"Daft Punk is playing at my house," James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem famously sang in 2005. Lo and behold, that house—or at least the home base for DFA Records, which Murphy co-founded in 2001—is now for sale. The townhouse at 225 West 13th Street appeared on the market this week asking $16 million. The listing, like the townhouse, is "intentionally plain," a descriptor attached to the offices by a 2010 profile of DFA Records by the New York Times. The listing describes it as a 1909 structure built for the New York Consolidated Card Company that has "over the years been a creative inspiration to film makers and musicians."
A deep dive on the property's public records shows no affiliation to the record label, but does turn back the name of H. Keith H. Brodie, a President Emeritus of Duke University whose name first appears on a deed for the townhouse in 1995. StreetEasy still lists Brodie as the townhouse's owner, although a 2005 deed lists an anonymous LLC as its owner. Prior to Brodie, the townhouse was home to American artist David Deutsch.
As the offices of DFA Records, which has signed acts including Hot Chip and Holy Ghost, the townhouse features a kitted-out basement recording studio with three live rooms. The garage floor has parking for three cars and a live/work space overlooking a patio. The top two floors give way to a proper living area with a full kitchen, additional production space (or a living room), and a bedroom. It's unclear where DFA is heading, but we hear the West Village is losing its edge.
- Listing: 225 West 13th Street [Elliman via Zillow]