If you’ve ever been touched by the music of Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, L7, Death Cab For Cutie, you’ve been touched by the music created at Smart Studios, the legendary recording facility in Madison, Wisconsin founded by Butch Vig and Steve Marker in 1983. Drawing on in-depth-interviews with musicians and producers, never-before-seen archival footage and a powerful soundtrack, The Smart Studios Story is the pivotal Midwest link to the global rise of Alternative Rock in the 1990’s and the unassuming recording studio at its center. The post-70’s explosion of independent music in America has many traceable roots, each with a compelling story - this is one of the most significant and has never been told until now.