NEW STUDIO-Spot Studio in Lakewood
by Tim Wenger
The metro area has a brand new, state-of-the-art recording studio situation in a quiet mansion in Lakewood. The Spot Studios, 6006 W. Jewell Ave, is hidden just off Ward Lake, on property owned by the Samsonite family (check the label on your suitcase).
“I guess they were big partiers, because the house is set up for entertaining,” says owner/operator Glenn Sawyer. Sawyer and his partner, Rich Veltrop, have created a luxurious guest apartment that can easily sleep and accommodate an entire band (and even features an O2 station to help kick that post-recording hangover).
Veltrop has done work with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Rage Against the Machine, among a plethora of others, and Sawyer is no stranger to a studio either, having a B.A. in Music from Florida State University, and an A.A. in Recording Arts from Full Sail University. The two recently moved to Colorado from California, where they worked together in a studio for years, and chose to set up shop in Denver because of the vibrant music scene and community.
Acoustically, the house is a recording artist’s dream. The main room, dubbed “The Cathedral,” is an oversized, high vaulted ceiling, open room that Sawyer and Veltrop have discovered is amazing for recording drums. “We always say ‘epic drums, huge drums,’ but really it’s good for a lot of things,” says Veltrop. The room, and its adjacent which is still being worked on, are set up for easy isolation, making it ideal for guitarists and bassists as well. The amps can be placed downstairs, with the musician in the Cathedral room and the engineers running the boards and overseeing the operation from up above in the control room.
The control room is essentially a balcony above the rest of the studio. “It’s a little unorthodox,” says Sawyer. “Most places have a bunch of glass.”
Outside of the studio, The Spot features a zen garden, tennis courts, an outdoor entertainment area, and an overall relaxing feel that is ideal for a recording environment. Sawyer and Veltrop hope to host out-of-town bands, as well as locals in the studio, and the ability to stay on site overnight is included in any recording package. “We thought, if we can cut down on a lot of overhead by combining that we live in a place and work in a place, we can pass that on (to the artists),” says Sawyer. “We were looking for something half the size of this.”
Artists can check out The Spot Studios online at thespotstudios.com and can email glenn@thespotstudios.com or rich@thespotstudios.com to set up a tour or get more info on the place.
Category: Local News
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