In the run up to this year’s Great Escape Festival, we’re putting out a series of posts providing you with the best insider tips for the 3-day event. From food to our favourite venues, think of it as a sort of festival survival guide…
If there’s one thing we’re certain of happening at The Great Escape, it’s being hit with that god-awful, un-welcome, head-splitting hangover; there’s no way to avoid it really, so you might as well accept defeat. Instead of wallowing in self-pity in a pile of cigarette buts and beer cans, with your mouth tasting like the inside of an ashtray, we’ve got the perfect cure!
If you can bare to drag yourself out of bed (or wherever it is you ended up at silly-o-clock in the morning), then a hearty breakfast will be your saving grace, transporting you back into the real world, ready for the day ahead (before you do it all over again, of course!)…..
Whether it’s the super-organic, whole food cafes where you can sip on a super-foods smoothie to try and eradicate your headache (and guilt), or the ever-reliable, greasy-spoon café, where only double, deep-fried goods will do; Brighton has it all. Here are a few of our favourites:
Billies
With reviews stating it ‘the perfect hangover cure’, head to Billies for a big breakfast – emphasis on the ‘big’! From your standard Full English to trendy teas, lates and even Eggs Benedict, it’s a notch above the rest. Priced from around £4-7, you’ll leave satisfied and happy, with a few quid change in your pocket, too.
34 Hampton Place, BN1 3DD – 01273 774386. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 8.30-16.00. Sat-Sun 09.00-16.00.
The Market Diner
If you’re familiar with Brighton, there’s no doubt you’ll have graced this institution with your presence. Great for a late night meal after the pubs and clubs have kicked the last loiterers out, or great for breakfast – especially if you need to soak up the alcohol after a day’s gig-going. Located just away from the centre off the Steine, this cafe is famous for its ‘Gut Buster’, need we say more?
19-21 Circus Street, BN2 9QF
Bills
For a touch of class during your festival stint, take a seat in Bills and sample their award-winning breakfasts, sure to set you up for the day. With perfect sausage sandwiches or healthy breakfast boards, there’s even a simple offering of toast and jam if you can’t quite stomach a full meal. Our favourite? It’s got to be the rostis!
The Depot 100 North Road, BN1 1YE. Opening hours: Mon-Sat 08.00-23.00, Sun 09.00-22.20.
Join the conversation – follow us on Twitter (@milocostudios) where we’ll be tweeting throughout the festival!
Posted in Live Music / Festivals | Tagged artists, bands, brighton, concerts, Festival, Festival guide, gigs, live music, May, Music, SXSW, The Great Escape Festival 2013 |
We are pleased to announce on the blog the introduction of Forward Studios Caesar, a leading recording complex in the Italian capital of Rome. This month we are pleased to be launching its ‘Caesar’ studio on the Miloco website.
Forward Studios Caesar has been built to the highest possible standards, blending both high end technology and a hugely creative atmosphere. Throughout the control room, main live space and three recording booths, the general atmosphere of the studio is one of immense light and spaciousness, and with both excellent visibility and isolation between all the different areas. The equipment spec is based around a Neve 88R console, Pro Tools HD3 rig, excellent monitoring and an impressive collection of outboard. For bands wanting to record there is a large collection of microphones and backline. View the Forward Studios Caesar equipment spec for full details on the gear.
This exclusive studio is based in a beautiful three storey Roman-style villa in the green hills on the outskirts of Rome, with breathtaking views across it. However, the city center, with its many world famous attractions, is still in quick and easy reach. In the immediate area is a number of great restaurants, hotels and bars, as well as a gym and wellness center plus many other activities.
Forward Studios will soon be opening a two-bedroom residential facilitiy for clients to stay in during their session. We will be announcing the opening of the acommodation at a later date, but for now you can find out everything you need to know by visiting www.miloco.co.uk/forwardstudioscaesar.
Posted in European Recording Studios, Mixing Studios, Neve Recording Studios, Tracking Studios | Tagged caesar, forward, italy, mixing, recording studio, rome |
The Cabin is the latest in a number of great London writing/recording studios Miloco are now representing. Home to writer/producer Tom Fuller, it is based in the new Tileyard Studio complex in Kings Cross.
The Cabin was designed and custom-built to be a versatile space, able to accommodate any small to medium-sized project. Split between a 15 square meter control room with Audient Zen console and a 13 square meter live space, the studio has an abundance of natural daylight and views across central London. With an extensive Virtual Instrument collection as well as a host of quality instruments available, this is the perfect creative space whether for writing or production. There is a decent selection of outboard and microphones, plus an adjoining live room that enables the space to be used as a traditional recording studio if required.
With a comfortable lounge, the Notes Italian deli/coffee house on site and easy access from Camden, Kings Cross and the city center, The Cabin offers a convenient and elegant solution to your writing and production needs. Find out everything you need to know on The Cabin by visiting www.miloco.co.uk/cabin.
Posted in London Recording Studios, Record Producers, Recording Studio Engineers, Tracking Studios, UK Recording Studios, Writing Studios | Tagged kings cross, london, Miloco, recording, the cabin, tom fuller, writing studio |
We’ve got three great recording studios to blog about this week, each of which now features on the Miloco website. The first is Music Lan Studios, located in Catalonia, Spain…
Music Lan Studios is the second top-end Spanish residential recording studio we have welcomed to Miloco this year. It is based near Girona in Catalonia, and boasts stunning views of the Pyreenes Mountains. Combining state-of-the-art equipment and hugely inspiring surroundings, Music Lan is a great option for people looking to escape the city and experience a brand new creative location.
The studio at Music Lan has three main live areas: a large room with a changeable reverb, a medium-size room and a booth. Between them they offer countless different acoustics, not least to mention many different microphones, guitars, drums, keyboards and amplifiers. The control room has the unique benefit of providing two consoles: a SSL 4000 E and a 24 Channel Neve 8036. They are accompanied by a host of high quality outboard gear. You can view the full equipment spec at Music Lan by clicking here.
Five minutes from the studio is a modern house in a peaceful location that can accomodate up to nine people. Between them, the studio and residential buildings offer clients sole use of a swimming pool, a mini cinema, games room and pool table. Catering can also be provided for every meal in the day.
Lastly, you’ll have this beautiful region of Spain right at your doorstep. Catalonia has picturesque towns and Barcelona is not too far away. It has a rich cultural heritage with many interesting sites to visit, and breathtaking scenery provided by the Pyrenees. There are also many great restaurants, pubs and bars located close to the studio.
To find out everything you need to know on Music Lan Studios visit www.miloco.co.uk/musiclan.
Posted in European Recording Studios, Mixing Studios, Neve Recording Studios, Residential Recording Studios, SSL Recording Studios, Tracking Studios | Tagged barcelona, catalonia, girona, mixing, music lan, neve, recording studios, spain, SSL |Having only signed with Apollo Records back in February this year, Nadine Shah certainly didn’t hang around in releasing a follow-up to her critically acclaimed 2012 EP ‘Aching Bones’, and not-surprisingly, her three-track, ‘Dreary Town’ EP is hotly tipped for success, too.
Opener, ‘Dreary Town’, begins with a somber piano riff before Shah’s distinctive, lip-quivering vocals swell and flourish beautifully. The most personal of the tracks, the song starts to take shape as agitated strings create an uneasy tension and Shah’s vocals grow more and more anguished. This was in fact the track that convinced producer, Ben Hillier (The Horrors, Blur, Depeche Mode), to work with her.
‘Bobby Heron’ is where Shah’s unique character as an artist really shines through. The husky tones of her North-Eastern accent, combined with menacing guitar chops and tales of death at sea make for a brilliantly dramatic track.
Closing the EP is an inventive cover of ‘Cry Me a River’; a song Nadine used to perform in her younger jazz-singer days. A spooky and sinister track, the piano and whirling soundscapes are relentless, whilst Nadine’s vocals are dripping with soul and emotion of someone far beyond her years. You can expect to hear a lot more from this songstress in the coming months.
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Posted in Miloco Clients, Mixing Studios, New Albums, Record Producers, Recording Studio Engineers, Tracking Studios, UK Recording Studios | Tagged Ben Hillier, dreary town, Miloco, nadine shah |The third EP to be released by Manchester foursome, The 1975, ‘Music For Cars’ acts a tasty appetiser before fully satisfying us and delivering the goods with their highly anticipated debut album later this year.
The Manchester foursome’s five-track offering is a colourful mix of blissful pop anthems intertwined with hazy, atmospheric numbers conjuring both nostalgia and cutting-edge song-writing and production.
Opening the EP is ‘Anobrain’, a track that seems to be engulfed in a dream-like state with airy, echoed vocals and minimal instrumentation. Lasting only 1 minute 54 seconds long, the song’s somewhat abrupt fade-to-end plays out like a foggy end to a dream, waking up content and bleary-eyed.
Lead single, ‘Chocolate’, mixed, recorded and produced by Mike Crossey at Livingston Studio 1, is an upbeat pop track complete with catchy hook, perfect indie guitar riff and a super, solid-sounding beat. Having already seen huge success with this song and grabbing the highly-desired Radio One audience well and truly by their swoopy fringes, the Manchester boys are perhaps now keen to show a softer side with the rest of their EP. Take ‘HNSCC’, for example; another short track, but this time an ambient instrumental that swells in and out of consciousness almost hypnotically.
‘Heads.Cars.Bending’ is a decidedly electronic affair; neatly side stepping from the indie guitar formula to introduce a beat-heavy, syncopated track thick with layered vocals and harmonies for a real atmospheric sound. Dirty synths, claps and percussive clicks give the haziness a sense of structure, cautious not to veer too far from the Indie boundaries.
‘Me’ closes the EP with waves of ethereal vocals, isolated beats and whirring synth sounds. As the track progresses, it morphs into a kind of slow jam with smooth, jazzy saxophones and finger clicks introduced – perfect Sunday afternoon listening; unexpected and brilliant.
This is a truly diverse record from The 1975, proving these indie boys are more than just a one-trick pony.
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Posted in London Recording Studios, Miloco Clients, Mixing Studios, New Albums, Record Producers, Recording Studio Engineers, SSL Recording Studios, Tracking Studios, UK Recording Studios | Tagged livingston studio 1, Mike Crossey, music for cars, the 1975 |
Last week we re-strung Assault and Battery 2‘s stunning Grotrian Steinweg Concert Grand Piano, further enhancing the quality of this world class instrument.
The piano is now back in its home sounding better than ever, in no small thanks to the efforts of our piano tuner who, realising we were slightly behind schedule with the job, flew his own personal helicopter to Dorset to pick up the bass strings direct from the string-maker! No, we are not joking, however we do now have solid proof that we are working in the wrong sector of the music industry.
Now this is what we call service…
You can read up everything you need to know on Assault and Battery 2, including full information on its incredible equipment spec here: www.miloco.co.uk/asaultandbattery2.
Posted in London Recording Studios, Mixing Studios, Neve Recording Studios, Recording Studio Equipment, Tracking Studios, UK Recording Studios | Tagged assault and battery 2, battery studios, concert grand piano, grotrian steinweg |This Spring we’ve been treated to the thirteenth Depeche Mode album, the third in a trilogy of records the legendary Basildon band have made with producer Ben Hillier (the previous two being 2005’s Playing The Angel and 2009’s Sounds of the Universe). ‘Delta Machine’ sees Gore, Gahan and Fletch progress further with the sound they do better than anyone, their signature blend of dark, gloomy and bluesy Synthpop, with various influences cited by the press including Nick Cave and early Roxy Music.
The album was recorded in Santa Monica and New York, and brought back to Assault & Battery 2 in London where it was mixed by Flood. Depeche Mode will set out on The Delta Machine Tour in May,with the first dates in Nice.
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Posted in London Recording Studios, Miloco Clients, Mixing Studios, Neve Recording Studios, New Albums, Record Producers, Recording Studio Engineers, UK Recording Studios | Tagged assault and battery 2, Ben Hillier, delta machine, depeche mode, flood |The second album from Hurts, ‘Exile’, delivers the next offering of this Manchester-formed duo’s epic, theatrical pop that has seen them scale such high heights over the past couple of years, especially in continental Europe. ‘Exile’ has achieved top ten positions on release in a handful of European countries, including a UK number 9.
A few of the tracks were worked on in The Engine Room and The Square with Dan Grech on production and engineering duties.
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Posted in London Recording Studios, Miloco Clients, Mixing Studios, New Albums, Record Producers, Recording Studio Engineers, SSL Recording Studios, Tracking Studios, UK Recording Studios | Tagged album, dan grech, engine room, exile, hurts, recording studio, square |The fourteenth studio album from legendary pop-experimentalist Scott Walker, Bish Bosch is released on 4AD. It is described as the third in a trilogy of records that started with 1995’s Tilt and continued with 2006’s The Drift. Bish Bosh, which was mixed by Peter Walsh in Miloco’s Sofa Sound Studio in West London, was received with huge praise on release – you can check out album track ‘Epizootics!’ and an album trailer on the following links.
Album Trailer – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfrVuhD8maE
Epizootics! – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ih7KzKLLWA
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