How to find new music as a DJ: dig in other DJs' sets

By Ryan Poser, who builds ryser.idUpdated

The short answer

Treat other DJs' sets as a record shop: somebody with taste already picked every record and played it in front of a room. Pick sets by DJs whose sound you like, get the tracklist with timestamps, listen to each track at the moment it plays, and keep the ones you want on a list with where to buy them. On ryser.id that is one flow: paste the set, tap a row to hear it, press Want to put the record in your crate, and buy it from the store the row links to.

In short

The idea
Another DJ's set is a selection somebody already made. Digging in it finds records no chart or algorithm puts in front of you.
Where to start
Sets by DJs you like, the festival pages, the set library and the DJ charts.
Listen first
Hear a track at its moment in the set, then the original, before you buy.
Keep it
Want puts the record in your crate, with where to get it. A free crate holds 50 records; any paid plan keeps them all.
Own it
Buy the file where the row says it is sold, or take the free download where the artist offers one. A bought file plays on any player, offline, for good.

Why dig in other DJs' sets

Stores sort by what sells, streaming sorts by what you already played, and a chart is everyone's average. A DJ set is different: one person with taste picked every record, in an order that works, and tried it on a room. For a DJ that is the best curated record shop there is. ryser.id was built for exactly this: someone else's set, your next records.

1. Pick the sets

  • DJs whose sound you want. Not the biggest names: the ones who play the corner of the music you play, a little further than you go. Each has a page under Artists and DJs with the sets they played, and the genre pages list the sets of a style.
  • Festival and club sets. The festival pages collect every set from a festival, series or venue, such as Awakenings, Boiler Room or Tomorrowland, with the tracks played most there.
  • The set library. The set library identifies the most watched new DJ sets every day, by itself. Search a DJ, an event or a track.
  • What turns up most. The DJ charts show the tracks that turn up in the most sets, and every track page lists the sets it was played in.

2. Get the tracklist

Open the set on ryser.id if it is there already. If it is not, paste its YouTube, SoundCloud or Mixcloud link: every track it can name comes back with the time it starts, its BPM and key. About a third of the set length from paste to done: a one-hour set takes around 20 minutes, and tracks appear while it runs. Rows nobody can name read ID - ID; skip those for now.

3. Listen at the moment it plays

On a set's page, tap a row to play the set from that track, and use the cover to hear the original release. Judge the record in the mix, then on its own: a track that works in somebody else's peak hour may be a warm-up record for you.

4. Keep what you want

Press Want on a row and the record goes into your crate: one list of every record you want, from any set and from your SoundCloud likes, each with where to get it. A free account keeps 50 records; any paid plan keeps them all. On Headliner and up the crate also scans your music folder and marks what you already own, so you never buy a record twice.

5. Buy it, and own it

Every identified row shows where the record is sold, such as Bandcamp or Beatport, a free download where the artist offers one, or the artist's own link. Buy the best quality you can play. A file you own plays on any player, without a login or a connection, and stays yours when a streaming catalogue changes. It also pays the people who made the record.

Habits that make digging work

  • Dig every week, a set or two at a time, rather than one marathon before a gig.
  • Follow the trail. A track you love was played in other sets too; its track page lists them, and those sets lead to the next records.
  • Write down why. A note on what you would play it after, or what it does to a room, saves you listening again later.
  • Check the version. Mixes are full of edits and remixes. Buy the version you heard, not the first one a store shows.

Questions

How do DJs find new music?

From stores and their charts, promos from labels, record pools, SoundCloud and Bandcamp, and other DJs' sets. The last one is the best curated: every track was picked by somebody with taste. Where DJs get their music compares the sources.

How do I find out which tracks a DJ played?

Check the set's description, its comments and 1001Tracklists. If nobody wrote it down, paste the link into ryser.id to get every track it can name with the time it starts. How to get the tracklist of a DJ set has every method.

What is the crate on ryser.id?

Your list of records to get. Press Want on a track in any set, or load the likes of your SoundCloud profile, and each record is kept with where to buy it or download it legally. A free account keeps 50 records; any paid plan keeps them all, and Headliner adds a scan of your music folder that marks what you already own.

Is digging in other people's sets the same as copying their set?

No. A tracklist tells you which records exist; what you do with them, and with your own, is your set. Buying the records also pays the artists the DJ chose to play.

What about the tracks nobody can name?

Those rows say ID - ID. They are often unreleased, so you cannot buy them yet. Note the timestamp and check back later: what ID means explains how IDs get solved.

Got a set link? Get its tracklist.

Paste the link and ryser.id names every track it can, with the time it starts. No account? The quick peek under the box does the first 30 minutes for free and mails you the list.

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