Band or DJ?

Me and my mother are having this "debate" at the moment because i want a DJ for the simple reason that I dont always like live bands renditions of songs/arrangements. I would rather have a DJ who will play the originals.

my mum thinks a band is nicer, but i don't know! I like "everything" by Michael Buble for our first dance but i don't want random Joe singing it, i want Michael. I also think that a dj Widens the genre's of music you can include.

having said that, a LOT of people do prefer bands to DJ's.

We are having a dj due to costs and i feel you get a wider range of music. did u get a venue and set a date? ?

I love live music and regulary go and see local bands when I can.

The main differences are cost and range of music.

A good band will always give a more dynamic atmosphere to the night than a DJ. I poor band will leave you wishing you had hired a DJ!

On a recent booking, the client was in the music media, her groom was a pro musician. Asking why they didn't book a band, I was told they don't want to hear poor covers of classic songs, when they could have the real thing.

I've not seen a band that will play from 7pm until 12 or 1am without a break. Someone needs to take over during breaks in their sets.

If one of the band members are DJing, they won't have a break (unless they simply put a mix-cd on and leave it playing).

I've worked with a 2-piece band, simply a guitarist and a percussionist, and they did a very good job, and the 100-odd guests enjoyed their 2 sets.

We worked together, and they used my PA (for space reasons), and I could carry on the night directly after their last set, and take over during their break.

This type of arrangement may be possible and give you the best of both worlds.

You'll still need to pay the DJ for the full evening (they'll need to set-up before the band), but you'll get varied entertainment which will be lower cost than a full band.

Otherwise, pick a more lively DJ. Being vocal on the mic does not have to be cheesy.

A good example on Hitched is Sandy Sounds - she can act as a Ceilidh caller, providing a fun and interactive night. This is one example where a DJ can do more than just play music.

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We are having a band purely because OH and I love our music and it's something we both agreed we wanted to have. They cost a bit more than we wanted to pay and as Jason said they don't play all night, just 3 sets of 45 mins but inbetween they said we can use their sound system to play our own music which is good.

We're having a band, they cover rock songs in a jazz arrangement. I was sold when I heard them cover Dizze Rasscal and it sounded amazing. Plus most guests are not big dancers so the style of band we have will sound good in the back ground or good to dance to.

We both are really picky about what type of music we would want a DJ to play to that went pretty quickly, unless anyone knew of a good wedding DJ that's only into classic rock.

We had a band and they were fantastic and got everybody dancing. Whether it was planned or not the first set played stuff that got the oldies up and dancing (including those I've never seen on a dancefloor), the second set was a lot of Indie which got the Uni crowd going and the last set was pure cheesy mayhem which le to lots of long dancing lines of linked friends with their arms around each other and then Madness Baggy trousers which completely finished us off. As others have said, there was a gap when they had a break and although we had prepared a setlist on our iPod we were both so busy chatting the band just used theirs which wasn't our choice but we couldn't be bothered to change it - the gap did mean there was a lull in dancing but it was a hot evening and we certainly appreciated the chance to grab a drink and a breather.

Choose the right band and they're magic - worth paying the extra for but I would recommend going to see them live if possible to get a feel for how they sound. And don't worry about only having 3-4 when they try to sell you the full 7-8 piece: modern keyboards now can put in most of the extra horn and rhythm section you'll not be paying for. As long as you have a full vocal section that is what you will miss most - ours was a 4 piece but there was a lead vocalist and both the guitarist and keyboardist sang.

Band or DJ?

I would say both if it can be incorporated :-)

Now I just need to win the lottery myself to pay for both :-(

I was always of the opinion that a dj was the way to go - I'm not a huge fan of wedding bands in the main.

However, my dude proposed at a wedding themed club night - and arranged for the band to play 'our' song. They were amazing, absolutely amazing! So now it's clearly going to be a band we go with, and it'll be them. They also come with an amazing DJ so it's a win win!

Im Glasgow based and as they are just starting out, I'm not sure of price but feel free to check them on facebook - Band Of Gold

We are having both. The atmosphere is better with a band but we also want a dj to play the weddding cheese that gets people dancing.

Another vote for both. even early on most aren't sloshed enough to boogie. ?

Thanks for the opinions everyone. Seems dj's are more popular than I expected them to be, which can only be a good thing! I'm not sure I like the idea of a band only doing a couple of sets, and we definitely can't afford both!! I'll have to give it some thought, maybe research a few and see if a dj would be a better option all-round. Our venue has recommendation lists, I'll see what they have for some inspiration!

Yes, sort of! We're going with Duck Bay, my original choice! It'll be (fingers crossed) the end of September but we're gambling a bit with the date and holding off to book it at the wedding show to save £500! That saving pays for my dress (which I bought today, woooo!) so it was too big to pass up. The co-ordinator is confident the date will still be free, trusting her judgement!!

Budgets aside, I would have to say band, band, band all the way.

The atmosphere is so different, and also many parties have DJs, 40ths, office parties, christenings etc.

I feel if you want something a bit more special to make your wedding stand out from just another party a band is the way to do it.