Hitting the big time in a small town

By Steve Morse, Globe Staff, 12/27/2002

CHELMSFORD - From the outside of a warehouse in this small town north of Boston, no one would guess that a world-class producer works here. Yet, Anthony J. Resta is making things happen from this unusual hideaway known as Studio Bopnique Musique. He has worked with big-name acts such as Elton John, Collective Soul, and Duran Duran, while also applying his 'ungeneric' style to many Boston acts.

"The artists seem to find me more than I find them," Resta says proudly, while taking a visitor on a magical mystery tour of his equipment-stuffed studio, which he calls my "space-age bachelor pad."

Resta is a true artist's producer. "He's very spontaneous, and he sees the talent in everybody," says Andrea Surova, a local singer who's cutting an EP with Resta. "He's like a mad scientist," says singer Alex MacDougal. "He's got a lot of vintage equipment that probably only he knows how to work."

Indeed, Resta is a character. His studio tour takes us through a stunning assortment of instruments, both old and new. On the old side is a Freeman Symphonizer (which merges symphony and synthesizer sounds) and an ASK Synthi of the sort that Pink Floyd used on "Dark Side of the Moon." There's also a marine band radio, which he samples occasionally, a Farfisa organ, a Fender Rhodes, and a Moog synthesizer.

Then, on the modern side, is computerized Pro Tools recording equipment that ranks among the largest Pro Tools setups in New England. And Resta's engineers, Karyadi Sutedja and Matthew Girard, help him fashion just about any sound an artist might want.

"The mixture of old and new technology is the key to what we do," says Resta, who grew up in tiny Swift Current, Saskatchewan, in Canada ("My relatives are wheat farmers") before attending the Berklee College of Music in the '80s.

Resta, a short, blond-haired man with endless energy (the clock in the studio is always set at midnight so he won't have to worry about the long hours he is keeping), has been described as "part keyboard player, part computer nerd, DJ, engineer, guitar abuser, percussionist, vintage synthesizer fanatic, and composer."

He was more recently described by Tim Brennan of the Boston band Central Basement as "a genius," a label that elicits an embarrassed look from Resta. He produced Central Basement's new EP and was asked to talk about it during a record release party at the Rack last week. "They made me get onstage and talk, but I hate that," he says sheepishly. "I'm really a bit of a hermit. This business will do that to you."

Resta apprenticed at Boston studio Sound Design and Cambridge's Star Trax. He was always a gear-head and he bought an early model of the computerized Linn Drum, which helped launch his career. The Linn Drum was popularized by Don Henley on "The Boys of Summer" and Prince on "When Doves Cry." Recalls Resta: "I actually got to meet Prince once and we talked about the Linn Drum chip."

His entry into the big time came from Duran Duran, for whom he has worked on 30 songs. He also has produced two albums for hard-rockers Collective Soul and produced an Elton John/Collective Soul duet, "Perfect Day," in Atlanta. And he's also done remixes for the likes of Megadeth, Guster, and Blondie.

Resta is considering opening a second studio (in Nashville) but another of his goals is trying to break Boston bands into the industry. Toward that end, he's been working with such acts as the Mudhens, Chad LaMarsh, Annette Farrington, Rob Gonzalez, and Charlie Carrozzo.

"I just love working up here," says Resta, who spent part of his youth in Westford. "I want to draw people up from Boston and see what happens."

This story ran on page D14 of the Boston Globe on 12/27/2002. © Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company.