It may not qualify as a musical empire, but Jason Hanley's Sound Proof Productions has become a Lake Worth epicenter for under-the-radar local music. The singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and sound engineer goes by his recording label name rather than his own when producing music by other artists. The Web site, and even his own live gigs, are also billed as Sound Proof. Ask the Detroit native why, and you get an answer that goes beyond humility. "It's very methodical, actually," Hanley says from work at the Java Juicebar (an extension of his other downtown Lake Worth job at the adjoining newsstand, Studio 205). "I'm doing business as Sound Proof Productions. It's the name I'm using to build the label, and a performance name to let people know to expect the kind of music I'm producing. The name itself goes back to childhood. My real name is Jason Durham, not Jason Hanley. My stepfather adopted me, and I had to adjust to the fact that I had no control over that. But my art is the music that I've created, and the sound is proof." Hanley records artists, at either his home studio or at remote locations, through his laptop computer, which he's equipped with ProTools recording technology. The two-dozen CDs available on the Web site are either by Sound Proof or a handful of other artists, from local flutist Jim Kovalcik to Moonhead, a Denver band Hanley befriended while touring. The label's latest release is Grasp of Your Attraction by the Onion Band, comprised of area singing guitarists Jack Heideier and Steve Rodgers and singing bassist Phil Mann. A compilation CD, Live at the MP3Cafe.com, ranges from overdubbed solo performances by multi-instrumentalists Jason White, Melissa Griffin and Paul Bobit to tracks by combined labelmates from different groups. Aside from the site's MP3 player, there's an MP3Cafe link that's actually a forum for political opinions; a couple of featured soundtrack projects, and partnerships to distribute other companies' CDs. Plus, there's plenty of music available for download; a calendar of Sound Proof performances, and a "Make a Donation" link that makes you wonder how often Hanley gets help in his musical crusade. "Never," he says with a laugh. "We've never gotten a donation. I've sold a few CDs on the site, but there are about 60 tunes people can download for free, so they don't even need to really buy them. But I sold a couple CDs today here at work. I have an MP3 player on my phone, so I can let customers sample songs that way." Hanley returns from a road date in Asheville, N.C., to play a Sound Proof co-headlining show with singer/songwriter Ric Pattison at 8 p.m. Aug. 30 at the Luna Star Cafe, 775 N.E. 125th St., North Miami. Phone: (305) 799-7123. Be the first-ever donor to www.soundproof productions.net, and he may even buy you a smoothie.

-Hanley is a musical freedom fighter.

-Bill Meredith