Music studio closes

The View’s former haunt shuts after two decades

A RECORDING studio that brought a host of Dundee bands to the fore — including chart-toppers The View — has shut up shop.

Robin Evans moved to The Old Schoolhouse in Forgandenny, just south of Perth, from London in 1991 with his now ex-wife Sam Brown.

The pair had both enjoyed successful music careers, with Robin working as an engineer and producer, and Sam singing and writing songs.

Robin, 53, told the Tele he had taken the decision to shut the Tpot studio in order to open a country retreat.

But he recalled the “amazing time” he spent working with bands such as The View.

He said: “Sam and I went up to the Doghouse in Dundee to check out a band of young upstarts called The View — it was a great gig, jumping and exciting.

“By the end of the evening, the wee scally Kyle Falconer was sitting on Sam’s lap trying to get a date. Next, he was on the roof of the car, yelling at us that we would be recording the band soon at Tpot – a month or so later, they came up to the studio and I recorded their first EP.

“It was the song Coming Down that really blew me away. Then the converse Face For The Radio, which now seems to be a classic among young buskers — hats off boys.

“I was thinking I had found the next Beatles with the passion and the harmonies these young guys were demonstrating.

“We started managing them and released the first EP, which garnered the attention of the 1965 label.

“The rest is history. It was an amazing time.”

Despite having enjoyed success in other areas, Robin and Sam set up their studio because, according to Robin, “we wanted to build our own studio to record our inspirations in, we wanted a house full of music and fabulous people”.

By the summer of 1995, the studio was up and running, and it would eventually host the Two Thumbs Music record label.

Dundee rockers The View pictured at the start of their career.