In Paris, Studio Sainte-Marthe, the lair of metal and extreme music

It's hard to imagine that just a stone's throw from the quiet Rue Sainte-Marthe and its small, tree-lined square in Paris's ^10th arrondissement, a flagship studio for metal and extreme music lurks. Behind a blue gate with no sign, Studio Sainte-Marthe goes almost unnoticed. Yet it's here that Lofofora, Hangman's Chair, Loudblast, ADX, Bukowski, Pogo Car Crash Control, and Johnny Mafia recorded their latest albums.

Francis Caste, the owner, welcomes us into his 300-square-meter lair, which resembles a modern bunker. The space is divided between the ground floor, reserved for production, and the basement, where two rehearsal rooms are rented to musicians. The forty-year-old, a tall, calm, and friendly man, is about to finish a fruitful day with the punk band Jetsex. In the small reception area, he takes a few beers from an unusual refrigerator shaped like a Marshall amp. "It's a bit of a cliché, but I finally gave in to the request," he confesses, amused.

We cross a corridor where a dozen legendary amps are stored (Marshall obviously, Orange, EVH 5150…) leading to the recording studio, where the Parisian band started working on their third album the day before. The room, a little narrow, is invaded by consoles and racks, cables, screens, preamps, effects pedals and guitars… All these buttons give it the air of an airplane cockpit whose tiny nooks and crannies and functions only Francis Caste would know.

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