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Local Guides
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INSIDEAMIND
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by
Shain Shapiro
May 29 - June 4, 2008 |
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INSIDEAMIND
Saturday, May 31st
PEPPER JACK CAFE
38 King William
905.525.6666
In just one generation, turntables have turned from music players
to musical instruments, as a new wave of electronic musicians
have found sound buried beneath the folds of needles once
utilized specifically to play back music, rather than create new
music. When mixed with digital technologies, Pro Tools or a
Garageband setup and some ingenuity, turntables can create new,
unique sounds and ways to approach creating music. Take
Toronto’s iNSiDEaMiND, for example. Made up of hometown boys
Cheldon Patterson and Erik Laar, iNSiDEaMiND create original
music with two turntables, mangling samples to the point where
new sounds emerge from old recordings while mixing them with
electronic blips, bleeps, rhythms and ideas. The creation presents
challenging electronic ideas, but beneath all this cutting and
pasting is a rewarding, inventive listen. “We always try to find new
ways to express ourselves with the music we make and share,”
explains Patterson through a series of emails. “This includes
looking at the turntable from as many angles as possible. The
artists that we tend to collaborate with are also in that mind
frame. We intend to keep doing this ‘cause art always should be
growing, changing, and evolving. Otherwise things just stay the
same and we don’t want that.”
This year will see iNSiDEaMiND ready their debut full–length
album, entitled Scatterpopia. Recorded as a series of trial and
error turntable–based exercises, the record combines a weighty
slew of ideas bursting through the seams of reinventing samples,
drum pokes and soft, intricate melodic statements. It’s not the
easiest listen, as pop is brutalized with hip hop, electronic and
post–rock influences, but each track reveals unfettered creativity,
a sense of adventure and an eye-opener on how versatile
turntables are when reworked with care. “We have a pretty loose
approach to making music, as most of our best pieces derive from
accidents and mistakes,” admits Patterson. “But that is where the
light turns on usually with us. Our focus on Scatterpopia was to
keep the majority of the sounds exclusive to the turntable,
essentially to shy away from traditional sampling methods. We
use the turntable and vinyl to create our own melodies, making
the original sound source completely unrecognizable. For
example, we took one note and scratched it live into five different
pieces varying in tone and length. The original is completely
different, something new now.”
Scatterpopia will see release later this year, so until then the
duo has readied a single/12–inch release, combining two songs
off the record with a series of remixes by Circle Research and
Murr. The centerpiece of the 12–inch is “The Tiniest Spy”, a
wrangling beast of a song complemented by the intricate thumb–
pianist work of Laura Barrett. In its core, it is a simple pop song,
but one derived from a complete reworking of what pop music is
supposed to represent. It’s exciting, darkly catchy and eccentric,
providing a concise introduction to iNSiDEaMiND. “Laura Barrett is
incredibly imaginative and has a distinct character that we feel
always comes across in her music,” asserts Patterson. “Our
approach to sound is a little bit open, meaning we tend towards
sounds that promote a feeling of freedom, ones that sometimes
dance around perfect pitches tones and rhythms. Laura’s
engagement with music and imagination is similarly quirky, so it
fit the single perfectly.”
“Plus, our focus was placed on the turntable as the main
source for sound. Just to clarify, we’re not necessarily talking
about sampling sounds only from vinyl. Instead we also focused
on exploring the turntable in its entirety, seeking out new
sounds. Drums were especially important to us. We stayed away
from typical kick snare patterns and samples, as on “The Tiniest
Spy” you’ll hear snares created from clicks and pops, sounds
inherent to the turntable.”
The duo celebrated the release with a sold out show at The
Boat in Toronto, and will be touring the single consistently
throughout the spring, hitting Hamilton with local favourites LAL,
a collective also sporting a new release. Live, the duo mash it up
even more, relying on patient sampling techniques to get the
most out of their sounds. It comes off with a sense of urgency,
but only by understanding that urgency only works when properly
planned out from the onset. “Our sound is always changing,
growing and evolving, and we understand and embrace that,”
adds Patterson. “We also, however, feel that we have our own
sound, regardless of the style of a particular song. That will
definitely be translated live, as generally we start with a theme
and/or feeling and flow, passing the pieces back and forth and
watching them grow. It usually takes a few exchanges between
the two of us before we have something full that we feel is
iNSiDEaMiND. Sometimes it starts with a conversation, other
times it’s something that we come across while in session, other
times one of us has a strong idea that just gets better with the
support of each other. There’s always something that one of us
sees when the other doesn’t. And that is what keeps it all
exciting.” iNSiDEaMiND’s limited 12–inch is out now.
Scatterpopia will hit the shelves sometime in the fall. V
[SHAIN SHAPIRO]
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