Photo: Murray Garrett/Getty Images
Los Angeles recording studios have produced many of the music industry’s biggest hits, but they are in decline due to real estate problems and rising costs.
Over the past few decades, the world of music recording has expanded exponentially: hit pop singles can now be recorded in bedrooms, entire orchestral film scores are now recorded instrument by instrument, and remote collaboration has often become mainstream.
But there’s still no substitute for a well-equipped, professionally staffed recording studio, and Los Angeles remains the mecca of the global recording industry.
Perhaps no studio is more inseparable from Los Angeles’ musical heritage than Capitol Studios, which is now ready to reopen after being closed for two years for earthquake renovations. Its basement echo chambers and flagship Studio A are as legendary as the countless records that have been recorded there.
“The Capitol is an amazing room,” says songwriter and producer Glen Ballard, who has worked in just about every famous LA studio over his career. “In Studio A, [Frank] “Sinatra records were recorded there, big band records, Nelson Riddle records,” he says. “You don’t have to do anything, just put a microphone in and you’re good to go. It’s the best room for me.”
Luckily, plenty of other great studios with equally storied histories located in the heart of Los Angeles are bustling in Capitol’s absence. Famously used as Michael Jackson’s home base in the 1980s, Westlake Studios continues to host sessions for the likes of Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” and SZA’s “SOS.” EastWest Studios remains the benchmark, with Olivia Rodrigo and Jon Batiste recording their latest Oscar-nominated work at the facility. Sound Factory (Doja Cat’s “Planet Her”), Conway Studios (Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department”), Henson Studios (The Rolling Stones’ “Hackney Diamonds”) and Record Plant animate Los Angeles’ famous industry hub, while Sunset Sound (whose Disney connections range from “Chim Chim Cher-ee” to “Let It Go”) remains a fully operational landmark.
For those looking to work a little further away from the hustle and bustle of Hollywood, North Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley continue to offer a wealth of studio and rehearsal spaces. North Hollywood’s Larrabee Studios has played host to a diverse array of releases in 2024, including Charli XCX’s “Brat” and Kamasi Washington’s “Fearless Movement.” Clear Lake Studios operates both its recently renovated main studio and boutique satellite facility, Fever, which in recent years has attracted clients such as the Pixies, Lil Wayne, and Gregg Adams. Van Nuys’ recently reopened Sound City, the subject of a Dave Grohl-directed documentary in 2013, remains a favorite with analog-minded folk, with recordings ranging from Phoebe Bridgers’ “The Punisher” to Bob Dylan’s “Rough and Rowdy Ways.”
Even the most legendary studios are constantly faced with the challenge of adapting to new technology; Dolby Atmos capabilities are just the latest must-have addition. For some, hosting live concerts is a rare opportunity to showcase their studio’s capabilities. Producer Bob Clearmountain’s Apogee Studios, for example, was the site of the KCRW Live series for many years. Built on the site of a ’20s-era Masonic Temple, The Village showcases the acoustics of its enormous main room with live performances, and last year hosted a star-studded tribute to Robbie Robertson of The Band.
But publicity is just one of the challenges facing Los Angeles’ sonic mecca. Historic studios are just as susceptible to pressures from the rising cost of living as smaller businesses. Last year, the famed United Recording Studios was forced to lay off half its staff, while new threats from developers to music industry landmarks seem to pop up almost every year. “There are still at least 10 truly world-class studios in Los Angeles,” Ballard says, “but there used to be hundreds.”
But for discerning producers, artists and audio enthusiasts, there’s no substitute for the proven, ever-adapting expertise and resources that LA’s recording infrastructure provides.
“The most important thing about working in a studio is that nothing is always the same,” says Clear Lake general manager Roit Feldman, a longtime studio manager at Atlantic Records. “One day someone might call me and say, ‘Do you have an engineer who knows this Sony microphone and how to record vocals?’ And the next day, someone might want to record a 30-piece choir. Every call changes things.”