The Clarion

Issue date: 2/24/10 Section: News

Media Credit: Heidi Adams Despite their looming end date, the staff at Smart Studio is still hard at work. Beau Sorenson takes time out to listens to a song he was mixing on Feb. 20.

After 27 years of producing top quality music, Madison's award-winning recording studio, Smart Studios, is scheduled to close. According to Mike Zirkel, Manager/Engineer, the studio will be closed in March because of the slow pace of business resulting in inadequate income.

Zirkel said that a lot of changes in the recording industry over the years have contributed to this unfortunate situation. He said, "ten years ago, if you wanted to listen to music, you bought a CD. Now you simply downloaded the music from a Web site or copy it from another person, who probably copied it from another person. The sharing of music is now very popular."

Another reason for the closure of the studio is that many people now record their music at home. "The young producers have been building studios in their own homes and are not planning to come here. Many people record their music at home. We weren't getting enough artists to come here and record, and that is why we are closing,'' said Zirkel.

The manager also disclosed that there is interest in purchasing the business and interested parties have approached the owners of the studio. He noted, however, that negotiations are still ongoing. "Nothing is concluded yet," he explained. But the question remains, why would someone want to buy a distressed music studio? Zirkel said ''it's fun to do what we do, we tried for many years to make it work, maybe someone else can make it work."

At the peak of its success, Smart Studios produced several hit albums, including Nirvana's "Nevermind," which had multi-platinum sales of more than nine million copies and Garbage's "Garbage" and "Version 2.0" albums that sold more than one million copies, respectively. Other albums recorded at Smart Studios include "Plans" from Death Cab for Cutie and "Take This to Your Grave" by Fall Out Boy, each with certified sales of more than half a million copies.

The current situation in the studio is a far cry from the booming days of the late 80's and 90's when the place was a beehive of musical activity. There were a few people around with video cameras during the interview, but very little traffic in and out of the place. "Smart Studio," according to Zirkel, "was a good inspiration for local artists because it helped them to actualize their dreams."

Despite its imminent closure, Zirkel reassured artists that the studio would make sure that there are no contractual breaches. "We will give the music back to their owners as soon as we are ready. There are no contractual violations. They are free to take their business elsewhere."

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