Music Lab

This is one of the most comfortable and professional rehearsal spaces that I’ve been to. I always have a great time when I get here. Easy load in and out, and the rooms are always very clean and organized.

I’m not a musician but that doesn’t mean I don’t know a thing or two about the art of music. Growing up in this town for the past 57 years I’ve heard some really mushy and tin-​can sounding audio. This review is for Jennifer who sets up and runs the sound at Shady Grove. Several years ago the «sound» was not managed well (sorry whom ever you were) and here comes Jennifer. The voices can be clearly heard, the steel guitar is superb and the BALANCE of the music is perfect… as it should be. Her attention to detail can be measured by the way the crowd reacts to the musicians as they play. If one of the band drags out some piece of equipment she makes sure it’s addressed.
Jennifer, the band always thanks the sponsors, venue and the wait staff but they never thank YOU. Jennifer and Music Lab, THANK YOU!

Good prices, friendly and helpful staff. Go during the day if you can though! Very crowded at night and hard to park

I rehearsed for a few days here with an Austin-​based band. I’ve been in a bunch of rehearsal studios, and this was not my favorite.
It’s very boxy, has no vibe, and feels kind of grimy. The layout is a bit inconvenient for loading/​unloading, and there are only bathrooms at the front entrance, which is a bummer if you’re stuck up in the back corner of the second floor… The gear worked after some tweaking, but didn’t sound very good. There’s no lighting. Room insulation isn’t great.
The staff seemed nice.

Great place to play some loud music, without worrying about your neighbors.

Pros: Cheap, easy to get a space on short notice, and most of the rooms have a PA
Cons: Parking is difficult and it is a huge pain to load and unload your equipment.

Growing up in a large town with essentially nowhere for musicians to practice for a reasonable fee, I love Music Lab. True, it is not without it’s drawbacks. I’d bring my own mic, since you can’t possibly know where the one in the room has been. I’d also bring plenty of beer and once you find a room you like, ask for it over and over again since a few rooms are more dank then others.
That said, the price is between $ 10 and $ 25 per hour to practice. Unless you are playing with a 15 piece orchestra, the smaller rooms will more than handle your jazz trio or 5 piece rock band. Sometimes the rooms are cold, sometimes they’re a little too warm. But regardless of the climate, the Music Lab is a place you can turn your amps to 11 if you want and rock late in to the night.
As an added bonus, you can also rent rooms by the month, so you don’t have to load your gear in and out and you can make the space your own. Furthermore, there are usually interesting people and good musicians hanging around, eager to talk shop. There is a little music store where you can get strings and drumsticks in a pinch as well.
Highly recommended if your neighbors are sick of hearing you play the same set over and over again.

First of all, parking here sucks. Good luck finding a place to load your gear, too.
Upsides are that it isn’t so expensive that if there are 4 of you or more, it’s not going to put the hurt on. They also have a PA for you to use, so you don’t have to add that to the list of things your drummer will forget to bring. The rooms are usually good sized, plenty for a four or five piece band. Any more and you might be pushing it.
Downsides are you can hear the band next to you, and their drummer never can keep time. There are no clocks in the room so you can’t tell how much time your bass player is wasting talking about the new Death Cab for Cutie album. Also, even though they provide the PA, the mics are often beat up and scummy. You might want to bring your own.