Bally Rehearsal and 8-Track Recording Studios.

As many of you already know, from 1st November we'll be accepting bookings in Studio 1 again for the first time in 3 years, as it's been completely booked out that entire time. All the usual equipment, a 4000 watt PA with 4x 15 inch speakers, AC, etc. Available for £62 for 4 hours, fully inclusive.

Today is our 20th birthday!! 🥳 Thanks so much to everyone that has used us over the years, it's been an absolute privilege, here's to the next 20 years! (More info in screenshots.)

We now have cymbal sizzle chains available in the office for you to borrow in your session! It's a little chain that you put on top of the cymbal, and as it rings out, it adds a little "sizzling" to the sound, as you can hopefully hear in this video. Video recorded by studio manager,Mark Edwards🙂👍🥁🥓

11 more ways that we've improved Bally Studios over the last few years. Improving the studios is a constrant process that never ends. Here's an insight into the many ways that we try to make the studios as great a place to rehearse as possible.

We have published a brand new blog post, with a look at 11 more ways that we have improved the studios over the last few years., which also looks at why we want other studios to copy some of those ideas for the benefit of their customers. 😃👍

www.ballystudios.co.uk/single-post/...

An example of the Samoiloff Effect that happens in our Studio 3, due to a combination of the red XLR cables that we use, which appear to change colours under the RGB LED lights that we have installed in the studio. This is how they actually look in the studios in real life, the video is not edited😍

We've just received our new batch of t-shirts, so now there are 100 more!! 😎 Designed by our own staff members, made in London, 100% cotton, in S/M/L/XL sizes, in 10+ different colours. Available in the office for £7.50 each, or x3 for £20, or x4 for £25.

We've had the air conditioning in 2 of our studios upgraded, with brand new AC units in Studio 2 and 4. They're not only more powerful than the previous ones, they're also a LOT quieter as well! ❄️❄️❄️❄️ Just in time as well! 🥵 There'll be a few more upgrades that will be coming very soon! 😉

All done by hand, with our simple badge maker that we have in the office. Get your badges made in front of you, nice badges, low cost, no long waiting periods, and you get to support a small local business as well. 😀👍

We've been making LOADS of Bally Badges over the last few weeks, and we're very happy to say that these recent Pride badges have been our most popular badges since we started making them 20 years ago! More info in this thread about how we make them all. 🏳️‍🌈

Another recent recording session at Bally to 8-track. We've been having loads of sessions recently with bands spending 4 hours recording, with us setting things up for them before they get there. It's allowed bands to record whole EP's in a raw format, for less than £100 each.

As many of the usual Bally bands will have noticed over the last few weeks, we've installed guitar hangers in all of the studios, so that bands no longer need to bring their own, saving space and effort. ✅ We're also selling some of them in the office as well, available for only £8.50 each. 😃👍

Bally Studios Online Availability Calandar.

We've changed the format of our availability calendar so that it's easier to see at a glance what slots we have available. Here's the link to it. 😀👍

docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

If you are only there for a short while I would go onto to the first 2, as they are in very pretty areas, and there's loads of choice for other places nearby as well to go to. They're lovely areas to walk around too. The last two are nice, but the areas aren't as nice, with less choice in them.

Google Maps Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

Tyris on Tap:
maps.app.goo.gl/eJKnTKv4dqNV...

Olhöps
maps.app.goo.gl/RzpzMNd1pSX3...

Siete Nudos - a few doors from where I lived, it's a nice place, only the locals ever go there.
maps.app.goo.gl/J2ppCtoaEhvA...

StoneCastle Brewery. Tram ride from the beach. 🙂
maps.app.goo.gl/RW4nDsU4KqhX...

Thanks so much!! ❤️

YouTube video by Sol Paradise Sol Paradise - In The Garden (Live Session)

We had to say goodbye to our staff member Jacob (on drums here) recently,😔. We're sad to see him go, but we're super happy that things are going so well! Thanks for everything Jacob, 464 shifts in 4 years, 3rd out of the 19 staff members that we've had in 20 years! 😀

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gA0...

Meet our new(ish) member of staff, Ale!! (Alessandro!) 👋😃 He joined the Bally team in Jan 2025, and as you can see, he's a bassist, as well as a solo artist, so just like all of the other members of staff at Bally, he's a working musician!!
Welcome to the team, Ale! 🙂❤️

Mirrored Daughters band at Bally rehearsal studio.

All 5 members of Mirrored Daughters (two Leaf Librarians, a @firestations.bsky.social, a Marlody and a Hannah cellist) made it into @ballystudios.bsky.social today, just in time for a gig on 26/02.

Album out via @fikarecordings.com on 21/02

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

What a Queen!!! 👑

My introduction to The Beatles was the Red and Blue albums, and then I got all 3 of the Anthology albums, so in many cases the first time I heard many of their songs was on the demo versions. It was then amazing buying the actual albums, and finally hearing the finished song! ❤️

Your band should never use rehearsal studios that have no staff members on site. Here's why. Rehearsal studios that have no staff members on site are a compromise too far. Here is why your band should not be using them.

We've written a two-part blog post about rehearsal studios that don't have staff members on site, and why we think that they're really bad for both bands, and the grassroots music scene in general. It's what we chat to the bands that use us about most. 🙂👍

www.ballystudios.co.uk/single-post/...

There's only about 10 days of the year when the studios is closed, so when that happens it's time to travel! 🚄

Vienna. 🇦🇹

The cover of the live album Kicking Television, Live In Chicago, by Wilco.

Listening to Wilco's live album, "Kicking Television - Live In Chicago."

It still amazes me how an album recorded in imperfect conditions, over less than 8 hours (multiple concerts) with a couple of hours of soundcheck in total, can sound better than an album recorded over months. And it does!

Choose 20 albums that have stayed with you or influenced you. One album per day in no particular order. No explanations, no reviews, just covers.

(14/20)

‘If there’s nowhere else to go, this is where they come’: how Britain’s libraries provide much more than books The long read: In 2024, libraries are unofficial creches, homeless shelters, language schools and asylum support providers – filling the gaps left by a state that has reneged on its responsibilities

There was a great article about this aspect of libraries in The Guardian about 6 months ago. I take my daughter to the library every couple of weeks. She loves books so much that it's one of the few times I can sit down, close my eyes and rest without watching her
www.theguardian.com/news/article...

Merry Christmas everyone!! 🎄🎁 3 years ago I received a pair of Red Wing Boots for Christmas. About 12 million steps later, (6 million per boot) they're due a polish and wax, but still going strong. Hope that everyone else has received a present just as good. ❤️

Choose 20 albums that have stayed with you or influenced you. One album per day in no particular order. No explanations, no reviews, just covers.

(13/20)