Andy Bramhall faced some remarkable challenges completing his new studio facility in the Cheshire town of Runcorn, in England.
Having worked on his “Analogue Baby’ for four years, he can now confidently say it’s ready to greet the world. Bramhall, the founder and owner of a prominent English haulage firm, Bramhall Commercials, has always been passionate about music, playing a guitar professionally and experimenting with loop and sampling technology. His first studio was created in the late 1990s, which was primarily used by his own band and it was only recently that he decided to turn it into a commercial facility.
When the long term project manager departed, Bramhall was left with a challenge of trying to shape his studio, which he feels is a unique studio outside of the M25 motorway. “The specification we have here, based around AMS Neve 88RS, means that for mixing, in particular, I think we have no competition outside London’ says Bramhall.
The current drift-away from using commercial studios for rock bands means Bramhall has limited hopes for that demographic. He is hopeful of being able to attract orchestral overdubbing sessions for film or gaming projects, or nailing a mix on a cool new rock record.
Analogue Baby falls within handy catchment area for several internationally respected ensembles, including Liverpool Philharmonic and the Manchester based Halle Ochestra. Geoff Foster, a celebrated and mix engineer, is one of his first clients to make use of a 500-square-foot daylight lit control room, which includes a 60 channel AMS Neve 88RS with SP2 scoring panel, stem maker and 5.1 ATC main monitoring system.
Bramhall is delighted to have finally finished a studio that he believes will bring something fresh to the studio scene in north England. “We have a great team of engineers from LIPA (Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts) that we can call on, and we are looking forward to getting started,’ he says.
Bramhall add: “There is now a real alternative to the big London mix rooms in the area, Analogue Baby is a no compromise studio featuring a world class mix space littered with some of the finest equipment made.’
