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02 · APPLICANT DEMO GUIDE

What Your Demo Should Include

Think of it as a checklist, not a strict set of rules.

The checklist

A good demo will have the following qualities.

Think of them as a simple checklist rather than a rigid brief. You don't need a professional setup, expensive gear, or years of experience. You just need to show you've thought about it.

We recommend three things to aim for. Follow along and we'll take you through each one.

01

At least two elements

A good demo will usually have more than one layer: voice and guitar, a beat and a vocal, two instruments. But this isn't a rigid rule about track count. What matters is that the recording feels intentional.

Two ways to approach this:

Option A

Recording live together

e.g. voice and guitar into one mic

Sometimes this is the right choice for the song. Artists from Nick Drake to Phoebe Bridgers have made records where the intimacy of a single-mic performance is precisely the point. If you go this route, think about:

Placement — position the mic so both guitar and voice are clearly audible. About 30 to 40cm away, angled slightly toward the body of the instrument and your mouth, is a good starting point.

Levels — play back what you’ve recorded and make sure you can hear both clearly. If the guitar is swamping the vocal, move the mic closer to the quieter source.

Processing — most live recordings benefit from a touch of reverb and gentle compression. Both can be applied using a preset in any of the tools recommended later in this guide.

Option B

Layering separately

Recording each part onto its own track

Gives you more control. Typical combinations:

Voice and guitar (or any other instrument)

An instrument or voice over a beat or loop — a pre-made loop is absolutely fine

Two instruments layered or playing together

A MIDI instrument (synth, piano etc.) plus your voice or another part

02

At least one basic production decision

This is what separates a demo from a voice memo. It doesn't need to be complicated. Choose any one of:

Add some effects

Reverb or compression

Reverb — on your voice or an instrument. Makes things sound bigger and more placed in a space.

Compression — on a vocal or drum track. Evens out the volume and adds presence.

Control your recording

A basic mix or click track

A basic mix — use the volume sliders so everything sits at a good level. Watch the meter: green means good. Red means turn it down.

Recording to a click — shows rhythmic awareness and makes layering much easier.

In the How to Make Your Demo page of this guide, all of the free tools we have suggested have reverb and compression built in. You don’t need to buy plugins or know what any of this means in depth right now. Just try a preset and listen to the difference, experiment.

03

A sense of structure or intention

This doesn't mean you need a verse, chorus, and bridge. It just means there's a reason your recording starts and ends where it does. A live performance of a song you've practised is better than an improvisation that goes nowhere. Think: what am I trying to show here, and does this recording show it?

Here's two examples of strong basic demos:

Example 1

Simple and intentional

Acoustic guitar and vocal recorded together into GarageBand on a phone, mic positioned to capture both clearly. Reverb and compression applied from a preset. Exported and submitted.

Example 2

Layered with control

Vocal recorded on a second track over a guitar track in BandLab, recorded to the built-in metronome. Reverb on the vocal, levels adjusted so voice sits above guitar.

Before you submit

Make notes as you go.

While making your demo, jot down what you tried, what worked, what you found hard, and what you'd do differently.

We're not just listening to the recording — we're interested in how you think about your work. The why behind a decision often tells us more than the demo itself.

← Overview & What We're Looking ForNext03 How to Make Your Demo →