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Labels & demos · 6 min read

Techno labels accepting demos

553 techno labels have demo inboxes in NeedlePool’s label pool. Read each label’s own demo rules, send one unreleased track as a private link with your genre, BPM, key and a line on why it fits their catalogue, and follow up once. You can pitch them from NeedlePool, and the free plan includes 10 label pitches a month in your track’s genre.

Techno labels in the pool

553 labels in the pool are tagged with one or more of the 3 tags below. A label with two tags is counted once in the total and once in each tag.

  • Techno 126
  • Techno (Peak Time / Driving) 494
  • Techno (Raw / Deep / Hypnotic) 20

A country is on file for 191 of them. Most common: Germany (34), United Kingdom (26), Spain (20), United States (18).

Some of them

A sample from the pool, in A–Z order.

  • †Corporis Mysterium† · United Kingdom
  • 12Plus1London
  • 1980 Recordings
  • 33 soundsystem · Switzerland
  • 64K Recordings
  • A3 Music
  • Ababili Recordings
  • Above The Storm Records
  • Abzolut Spinnin · Netherlands
  • Acunyt Records
  • Adam's Bite · Switzerland
  • Aeon

+541 more in the pool.

Being in the pool means a demo address is on file; a label’s own page says what it takes right now. The labels named here don’t endorse NeedlePool, their demo addresses are public, and a pitch is never a guarantee of a listen.

Send it to techno DJs too

700+ DJs and 100+ radio shows in NeedlePool’s Promo pool play techno. Send them the track before you pitch: the report names who pressed play and who downloaded it, and DJ support is worth a line in your email to a label.

Techno promo to DJs and radio →The techno DJs and radio shows in the Promo pool, by number and country.

How to pick the best techno label for your track

There is no single best techno label, only the best fit for this track. Pick a label when your track would sit naturally between its last ten releases, when it is still releasing, and when the DJs you want to reach already play its music.

Weigh size honestly. A big label brings reach and signs few demos; a smaller, active one is more likely to answer and to work the release. Look for debut releases in its catalogue: they show whether it signs artists it has never worked with.

Lists of “best labels” measure past hits, not whether a label is right for your track. Even where NeedlePool has chart data on a label, it says nothing about fit: listen to the catalogue and choose.

Seven rules for a pitch that gets a listen

  1. 1Pick your roomLabels in the pool are tagged Techno (Peak Time / Driving): 494; Techno: 126; Techno (Raw / Deep / Hypnotic): 20, and a label can carry more than one tag. Say which sub-genre your track belongs to in the first line of the email, and pitch the labels tagged for it. Peak-time and raw, hypnotic techno are different rooms, so say which one yours is.
  2. 2Send music that is not out yetMost labels sign unreleased tracks. A song already public on SoundCloud or Spotify is usually a pass, however good it is.
  3. 3One track, one private linkA stream they can press play on in one click. Offer the WAV when they ask, not in the first email.
  4. 4Put the details in the first linesGenre, BPM, key, and one release on the label’s roster that your techno track sits next to. An A&R decides in seconds whether to press play.
  5. 5Listen to the label firstPlay its last ten releases before you write a word. A label’s catalogue tells you more than its genre tag does.
  6. 6Follow up onceA week or two later, one short line. More than that closes the door.
  7. 7Never pay to be signedA label that asks the artist for money to release a track is selling a service, not signing music.

Pitching them from NeedlePool

A label pitch carries one track to listen to, an MP3 stream or your private SoundCloud link, never the master, plus your BPM, key, genre and a note. Every label gets its own link, so you see which ones opened it and, on an MP3 pitch, which pressed play, and the reply comes to your inbox.

The label pool holds 2,400+ labels and can be filtered by genre and country. On the free plan you get 10 label pitches a month, to labels of your track’s genre. Paid plans open the whole pool in any genre, starting with Starter at $14.99 a month.

Questions

How many techno labels are in NeedlePool?

553 right now, counted from the label pool each time this page is rebuilt; 494 are tagged Techno (Peak Time / Driving), 126 are tagged Techno, 20 are tagged Techno (Raw / Deep / Hypnotic), and one label can carry several tags. The whole label pool is 2,400+, and a label can sit in more than one genre.

Do techno labels take demos by email?

Many publish a demo address on their site. Others prefer a form or a platform, and some don’t take unsolicited demos at all. The label’s own page decides: if it states a rule, follow it to the letter.

Can I pitch a techno track to melodic house and techno labels?

On the free plan, pitches go to labels of your track’s genre only. Paid plans open the whole label pool in any genre, so you can reach a neighbouring genre; the label’s catalogue should still decide whether you do.

What does it cost?

Starting is free, with no card and no time limit: you send to your own contacts and get 10 label pitches a month to labels of your track’s genre. Paid plans open our Promo pool in any genre and start at $14.99 a month (Starter).

Keep reading

Pitch them from NeedlePool

The free plan includes 10 label pitches a month in your genre. No card.

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