You've got a band. You've got rhythm. You've got style. Your only problem? Execs are not willing to show up for a Saturday night concert in your garage. Those elitist bastards!

But believe it or not, you're not the only garage band out there, and record execs hate garages. Therefore, the only way you have a chance at getting an agent, signing a record deal, or even playing in front of a respectable crowd is for you to cut a demo. A "demo" is basically a CD that showcases your music, style, personality, and convinces A&R reps to sign you onto a contract. But cutting a demo isn't easy - you'll need determination, time, know-how, and some serious cash to cut a good demo. We can't give you determination or time (and Lord knows we can't give you any cash), but we will provide you with ass-loads of know-how. Read on!

(By the way, it might help you to read our article "SYW get signed to a record label?" just in case your demo rocks).

1. DETERMINE YOUR BUDGET

This is probably the most important step in planning your demo CD; establishing how much money is available for your project will help you to determine what recording studio to use, what duplication company to use, and what your limitations will be in designing a cover for your CD. Creating 1,000 CD demos will set you back at least $1500, and as much as $10,000, but we'll those details later - right now, just keep in mind that you'll be shelling out a lot of cash.

If you're low on money, here are a few ways to get some:

  1. Look to local companies who are willing to support your up-and-coming band. Offer to perform for their business picnic in exchange for a stipend to help you defray the costs of recording. Heck, offer to scrub their cars or walk their dogs if you have to! Having a little extra cash for a project like this can NEVER hurt, because you'll always need more than you plan for.

  2. There are many scholarship programs available to young adults in music that offer stipends for various projects, including demos. So go to your local library and find the section on grants and scholarships. When you find the section, spend a few hours sifting through the reference books there and copy down the names and addresses of any promising leads. Send information to these places, along with a cover letter that explains who you are and what you need. Be sure you get the right name in the right envelope. This can otherwise be very embarrassing, not to mention horribly unprofessional.

If libraries scare you (we understand - you're a musician), then start with these online resources:

A word to the wise: do not "gamble" all your money onto one project, because if you get screwed over, you'll have no backup plan. The music world is unpredictable, there are some shady characters, and you may find out halfway through the process that your cover design is completely wrong.

A few bonus (though not required) expenses to consider: photographs of your group, graphic art design, extra equipment you might need, and additional amenities for the CD packaging.

2. SELECT SONGS TO RECORD (AND MAKE SURE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO)

You're not just picking a random potpourri of songs; instead, you are creating a "program" that is varied in scope. This program should show your creative range (that all your songs don't sound the same), but it should also help the A&R reps figure out how to sell you. Here are some examples of how to create a strong program:

  • Don't put only fast or only slow works on the CD - it won't display your group's full capabilities.

  • The songs you record should not be so long that a busy executive wouldn't have time to listen to more than one selection. A demo recording is typically between 15 and 35 minutes long.

  • You don't want to offer a demo containing every piece you've ever played, because then if an executive is interested in hearing your group, you'll only be repeating the selections you've already provided for them.

  • The order of the pieces is totally up to you, but here are some guidelines: place your two strongest pieces at the beginning of the demo, and another strong, polished piece at the end. The middle is a toss-up.

Making recordings of other people's work

If you are performing someone else's works and would like to make your own recording of those selections (known in the industry as making a "cover"), you must investigate into whether those songs are in the "public domain" or not. Otherwise, you could get sued for a whole buttload of money. This counts whether you're doing the whole song, just the melody, or just some of the lyrics; people take this infringement on intellectual property very seriously (it's something that Weird Al Yankovic encounters every day). This investigation of the legal issues surrounding making a cover holds true for all genres: pop, jazz, classical, everything.

  • Dead composer: Typically (but not always), if the composer is deceased, the work becomes part of the public domain. Works that are extremely old (say, 200 years old) are surely in the public domain. You can check on this by calling the Library of Congress at (202) 707-9100.

  • Living composer: If the composer of the song you wish to record is alive, you must get a license giving you permission to reproduce their work. If the rights are owned by a "third party", such as a publishing company or management, you will need to get a mechanical license before you record that work. Here are the best organizations to use to find out who owns the song you want to cover:

They will give you information about the party who owns the rights, and then you can go ahead and contact that party directly to discuss rates and other details. Don't forget that you must give credit to that party on your CD cover itself.

NOTE: Even if you only use pieces of someone else's song, you must go through the above process and obtain a license to reproduce it. Don't cut corners now, or you may end up with large legal troubles later on (and trust us, you ain't no lawyer!).

If you are writing your own songs, you should copyright them so that other people wanting to use your songs will need to obtain your permission to reproduce them. Obtain copyright forms from the Library of Congress to begin this process. Send them the completed forms, a recording of the songs you wish to copyright, and a lyric sheet, plus a $20 handling fee. In about 3 weeks, you will receive confirmation of your copyright request.

3. FIND A STUDIO

Enough with the legal talk, Poindexter - you're ready to play some hard music! Chill. You're now at the stage where you have to find a reputable studio in your area. Here are our tips:

  • Start by asking other musicians in town about places they would recommend. You probably have friends that have made demos of their own, and they will want to talk about the process.

  • The Yellow Pages are not a bad place to start your search, either, but you'll need to do a lot of phoning before you settle in on any one place.

  • Check out StudioFinder.com.

When interviewing potential studios, ask about the following:

  • Ask about the number, age, and quality of their microphones, and the location of the studio (e.g., On a major highway with lots of noise? Below an air field?).

  • Ask about the cost per hour to record with their engineers.

  • Ask about their splicing capabilities. Splicing is the ability to digitally remove a portion of a song and replace it with another take of the same section (giving you more freedom to change things or screw up).

  • Ask about their turnaround time for a final product. (And no, two years is not a good turnaround time. If they suggest that it is, run. Fast.)

  • Ask the studio to give you an approximate cost estimate for the entire project, from start to finish. It may be difficult for them to give any precise figures, but even a rough estimate is useful, because if it is very near to your budget limit, you know you shouldn't use that studio - you may exceed your cost capabilities. For a professional studio, it usually costs somewhere between $100 and $1000 per hour, depending on what city you're in. Sure, you might find some deals that'll cost $44.99 per hour, but these may be plebes who do a little freelance recording on the side. You get what you pay for.

  • And it never hurts to show up in person to check out their facilities before you make a decision about which studio you should use to record your songs. Also ask for some examples of their recording work so that you can hear the job they do for yourself.

  • If some of your friends are already great sound recorders, you can just rent studio space to do a recording. Discuss it with the studio and figure out if it's worth the cost.

Typically, going to a studio to record means that someone will be in the studio to work the equipment for you while you play. Since they charge by the hour, though, you have to be as efficient as possible. Don't show up without having practiced, and don't show up expecting to do some improv - you're not famous yet, and you can't afford it. We'll discuss these performance-y details in greater depth in the next step.

4. RECORD

Once you've selected a studio and you have your songs performance-ready, arrange a date and time to record. At this stage, it's critical to keep track of your budget and time limits. If you only have enough cash for two hours of recording time, don't exceed two hours. Sounds obvious, but people can lose track of time when consumed in their art/garbage.

And as we alluded to earlier, make sure that you've practiced so much, that you are completely ready to record a perfect set. The less you have to splice, the more you will be able to select which parts you would like to re-record. Listen back to your takes to be sure they sound the way you want them to sound. If you do a take and you know you can do better on the entire piece, re-record it. And don't bother to listen all the way through to a take you know you won't like - it'll waste time and money that could be better spent on beer.

Two important rules of thumb for your recording day:

  1. Warm up/rehearse earlier in the day with your entire band or ensemble. Check out all equipment to ensure that it is working properly, and run through your most difficult pieces to give yourself one more practice session before the "real thing." And bring back-up instruments, in case a guitar string breaks or a xylophone bar snaps.

  2. Arrive early to the studio to set up. This will solve two problems: 1) you will avoid having to set up while you are paying for engineers' services you aren't using at that moment; and 2) if there are any problems with the set-up, you'll know plenty early and you can fix them before the clock starts ticking. These are big money-savers.

5. SELECT A CD DUPLICATOR

And here we come to the Grand Dilemma: CD or tape? While some people are convinced that a tape is necessary because many executives listen to demos on the way home from work and can "pop the tape into the car player," this is absolutely FALSE. All record execs prefer CDs. Almost all vehicles have CD players nowadays anyway. If you also want tapes, you can order those on the side, but the CDs are key to having people take you seriously.

OK, so you'll make CDs. But there's a catch: you need lots of them. Tons. Hundreds, if you are serious about your potential career in music. So you need to find a company that can reproduce them and make them stand out in a sea of CDs. The largest CD duplicator in America is Disc Makers (1-800-468-9353). They offer an incredible array of packaging for your CD, and although their prices can be steep, they are focused and diligent in helping you create a product you will like.

Through some more creative searching, you can easily find other CD duplicator companies that may better suit your needs. Companies such as Oasis (the company, not the band) offer CD duplication at a relatively low cost, and they provide some choices for CD packaging, but not nearly to the degree of Disc Makers. If your only concern is cost, that's the way to go.

Here's the procedure:

  • Request a catalog from the companies you like.

  • Pour through your cache of catalogs to look for hidden expenses (including shipping) that may not be immediately obvious.

  • Once you have decided on a company, sit down with a pen and paper and add up the cost of all the features you want for your package. Be sure that the final figure fits into your budget, remembering that you may have recording costs to pay.

  • Typical costs for 1,000 CDs range from $1600 to $4000 (including art printing). Often, there is little difference between a duplication company that charges you $1600 and one that charges $4000.

So compare services carefully and choose the most economic (but high-quality) duplicator.

A word about the cover of your CD...

Appearance matters. Don't expect to catch the eye of managers, producers, or record labels if your cover isn't catchy; you need a talented graphic artist to pull together the "concept" of your ensemble or band and put it in writing and pictures. CD duplication companies will often offer their own graphic artist department for CD design, and likely will do so at a lower cost than you would pay if you went to an independent designer (unless you call that independent designer "Mom"). Because the CD duplication companies print your artwork for the CD package, if they do the graphic arts for the CD, they will make sure you are happy with the design and transfer the design to paper in a professional manner. If you use your own graphic artist, be absolutely sure that your graphic artist can provide the design to the CD duplication company in the appropriate format, using the correct computer software. Screwing this up can be a HUGE hassle (as well as expensive one), so be warned ahead of time that you always take a chance by using a non-affiliated graphic artist. The dimensions could be off from those that the duplication company requires, the colors may not be accurate, or any other number of unforeseeable glitches.

You're almost there! Once you've chosen the duplication company, all you gotta do is fill out the duplication request form in the company's catalog. Some last minute reminders:

  • Remember to listen to your final recorded product in its entirety before you submit it for duplication. Wouldn't it suck if, during the application process, a glitch made your demo sound like garbage?

  • Make a copy of the DAT tape or CD before you send it in, in case it is lost in the mail.

  • Submit any materials needed for the graphic artists (if you are using the company's services).

  • If you have any questions during the duplication process, do not hesitate to call the company and ask them. As a paying customer, you have a right to know how your project is coming along and what the turn-around time is.

  • Don't plan distribution to the exact time and day, because deadlines will usually be extended. Cushion always helps; be prepared for delays and problems.

Hardly any major project is without a few crises! But patience and a sense of humor will get you through the duplication time, and soon, you'll have a final product that was well worth the wait. One last piece of advice: grow your hair long and stop bathing. You're a real musician now!