OK, why the blog anyway?
So you can draw on our 30 years worth
of experience as our band rented rehearsal space in just about every
place that ever was in MA, CT, and NH. Thereby saving you from suffering
the same wrath we did, and teaching you the do's and don'ts
of renting rehearsal space. Here you will get a first hand glimpse as
to what we experienced and how to navigate to a situation that will work
for you. We have paid our dues, are showing the scars of the road, and
are still gigging steadily after all this time.
This is a blog
with important tips for steering musician's and bands through the mine
field of rehearsal space, jam rooms, practice studios, based on 30 years
experience of a working band from in and around Boston, MA, CT, and NH.
Monday, November 7, 2016
Rehearsal Space - Why Do We Need it Anyway
Whether you are band or musician whose been doing this for awhile, or someone whose just starting out, we have probably all experienced the same sequence of events in the beginning.
First off, you set up shop downstairs in the basement, your garage, or the family room at the other end of the house where the rehearsal space is FREE. What could be better than that? That brand new drum kit looks so good, that you can't wait to lay into it at the next band rehearsal. The rehearsal time comes, and just then you and your band are shocked to discover that mommy and daddy declare that you have to turn it down, play quietly, and there's no playing after suppertime! You continue on and manage to deal with this a couple times, until the nice neighbor you mow the lawn for, calls the police on you for being too loud. The cops show up at your front door, and politely tell you they have had complaints from the neighborhood, and you need to turn it down or stop playing. Without cashing in the cards just yet, you grab some packing foam, carpet remnants, and whatever else you can scrounge up for makeshift sound proofing and staple it to the walls. At the next rehearsal you even play at a volume so low you could puke! Just then, another knock at the door, yes it's the boys in blue again, but this time they tell you, that you need to cease and desist immediately because of your continued disturbing of the peace, or you will be cited.
Since you really don't want mommy and daddy to have bad blood with the neighborhood, or even have to move, you are instantly thrown into the market for rehearsal space like it or not. And if you happened to live in a condo or apartment, better that you have a roof over your head, than being tossed out onto the sidewalk for playing your guitar too loud, especially if you really didn't feel like being homeless anyway! Hey, daddy didn't tell me this when he bought me my first ax! Wow, what fun!
So be sure to read all the posts on this blog, so you can save yourself a lot of time, and learn from our experiences.
First off, you set up shop downstairs in the basement, your garage, or the family room at the other end of the house where the rehearsal space is FREE. What could be better than that? That brand new drum kit looks so good, that you can't wait to lay into it at the next band rehearsal. The rehearsal time comes, and just then you and your band are shocked to discover that mommy and daddy declare that you have to turn it down, play quietly, and there's no playing after suppertime! You continue on and manage to deal with this a couple times, until the nice neighbor you mow the lawn for, calls the police on you for being too loud. The cops show up at your front door, and politely tell you they have had complaints from the neighborhood, and you need to turn it down or stop playing. Without cashing in the cards just yet, you grab some packing foam, carpet remnants, and whatever else you can scrounge up for makeshift sound proofing and staple it to the walls. At the next rehearsal you even play at a volume so low you could puke! Just then, another knock at the door, yes it's the boys in blue again, but this time they tell you, that you need to cease and desist immediately because of your continued disturbing of the peace, or you will be cited.
Since you really don't want mommy and daddy to have bad blood with the neighborhood, or even have to move, you are instantly thrown into the market for rehearsal space like it or not. And if you happened to live in a condo or apartment, better that you have a roof over your head, than being tossed out onto the sidewalk for playing your guitar too loud, especially if you really didn't feel like being homeless anyway! Hey, daddy didn't tell me this when he bought me my first ax! Wow, what fun!
So be sure to read all the posts on this blog, so you can save yourself a lot of time, and learn from our experiences.
Rehearsal Space - Don't Get Raped
OK, so you need to find a place to get your regular rehearsal on. Now if you are a band or musician, you already own all your own gear which for an average band might be guitars, drums, bass, keyboards, and your PA, or any one of these. This is the same gear if you are a working band that you will take along to do your gigs with also. Now there are two different types of rehearsal space rentals. We have rented in both types with mixed reviews.
Pay by the hour (also known as New York or LA style):
These places charge you anywhere from $25 to $50 an hour. The rehearsal room generally comes with a used PA, and some gear hanging around. You are on the clock the minute you walk in the door. Now after rehearsing for ten hours in an effort to get as much done in the shortest amount of time, guess how many songs we completed at $50 an hour? Hey your pretty smart! So after dropping $500 bucks in one day, and getting nothing done we realized we were in the wrong place. We have only rented this way twice in our bands history, once in New York City because building space is so expensive down there and we were stupid, and once in Boston, the ladder of which we were yelled at for eating in the room. They didn't even thank us for draining our wallets, and paying for gear we didn't want or need! These hourly places are so hard up for business that they disquise their tactics by holding open mics and jam sessions where they charge you to play, and the only people in the audience, is other hardup wannabees paying to play just like you! The only person who wins in this situation is the rehearsal space out of desperation. Why not just go down to your local club at a real open mic, play for free, have a real audience, and get some real exposure, and maybe next time you’ll having a paying gig, instead of paying to play at one of these places!
Pay by the month (also known as permanent or lockout style):
OK, so we realized we needed something more permanent and regular, where we could put a project together long term, leave our stuff there, and still have some cash left over. Permanent rehearsal space fits the bill, and you can expect to pay around $300 a month or so for a pretty decent size room. Sounds easy enough right? Wrong!
STOP! and read every entry on this blog before you decide on a permanent rehearsal space. You need to exercise smart judgement, good common sense, and know the risks of what you're getting into. Our experiences will help navigate you through this, considering we rented in nearly all of them in the three states our band is from.
Pay by the hour (also known as New York or LA style):
These places charge you anywhere from $25 to $50 an hour. The rehearsal room generally comes with a used PA, and some gear hanging around. You are on the clock the minute you walk in the door. Now after rehearsing for ten hours in an effort to get as much done in the shortest amount of time, guess how many songs we completed at $50 an hour? Hey your pretty smart! So after dropping $500 bucks in one day, and getting nothing done we realized we were in the wrong place. We have only rented this way twice in our bands history, once in New York City because building space is so expensive down there and we were stupid, and once in Boston, the ladder of which we were yelled at for eating in the room. They didn't even thank us for draining our wallets, and paying for gear we didn't want or need! These hourly places are so hard up for business that they disquise their tactics by holding open mics and jam sessions where they charge you to play, and the only people in the audience, is other hardup wannabees paying to play just like you! The only person who wins in this situation is the rehearsal space out of desperation. Why not just go down to your local club at a real open mic, play for free, have a real audience, and get some real exposure, and maybe next time you’ll having a paying gig, instead of paying to play at one of these places!
Pay by the month (also known as permanent or lockout style):
OK, so we realized we needed something more permanent and regular, where we could put a project together long term, leave our stuff there, and still have some cash left over. Permanent rehearsal space fits the bill, and you can expect to pay around $300 a month or so for a pretty decent size room. Sounds easy enough right? Wrong!
STOP! and read every entry on this blog before you decide on a permanent rehearsal space. You need to exercise smart judgement, good common sense, and know the risks of what you're getting into. Our experiences will help navigate you through this, considering we rented in nearly all of them in the three states our band is from.
Rehearsal Space - The People That Run Them
OK, so you think it will be cool to hangout at the rehearsal space with a fellow musician whose running the place. I mean after all, who better to understand a musician than another musician right? Wrong! The last person you want to have running a rehearsal space is another musician. Why? because he neither has an interest in what happens to your gear when you leave it there overnight, he won't care whose walking in the front door or out with your stuff, he'll probably be half asleep in the office if he's there at all, you can be sure he won't sweep the floor, and he will be lacking the thing you need the most, good management skills and knowledge of business. But, he'll at least be your friend, and all the other band's friend, and offer to party with you in the hallway anytime you want.
Next comes the commercial building owner, the guy that slapped up some partitions and put a padlock on your door. This is the same guy that doesn't know how to handle these bands he just threw together in his building, and because he never bothered to tell the city about the change of use of his property, he is secretly operating without permits or proper zoning for what he is now doing. Because he is never there, he let's the bands do whatever they want and have a good time, until equipment starts turning up missing, the drinking and drugging gets out of hand, and the conditions turn squalid. Now he has to show up and deal with these characters, only problem is, he hasn't a clue as to how to do it, so he leaves the conditions to deteriorate even worse.
Next is the self storage place, that conveniently too was converted into some rehearsal space much the same way. Just like the commercial building owner, this placed suffered the same problem when secretly they started using the place to put people and bands in, when in reality, it's only zoned for storage, so the occupancy permits legally don't allow the bands to be there, and it is not properly setup to meet the safety, fire, and building codes to house that many people in the space properly. In much the same way, under the radar in the bands went, until the drinking and drugging, theft, and pandemonium ensued due to lack of supervision.
Here comes the fledgling underground musicians, who out of desperation and starvation, are offering you the chance to rent a small amount of space that they have cooked up in a completely illegitimate situation. That's right, these guys have a small fixed amount of space in a building somewhere, and you are invited to come rent the same limited space that everyone else is renting, usually one big room, all underground and off the radar. That's all fine until you discover there is no occupancy permit for what's going on there, and it's just a question of time until the city sends everyone packing.
Call to the plate the guy who has anything from a garage to a big house he has split up into spaces, trying to make a buck off the musician's when the economy goes south. He says it's OK to jam there, but in reality because it's zoned residential or sits right next to apartments and houses that are zoned that way, you're done for. He neither has the occupancy permits to legally allow the bands to use it for this, and he hasn't told the city anything about what he's doing. As the complaints come in, the city gets ready to put a lid on it.
One last effort by the fledgling musician, is to setup a PA, mics, a drum kit in a space, and offer you the wonderful opportunity to rent it out PA and all for $15 an hour. Only problem is, you already own all your own gear, and in ten hours you will have already dropped a half of months rent anywhere else.
For your own protection, make sure you read the blog post about the places that get shutdown and how they get shutdown, so you don't get caught in the fray.
Next comes the commercial building owner, the guy that slapped up some partitions and put a padlock on your door. This is the same guy that doesn't know how to handle these bands he just threw together in his building, and because he never bothered to tell the city about the change of use of his property, he is secretly operating without permits or proper zoning for what he is now doing. Because he is never there, he let's the bands do whatever they want and have a good time, until equipment starts turning up missing, the drinking and drugging gets out of hand, and the conditions turn squalid. Now he has to show up and deal with these characters, only problem is, he hasn't a clue as to how to do it, so he leaves the conditions to deteriorate even worse.
Next is the self storage place, that conveniently too was converted into some rehearsal space much the same way. Just like the commercial building owner, this placed suffered the same problem when secretly they started using the place to put people and bands in, when in reality, it's only zoned for storage, so the occupancy permits legally don't allow the bands to be there, and it is not properly setup to meet the safety, fire, and building codes to house that many people in the space properly. In much the same way, under the radar in the bands went, until the drinking and drugging, theft, and pandemonium ensued due to lack of supervision.
Here comes the fledgling underground musicians, who out of desperation and starvation, are offering you the chance to rent a small amount of space that they have cooked up in a completely illegitimate situation. That's right, these guys have a small fixed amount of space in a building somewhere, and you are invited to come rent the same limited space that everyone else is renting, usually one big room, all underground and off the radar. That's all fine until you discover there is no occupancy permit for what's going on there, and it's just a question of time until the city sends everyone packing.
Call to the plate the guy who has anything from a garage to a big house he has split up into spaces, trying to make a buck off the musician's when the economy goes south. He says it's OK to jam there, but in reality because it's zoned residential or sits right next to apartments and houses that are zoned that way, you're done for. He neither has the occupancy permits to legally allow the bands to use it for this, and he hasn't told the city anything about what he's doing. As the complaints come in, the city gets ready to put a lid on it.
One last effort by the fledgling musician, is to setup a PA, mics, a drum kit in a space, and offer you the wonderful opportunity to rent it out PA and all for $15 an hour. Only problem is, you already own all your own gear, and in ten hours you will have already dropped a half of months rent anywhere else.
For your own protection, make sure you read the blog post about the places that get shutdown and how they get shutdown, so you don't get caught in the fray.
Rehearsal Space - The Places That Got Shutdown
As explained in the previous blog entry about the people that run these places, eventually they get shutdown, for the same reasons, and usually in the same way by the cities building code inspector, the fire chief, law enforcement, and the zoning attorney. Essentially, the city looks at this operation through the stereotype they have of bands in general (even if it isn't true all the time), which is that they are nothing but a bunch of drug toting, drunken derelicts that they just as soon run out of town!
Peabody Jam Rooms - This place operated illegally beneath the radar in a building ditched in the background of the cities industrial area for sometime. It was run by a musician wannabee masquerading as someone important. All came crashing down one night when two hundred or so underage teens descended on the building for a live show that the younger bands had all planned. They were hanging out inside and outside in the parking lots with alcohol and drugs. Law enforcement descended on the place in bulk, and it was shutdown faster than you could bat an eyelash by the city, citing building, safety, zoning, occupancy, and criminal violations. It made all the local newspapers, and the city will not allow another rehearsal space within it's borders.
The Cambridge Music Complex - This building has long since been bulldozed over and was comprised of a maze of jam rooms made out of plywood doors with padlocks on them. The zig zag corridors all made of exposed plywood offered little for sound isolation, but would have been terrific in a fire. It was shutdown for fire code, occupancy, and safety violations. Memorable was the stench coming from the backed up toilets and urinals that didn't work!
Riversedge - The entire building was shutdown by the city building inspector and code enforcement officer for numerous safety, building, and occupancy violations. Attention was brought to it because of the noise emanating from the building and the bands rehearsing in there without proper permits. The city will not allow another rehearsal space.
The Boot Mill - This was the place that was run by a convicted child molester, who used to molest the teens he had helping run the rehearsal space up in his office. When he went to prison, the rehearsal space lease was taken over by another wannabee musician, who let the chaos get out of control. There was so much drinking, drugging, vandalism, and chaos, that it was disrupting the rest of the Boot Mill's business clients. Together the city and the Boot Mill shut it down by not renewing the lease. The city now frowns upon any rehearsal space.
Lawton's Hot Dogs - This place was actually located across the street from the hot dog place, but it became known as Lawton's to the bands. The building suffered from severe dry rot of the floor boards, so that on the upper floors, you could crack right through to the 1st floor if you stepped too hard. The elevators were the old rope pull elevators that never passed the elevator inspection, and where if you got stuck, you were never coming out. You could here the bands so loud right on the main street, that it was destined to be found out. A couple of different musician wannabees tried to run it, one even lived there with his dog and a gun for security. It was such a fire and safety hazard, the city shut the entire place down in a heartbeat once they figured out what was going on.
Burlington Rehearsal Studios - This short lived attempt was by a guy trying to make an extra buck on some vacant building space, only problem was, he never bothered to tell the city, but they sure told him instead once they found out the bands were in there without the proper permitting. He shut it down himself willingly.
The Littleton Barn - For years this placed existed in a wooden structure in a little town until it was sold as a pet grooming salon. It most certainly was a fire trap with unsafe electrical wiring, and no sprinkler system or fire safety. The bands cumulatively put a huge drain on the wiring, and there never was proper occupancy permits. All this combined with the drinking and drugging led the town to put pressure on shutting it down.
The Sound Museum – This Denby Street location in Allston was the worst of the worst with sometimes three to five bands all crammed into one room just to try to afford the steep $500 to $600 a month rent price tag. Corridor after corridor of squalid stench, garbage, and debris including the urinals that no longer were attached to the walls, and that never worked anyway (thus the piss everywhere and stench). The place was never supervised, and because of all the building code, fire safety, drug, and alcohol violations erupting into pure pandomoneum on most nights, the fact that occupancy permits were never issued or sought led to its final demise.
We could go on and on and tell you about the 15 other places that got shutdown in MA, CT, and NH, but why bother you get the point. Instead be sure to read all the blog entries including the horror stories post.
Peabody Jam Rooms - This place operated illegally beneath the radar in a building ditched in the background of the cities industrial area for sometime. It was run by a musician wannabee masquerading as someone important. All came crashing down one night when two hundred or so underage teens descended on the building for a live show that the younger bands had all planned. They were hanging out inside and outside in the parking lots with alcohol and drugs. Law enforcement descended on the place in bulk, and it was shutdown faster than you could bat an eyelash by the city, citing building, safety, zoning, occupancy, and criminal violations. It made all the local newspapers, and the city will not allow another rehearsal space within it's borders.
The Cambridge Music Complex - This building has long since been bulldozed over and was comprised of a maze of jam rooms made out of plywood doors with padlocks on them. The zig zag corridors all made of exposed plywood offered little for sound isolation, but would have been terrific in a fire. It was shutdown for fire code, occupancy, and safety violations. Memorable was the stench coming from the backed up toilets and urinals that didn't work!
Riversedge - The entire building was shutdown by the city building inspector and code enforcement officer for numerous safety, building, and occupancy violations. Attention was brought to it because of the noise emanating from the building and the bands rehearsing in there without proper permits. The city will not allow another rehearsal space.
The Boot Mill - This was the place that was run by a convicted child molester, who used to molest the teens he had helping run the rehearsal space up in his office. When he went to prison, the rehearsal space lease was taken over by another wannabee musician, who let the chaos get out of control. There was so much drinking, drugging, vandalism, and chaos, that it was disrupting the rest of the Boot Mill's business clients. Together the city and the Boot Mill shut it down by not renewing the lease. The city now frowns upon any rehearsal space.
Lawton's Hot Dogs - This place was actually located across the street from the hot dog place, but it became known as Lawton's to the bands. The building suffered from severe dry rot of the floor boards, so that on the upper floors, you could crack right through to the 1st floor if you stepped too hard. The elevators were the old rope pull elevators that never passed the elevator inspection, and where if you got stuck, you were never coming out. You could here the bands so loud right on the main street, that it was destined to be found out. A couple of different musician wannabees tried to run it, one even lived there with his dog and a gun for security. It was such a fire and safety hazard, the city shut the entire place down in a heartbeat once they figured out what was going on.
Burlington Rehearsal Studios - This short lived attempt was by a guy trying to make an extra buck on some vacant building space, only problem was, he never bothered to tell the city, but they sure told him instead once they found out the bands were in there without the proper permitting. He shut it down himself willingly.
The Littleton Barn - For years this placed existed in a wooden structure in a little town until it was sold as a pet grooming salon. It most certainly was a fire trap with unsafe electrical wiring, and no sprinkler system or fire safety. The bands cumulatively put a huge drain on the wiring, and there never was proper occupancy permits. All this combined with the drinking and drugging led the town to put pressure on shutting it down.
The Sound Museum – This Denby Street location in Allston was the worst of the worst with sometimes three to five bands all crammed into one room just to try to afford the steep $500 to $600 a month rent price tag. Corridor after corridor of squalid stench, garbage, and debris including the urinals that no longer were attached to the walls, and that never worked anyway (thus the piss everywhere and stench). The place was never supervised, and because of all the building code, fire safety, drug, and alcohol violations erupting into pure pandomoneum on most nights, the fact that occupancy permits were never issued or sought led to its final demise.
We could go on and on and tell you about the 15 other places that got shutdown in MA, CT, and NH, but why bother you get the point. Instead be sure to read all the blog entries including the horror stories post.
Rehearsal Space - The Horror Stories
OK, so after 25 years of renting rehearsal space all over MA, CT, and NH, we have endured squalid conditions, had our equipment damaged and missing, put up with the derelicts, had our van broken in to, got caught up in the middle of a few shutdowns, been raped on the costs, but through the whole thing managed to keep the band working, touring, and enjoying our love of music. The horror stories we will keep generic, but we will stick with the meat of the matter. Hopefully through it all, you can steer clear of what we experienced. This is just a smattering of them.
Our Gear Turned Up Missing - This happened to us way more than once. The worst was when we had our whole rehearsal space broken in to in Everett, MA with everything gone. Serious dough. There was an alarm on our room, but either it didn't go off, or it was an inside job, but nobody seemed to know anything. In Watertown, MA we arrived to find our padlock sheered off the door with pedals and cables missing. In Allston, MA during a room share which we have never done since, we showed up for rehearsal and our complete rack of signal processing had disappeared. When we asked the band we were sharing with where it was, they implied that we must have left it at a gig or something. OK, except for the fact that we hadn't gigged in a week. In Manchester, NH where there was supposed to be camera's watching our stuff, our room door was found open and gear missing. Nobody seemed to know anything. In Cambridge, MA someone kicked in our plywood door, which made the padlock screws just fall off, and took a keyboard. No one in the office would help us.
Our Equipment Flooded - The Concord river floods every year where the bend in the river is, and where the rehearsal studio is located. Because the building is in a low lying slope to the river, it flows right in. We had two feet of water in our room, the electronics were toast, and the drums were warped like seashells. Nobody told us about this until it was too late, but apparently the owner and the rest of the bands all knew.
Busted Just Because We Were There - When a Boston, MA rehearsal space was shutdown and the police showed up arresting people for drug possession in the building, we were in our rehearsal room, doing nothing, smoking nothing, drinking nothing, taking nothing and arrested just because we were there, and we weren't the culprits.
The Derelicts Hanging Outside Our Room - In Allston, MA we couldn't shake the derelicts from drinking and drugging in the hallway right outside our room door. It didn't make us feel very secure when we locked up to go home, having all these guys eyeing our gear, so we moved out.
Slogging Through The Piss on the Floor - As gross as this sounds, in Manchester, NH we had to endure walking through piss on the floor, and I don't mean in the bathrooms. This was right out in the corridor of the place. I guess it was OK just to hang it out in the corridor and let it go if you are so drunk from drinking beer all night, that you don't care.
Our Van Broken Into - We had our van broken into in the parking lot of one space while we were rehearsing inside.
We could go on and on, but the stories are too numerous. No we don't go to these type of places anymore, but that's not because we have given up on renting rehearsal space.
Our Gear Turned Up Missing - This happened to us way more than once. The worst was when we had our whole rehearsal space broken in to in Everett, MA with everything gone. Serious dough. There was an alarm on our room, but either it didn't go off, or it was an inside job, but nobody seemed to know anything. In Watertown, MA we arrived to find our padlock sheered off the door with pedals and cables missing. In Allston, MA during a room share which we have never done since, we showed up for rehearsal and our complete rack of signal processing had disappeared. When we asked the band we were sharing with where it was, they implied that we must have left it at a gig or something. OK, except for the fact that we hadn't gigged in a week. In Manchester, NH where there was supposed to be camera's watching our stuff, our room door was found open and gear missing. Nobody seemed to know anything. In Cambridge, MA someone kicked in our plywood door, which made the padlock screws just fall off, and took a keyboard. No one in the office would help us.
Our Equipment Flooded - The Concord river floods every year where the bend in the river is, and where the rehearsal studio is located. Because the building is in a low lying slope to the river, it flows right in. We had two feet of water in our room, the electronics were toast, and the drums were warped like seashells. Nobody told us about this until it was too late, but apparently the owner and the rest of the bands all knew.
Busted Just Because We Were There - When a Boston, MA rehearsal space was shutdown and the police showed up arresting people for drug possession in the building, we were in our rehearsal room, doing nothing, smoking nothing, drinking nothing, taking nothing and arrested just because we were there, and we weren't the culprits.
The Derelicts Hanging Outside Our Room - In Allston, MA we couldn't shake the derelicts from drinking and drugging in the hallway right outside our room door. It didn't make us feel very secure when we locked up to go home, having all these guys eyeing our gear, so we moved out.
Slogging Through The Piss on the Floor - As gross as this sounds, in Manchester, NH we had to endure walking through piss on the floor, and I don't mean in the bathrooms. This was right out in the corridor of the place. I guess it was OK just to hang it out in the corridor and let it go if you are so drunk from drinking beer all night, that you don't care.
Our Van Broken Into - We had our van broken into in the parking lot of one space while we were rehearsing inside.
We could go on and on, but the stories are too numerous. No we don't go to these type of places anymore, but that's not because we have given up on renting rehearsal space.
Rehearsal Space - Supposedly Secure
When we rented space, we experienced everything from NO security to real security.
OK, a card access entry on the front door, and a magnetic strip to let you in is NO security. Why? because any card in your wallet has a magnetic strip and can open the door just like at the ATM door. Next, the proximity card reader is NO security. Why? because the proximity card can be handed off to anybody, letting Joe Shmo come in after his buddy from another band gave him the card, told him how to come in and rip you off. OK, surveillance cameras are useless, because they are only as good as whose watching them, and they don't prevent anything from happening. If your gear is gone, it's gone man camera's or no camera's. Read our horror stories in the horror story entry, because everywhere we had stuff missing, there was supposedly cameras and no one knows anything! An alarm is NO security. Why? because it's only as good as the person answering it. Do you really think the cops are going to be the one answering an alarm in these places? Good I give you credit for that. When an alarm does go off, it's the same old story, we know nothing. How about a real person? NO NO NO, because if the real person is Joe the musician hanging out in the office, or Harry the wannabee musician owner, or Jack the absentee property owner, they could care less about whose coming, going, or walking out the door with your stuff OK! Well then how about all this stuff combined?, you're getting warmer, but the real answer is NOT electronics and cameras as you just found out, but it is management. Your tip of the day here is, to find a place that is extremely tightly managed, that won't put up with the goings on described by our experiences on this blog, and not by some fledgling musician, a self storage place, or someone with empty building space.
The music industry is connected with tightly managed rehearsal space, and they put their experienced people in place to operate them. You want to find a place that has the management skills in place, and understands the entire music industry, so your needs are met professionally and without incident. They are hard to find, but they usually stand out because they have been around awhile. There is music industry rehearsal space that permit local bands and beginners use of their facilities too, because this is how they help cultivate their own industry and give back to the community.
OK, a card access entry on the front door, and a magnetic strip to let you in is NO security. Why? because any card in your wallet has a magnetic strip and can open the door just like at the ATM door. Next, the proximity card reader is NO security. Why? because the proximity card can be handed off to anybody, letting Joe Shmo come in after his buddy from another band gave him the card, told him how to come in and rip you off. OK, surveillance cameras are useless, because they are only as good as whose watching them, and they don't prevent anything from happening. If your gear is gone, it's gone man camera's or no camera's. Read our horror stories in the horror story entry, because everywhere we had stuff missing, there was supposedly cameras and no one knows anything! An alarm is NO security. Why? because it's only as good as the person answering it. Do you really think the cops are going to be the one answering an alarm in these places? Good I give you credit for that. When an alarm does go off, it's the same old story, we know nothing. How about a real person? NO NO NO, because if the real person is Joe the musician hanging out in the office, or Harry the wannabee musician owner, or Jack the absentee property owner, they could care less about whose coming, going, or walking out the door with your stuff OK! Well then how about all this stuff combined?, you're getting warmer, but the real answer is NOT electronics and cameras as you just found out, but it is management. Your tip of the day here is, to find a place that is extremely tightly managed, that won't put up with the goings on described by our experiences on this blog, and not by some fledgling musician, a self storage place, or someone with empty building space.
The music industry is connected with tightly managed rehearsal space, and they put their experienced people in place to operate them. You want to find a place that has the management skills in place, and understands the entire music industry, so your needs are met professionally and without incident. They are hard to find, but they usually stand out because they have been around awhile. There is music industry rehearsal space that permit local bands and beginners use of their facilities too, because this is how they help cultivate their own industry and give back to the community.
Rehearsal Space - Where Should We Look
This post has to do with location more than it does with finding a particular rehearsal space.
If you are like us, you have or will go through band membership changes. To find quality players, they won't all be living next door, in the same city, county, or state. Depending on where you live in the country, your music center might be spread out over a wide area. For us when we were in Boston, MA, we quickly discovered not all experienced musician's were living in Boston, or for that matter even wanted to drive into the city just due to the traffic, congestion, and time it takes to get around in the city. In our area, we have had members coming from outside of Boston and all the cities north, west, and south as well as the next states over which has been New Hampshire and Connecticut. We have had great luck finding the right players for our band, and making sure that the skill level and fit has been right. We would not have been able to do this, if we had only our immediate backyard to choose from.
We had been unfair just to figure out what really was fair! OK, is it fair to ask the guy who lives in Worcester to drive 50 miles to Boston for rehearsal 4 times a week? Is it fair to ask the guy living in Boston to drive the 60 miles to New Hampshire 4 times a week? Is it fair to ask the guy living in New Hampshire to drive 60 miles to Boston to rehearse 4 times a week? That's right, the answer is NO NO NO and NO. By finding a rehearsal space that is equal drive time and central for everyone, that is fair, and this is why we are playing it fair these days. If you can't find a rehearsal space located so that it is fair for everyone, then at least make it fair for the most people, so that you don't have 3 guys only driving 5 minutes, while the other guy drives 40 minutes.
Now what about if everyone is living in the city, and the selection of rehearsal space sucks? Simple, you all jump in the van, throw on the tunes, and commute to your quality rehearsal space out of the city, presuming there is one.
And whatever you do, make sure the rehearsal space is immediately adjacent to a major highway. You don't want to make your commute more difficult by having to zig zag down backroads in a sketchy part of town. This is why everyone is fed up with commuting into Boston.
Tip of the day - if you really are sick and tired of what we have endured, the squalid conditions included, don't be afraid to spread out and make the additional drive to find something that is better, we have.
If you are like us, you have or will go through band membership changes. To find quality players, they won't all be living next door, in the same city, county, or state. Depending on where you live in the country, your music center might be spread out over a wide area. For us when we were in Boston, MA, we quickly discovered not all experienced musician's were living in Boston, or for that matter even wanted to drive into the city just due to the traffic, congestion, and time it takes to get around in the city. In our area, we have had members coming from outside of Boston and all the cities north, west, and south as well as the next states over which has been New Hampshire and Connecticut. We have had great luck finding the right players for our band, and making sure that the skill level and fit has been right. We would not have been able to do this, if we had only our immediate backyard to choose from.
We had been unfair just to figure out what really was fair! OK, is it fair to ask the guy who lives in Worcester to drive 50 miles to Boston for rehearsal 4 times a week? Is it fair to ask the guy living in Boston to drive the 60 miles to New Hampshire 4 times a week? Is it fair to ask the guy living in New Hampshire to drive 60 miles to Boston to rehearse 4 times a week? That's right, the answer is NO NO NO and NO. By finding a rehearsal space that is equal drive time and central for everyone, that is fair, and this is why we are playing it fair these days. If you can't find a rehearsal space located so that it is fair for everyone, then at least make it fair for the most people, so that you don't have 3 guys only driving 5 minutes, while the other guy drives 40 minutes.
Now what about if everyone is living in the city, and the selection of rehearsal space sucks? Simple, you all jump in the van, throw on the tunes, and commute to your quality rehearsal space out of the city, presuming there is one.
And whatever you do, make sure the rehearsal space is immediately adjacent to a major highway. You don't want to make your commute more difficult by having to zig zag down backroads in a sketchy part of town. This is why everyone is fed up with commuting into Boston.
Tip of the day - if you really are sick and tired of what we have endured, the squalid conditions included, don't be afraid to spread out and make the additional drive to find something that is better, we have.
Rehearsal Space - Don't Believe Anything From The Review Sites
This post has to do with those so called review sites that are
useless, filled with lies and falsehoods good and bad and should never
be used when looking for this type of service and here's why:
First off, many of the fledgling rat trap dumps struggling to stay in business, will try to give the few good places a bad rap by posting fake and bad reviews in an effort to bolster their own place, and writing bogus good reviews about themselves. They do this by having their minions associated with their studio, write very negative lengthy almost seemingly real reviews about their competition even though its all fake and most of the people aren't real with fake names. In the rare event it happens to be a real person, they usually have been paid to write it. Many times they send in their spies masquerading as a band to find out how a rehearsal space is operated, illegally steal information, then spit it back out negatively to make it seem real. This behavior has been documented numerous times by reputable complexes, and now many are on the look out for these low lifes and scrutinize everyone carefully coming in the front door. Some of these spies that were exposed and the studios they represented have even been sued successfully. In some instances, former members of bands have even been paid to write bad reviews against competition for some quick drug money. They do this in bulk to make it seem as though many are of the same opinion. Yes it is a dirty dog eat dog business with no shame apparently, because those at the bottom of the heap offering a lousy quality jam space would like to topple the few good places at the top. While these jam space owners duke it out with their lies about each other, this becomes a disservice to anyone seeking rehearsal space, because now nobody can trust any of these reviews bad or good. Add to that, the fact that the review sites themselves are not very legitimate, by filtering out the onslaught of good and bad reviews into what they call "recommended reviews" and "not recommended reviews", the latter of which is usually a grayed out link to that section that is hard to find, geared so you don't attempt to read them. Documented is that negative and false reviews usually end up in the "recommended reviews" section so that the review site companies can force the businesses to buy paid advertising in an effort to get rid of their so called negative reviews, and positive reviews end up in the "not recommended reviews" section so you never get to see them either, unless you hunt for that grayed out hard to find link . . . and of course the whole things happens in reverse also, with any kind of review either being hidden or promoted by the review site companies for their own carefully manipulated reasons to obtain revenue from the businesses . . . very similar to organized crime tactics, and that is why the big company players in the review site game have been sued over and over again . . . None of it is honest, not the review site companies, not the false reviewers who makeup 99% of all the reviews appearing online.
Another way the review sites have been made useless, is because they have become a forum for rants from the disgruntled when they themselves usually were the cause of whatever happened to them. Almost always these disgruntled reviews are fabricated exaggerated fish tales and made up stories, and mostly never even happened the way it was written just because someone was spiteful, and they either got kicked out of a complex or left due to some mishap like these usual ways that had nothing to do with the jam space itself and we have seen it all:
1) They didn't pay the rent
2) They violated the rental contract
3) They trashed the building
4) They were conducting illegal activities on the property that could get the rehearsal space shutdown
5) They were overtly using the rental space for activities unrelated to music even trying to live there!
6) Their bad behavior was disrupting all the other people at the jam space (like pissing and passing out in the hallway)
7) They gave access to people that had no authority to be on the property (i.e. security of the building)
8) They wanted to hang homemade flammable sound proofing on walls (i.e. remember the station nightclub fire)
9) They complained about the sound (its a loud building with loud bands, not a recording studio for crying out loud)
The best way to size up a rehearsal space, is to go to the facility yourself and make your own decision, and not rely on any review or anyone else but yourself. There is a good reason for doing it this way. Everyone has a different vision and desire on what they seek in a rehearsal space, and this varies from band to band, musician to musician. One example is, if you are the kind of band that needs to drink a keg of beer at every rehearsal, party in the hallways, and want to have all of your groupies come to your rehearsal space for illicit activities not related to your music, then you might want one of the abandon warehouse arrangements or similar low class places, where anything goes including having your gear ripped off when you are not there, and/or until the city shuts it down of course.
Another example might be that you and your band are of a little more respectful nature, and you desire to have something real secure, so that you aren't the ones worrying whether your gear is going to get ripped off like in the previous example. Also you might just want to get down to some serious rehearsing, and might not want to be bothered with having to avoid all the bad behavior that comes along with the friends of friends of the derelicts that just wander into the building unsupervised for the sole mission to hangout, party, and rip off your gear. So I think you can see why anything that winds up on a review site about rehearsal studios can't be trusted, because aside from all the lies from the minions of the owners, you get a wide swath of those discrediting a place, just because it is well managed and really didn't fit the unrelated activities they wanted to do there, and certainly didn't meet their most unrealistic expectations of what a rehearsal space is.
It can't be stressed enough to only find a music industry operated facility run by the music industry itself in your area. Never use a review site to locate one, use a search engine that takes you directly to the rehearsal complexes own website or craigslist musician section. Stay away from the places run by unscrupulous private owners, and that have not been in business very long, because that is where all the problems usually lie.
The music industry is connected with tightly managed rehearsal space, and they put their experienced people in place to operate them. You want to find a place that has the management skills in place, and understands the entire music industry, so your needs are met professionally and without incident. They are hard to find, but they usually stand out because they have been around awhile. There is music industry rehearsal space that permit local bands and beginners use of their facilities too, because this is how they help cultivate their own industry and give back to the community.
First off, many of the fledgling rat trap dumps struggling to stay in business, will try to give the few good places a bad rap by posting fake and bad reviews in an effort to bolster their own place, and writing bogus good reviews about themselves. They do this by having their minions associated with their studio, write very negative lengthy almost seemingly real reviews about their competition even though its all fake and most of the people aren't real with fake names. In the rare event it happens to be a real person, they usually have been paid to write it. Many times they send in their spies masquerading as a band to find out how a rehearsal space is operated, illegally steal information, then spit it back out negatively to make it seem real. This behavior has been documented numerous times by reputable complexes, and now many are on the look out for these low lifes and scrutinize everyone carefully coming in the front door. Some of these spies that were exposed and the studios they represented have even been sued successfully. In some instances, former members of bands have even been paid to write bad reviews against competition for some quick drug money. They do this in bulk to make it seem as though many are of the same opinion. Yes it is a dirty dog eat dog business with no shame apparently, because those at the bottom of the heap offering a lousy quality jam space would like to topple the few good places at the top. While these jam space owners duke it out with their lies about each other, this becomes a disservice to anyone seeking rehearsal space, because now nobody can trust any of these reviews bad or good. Add to that, the fact that the review sites themselves are not very legitimate, by filtering out the onslaught of good and bad reviews into what they call "recommended reviews" and "not recommended reviews", the latter of which is usually a grayed out link to that section that is hard to find, geared so you don't attempt to read them. Documented is that negative and false reviews usually end up in the "recommended reviews" section so that the review site companies can force the businesses to buy paid advertising in an effort to get rid of their so called negative reviews, and positive reviews end up in the "not recommended reviews" section so you never get to see them either, unless you hunt for that grayed out hard to find link . . . and of course the whole things happens in reverse also, with any kind of review either being hidden or promoted by the review site companies for their own carefully manipulated reasons to obtain revenue from the businesses . . . very similar to organized crime tactics, and that is why the big company players in the review site game have been sued over and over again . . . None of it is honest, not the review site companies, not the false reviewers who makeup 99% of all the reviews appearing online.
Another way the review sites have been made useless, is because they have become a forum for rants from the disgruntled when they themselves usually were the cause of whatever happened to them. Almost always these disgruntled reviews are fabricated exaggerated fish tales and made up stories, and mostly never even happened the way it was written just because someone was spiteful, and they either got kicked out of a complex or left due to some mishap like these usual ways that had nothing to do with the jam space itself and we have seen it all:
1) They didn't pay the rent
2) They violated the rental contract
3) They trashed the building
4) They were conducting illegal activities on the property that could get the rehearsal space shutdown
5) They were overtly using the rental space for activities unrelated to music even trying to live there!
6) Their bad behavior was disrupting all the other people at the jam space (like pissing and passing out in the hallway)
7) They gave access to people that had no authority to be on the property (i.e. security of the building)
8) They wanted to hang homemade flammable sound proofing on walls (i.e. remember the station nightclub fire)
9) They complained about the sound (its a loud building with loud bands, not a recording studio for crying out loud)
The best way to size up a rehearsal space, is to go to the facility yourself and make your own decision, and not rely on any review or anyone else but yourself. There is a good reason for doing it this way. Everyone has a different vision and desire on what they seek in a rehearsal space, and this varies from band to band, musician to musician. One example is, if you are the kind of band that needs to drink a keg of beer at every rehearsal, party in the hallways, and want to have all of your groupies come to your rehearsal space for illicit activities not related to your music, then you might want one of the abandon warehouse arrangements or similar low class places, where anything goes including having your gear ripped off when you are not there, and/or until the city shuts it down of course.
Another example might be that you and your band are of a little more respectful nature, and you desire to have something real secure, so that you aren't the ones worrying whether your gear is going to get ripped off like in the previous example. Also you might just want to get down to some serious rehearsing, and might not want to be bothered with having to avoid all the bad behavior that comes along with the friends of friends of the derelicts that just wander into the building unsupervised for the sole mission to hangout, party, and rip off your gear. So I think you can see why anything that winds up on a review site about rehearsal studios can't be trusted, because aside from all the lies from the minions of the owners, you get a wide swath of those discrediting a place, just because it is well managed and really didn't fit the unrelated activities they wanted to do there, and certainly didn't meet their most unrealistic expectations of what a rehearsal space is.
It can't be stressed enough to only find a music industry operated facility run by the music industry itself in your area. Never use a review site to locate one, use a search engine that takes you directly to the rehearsal complexes own website or craigslist musician section. Stay away from the places run by unscrupulous private owners, and that have not been in business very long, because that is where all the problems usually lie.
The music industry is connected with tightly managed rehearsal space, and they put their experienced people in place to operate them. You want to find a place that has the management skills in place, and understands the entire music industry, so your needs are met professionally and without incident. They are hard to find, but they usually stand out because they have been around awhile. There is music industry rehearsal space that permit local bands and beginners use of their facilities too, because this is how they help cultivate their own industry and give back to the community.
Rehearsal Space - Know what it is, and is not
It is important to really know what rehearsal space is and is not, so
that you know what is offered out there in the rehearsal space world,
and so you won't have unrealistic expectations based on your bad
assumptions or misinformation.
1st: Rehearsal space and monthly rehearsal room rentals are not considered to be sound proofed like going to a recording studio. Consider this, that when a recording studio sound proofs probably their control room and perhaps their performance room and a drum booth, they have spent nearly a half million dollars in sound proofing to do this and isolate the sound strictly for recording purposes on just 3 measly rooms. Do you really think a rehearsal complex is going to dump a half a mil in to sound proofing a rehearsal room? Good, you get credit again for that. Rehearsal rooms are considered semi-sound proofed at best, and that is deliberate, because the purpose of most rehearsal complexes, is to provide you a place to play loud with full PA, amps, and gear as you would playing live, not recording. You cannot expect any rehearsal complex especially those large complexes with a large quantity of rooms to dump millions of dollars in to sound proofing all their rooms, especially when they are usually commanding very little in rent. Therefore do not have an unrealistic expectation that if your neighbor happened to be rehearsing the same night you were in an adjacent room, that you wouldn't hear them, because you would, that is why it is considered semi-sound proofed. However, the acoustic theory of cancellation says that when you start playing your own songs with your own amplification, that you will only hear what you are playing in your own room. The upside is that you probably won't have a neighbor rehearsing all of the same nights you do, so they won't be there all the time. Also, every band has a different schedule for rehearsing, and therefore may begin and end at a different time than you do. Many bands can record in a rehearsal complex, but this is usual best done on the 3rd shift when you have the whole complex to yourself, because most bands are done and clear out by 11 PM if they work day jobs. This is assuming you go to a music industry operated complex that provides you rehearsing throughout the graveyard shift.
2nd: You get what you pay for. Don't go expecting the Hilton if you are crying broke, and be grateful that a rehearsal complex even exists near you to go to, especially given all the horror stories and shutdowns that make getting into this kind of business more of a pain than its worth with very little return for any business owner. For example, if you are only going to be paying $300 bucks a month for a space, don't go thinking for that price that you are going to get much of anything. You probably won't get air conditioning even if they say you do, you won't get much for security, you will barely get a working bathroom, and the place probably won't be maintained or well kept . . . but at least you will have a place to play right . . . or you could pay $675 for the same size room somewhere else and at that price you just might get a few more things, but the point here is that the overhead cost in the way of electricity, insurance, taxes, and lease of commercial space is so expensive to operate a rehearsal complex, that there is very little room to give you much since you are crying broke and can only afford $300 bucks a month, and they know it. So consider it a win win situation when you can at least find a place on your budget that gives you a place to play irrespective of your unrealistic expectations of them. Again only genuine music industry operated rehearsal complexes are subsidized by the industry itself, and for that $300 bucks you are more than likely going to get a little more than the dirty abandon warehouse deal, but maybe not just the Hilton unless you are willing to spring for that $675 which 99% of the band market simply can't afford to do, therefore there is no market for offering you all the bells and whistles in the way of rehearsal space.
3rd: Managing a rehearsal complex has got to be one of the toughest and most difficult tasks going, and when you rent a rehearsal room long term, you better understand that there are certain rules and guidelines spelled out in a rental contract if there is one, that are there to protect and serve everyone in the building not just you. Meaning don't expect to charge in to a place as a renter and think you can do whatever you want however you want, because there is too much at risk for everyone. Usually there are just common sense safety guidelines, but at most music industry operated rehearsal complexes (meaning the reputable ones we refer to on this blog), it is not open house at the rehearsal complex. The things that a rehearsal complex has to be concerned about at every minute of operation are things like the security of everyone's equipment on site which cumulatively could be in the millions of dollars. The physical safety of every body that walks in the place regarding fire and safety regulations or an unwanted physical assault, staying compliant with state and local laws regarding alcohol, age limits, and illegal drugs are always a concern. Controlling the access to the building is an important way this is accomplished at most reputable places, but not true in the low class ones where nobody cares whose coming or going. I think you can see why no business owner wants to touch this kind of business with a ten foot pole because the liability is just too high of a risk to bother with, and why the ones that did, got burned financially, and eventually shutdown, prosecuted, and run out of town. But keep in mind why you are renting a space anyway, it is to have a place to play your music and be loud. So if you can understand what is at stake for the rehearsal complex owners, you will be in a better position to abide by the common sense rules, and still have a place to get your rehearsal on.
4th: Remember what was told you here regarding your unrealistic expectations, assumptions, and balancing cost verses a well managed facility and what they the rehearsal complex can provide on their own tightly managed budget. Because depending on where your music scene is located, most music industry operated complexes have already crunched the numbers and overhead costs, and have made decisions on providing the most they can, while keeping your rental costs down and whittled to the bone.
The music industry is connected with tightly managed rehearsal space, and they put their experienced people in place to operate them. You want to find a place that has the management skills in place, and understands the entire music industry, so your needs are met professionally and without incident. They are hard to find, but they usually stand out because they have been around awhile. There is music industry rehearsal space that permit local bands and beginners use of their facilities too, because this is how they help cultivate their own industry and give back to the community.
1st: Rehearsal space and monthly rehearsal room rentals are not considered to be sound proofed like going to a recording studio. Consider this, that when a recording studio sound proofs probably their control room and perhaps their performance room and a drum booth, they have spent nearly a half million dollars in sound proofing to do this and isolate the sound strictly for recording purposes on just 3 measly rooms. Do you really think a rehearsal complex is going to dump a half a mil in to sound proofing a rehearsal room? Good, you get credit again for that. Rehearsal rooms are considered semi-sound proofed at best, and that is deliberate, because the purpose of most rehearsal complexes, is to provide you a place to play loud with full PA, amps, and gear as you would playing live, not recording. You cannot expect any rehearsal complex especially those large complexes with a large quantity of rooms to dump millions of dollars in to sound proofing all their rooms, especially when they are usually commanding very little in rent. Therefore do not have an unrealistic expectation that if your neighbor happened to be rehearsing the same night you were in an adjacent room, that you wouldn't hear them, because you would, that is why it is considered semi-sound proofed. However, the acoustic theory of cancellation says that when you start playing your own songs with your own amplification, that you will only hear what you are playing in your own room. The upside is that you probably won't have a neighbor rehearsing all of the same nights you do, so they won't be there all the time. Also, every band has a different schedule for rehearsing, and therefore may begin and end at a different time than you do. Many bands can record in a rehearsal complex, but this is usual best done on the 3rd shift when you have the whole complex to yourself, because most bands are done and clear out by 11 PM if they work day jobs. This is assuming you go to a music industry operated complex that provides you rehearsing throughout the graveyard shift.
2nd: You get what you pay for. Don't go expecting the Hilton if you are crying broke, and be grateful that a rehearsal complex even exists near you to go to, especially given all the horror stories and shutdowns that make getting into this kind of business more of a pain than its worth with very little return for any business owner. For example, if you are only going to be paying $300 bucks a month for a space, don't go thinking for that price that you are going to get much of anything. You probably won't get air conditioning even if they say you do, you won't get much for security, you will barely get a working bathroom, and the place probably won't be maintained or well kept . . . but at least you will have a place to play right . . . or you could pay $675 for the same size room somewhere else and at that price you just might get a few more things, but the point here is that the overhead cost in the way of electricity, insurance, taxes, and lease of commercial space is so expensive to operate a rehearsal complex, that there is very little room to give you much since you are crying broke and can only afford $300 bucks a month, and they know it. So consider it a win win situation when you can at least find a place on your budget that gives you a place to play irrespective of your unrealistic expectations of them. Again only genuine music industry operated rehearsal complexes are subsidized by the industry itself, and for that $300 bucks you are more than likely going to get a little more than the dirty abandon warehouse deal, but maybe not just the Hilton unless you are willing to spring for that $675 which 99% of the band market simply can't afford to do, therefore there is no market for offering you all the bells and whistles in the way of rehearsal space.
3rd: Managing a rehearsal complex has got to be one of the toughest and most difficult tasks going, and when you rent a rehearsal room long term, you better understand that there are certain rules and guidelines spelled out in a rental contract if there is one, that are there to protect and serve everyone in the building not just you. Meaning don't expect to charge in to a place as a renter and think you can do whatever you want however you want, because there is too much at risk for everyone. Usually there are just common sense safety guidelines, but at most music industry operated rehearsal complexes (meaning the reputable ones we refer to on this blog), it is not open house at the rehearsal complex. The things that a rehearsal complex has to be concerned about at every minute of operation are things like the security of everyone's equipment on site which cumulatively could be in the millions of dollars. The physical safety of every body that walks in the place regarding fire and safety regulations or an unwanted physical assault, staying compliant with state and local laws regarding alcohol, age limits, and illegal drugs are always a concern. Controlling the access to the building is an important way this is accomplished at most reputable places, but not true in the low class ones where nobody cares whose coming or going. I think you can see why no business owner wants to touch this kind of business with a ten foot pole because the liability is just too high of a risk to bother with, and why the ones that did, got burned financially, and eventually shutdown, prosecuted, and run out of town. But keep in mind why you are renting a space anyway, it is to have a place to play your music and be loud. So if you can understand what is at stake for the rehearsal complex owners, you will be in a better position to abide by the common sense rules, and still have a place to get your rehearsal on.
4th: Remember what was told you here regarding your unrealistic expectations, assumptions, and balancing cost verses a well managed facility and what they the rehearsal complex can provide on their own tightly managed budget. Because depending on where your music scene is located, most music industry operated complexes have already crunched the numbers and overhead costs, and have made decisions on providing the most they can, while keeping your rental costs down and whittled to the bone.
The music industry is connected with tightly managed rehearsal space, and they put their experienced people in place to operate them. You want to find a place that has the management skills in place, and understands the entire music industry, so your needs are met professionally and without incident. They are hard to find, but they usually stand out because they have been around awhile. There is music industry rehearsal space that permit local bands and beginners use of their facilities too, because this is how they help cultivate their own industry and give back to the community.
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