Rehearsal spaces in London

[project_c]

I really need to find a rehearsal room for this week, and all our usual places are booked up, so i'm looking for suggestions. (I'm sure this topic has come up before but London being what it is, it might be useful to have a 2016 update anyway.)

Requirements:
- piano (electric is fine)
- drum kit
- not too much bleed from other rooms
- as close to Zone 1 as possible

My usual places are:

- The Premises Hoxton
- The Joint Kings Cross
- Rooz Old Street (not my cup of tea, it's full of Orange amps and stinks of cigarettes and booze)
- Vine Yard (great, has Markbass amps nailed to the floor of every room)

Please let me know your suggestions.

[Number6]

Storm Studios in Holloway Road may have a piano room. Good kit there anyway. May be worth a call.

[Lw.]

I think I've seen someone using a piano at Blue Studios but they're out in Dalston.
Borough Studios have recently been renovated & are now quite well sound proofed.

[toneknob]

Is this any help? It's probably a bit out of date, so take with a pinch of salt

[url="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1PDTRQjut-mcrUpNJ217hxc7_CjI&usp=sharing"]https://drive.google.com/open?id=1PDTRQjut-mcrUpNJ217hxc7_CjI&usp=sharing[/url]

My usuals are Brixton Hill Studios and Unit 9 in Balham, might be outside your range though.

[CamdenRob]

Try New Rose in Camden... I live opposite and I'll come over with tea and biscuits.

... actually don't it's far too expensive.

... and I'm not sure how long the biscuits have been open for.

..

[project_c]

thanks for these! brixton / balham ideal for me, no good for the others.. blue studios will be perfect for another time, they do have an electric piano so we'll be using them soon.

we're looking into New Rose as well, so I may well be round for those stale biscuits soon.

[toneknob]

[quote name='project_c' timestamp='1471878729' post='3116623']
thanks for these! brixton / balham ideal for me, no good for the others.. blue studios will be perfect for another time, they do have an electric piano so we'll be using them soon.

we're looking into New Rose as well, so I may well be round for those stale biscuits soon.
[/quote]

Forgot to say - BHS have pianos in at least the two larger studios.

[chriswareham]

May be too far for you, but Resident Studios in Willesden have a grand piano in their largest room. Apart from that, it may be worth checking out John Henry's although I can't imagine they're very cheap.

[project_c]

Yeah Resident is great, I've been there at their recording studio but it's just a little too far away for a couple of us. (Plus it's near to Dollis Hill, home of the legendary Reinforced records, but that's a subject for a whole other forum..)

[dave_bass5]

Not sure about the piano but there is Alaska studio right opposite Waterloo station. Very central. Might be worth giving them a call.

[Wolverinebass]

[quote name='dave_bass5' timestamp='1471902450' post='3116916']
Not sure about the piano but there is Alaska studio right opposite Waterloo station. Very central. Might be worth giving them a call.
[/quote]

They're grotesquely expensive. Beat up crap gear as well and where I had the "privelige" of playing through a peavey head which was only 2 years younger than me. Jog on, I'd never go back there.

[dave_bass5]

They are at the end of my road but ive never used them, due to the very high cost. Never even been in there. We use a place in Mill Hill that is really nice, and they do have a nice piano. Mill hill is out of central London though, buy quite a few miles and not so easy to get to.

[Huge Hands]

[quote name='dave_bass5' timestamp='1471902450' post='3116916']
Not sure about the piano but there is Alaska studio right opposite Waterloo station. Very central. Might be worth giving them a call.
[/quote]

We rehearsed a few times there last year and we all struggled with the heat and smell in there. We couldn't tell if it was BO, urine, damp, or a mixture of all three.

We stopped using them for the above reason, but I seem to remember they told us they were shutting down anyway.

We didn't hang round to ask if that was for a refurb or for good!

[toneknob]

[quote name='Huge Hands' timestamp='1471954152' post='3117195']
We rehearsed a few times there last year and we all struggled with the heat and smell in there. We couldn't tell if it was BO, urine, damp, or a mixture of all three.
[/quote]

Sigh, reminds me of happy times in Enterprise...

[Lw.]

[quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1471954333' post='3117198']
Sigh, reminds me of happy times in Enterprise...
[/quote]

Ah - those were the days! It's almost a shame all the studios are vaguely clean nowadays - Rooz is the only one that has any kind of "atmosphere" now!

[toneknob]

It's Enterprise that taught me the valuable rehearsal room lesson of "if you want to sing, always bring your own mic"

[ratman]

Stay away from Alaska Studios. As has already been said, the place stinks (I thought it was damp when I was there) and their gear is old & knackered. They are ridiculously expensive too.

[obi 2 kenobi]

Ditto comments on Alaska. Need to burn your clothes if you go. It stinks.

[project_c]

Alaska sounds like it smells even worse than Rooz. Last time I rehearsed at Rooz I actually got ill from the stale fag-smoke and general booze vapour and lack of air. Unfortunately we've booked it for thursday so I'm preparing for the worst. Can't stand those Orange amps either, might take my little Genz combo with me.