mp3 sets/live pa's,publicity or piracy???

[basslinejunkie]

after reading dustins comments regarding track piracy,by coincedence ive just found one of his live pa's from belgium.i was wondering what everyones views are on mixes/live pa's being avalible for download?? do you dj's consider this piracy or do you view it as publicity,as in people who mite not have heard you play b4 now have,and in turn now look out for you?? i can understand your views on tracks being pirated as out of order,but what are your views on dj sets and live pa's??

[technoticau]

I think it's the best way for producers and djs to promote their music. So it's all gooooooooooood. ;)

[Francisco Scaramanga]

I suppose there could be some argument there for piracy, but I think you'd have to be pretty tight to take it very far. I reckon the promotional value far outweighs any negatives. Unless there are some really awful recordings of your stuff floating around, then it might start to suck a bit. But if you have a recording of someone who played at your night, its only fair to ask them before you share it anyway.

At any rate, as far as downloading them is concerned, I feel MUCH less guilty downloading a set than I do a bunch of songs. In fact I don't really download anything other than sets, and most of them have been willingly shared through this or some other website anyway.

[romelpotter]

the only mp3 i would play would be my own tracks, other artists need to get paid for the work they do and just downloading tracks to play live with takes money away from them. I also get a huge buzz off searching for a record then finding it and having it phisically in your hand the spinning it in a mix is great.

[the_psychologist]

i don't think enough artists realize the promotional power of the internet... there are so many live acts that never release sets online. i think the problem for some acts is that they simply don't do jackshite live, so the set is basically full tunes being played one after another. that allows people to cut up the MP3 and play the tunes out. if you actually do a good live act, and manipulate the music a lot, then just release the sets in lower bitrates and people won't be able to use them in the same way.

[basslinejunkie]

yeah i was thinkin along the same lines as you all,tracks is a diffrent matter but sets is a bit of good publicity.

[herman]

The fact that mp3's of dj sets are a good promotional tool can't be denied for sure but the other side of that coin is they have also decimated the mix cd business (that could also be seen as a good thing admitly) but up to maybe a year or slightly more ago mix cd's used to provide a handy income for the smaller labels with licensing money etc that just isn't there anymore as nearly everyone who is looking for a dj mix just downloads them now.

[Col]

this is a very good topic.

i think it is in any artists best interests to make dj sets/live PAs availible on the net. ive done it a few times now, listened to a dj set and thought to myself "this guy is good, i must check out some of their own material" if a dj is going to play a specific style, than more often than not, they are going to recreate that style to some extent in their own productions, and of course they may play some of their own material within their set.

as far as live PAs goes, then that is incredibly advantageous to the artist in question, its like getting somebodys discography or at least part of it thrown at you.

and then you look at it from a gig perspective. i bet many djs/PAs are booked just because a promoter listened to a set or two over the net.

[Dustin Zahn]

I agree with Herman.

In my case, I put that live pa up on the internet for promotional purposes. We just had Claude Young here this weekend what he basically said more or less in reply to recording his set was, "Yeah, shit man...anything that helps you guys further your scene. This stuff needs to get out there. How can the masses understand us if we don't show them what we're doing?"

Even though he wrecked a few mixes (despite rockin' out an amazing set and giving this city one of hte most amazing parties in a long time), he still didn't care if we wanted to put it out. He is really cool about mix sets and what not.

That being said, I think he's right in a way. Another downside is sometimes you play a party where either you're playing like total shit or the setup is horrible and the recording catches every trainwreck you make in your set. Next thing you know its all over the servers and soulseek and then people bitch about your shitty skills here on boa. :) :)

Like most debates in this techno scene, it's a double edged sword. Personally, I think most DJ sets and/or live pa's are really boring because it doesn't have the same feel as a club, but some are real cool. I've been to parties where the set was amazing and then you come home and download it and you think to yourself, "Man, either it was really about the moment, or I was really wasted, or both."

[basslinejunkie]

you dont have 2 worry about that m8,i cant stop listenin 2 this one of yours :!: fairly deep,but still got a nice tough edge 2 it ;) we get zilch media coverage,so i think the net is an excellent thing 2 promote yourselfs.theres the view 'f*ck em,keep it underground' but i dont share this entirely.afterall its not as if we are gonna see wilson or surgeon ect ect on top of the pops is it?!? we need 2 show people this music that we all love with a passion,because we are all not gonna be around forever.others need to hear it,love it,and then pass on the torch

[technoticau]

I agree with Herman.

Like most debates in this techno scene, it's a double edged sword. Personally, I think most DJ sets and/or live pa's are really boring because it doesn't have the same feel as a club, but some are real cool. I've been to parties where the set was amazing and then you come home and download it and you think to yourself, "Man, either it was really about the moment, or I was really wasted, or both."

I am sure that all of you are already aware of this but the sound system/quality makes a HUUUUUUUUUGGGEEEEE difference. I cannot emphasize this enough, most people don't even realize this. I believe that the quality of the sound affects your perception on a subconscious level. If the quality is bad you could be playing the bestest-greatest-awesomest-super-duper track of all times and it just wouldn't come across right

[acidchild]

I have no problem with people throwing my recordings up. Hell, that's how i learned of this forum. Someone linked to some of my sets here. The interweb is a godsend for promotion. I would not have ANY of the contacts i have now if i wasn't able to put my DJ sets, Live PAs, or original works online. NOW...on the other side, sometimes some people will ask you to NOT put their sets up. I asked Woody if i could record his Live PA last NYE, he said yes, but i couldn't allow anyone to have a copy cause he had some unreleased material in his set and he didn't want it to effect sales. And i understand that. All in all...most of the sets you find online we never meant for release as it is, so there's no money lost. Just sweet music to be shared and enjoyed=o]

[slavestudios]

mixes & live pas on the net ?

yep. for sure. ive done many a live set & sooo many mixes & its a great way to get your vibe out.

production wise, not sure. only put edits or MP3 versions online, so then ppl have to come to you to get a decent recording

[AcidBastard]

after reading dustins comments regarding track piracy,by coincedence ive just found one of his live pa's from belgium.i was wondering what everyones views are on mixes/live pa's being avalible for download?? do you dj's consider this piracy or do you view it as publicity,as in people who mite not have heard you play b4 now have,and in turn now look out for you?? i can understand your views on tracks being pirated as out of order,but what are your views on dj sets and live pa's??

Well, you can look at this issue two ways really. On the one hand, the person's live pa has tracks they did themselves, and it all comes down to, if they really want people to have copies of stuff they just created that could or could not be pressed on vinyl. So in a way, it's almost giving the track away free, because someone recorded your set. But this is not always true, because I have heard DDR's live sets, and he'll play some killer acid tracks, and then 3-4 months release that track on vinyl, but completely change everything around. I personally think it's just how the person who does the live pa's, feel about his stuff being copied before he could possibly make money from them. But then again, it's also good because people can see what your full potential in productions skills.

So the way I see it, is if youre an uptight producer who gets pissed when people record your sets, then don't play those tracks until you've made money off of them. But for the really cool guy who really doesn't care, I'm sure he would be stoked you downloaded his set, and that way people can see what he's all about in producing killer music. No matter what, there will always be a good and bad side to everything that anyone does.
Just handle the situation the best you can, and try and not look like a total ass in the process. Well I gave my 2cents on this subject, agree with me or not, but that's how I feel about this topic

[Willy_Wonka]

It is good promotion, but it isn't all good. A lot of dance music, but particularly genres like techno are very bad at actually providing the 'punters' with any sort of products to own. Please excuse the use of commerical terms, however, the inclusive nature of techno basically means that a punter, is anyone who isn't a dj, producer, promotor etc - a techno music, clubber for want of a better word.

Back in the day, before the internet took off, if you loved techno - you generally bought a record player and just bought the 12s. Now you can just download your favourite dj's mixes off the internet. I personally think the decline of record sales may in fact be partly due to the loss of this casual sales element.

For the record, I'm not a DJ, I have a pretty decent collection of vinyl - certainly to the point where some of the records in it. I also love listening to good mixes and lives sets, but I always try and support the artists that impress me, buy their records, go and see them at clubs.

But as I've said a few times on here and other forums, you always get people saying 'oh if I had the cash, I would buy x,y and z' and I think this is such a crock - these people have money for internet connections and doubtless when the are out they are smoking fags and drinking beer. The fact is that a few years ago, people made the money available to support the artists they love - now its too easy to take what is available for free.

its all about personal ethics and taking some responsibility for ensuring the survival of what you love.