#smart studios

DAVID STROUGHTER Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin

My first house was actually a short walk from the studio. And everyone who wasn’t part of the scene really did wonder if it was a crack house.

Cosmic Psychos “Blokes You Can Trust” 1991. Amphetamine Reptile Records, produced by Butch Vig, recorded at Smart Studios in Madison WI (where they apparently had a great time, thanking the Crystal Corner bar and Sprecher Beer in the liner notes). Blokes You Can Trust was the third LP from Australian punks Cosmic Psychos, though with recording and production by Butch Vig, fresh from Nirvana’s Nevermind, there is a distinct early 90′s grunge sound, albeit leaning more toward Motorhead metal and speed than the  dirge of many grunge contemporaries. The opening track “Back at School” is fast and wicked; released as a single its b-side is a cover of the riot grrrl classic “Shove” by L7. “Dead Roo,” the other single Cosmic Psychos released, is also great, detailing the hazards of driving on Australian highways. “I’m Up You’re Out” definitely leans in the slower, heavier grunge direction but “Loser” has a more classic, 3-chord Ramoneseque punk vibe and “Nightshift” is hyper-speed hardcore punk. “Hooray Fuck” is all metal guitar, deep beats and head-banging to the anthemic chorus (“Hooray Fuck!”). “Do It to Me” is hilarious, but “Never Grow Old” feels tired and cliched. “What” is fairly straight-up punk but the album concludes with “Elle” which is an acoustic growler, filled with laughs and audience/band whoops and hollers, like it’s closing time in an almost-cleared pub, the lights are on, the amps unplugged and the band is wasted but needs to play one more song. 

The fab documentary detailing the creation of Smart Studios, which was founded by Butch and Steve is now available on iTunes Highly recommended watch

Killdozer “Intellectuals Are the Shoeshine Boys of the Ruling Elite” 1984. Bone-Air Records. Recorded and produced by Butch Vig at Smart Studios in Madison, WI. (This copy a ‘89 reissue on Touch and Go Records) Brutal pre-grunge noise rock from the Midwest. Heavy on the bass, heavier on the droning guitar and drums, growls and grunts punctuating the vocals. Not ass-shaking nor slam-dancing (well, maybe the hyper-speed bridge on “Farmer Johnson”), not so much shoe-gazing, more like shoe-glaring. Solid Wisconsin references: Side A is “Side of Pork” and Side B is “Side of Beef,” while the song titles also mention Midwest living (the aforementioned “Farmer Johnson” plus “Man of Meat” and “Ed Gein” (that last one actually kinda bouncy, even a little catchy). My favorite track is the almost-funky “Dead Folks” but more for the music than the message. Killdozer became somewhat infamous for their cover songs on later releases; on this debut LP they record their version of John Fogerty’s “Run Through the Jungle,” theirs an excellent and menacing funeral dirge’d tempoed hallucination. 

Wisconsin is fast-paced 80′s punk with Dr. Demento-meets-Jay-Tiller (Tiller is from Wisconsin’s Couch Flambeau) level vocals, which is a bit off-putting, borderline ear-bleeding but it does make The Crucifucks unique. The musicianship is surprisingly competent, with lots of big rhythm and remarkable, almost prog-rock level hypnotic guitar riffs and solos (ie “Concession Stand”). There’s also some crazy experimentation, especially on the epic track “When the Top Comes Off” where all of the above-mentioned characteristics are present (and the screechy grating vocals are on overdrive). The tracks “Artificial Competition” and “The Savior” both have great grooves but for home-state solidarity, I’m going to say the title track “Wisconsin” is my favorite on the album though it’s probably the least-punk track on the LP with a rather delightful lilting jangly guitar that morphs into a great blues riff (but it still has Dart’s nails-on-chalkboard screech). 

“American Noise Vol. 2″ 2019. Dirtnap Records. Limited edition (500 copies). Comp soundtrack from The Smart Studios Story documentary (2016) that chronicled Butch Vig’s recording studio in Madison, WI. It still blows my mind that the punk/grunge/noise rock bands on this LP were recording basically down the street from where I lived in Madison - most of the recordings are from 1989-1992 - while at the University. These include Wisconsin bands like Die Kreuzen (“Gone Away” from Cement, Touch and Go Records, 1991) and Killdozer (“Lupus” from Twelve Point Buck, Touch and Go Records, 1989), Wisconsin-adjacent like The Cruckifucks from Michigan (“Wisconsin” from Wisconsin, Alternative Tentacles, 1987), Laughing Hyenas, also from Michigan (“Wild Heart” from Life of Crime, Touch and Go Records, 1990) and Urge Overkill from Chicago (“Faroutski” from Americruiser, Touch and Go Records, 1990). It blows my mind that TAD was in Madison recording “Jack” (from 8-Way Santa, Sub Pop Records, 1991), same with Australia’s Cosmic Psychos “Dead Roo” (from Blokes You Can Trust, Amphetamine Reptile, 1991). Those two tracks, especially Cosmic Psychos, are my favorites on the comp. Also included are old-school alt rockers Young Fresh Fellows (“Sittin’ on a Pitchfork” from Electric Bird Digest, Frontier Records, 1991) and a big-label inclusion (Columbia Records): Gumball (“Accelerator” from Super Tasty, 1992). Balancing out that is a track by The Singing Irishman (“Balloon Man”) which was self-released, not on any album with a vague 1980′s recording date and basically has no presence anywhere except for this record. It’s super-weird and you’ll have to get the album to hear it.