Stuff

The Muscle Shoals Sound

VICE recently travelled to the internationally acclaimed recording town of Muscle Shoals, AL, where host Ian Svenonius talked to some folks who helped establish its distinctive American R & B sound. American artists like Otis Redding & Bob Dylan found their groove in Muscle Shoals, while international groups like the Rolling Stones were drawn by the allure of the place and the music it created. We had a chance to sit down and talk to these legends about the history of FAME Studios, the factors that shaped the Muscle Shoals Sound, and the future of their recording industry in the digital age.

We toured the town with titans and upstarts alike to figure out what this place was and where it’s going. Whether you’re sitting in the same studio where Skynyrd and Al Green hammered out classics, or hanging on the front porch with Satan’s Youth Ministers, you can’t mistake the sound coming out of these swamps.