September 2026 Newsletter
- The Premises Studios
- 2 hours ago
- 6 min read
WE REMEMBER THIS….
One day, soon after we’d moved into the new build where the studios are now, master drummer Billy Cobham was rehearsing in Studio One.
At the time Billy was arguably the world’s greatest and – going by his recent appearance at Ronnie Scott’s - still is. Even though he’d brought his own kit with him, he must have noticed that our own kits were less than pristine. “I have some bits of kit in storage if you could use them” he offered.
Naturally, I bit his hand off in the nicest possible way and the next day he turned up with a transit van and drove me across town to a lock up somewhere near West Norwood. Once there, he opened up a storage unit that was packed floor to ceiling with what looked like a thousand different drum kits. “Help yourself, man” he said. And so, with a fully loaded van and Billy at the wheel, wise-cracking about his life with the world’s elite bands (Miles Davis, Mahavishnu Orchestra et al) we drove back to the Premises.
I’ll be forever grateful to Bill for his generosity. Those kits helped keep us afloat until we could re-equip properly. And with impeccable timing, Billy Cobham is appearing at the Barbican on Nov 23rd! Go and be captivated. I was, still am. (Viv)
WE ALSO REMEMBER...
A slinky, jazzy rap by Louis VI, as part of the Selector radio sessions a few years ago. ‘Orange Skies’ has a strong climate change message here, in line with our solar powered Studio A heart. Check it out here.
DRUM PRODIGY MAKES OUR DAY!
A most excellent rocking day was had by all who participated in a nascent Premises Metal Rocking explosion in the form a modest but mega talented 13-year-old drummer from Slovenia. He’s called Jernej Zorjan and he’s already composed four LPs, where high concept and a bit of prog meets heroic head banging.
He had a great lesson with Paul Winter-Hart and later went up into Studio A to record. When he wasn’t banging on things with skill, intensity and inventiveness, I grabbed him for a quick chat about, you know, normal 13-year-old stuff like writing sweeping, sprawling great metal operas, one song clocking in at 21 minutes.
Where did it all begin?
I was in MacDonald’s in Slovenia, maybe about six years old, and starting tapping on the table. It was just my vibe telling me to start drumming. My parents could see I had talent and rhythm and got me a drum kit.
Also, we used to go on long car trips and my dad would play lots of rock in the car, like Guns n Roses and AC DC, and later I got into other bands like Aerosmith and Black Crowes and was just blown away. It’s not that Slovenia doesn’t have its own music, which is more like folk and accordion, and though I give it respect it is not the music I want to play.
Were you the only kid in your school who was, you know, different?
We lived in a town call Majsperk and I wanted to know what it felt like to be in a band, so I made one with my friends, but they were eventually more interested in gaming and soccer, not as serious as I was about music.
So that finished and I started my first solo project called Soul of Error. I was also in a band called Goldie but we changed our name to Abuse. But my main band now is Vintage Bomb. So I like to have three projects on the go at any given time: my solo project, my main band and a side band. With Vintage Bomb the guitarist was looking for a drummer and I was looking for a guitarist so that was perfect. And he screams and sings like Axl Rose.
What did you work on with Paul?
Paul was great at bringing back to basics but I also like to work with weird time signatures so we worked on that as well. And in the studio I was working on something that is like the juicy centre of a three part project.
And what is your plan for World Metal Domination?
My dream is to have a job recording albums. With my current band I would like to see some success and outreach and it’s not about being famous but to inspire people and for them to like what they hear. I think that in art, nothing is wrong and everything in the band is as important as everything else, so rhythm is as important as melody.
JAZZ PIANO WEEK WITH NIKKI YEOH
28 years and counting… this, we have to say, was one of the best piano courses, in terms of pure personal and musical chemistry. All the students were enthusiastic, dedicated and worked hard at new (to them) concepts of playing the best jazz piano for recording. Nikki Yeoh’s ethos of “Never apologise, never explain, just get on with it” sat well with our 13 participants, who played together, dined together, and gave each other useful feedback.
Our sterling team of tutors and musicians, including Jonathan Gee, Andrea Vicari and Sara McGuinness, with drummer Miles Pillinger and bassist Dominic Howles, worked together with a seemingly natural synchronicity.
But see that is the THING! What appears and sounds effortless actually takes a ton of work, and it was great to see students still practising when school was officially out for the day. Jonathan Dixon, who recorded a sublime version of ‘Have You Met Miss Jones’ tells us what his main takeaway was: “For me personally, it was how to practice more effectively, think more about beginnings and endings. Comping, singing bebop lines rather than playing them, and generally coming on these courses is the way forwards.”
Returning student Eileen Chiverton adds, “Looking back, the day of rehearsal is what made the studio work. We were given explicit instructions on how to interact with the band, and that was worth staying in for. I’ve seen so many people stare down at the piano, and I try to keep my head up!”
Watch this space for upcoming Piano Courses.
BACK TO SCHOOL!
Time for new uniforms, books, pencil cases learning, BUT, half term is only six weeks from then and we will be running our usual half term Voice Jam activity with the singing sensation and choirmaster Clive Brown. Oct 26-29th.
If you have or know young ‘uns who love to sing and want to record a couple of popular songs in our studios, please register interest now. This activity is free, runs over four days and is for Secondary school students. For more info: michele@premiseseducation.org
WHO’S BEEN IN?
It’s not been a quiet month at Premises, and as per, our little shell likes were peeled to the rehearsal room doors of bands and acts that made us get on up… Amongst them were the divine Candi Staton, Lust Ritual, Savannah Ministry, Blackbyrds, Massive Daughter, East West Entertainments, Marc Almond, Back to the Mac, Melodees, Kaiser Chiefs, Eaves Wilder, Jay Wilcox, Miyah, Nadia Loren, Pain of Glass, Phoebe Edwards, Nia Smith, Chromatic Jones, Years Between, London Voice Academy, We Really Can’t Be Categorised, Unchained Night, Celebration Church, English Teacher, The Funkhausers, Sultans, Singing Bowie, Do It With Soul, Janet Devlin, Beginagain, The Paperback Beatles, Luke Black, Going to Granny’s, Ed Turner, Adult Woman, Vula Malinga, Norman D Loco, Theo Lees, Curse These Metal Hands, Girls on the Floor, Liz Chapman, James Ford, Oil and Whiskey, Fossils, Modern Oli, Kadeem Clarke, Fat Coyote, Rod Gold, Say Now, Hackney Roadsters, Simon Edwards, Tomorrow’s Warriors, Danny Silverstone, Tom Dagless, Anaiis, The Long Faces, Luca Murray, Fabiana Palladino, Jenny Smyth, House Gospel Choir, Live 45s, Art School Girlfriend, Neil MacColl, Constance Power, Issac Adams, Tanita Tikaram, Nebula Productions, Romaine Dixon, Dexys Midnight Runners, Airfric, Eve Simpson, Beth McCarthy, Gang of Youths, Dignity of Labour, Perhaps Contraption, and many others.
To celebrate 50 years of RATstands, we're giving away 50 fantastic prizes to musicians, ensembles, and music lovers around the world.
We're delighted to be joined by some brilliant partners including Premises Studios, who have donated a 5-hour recording session to the giveaway.
Want to be in with a chance of winning? Enter for free on the RATstands website
Giveaway closes 11:59pm BST, 18 October 2026.
Full terms and conditions apply.
WANTED! – DRUMMER FOR HACKNEY COMMUNITY ORCHESTRA
Desired commitment - as much as possible (cover occasionally available)
Meet Thursdays for full Orchestra rehearsal (drum parts in everything) at The Bridge Academy, Laburnum Street, London, E2 8BA 6pm for 6.30 start till 8pm
Performances twice a year in-house + frequent other “outside broadcasts”
Also required to join the HCO Jazz group (16 strong), playing in a Late session (8-9pm) at least twice a term and similarly performing at least twice a year
If interested contact Charlie Rice/Karen Beasley via info@hackneycommunityorchestra.com
AND FINALLY...
