 hours!

    I started off slow, around 120bpm with some deep house. Played more melodic stuff, long tracks… Just background music. As people started to show up I gradually increased the bpm and changed from deep to a more tech house sort of feel. To keep people from being bored, I’d try and create a mood or atmosphere. Every 20-30min I’d change my style to keep em from getting bored… Go from slow deep, some funky house, funky tech, some darker stuff, drums ect… Just keep people on their toes!

    tl;dr
    Start slow, slowly increase bpm, changes styles of tunage, enjoy.

    May 17, 2012 at 5:23 pm #1004565
    Michael M. Hughes
    Participant

    If it’s in a pub, you might want to try playing non-dance music for a while to warm everyone up—you have non-dance music, too, I hope? Rock, alt-rock, reggae/dub, acid jazz, hiphop, older classics, etc. I have a 4+ hour gig tomorrow, and though it’s a dance-centric event, the warmup portion of the evening can take an hour or more, and I love having time to be more experimental. I like playing with my audience’s heads—I have been known to throw in tv theme songs, weird jingles, etc.

    I also like to work thematically when possible, or play off things happening in the world. My gig tomorrow is for a local currency organization, so I’m playing songs related to money, including a dub version of Pink Floyd’s “Money” and ODB’s “I Got Your Money,” for instance. But in light of the deaths of Beastie Boy MCA, Go-Go legend Chuck Brown, and now (hard to believe) Donna Summer, you can bet your ass I’ll be playing tribute to them throughout the night.

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