Is it cool to sell CD's at shows that I recorded at home?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Robertt8
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Robertt8

Robertt8

Well-known member
Well, the band I've been playing with lately is looking to start gigging very soon. I was wondering if you guys think it's okay for me to sell a (roughly) ten song CD of songs I've written, played (most of), recorded, mixed and (sort of) mastered at home. Most songs wouldn't have much contributed from the other guys in the band. I'm just worried that the quality might not be what their expecting, but I could always just cover that by telling them it was are demo or something.

If you've never heard any of my stuff, you can get a good idea of it and the quality by going to any of these places...

http://roberttait.com/
http://roberttait.com/share/share.html

Any advice?

Thanks!
Robert Tait
 
My best bit of advice is to NEVER sell anything that you feel isn't on Par with your expectations.

I won't even give away a CD-R to a potential fan if the mix isn't satisfactory to my highly critical ears, yet alone charge someone for a home-grown CD of "decent" material...

Best foot forward, always...

With that said, if you think the music is just as good as anyone elses, and you feel it represents you as an artist/engineer very well, by all means, sell away. :)
 
Make it clear it's a demo, and I say, if people buy it, go ahead and sell it. If you are just trying to get some music of your band out to the public that wants it before you get a proper album together go for it. If you're trying to showcase your skills as a producer/engineer, I would obviously wait until you have something that sounds good otherwise people won't take you seriously as an producer/engineer.
 
Hey thanks for replying guys!

Yeah, I'm no engineer, but I've been recording for a while, and I'm not too bad. I'm obviously no pro, but I don't suck at it either.

I'd like to have some options if people ask about cds, and it's too early for us to go into the studio...not to mention I'd rather not shell out that kind of money yet.
 
Are you the frontman in your band? If you did record would it be your music or music you all wrote together. If you don't think your demo is sellable but listenable then give it away. The best thing you can do for your band is send your music home with your audience. If it is not the best recording then who cares! If it is a good song and the recording does it a decent amount of justice then let it be heard! A lot of guys spend all day polishing and fixing some folks get it down and go after it. The choice is yours on that matter.

Bottom line is they need to take your music home with them. You can only put the ideas in their head at a live show. When they listen to it on their own it actually has a chance to stick.
 
jonhall5446 said:
Are you the frontman in your band? If you did record would it be your music or music you all wrote together. If you don't think your demo is sellable but listenable then give it away. The best thing you can do for your band is send your music home with your audience. If it is not the best recording then who cares! If it is a good song and the recording does it a decent amount of justice then let it be heard! A lot of guys spend all day polishing and fixing some folks get it down and go after it. The choice is yours on that matter.

Bottom line is they need to take your music home with them. You can only put the ideas in their head at a live show. When they listen to it on their own it actually has a chance to stick.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm the front guy, and all the stuff is written and recorded by me, save 2 solos in different songs by the other guitarist, and on bass track on one sone by the bass player. Good call with the take home thing. It sounds like a smart thing.

Thanks!
Tait
 
Hey, you should post those songs in the mixing clinic so's we can all rag on 'em. :D

Or maybe if you still have the tracks to remix someone will have some helpful suggestions to make you feel better about selling them.
 
actually, I believe all of them have been in the mixing clinic...let's see if I can't find the links to the comments just for fun...

SHARE.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=123630

MORE SEX THAN ME.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=113872

UNMISTAKABLE.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=93692

ROLL WITH THE PUNCHES.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=100948

SO COLD.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=81531

SURF SONG.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=79140

HAD A DREAM.MP3: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=82330


Man, it's kind of funny to look over these old comments! :) It looks like I've got to re-bump a bunch of these to get that first reply. :D Ask and ye shall receive!

Anyway, feel free to see what the others have said about whichever tune you might want to crucify ;)
 
Robertt8 said:
Well, the band I've been playing with lately is looking to start gigging very soon. I was wondering if you guys think it's okay for me to sell a (roughly) ten song CD of songs I've written, played (most of), recorded, mixed and (sort of) mastered at home. Most songs wouldn't have much contributed from the other guys in the band. I'm just worried that the quality might not be what their expecting, but I could always just cover that by telling them it was are demo or something.

If you've never heard any of my stuff, you can get a good idea of it and the quality by going to any of these places...

http://roberttait.com/
http://roberttait.com/share/share.html

Any advice?

Thanks!
Robert Tait
Click to expand...


Selling something is better than selling nothing.....sounds like a Walmart slogan
Are people asking for their money back?
Take your CD into a real studio and maybe look at some kind of mastering. At least then the levels will be up to par and sonicly they might be able to give you a consistant sound
 
sell it!

in the grand scheme of things, it won't make any difference. the main thing i see here is this - you can either wait to be an artist who is ready to someday make his mark, or you can practice making your mark.


get what i'm saying?
 
My band just hands cd's out. I think it's better just to have folk aware of your presence than have a few quid in the pocket.
 
People are looking for content, and the quality doesn't have to necessarily be "major label." If they like your song enough, they'll buy it on an answering machine tape.

And don't give it away. Be a prosititure, not a whore. ;)
 
It is the old thing: If people adore your music, they gonna buy the demo tapes cause they don't care. They want to keep the tunes in their heads. I would just be fair and say its a demo not a high end recording. But to be honest, if the groove is on tape, the quality doesnt matter that much. Sure, if you have recorded with an old tape recorder, one mic, and all in the middle of the room, yes, I would release that though ;) But a regular home recording session can be very nice for the fans to get. Especially if you guys have the potential to be big one day :D As I said, its the old thing: Everyone started small. Get your name AND your tapes out there. I sold my first recordings with my band on reg. tapes. Ok, that was 8 years ago, but the songs were recorded live and the quality was not that good. But, the people loved it cause they loved us.
ROck N Roll!

Marc
 
Dopps said:
My band just hands cd's out. I think it's better just to have folk aware of your presence than have a few quid in the pocket.
Click to expand...

Its not about the quid ….If there is no charge then there is no perceived value and the product gets tossed as quick as it gets received
 
dude, just get it out. the question of whether or not because of this and that is just gonna hang you up. keep moving forward and improve as you go.

stopping to contemplate should i or shouldn't i is just stopping.

no decision is final, and not making a decision is not acting. mistakes are how we learn.

move and grow while you move. it's all good.
 
If you are an egotistical perfectionist you will spend your entire lifetime trying to get it "just right," and no one will ever hear what you can already do. On the other hand don't try st sell a sloppy bit of work either. As the artist consider how it sounds to you, if you would buy it by all means sell it, it's that simple.
 
I like them. I think they came out good. the quality is pretty good.
Surf song and so cold really kept my interest.

I'm pretty critical of recordings and whatnot and it does sound pretty good. Don't get me wrong i'm no professional, and at this point i woudlnt consider myself a home studio guy yet either. but i know what i like.
 
pashop said:
Its not about the quid ….If there is no charge then there is no perceived value and the product gets tossed as quick as it gets received
Click to expand...
Absolutely.

You're better off charging a relatively low price than giving it away. Why not put together a little EP and selling it for a couple bucks above cost? That would put you in the $5 range, depending on how many you had pressed and whatnot.

As for quality, the first two indy albums my band recorded "in the studio" don't sound near as good as the stuff I do in my spare bedroom now. Where you recorded it is a non-issue.

I think the stuff you have sounds ok, the performances and songwriting are good; the production sounded a little thin to me. But I've sold worse as an indy artist. The real question is, how soon do you forsee doing an album with all the guys and with a significantly higher level of quality? Are you willing to wait that long to have something on the merch table?
 
lykwydchykyn said:
Absolutely.

You're better off charging a relatively low price than giving it away. Why not put together a little EP and selling it for a couple bucks above cost? That would put you in the $5 range, depending on how many you had pressed and whatnot.

As for quality, the first two indy albums my band recorded "in the studio" don't sound near as good as the stuff I do in my spare bedroom now. Where you recorded it is a non-issue.

I think the stuff you have sounds ok, the performances and songwriting are good; the production sounded a little thin to me. But I've sold worse as an indy artist. The real question is, how soon do you forsee doing an album with all the guys and with a significantly higher level of quality? Are you willing to wait that long to have something on the merch table?
Click to expand...

I'd a gree with the 'perceived value' argument. Id diamonds were just lying around in the street noone would value them. They are valuable because people attach a value to them, after all they are of no 'use' to anyone. So by having a proice for your music you give it some value. I would sell it to strangers for a $$ fee, but give it to family & friends, and other musicians you meet (in return hopefully they'll give you a free copy of their album).

If you give it away for free people wil ljust take one for the hell of it and you'll waste a lot of CDs which won't get to the 'target' audience.
 
Theyre well produced - good enough to sell at gigs. Bands who sell cds at gigs (which is every band pretty much) unless theyre signed then the cds suck. Yours dont. so sell them then with the cash if your not happy with the stuff youve recorded you can go to a studio. But i'd be very happy with the stuff you've got. Drums are nice. I like it. Reminds meof a band. Cant think who. Damn thats gunna annoy me for a while. O well. In anwser to your question in my view SELL THEM (but fairly cheap - that way you get a bit of cash and people can listen to your music and your fan base will grow!)
 
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