Swank (review)

When I (used throughout the review in place of "we") found out that Interface had released a compact disc on the Cycling74 label, I was excited to listen to their first official recording. I have seen the duo several times in concert and the experience has always been amazing. Watching two such fine musicians interact with each other, their instruments, and their computers is always a treat. Dan Trueman, a talented violinist, uses his R-Bow, a traditional violin bow outfitted with motion and pressure sensors, to control the shape and direction of the electronic processing with just a slight change of angle, a delicate touch, or a quick flick of the wrist. Sometimes he forgoes the acoustic violin entirely, controlling sound with bow sweeps in mid-air. Curtis Bahn is likewise an innovative performer—he has covered his five-string solid body bass in a variety of sensors, including a touch-sensitive mouse pad under the fingerboard. Other controllers include several slide sensors, force sensitive resistors, rotating potentiometers, and a biaxial accelerometer mounted on the bass so that he can easily reach them while playing. He uses the sensors without artifice; they have become part of his instrument and he performs with graceful skill. Watching Mr. Trueman and Mr. Bahn play together is witnessing live interactive music at its best. They are two masterful artists who have seamlessly extended their technique to integrate sensors, a variety of analog pickups, and extensive real-time computer processing into the act of improvisation.

There are numerous highlights on the CD (and a love-it or hate-it track-naming scheme). spogo opens ethereally, with long, whispery, skittish acoustic harmonics in the violin, pizzicato bass interjections, and clear electric insect sounds with reduced partials, ornamented by quickly decaying harp- and bell-like tones. The track grows in intensity and rhythmic interest, evolving in contrapuntal complexity but maintaining a haunting, evocative spirit. Judicious panning and placement on scrb creates a wonderful sense of space and depth, which really helps the listener interpret the sound-object interrelationships and textural development.

I thoroughly enjoyed the warped calliope sounds at the beginning of sedan, and this turned out to be my favorite track. It delivers eloquent moments of expanded tonal chords which flash and dissolve into a layer of aural mist. As time passes the chords begin to detune, while tremolo effects create another level of musical interest. At the coda, the portamenti extend and the tremolo increases, with an overall effect of gradual exhalation, producing a very subtle and natural denouement.

On sdoo Perry Cook brings his "DigitalDoo" (a tricked-out didgeridoo) to the party and the mood changes completely. One of the great things about Interface is its flexibility. The musicians each use a single (huge, painstakingly crafted) Max/ MSP patch as their primary instrument, yet they are able to use this same system to evoke many different atmospheres. They have created a truly supple musical environment with their solid-bodied viols, sensors, and computers. sdoo is a delightful nocturne replete with chirping insects, howling dogs, and croaking frogs. I could imagine a more daring new-age radio show programming it on the night shift. Over a strong beat, samples weave in and out with distorted abandon to a fevered crescendo, after which the jamboree ever-so-slowly runs out of steam. Here I can really picture Mr. Bahn using the slide control on the neck of his bass to lower the tempo by almost imperceptible increments, revealing the complexity behind the beat or perhaps adding more material as the pace gradually slows.

The title track seems to accurately capture the personality of Interface: it strikes me as an animated dialogue in a highly developed and expressive alien tongue. Nasal synthesizer tones converse with chattering low tones, then partially masked samples of real voices emerge, with occasionally comprehensible speech peeking through the curtain...