Nate “Danja” Hills and Marcella Araica in Dream Asylum’s Control Room A
Photo: Cheryl Fleming Photography
Walters-Storyk Design Group announces that the company designed and completed a recording studio housed inside a nearly 4,000-square-footformer warehouse in South Florida for producers Nate “Danja” Hills and Marcella Araica, and their N.A.R.S. (New Age Rock Stars) label. Hills and Araica have worked with artists including Britney Spears, Madonna, Justin Timberlake, Mary J. Blige, and Jay-Z.
The complex includes a comfortable lounge/screening room and a solarium. Two oversized in-wall tropical fish tanks offer additional creative inspiration.
Dream Asylum’s 600-square-footlive room/iso booth is linked to two primary control rooms via below-floor wiring channels for connectivity throughout the complex. The 360-square-footControl A features custom-designed wooden wall-mounted equipment cabinets that bookend an oversized client couch, which is set on a raised platform beneath a dropped ceiling. A custom designed rear wall wooden resonator and a geometrical ceiling cloud distinguish the 269-square-footControl B.
Both control rooms are outfitted with SSL 9000 Series consoles and WSDG/Augspurger Monitor Systems. Dream Asylum provides room-within-room isolation and enables Hills and Araica to record live sessions from the control room while a second engineer/producer simultaneously mixes another project. A 192-square-footmixing/writing room with a “fan” inspired ceiling cloud was created for guest artists.
“We worked closely with Marcella to find the most appropriate site for the studio, and formal design work on Dream Asylum Studio began in 2011,” says WSDG Project Manager Romina Larregina. “She is extremely savvy about design and acoustical issues, and having knowledgeable clients who can articulate their design and technical goals is always a plus.”
“Danja and I have worked in many great studios, from Electric Lady to Jay–Z’s Roc The Mic,” Araica says. “I started out as an intern at The Hit Factory, and their Studio E Live Room was one of the best sounding rooms ever. John Storyk’s design and acoustical skills contributed to the success of all those rooms. When we decided to build our own studio we were committed to going with the best. I called John to bring WSDG on board. They worked with us on every level, and we love what they’ve done for Dream Asylum. It was a great collaboration. We are extremely proud to have a studio that looks and sounds this great.”
For more information, go to wsdg.com and narsrecords.com.
