Ghost Funk Orchestra is a sprawling 10-piece psych/funk-rock project led by musician, composer, arranger, and producer Seth Applebaum. Based in upstate New York, Seth started Ghost Funk Orchestra as a producer in 2015, and over the next few years, the band grew in size and influence as a live touring act, which hosts anywhere from seven to 14 musicians at a time.

As band leader, Seth uses DISCO’s Track Nesting feature to help distribute track materials to the musicians he works with. Prior to using DISCO, distributing song charts or tabs to the players in Ghost Funk Orchestra could be a time-consuming process that tended to result in multiple broken links and “a sea of folders.” Seth says: “If I had to change out a song or change out a mix, links would go dead. It was just a mess for organization.”

Once Seth started using DISCO’s Track Nesting feature, which groups Versions of Tracks together so they appear under a single Main Track, the process of distributing and updating charts and/or tabs to his many musicians became much more streamlined. What’s more, Seth only needed to send his musicians one playlist link within DISCO to access song charts, and that link would automatically update even when he made updates.

“I’ve definitely found that the communication leading up to gigs is a lot simpler with DISCO,” Seth says. “Band members have the playlist bookmarked so they can go to it whenever… As far as finding the charts, it’s as simple as can be.”

“DISCO has been a godsend for staying organized”

When he was first using DISCO, Seth says he started tinkering with Nesting and was excited to find out that, unlike other file-hosting platforms, he could easily upload different file formats to his playlists..

“At first I was using DISCO just for hosting mixes and knowing that I could swap media without breaking links while I’m working on a record,” Seth says. “But then I started digging around. I was like, ‘Maybe there is a way for me to use this platform to organize my songs and all of the charts that go with them so that I can send out this one URL that has the master song list and all of the charts you would ever need if you’re subbing in the band, or even if you’re a regular and need a refresher.’ It’s just all there.

“I started experimenting a bit with Nesting, and I realized that the nesting for stems was actually file format-agnostic. I would have assumed that it only wanted audio files, but just as a test I sent it a PDF. I uploaded a PDF as a stem and it just took it. And then I had a solution. This is what I was hoping I was going to get from another platform, I just couldn’t. It just didn’t exist. I figured out that this is what I’ve been needing and hoping for for the longest time. And it has been a godsend for staying organized.”

“It’s all the materials that someone who is trying to prepare for a gig might need”

Seth tells DISCO that prior to a Ghost Funk Orchestra gig, he’ll send his band a playlist containing all of the songs in the live set. He says: “They can see all the songs that we might play. They can listen to them and they can open up the stems folder and they will see the charts or tabs for all the instruments that I’ve put up there — bass tabs, guitar tabs, trumpet charts, saxophone charts. I think I have lyrics in there too. It’s just all the materials that someone who is trying to prepare for a gig might need.”

Musicians Seth works with have been pleased with DISCO’s streamlined process, too. “I’ve definitely had musicians gush about the user experience of how I’ve been making this playlist into show prep,” Seth says. “Even like my friends who have been using DISCO much longer than me, they didn’t realize that you could do what I’m doing.”

Want to know more? Find out more about how to use DISCO Track Nesting here.