Want to cut your learning curve in half? Take VIDEO of your sets – not just recorded audio.
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Set up your phone or an old camera and take video of your sets. The huge benefit here is that you can watch and notice subtleties of the crowd you could never see while your focus is split. You can see EXACTLY how people react to your transitions and song choices. You can think about the context of what’s going on – what time of night it was, what groups left to the bar to what songs, what groups left the VENUE to what songs, what songs got the OHHH, what songs built up the energy, what songs had build-ups that maybe were too long for the crowd, what songs had the crowd singing.
SO much context is missed by just recording internally, and if you’re not already recording every single set, you’re just not that interested. Data is CHEAP. Make it a habit to record every set, despite the fact you’ll never listen to half of them. Because there will be times where you got rolling and busted out a RIDICULOUS set, only to regret not hitting the record button. If you do it EVERY. SINGLE. TIME, you’ll never have missed out.
Yes it can be uncomfortable to watch you slog through a rough night… BUT THOSE ARE THE ONES YOU NEED TO WATCH THE MOST. Analyze your struggles so you know exactly where to course correct.
Getting better is HARD. Hold up the mirror, record your sets, and get better at twice the speed as your competition.