This weekend marks the end of one of Victoria’s best small and independent spaces, Al Smith Studio. You might know it as Vic42 or Studio CMCT from Rifflandia, but most importantly it was the home of YYJ Rocktographers for our first four showcases.
Al Smith and Teresa Lindsay have been good friends and big supporters of YYJ Rocktographers and the music scene in Victoria for a longtime. It was with their help we were able to make THIS a reality. Having them and their positivity behind us from day one has been a big part of our success. Without them, we don’t know where we’d be.
The studio has been our home, our pop-up studio, we’ve done interviews there . . . it’s where our dreams have become a reality.
When Al Smith first opened up the studio, it was to help him grow as a photographer and to achieve his dream of owning his own photography studio. Slowly, that grew into a art gallery, concert venue, fashion runway, and all-around great space for Victoria’s creatives to showcase their art. It’s the space that really fostered Vic42 and connected Al and Teresa to the community.
Without a doubt, the absence of the space is going to leave a hole in the music scene in the city. Weekends are usually filled with all ages hip-hop, DJ sets, and metal shows thrown by our friends at Luxury-ish Productions (who also got their start at Al Smith’s Studio). We think it’ll be most missed during Rifflandia as one of the only all-ages night venues. The programming at Studio CMCT (its Rifflandia name) was always top notch. Plus, those after hours parties and street spillovers when the power went out were legendary.
Rocktographers wishes best success to Al and Teresa the best in their future entrepreneurial endeavours, and we hope the continue to be active parts of the music and arts community here in Victoria.
You can catch the LAST CONCERT EVER at Al Smith Studio this Saturday February 27th, 2016 featuring No Liars, Stinging Belle, and Toy Maker. The show is free and subject to capacity. Make sure to bring earplugs because both bands are loud, fast, and sexy.