08-11-2017, 11:01 PM
A part of Canadian music history has literally gone into flames. Le Studio Morin-Heights has been burned down, presumably by criminals.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/l...-1.4243188
For those who didn't know, Le Studio was a recording facility located in Morin Heights, a small town in the Laurentians, Québec.
A lot of international musicians recorded there in the 70's and 80's, most notably Rush (every album from 1979-84 and 1989-93 including Moving Pictures, Permanent Waves and Signals), The Police/Sting, David Bowie, Cat Stevens, Kataklysm (the first 3 albums), Nazareth, April Wine, etc.
It was sold in the mid 90's, and while the employees kept it running for a time, it became unsustainable financially and was put for sale in 2003. Very few buyers were interested, so the studio equipment got sold individually, including the SSL4000B console (at the time the 2nd of its kind ever made in the world, the first was installed at Abbey Road).
After the studio got stripped down of its equipment, the building could be sold for much less. A group of promoters bought it and the plan was to make condos around the lake and convert the studio into a spa facility. I have heard they had the necessary permits to do it, but for some reason nothing was done for over 10 years. In recent years, the studio was auctioned due to unpaid taxes. As of 2015 Le Studio was still intact, albeit in very bad shape. There was a project to rebuild and revive the studio, either as a new recording facility or a music museum. Unfortunately, squatters trashed the place. And now this fire...
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/l...-1.4243188
For those who didn't know, Le Studio was a recording facility located in Morin Heights, a small town in the Laurentians, Québec.
A lot of international musicians recorded there in the 70's and 80's, most notably Rush (every album from 1979-84 and 1989-93 including Moving Pictures, Permanent Waves and Signals), The Police/Sting, David Bowie, Cat Stevens, Kataklysm (the first 3 albums), Nazareth, April Wine, etc.
It was sold in the mid 90's, and while the employees kept it running for a time, it became unsustainable financially and was put for sale in 2003. Very few buyers were interested, so the studio equipment got sold individually, including the SSL4000B console (at the time the 2nd of its kind ever made in the world, the first was installed at Abbey Road).
After the studio got stripped down of its equipment, the building could be sold for much less. A group of promoters bought it and the plan was to make condos around the lake and convert the studio into a spa facility. I have heard they had the necessary permits to do it, but for some reason nothing was done for over 10 years. In recent years, the studio was auctioned due to unpaid taxes. As of 2015 Le Studio was still intact, albeit in very bad shape. There was a project to rebuild and revive the studio, either as a new recording facility or a music museum. Unfortunately, squatters trashed the place. And now this fire...