Innovation: Laurel Road Studios

In this series, we’re talking to innovators who are doing things a bit differently. Whether in their personal lives or through creative ventures, each of them brings a fresh perspective to what they do.

We spoke to Finn Gardner-Puschak and Oliver Katz who work at Laurel Road Studios in Manhattan. Laurel Road Studios, based in Chelsea, Manhattan, stands out amongst the crowd of studios for being community-oriented, reviving old music gear and technology, and creating an artist-led space for recording. The basement recording studio was initially set up in the '90s by Vincent Katz, a poet and musician heavily involved in the creative scene. In 2023, Finn and Oliver, amongst others, began updating the space by painting, sound-proofing, and updating gear all while keeping the charm of initial space.

“There's accepted vintage gear that’s seen as good, like a Rhodes piano. It's amazing, everyone loves it. But there's gear from the 90s, 80s and 70s that isn't so acceptable. I think what's really fun with us is we can mess around with all types of gear and still find our own sounds and use stuff that isn't widely accepted as ‘good’ vintage gear” (Finn Gardner-Puschak, Laurel Road Studio Engineer)

Innovation is central to Laurel Road Studios - both in their recording practices and their ethos. They innovate through new combinations of analog and digital recording, and embrace gear that might otherwise be perceived as outdated. In its ethos, Laurel Road Studios is by and for independent artists.

 They prioritize affordability in its pricing models and accessibility for artists, pushing against the hierarchical nature of many spaces within the music industry. Their innovation revolves not only around creative combinations of analog and digital recording processes, but also in an ethos that’s counter to big recording studio stands. Rather than seeing ample budget and equipment as innovative, Laurel Road Studios embraces restriction as a way to enhance creativity. 

As they look forward to growing, they hope to not just be a studio, but a community space for artists to come together and experiment with a variety of instruments, gear, and analog and digital recording processes. 

Words by Carolyn Fahrner, Videography and editing by Sophie Hatch