Making A Setlist

What is a setlist?

In case you didn’t know, a setlist is the order in which bands play their songs. Already knew that? Well something you probably didn’t know, is that their more than just a list of random songs, they’re in that order for a reason. What order are they in? Well lets find out shall we?

The order of a setlist

The order of a setlist is carefully designed to hold the audience’s attention. Unless you’re a huge band that just plays all fast songs, or all slow songs, then making your setlist is an art. You want to start out strong and play some great fast songs first. Don’t play the really big hits first though, that’s for last. Then start playing some of the medium speeds, that eventually bring it all down to your slowest song. Then, when everyone is all peacefully and happy with your slow number, kick them in the face (figuratively) with a fast song! Then at the end, finish with your best, fast, songs.

Steps to Take:

Organize all your songs so they fit this kind of pattern
Write some songs that fit these parts if all your songs are the same kind of song
Test out your setlist in practice to see if it works well

A setlist doesn’t have to be organized like this, but if you’re a starting band, and really want to captivate an audience, then it works really well to have a setlist that keeps the audience interested, but never gives them all what they want, so they stay hooked. Don’t bombard them with all fast songs, and don’t put them to sleep with all slow songs, keep the balance!

In summary:

A setlist can make or break a performance
Keep the audience interested!
Don’t play all fast, or all slow songs, this will make the people want to leave, because there’s no variety