The Forgotten Hub of Midwest Alt Rock
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Just a mile and a half away, at 1254 East Washington Avenue, lies a piece of music history that we should all be aware of. Now mistaken as an abandoned brick warehouse next to the train tracks, Smart Studios was once the center of alternative music in the Midwest. Some of the most legendary grunge and underground rock albums were recorded and produced in this small unassuming bunker.
Smart Studios was founded in 1982 by UW-Madison alumni, Bryan David “Butch” Vig and Steve Marker. The duo met through film classes on campus here, initially working together to produce electronic soundtracks for low-budget movies. After some deliberation, they decided to create their own record label, Boat Records, from the studio they built in Marker’s basement. Meanwhile, Vig played drums for several garage rock bands throughout his early twenties, such as Eclipse, Spooner, First Person and most successful, Fire Town. When Atlantic Records picked up Fire Town for their second album, Vig learned how to professionally produce a record. After getting their groundings in the world of music production, Vig and Marker took a shot in the dark and purchased the grounds for an 8 track studio just past the Capitol.
At first, Smart Studios housed mostly local acts, such as The Other Kids and Appliances-SFB. Once word spread about Vig’s charming little studio, indie bands from near and far came looking for a place to record a quality record with the Midwest aesthetic. After hearing Killdozer’s 1989 album, the co-founder of Sub Pop records found a liking with Vig’s productional tendencies. Because of Vig’s personal drumming background, he tended to highlight the ruggedness of the kick and snare in a way that nobody else could. Sub Pop had just the band to fit this sound: Nirvana.
With the 30th anniversary of Nirvana’s Nevermind being celebrated a few weeks ago, it’s as exciting as ever that the foundation for this legendary album was created right here in Madison. On April 2nd 1990, Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic and Chad Channing arrived in Madison for a six day recording session. While in town, the band spent most of the day in the studio, but afterwards would wind down with some beers at The Friendly Tavern in East Madison. Nirvana recorded 8 tracks during their time at Smart Studios, with only the recording of “Polly” making it to the final cut of the album. At the end of the week, Nirvana played a small gig with fellow Sub Pop group, Tad, at Club Underground, charging a mere $5 cover. The next day, the band took a stroll down State Street, stopping at Ragstock and doing an interview for local station 89.9 WORT. Kurt is noted stating Nirvana was “going for the ‘Madison sound’ this time as opposed to ‘Seattle.”
Nirvana ultimately re-recorded most of the album with new drummer, Dave Grohl, out in Los Angeles with the help of the Smart Studios production team. With Butch Vig’s labor, Nirvana was fully transformed from the raw lo-fi features of the Bleach era, into a rugged yet melodic sound that would change rock history forever. After returning to the Midwest, Vig brought back a cassette of unreleased Nevermind to Willy Bear Tavern and blasted it through the speakers for the bar dwellers to hear. It’s truly mind boggling to think that some of the first people to ever listen to one of the most influential albums of all time were right here in Madison.
In Vig’s prime, he worked closely with The Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, L7, Green Day, Foo Fighters, Tad and Sonic Youth, all the while drumming for post-grunge band, Garbage. In 2012, New Music Express named Bryan David Vig as #9 in the Top 50 Greatest Producers Ever.
I had the chance to stop by Smart Studios recently and see the grounds where Kurt Cobain and Billy Corgan once roamed. However, I think it’s equally as thrilling to walk the footsteps of Butch Vig every single day right here on campus.
