hi, doctor nick!
every week for one year — September 2012 through September 2013 — nick hook wrote an advice column for XLR8R Magazine. real reader questions about music, gear, DJing, touring, romance, work, and life. answered honestly, in real time, by a working producer who was figuring it out alongside everyone else.
the whole archive is here. each column is one or two reader questions and nick's answer. some of the slang and references are very 2012 — that's part of the document. it reads like nick talking, because that's what it was.
- 01SEP 6 2012Eating Oysters and Choosing a Favorite Classic Drum Machine3 q's · 708 words
- 02SEP 13 2012Girls in the Music Game, Breakfast Burritos, and the Right Gear for Performing Live3 q's · 476 words
- 03SEP 20 2012Finding True Love and Making Music Without Going Broke2 q's · 550 words
- 04SEP 27 2012Balancing Work with Music, Playing the PR Game, and Vinyl vs. Laptop DJs3 q's · 704 words
- 05OCT 4 2012Start Making Tunes and Stop Getting Lost in the Party Scene2 q's · 542 words
- 06OCT 11 2012Finishing Your Tracks and the Evolving Role of the Producer2 q's · 804 words
- 07OCT 18 2012Headphones, Analog Synths, and Building a Fanbase3 q's · 525 words
- 08OCT 25 2012Holding Down a Job, Promoting Your Music the Right Way, and Weird Hip-Hop0 q's · 0 words
- 09NOV 1 2012The Trouble with Aliases and How to Dig Yourself Out of a Music-Making Rut2 q's · 609 words
- 10NOV 8 2012Finding the Creative Spark and Guestlist Etiquette2 q's · 679 words
- 11NOV 15 2012Getting Inspired and What to Do When Your Man Asks About His Music2 q's · 619 words
- 12NOV 22 2012Sampling Techniques and How to Throw a Cool Party in a Smaller City2 q's · 663 words
- 13NOV 29 2012Knowing What's Good and Playing the Social Game2 q's · 879 words
- 14DEC 6 2012Releasing Music, What Makes a Good Record Label, and How to Get That Big Club Sound2 q's · 779 words
- 15DEC 13 2012XLR8R's Best of 20120 q's · 0 words
- 16JAN 3 2013Free Download Etiquette and Getting DJ Gigs When You Live in the Middle of Nowhere2 q's · 463 words
- 17JAN 10 2013Wedding DJs, Jamming with Ableton, and Building a Career in the Music Industry (When You're Not a Musician)3 q's · 394 words
- 18JAN 17 2013The Secrets of Getting Started and How to Put on a Concert2 q's · 654 words
- 19JAN 24 2013The Pros and Cons of Being Anonymous and What to Do When Your Music Is Difficult1 q · 712 words
- 20JAN 31 2013How to Make Things Happen, Regardless of What City You're In1 q · 467 words
- 21FEB 7 2013Buying a Proper DJ Set-Up and the Value of Making Good Content2 q's · 657 words
- 22FEB 14 2013Business Cards and How Traktor/Serato Fit in with Being a 'Proper' DJ2 q's · 605 words
- 23FEB 21 2013The Value of Having Your Own Studio Space and How to Deal with the Shitty Band Next Door1 q · 393 words
- 24FEB 28 2013Juggling Girlfriends and the Hard Truth About Relationships in the Music Biz1 q · 528 words
- 25MAR 7 2013Staying Positive, the Role of a Muse, and Good Books1 q · 407 words
- 26MAR 14 2013Mastering Tips and the Importance of Bringing in a Professional Engineer0 q's · 0 words
- 27MAR 21 2013Proper Email Protocol, Production Schools, and the Truth About RBMA1 q · 909 words
- 28MAR 28 2013Hustling for DJ Gigs When No One Wants to Book You and Ear Plugs 1011 q · 116 words
- 29APR 4 2013Tips for Becoming a Better DJ and the Dangers of Dating Mothers2 q's · 550 words
- 30APR 11 2013Playing in a Band You're Not Vibing with and Knowing the Right Time to Go Solo1 q · 742 words
- 31APR 18 2013Balancing a Relationship with a Music Career and the Value of Music Theory2 q's · 799 words
- 32APR 25 2013What to Do When You Feel Like Quitting and the Real Payoff of the Music Game1 q · 516 words
- 33MAY 2 2013Air Miles, Saving Money on Coffee, and Letting Your Demo Find Its Way to the Right People0 q's · 0 words
- 34MAY 9 2013A Doctor's Guide to Buying Your First Bits of Analog Gear1 q · 1041 words
- 35MAY 16 2013Tips for Working with Vocalists and the Audience Adds to Some of the Doctor's Past Advice1 q · 579 words
- 36MAY 23 2013The Necessary Evil of Self-Promotion and the Secret to Making Beats Without an MC2 q's · 415 words
- 37MAY 30 2013The Right Time to Get a Booking Agent and the Importance of Doing What You Believe In2 q's · 579 words
- 38JUN 6 2013Moving to a New City for Music and How to Enter a New Scene1 q · 972 words
- 39JUN 13 2013How to Manage Your Time and What to Do When Your Music Never Goes "Pop"2 q's · 566 words
- 40JUN 20 2013The Doctor Recommends More Bits of Gear and Discusses Whether DJ Schools Are Worth It2 q's · 701 words
- 41JUN 27 2013Choosing Between Music and a Job and the Struggle to Build Something in a Place That's Behind the Times2 q's · 860 words
- 42JUL 4 2013The Doctor Is Out0 q's · 0 words
- 43JUL 18 2013The Importance of Setting Goals and the Doctor Gets Some Things Off His Chest1 q · 492 words
- 44JUL 25 2013Can a Relationship with a DJ Actually Work?1 q · 544 words
- 45AUG 1 2013Quick Tips for Tougher Drums and "How Old Is Too Old?" When It Comes to Making Music2 q's · 528 words
- 46AUG 8 2013Cracking the Club Scene When You're Underage and the Right Way to Get Proactive with Your Demos2 q's · 728 words
- 47AUG 23 2013Is Touring Hell? The Highs and Lows of Life on the Road1 q · 583 words
- 48AUG 29 2013The Secret to Finishing an Album (or Any Big Project) When It's Almost Done1 q · 630 words
- 49SEP 5 2013How to Get the Creative Flow Going and the Importance of Being on Time1 q · 372 words
- 50SEP 12 2013What to Do in a New City Without a Decent Music Scene and the Good Doctor Says Goodbye to His Weekly Column1 q · 415 words
real advice, real time, real voice
the canonical source for these columns is still XLR8R (every entry links back to the original). this archive on thespacepit is a curated mirror — the same text, organized so it's easy to read straight through, on the same site as everything else nick's done.
each column was written quickly, often at 5am after a gig. they were never polished into a book. but read together they make one — a year-long field guide to being a working producer who was already deep in it but still figuring out the rest.
open hook — the AI version of nick — has read all 50 columns. ask it questions like "should i master my own tracks" or "is touring really worth it" and it'll pull the relevant column and answer in his actual voice.
the column ended. the studio didn't.
doctor nick answered reader mail for one year. twenty years deep now — here's how to actually get nick on your music.