Need help with 3 hour set!

[Addi]

Hey everyone

So every Friday night I DJ at a local pub from 9-12. The pub is purely a pub, I set up in the corner kind of near the pool tables. It's not really set-up to have a big group of people dancing in front of me, it's more or less people mingling playing pool, sitting around chatting having drinks, betting etc... The place is a mix of literally anyone from the age of 20-60years old. For the past few weeks, this is pretty much how my set goes:

9-9:30: Current and old popular songs from Triple J etc, some of them remixed, but most just original tracks

9:30-10: Disco/House, such as Yolanda Be Cool, DCUP, Riva Starr etc etc. Usually try to still play tracks people know, but the odd track which they wouldn't know.

10-10:30: Progressive house tunes, like Sam La More, Aston Shuffle, Calvin, Presets etc

10:30-11:30: Electro originals and remixes of current top 40, top club hits etc, plus the odd hip hop or old school pub classic.

11:30-close: Generally keep the last bit energetic, but slow it down to some progressive house tunes again

Now I just feel like i'm not really doing something right here. I'm finding hard to strike the balance of chilled out background music, but fun enough beats to keep peoples toes tapping.

Any help/suggestions/ideas would be awesome, next gig is tommorow night so I wanna have it sorted!

Cheers x

[andyman]

Sounds like you're doing all you can mate.

Maybe some more cheese like Lil Jon, Usher, etc.

I know it's cringe worthy, but it's what the peasants wanna hear.

[eggssell]

i go to a lot of pubs and bars and yeah you seem to have it right.

+1 to andy's make sure there is cheese up to 9.

definitely include the jacksons or 80's michael jackson in your disco set

also maybe switch up your 10.30 electro/ club hits and the 10 oclock prog house. because your disco set (if you add cheese) will get people bopping, and anyone still kicking (drunken) by the time you put on more club sounds will be hands in the air even if they dont know the tracks.

[Gandy]

always a tough gig having to please that variety of age groups, best of luck with it

[Addi]

Cheers for the responses. Will look at getting more cheese which people can sing a long too. People love those old school usher/lil jon hits haha.

Yeah eggs thats a good idea, would be a bit of a mood killer to go from disco/bopping to progressive. Cheers

[SolDios]

If it's older people at a pub, keep the rock classics's on had, ac/dc, jet, blablabla

[Addi]

Will keep that in mind too. Cheers Sol.

[Skank]

Ive done heaps of these gigs man, unfortunately its all about cheese top 40 junk. No one wants to say it but the punters arnt not going to the venue to get lose and dance all night so you have to create a familiar atmosphere that will get them into a grove while they are sitting down, you can look around the room at peoples feet and see that some people are taping away at the beat and bobbing their heads its a good indicator that people are enjoying the music.

Id honestly do some digging find some top 10 tunes from years past the most you can do is make it easy to listen too the old guys will reminisce and the young guys will love the variety sometimes the ministry style compilations are a good guide of those tracks that have seemed to of just disappeared, the best thing about this is you can get real creative and not have the fear of people cracking down on you

on a personal note i wouldn't play any prog house or disco stuf that isnt in the top 40 because you can get lost in playing tunes you want to hear in opposed to what the punters are waiting to hear, although if you start to build up a crown or it gets a little rowdy break out some of bigger club tracks to test the ground

[Addi]

Ive done heaps of these gigs man, unfortunately its all about cheese top 40 junk. No one wants to say it but the punters arnt not going to the venue to get lose and dance all night so you have to create a familiar atmosphere that will get them into a grove while they are sitting down, you can look around the room at peoples feet and see that some people are taping away at the beat and bobbing their heads its a good indicator that people are enjoying the music.

Id honestly do some digging find some top 10 tunes from years past the most you can do is make it easy to listen too the old guys will reminisce and the young guys will love the variety sometimes the ministry style compilations are a good guide of those tracks that have seemed to of just disappeared, the best thing about this is you can get real creative and not have the fear of people cracking down on you

on a personal note i wouldn't play any prog house or disco stuf that isnt in the top 40 because you can get lost in playing tunes you want to hear in opposed to what the punters are waiting to hear, although if you start to build up a crown or it gets a little rowdy break out some of bigger club tracks to test the ground

Thanks dude! I've stopped playing there for the moment anyway, got a few other things on but if I ever have similiar gigs in the future Ill keep this in mind

[legunner]

tbh looks like you're doing everything right man