Local band, SPQR, open Yellowbird Studio in Neston, Wirral
Members of SPQR are opening up the doors to their recording studio and offer artists the chance to record their music in the newly refurbished, Yellowbird Studio.
Based in Neston on the Wirral, Yellowbird Studio offers recording artists, at any level, the rare opportunity to work through a professional hybrid recording system at a competitive price point.
After launching their own label, Nuthin Gud Records, in late 2019 as a place to release their own music, both Connor and Pete are going one step further and opening up their studio to the public. The plan is to give back to the local area, and its musicians, what they feel like they have received through the years.
Music recorded in the studio has already been heard on BBC Radio One, BBC 6 Music, across playlists on Spotify, Amazon, Deezer and Apple Music, whilst a live session filmed and recorded in there was broadcast live to a festival in Vienna, Austria last summer (2020).
With accessibility and availability in mind, Yellowbird will offer a springboard that burgeoning songwriters, bands and producers can utilise in order to see their ideas fully realised and explored without budget pressures.
Yellowbird Studio has informally been active for several years now recording SPQR’s own material, including their long-anticipated debut album, as well as, artists from the past like The Ambition, and is currently recording artists from the Merseyside area who are yet to launch.
In the same fashion in which they do everything else, the studio was renovated entirely by both Connor & Pete themselves with the regular help of some of their most dedicated friends. This renovation took place in-between lockdowns, recording their album and starting sessions with other artists.
Over the last year, the Wirral has seen many studios once available to artists based in the area close due to the financial impact of the ongoing pandemic as well as other issues. Yellowbird Studio could be the solution to that problem by operating professionally within an area where the arts have been chronically underfunded for the last ten years.
Spearheaded by local magazine, Bido Lito, the Wirral is going through something of a creative re- birth. In the first instance it began with their weekend event, Future Yard Festival, and with their new venue, under the same name, it is clear that the hunger for such creative spaces hasn’t gone away. Whilst just recently Hoylake natives, The Coral, managed to secure a number 2 placement in the official charts with their album, Coral Island.
With the regeneration of the local area in mind, Peter added: “Over the last couple of years, with the astoundingly successful revival of the Wirral on the musical map (largely down to the unending hard work of the team at Future Yard), we knew that with our experiences and combined knowl- edge in the area of audio recording, songwriting and production that we could become an avenue in which to grow the foundations of this idea further.”
Now feels like the right time for such a space as Yellowbird Studio to offer the opportunity to artists to record their music and get in front of the wider music industry.
On opening the studio up to the public, Connor said: “Rehearsing there for many years and recording our debut album between lockdowns last year, we decided to spruce the place up and upgrade the recording system and ultimately open the doors to the public. The intention being to provide professional level recordings at a price point that is accessible to artists at any stage of their career. After starting our own musical journey in this very space, it has become a personal mission to help others realise their creative potential and develop and grow in the same way.”
The aim of Yellowbird Studio is to offer an outlet to musicians of all levels, both in their beginning stages and in their latter years. The hope is that it can become a hub for development of ideas no matter how young or how fleshed out they may already be.
Speaking about what it means to be able to go on the recording journey with other artists as a producer, Peter said: “I love music in all its many forms! I want to immerse myself in a world in which creativity is currency. I love the process, the thought that goes into songwriting, the emo- tions conveyed! It’s a dream come true to be working in a way that I can fully envelop myself in what I love to do.”
Yellowbird Studio is now available for bookings. Should you want to get in the studio to record your music, or speak to Peter & Connor about your ideas or what the studio can offer you as an artist, feel free to reach out via the email here: enquiries.yellowbirdstudio@
Photo Credit: Liam Powell
