Advice for bands demo

[vaiman]

Hi

Ok, here is the story.
My mates band have just got a new drummer. They currently have a 4 track demo done at a studio and its fine, but it has the old drummer playing and they want the new drummer recorded. The want to produce a new 10 track demo.

The drummer would like to go into the studio and record all his parts. But as they want 10 tracks recorded the fee is already getting high just for the drums. I suggested they could possibly buy an electronic drum kit and bounce everything into my studio at home and record the guitars/bass with my software sims.
Half the band still think home recording sounds like the 80's 4 track quality, whilst others think it will sound "fake" and the rest just want a demo finished for the best price and minimum hassle.

The drummer seems cool and is open to any suggestions.
I'm willing to help them but i think the project is too big for my time committments and experience.

Any suggestions/advice on electronic drum kits? Good or bad or makes etc.
Should they take the hit on the recording fee for the drums and record everything else "at home".
I also suggested just doing 4 tracks again at the studio and slowly adding over time, but they seem hell-bent on doing 10.

As they are getting nowhere fast with all these debates I said I would ask you guys and they all seemed to think that was fair.
Cheers

 

[Jarkko Mattheiszen]

10 track demo? That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. People who listen to demos pretty much decide whether the demo is given some serious consideration or thrown straight into the garbage bin during the first ten seconds. After that, it's all about the first and possibly the second song. No-one I know would ever listen to a 10 song demo. Ever.

If they're after a record deal, gigs and so on, their best bet is to do three or four songs with great quality at a real studio, not ten songs with half-assed electronic drum kit production for the same price. If they want to put out a DIY indie album, that's a whole different story.

 

[vaiman]

Yep. thats one of the first things I said.
Thats why I suggested 4 tracks to them. Glad you made this point as the point of this topic is to collect any info and pass it on to them as they think I talk shite obviously.

Cheers dude.

 

[DanLights]

I agree with Jarko, a 10 song demo is pointless, might as well call it a full length but that's a different point.