After turning 40, playing and seeing live music became a mission for twin brothers and Duxbury residents Eric and Andrew Herman.
“The other thing was, we could never find anywhere to practice,” Eric said. “Every time we needed to practice, I’d have to tell everyone in my house to leave for seven hours.”
“Yes, me and the kids had to leave the house for a few hours once per month,” added Eric’s wife, Bonnie with a laugh, noting they have three kids. “We needed to find them a space.”
That became the premise of founding Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke, which the twins – along with Bonnie – opened in 2018.
“That, and turning 40,” Eric quipped. “It got me thinking.”
Now, the Hermans are at the center of their own musical community.
Eric said some other people, including longtime friend David Zuckerman, helped invest in the establishment to get things started.
Bonnie took the reins on social media, the website and marketing for Soundcheck, along with taking on the responsibilities of her regular job as a search engine optimization director.
Eric and Andrew also have other jobs – Andrew is a certified financial planner and Eric owns his own online retail business called ShopFreely.com.
Soundcheck Studios is comprised of 10 state-of-the-art rooms, along with a stage for performances and open-mic nights. There is also a bar, and a large amount of space to spare in the back of the building. The building can accommodate up to 280 people, according to Eric.
“It started as something where we wanted a place to practice, but it turned into the idea of wanting to host live shows,” Andrew said, noting the facility opened in 2018 after acquiring a liquor license, with the first live show taking place last January. He explained when the place first opened, it only had four practice rooms.
Currently, all 10 rooms have been taken, according to Eric, adding there is a waiting list for practice space. He added there are also three art studios at Soundcheck that are also up for rent if anyone on the South Shore is interested.
Meanwhile, the brothers keep planning new live shows, which usually take place at Soundcheck every Friday and Saturday night.
“We are at least aiming to do one show per weekend,” Eric said.
And one Monday per month there is an open-mic held at the facility, hosted by Chris Ballerini and the South Shore Open Mic Tour.
“It’s been really successful,” Andrew said.
Eric added there are also some big events coming up, including Playing Dead – a Grateful Dead tribute band on May 11; the band, Bazookafoot with Soul Box on May 18; a songwriters workshop on May 22 and a showcase on June 15 featuring the band, Quadrafunk.
“The event on June 15 is going to be like a festival atmosphere,” Bonnie said. “There will be a food truck there as well.”
Musician Aldous Collins will be taking the stage at Soundcheck this weekend, with almost 200 tickets already sold for that show.
“Things have been super positive so far,” Eric said, adding at the moment only about half the building is being used.
“We have a lot of space to do a lot of things here,” Andrew said, noting one of the short-term goals is to figure out the best way to use all the extra room.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun moving forward,” Eric said. “We are all very happy with the way things are going.”
Soundcheck Studios is located at 150 Corporate Park Drive in Pembroke. You can contact the business at 781-499-5383 or by email at [email protected].
For band bookings, email [email protected].
Visit the Soundcheck Studios website at www.soundcheck-studios.com on Facebook at www.facebook.com/soundcheckstudiospembrokema or on Instagram at @soundcheck_studios.