The Premises Studios

The Premises Studios began in 1986 as a pair of drafty rehearsal rooms tucked behind a local minicab office on Hackney Road. Founders Dill Katz and Colin Dudman were jazz musicians who established the space specifically to provide a low-cost alternative to the expensive recording facilities that then dominated the London music scene. In those early years, the environment was notoriously rough, featuring paraffin heaters and the lingering scent of stale cigarette smoke, but it quickly became an essential hub for the city's emerging underground talent.