Music / improvised music
Review: Lifeline/John Bisset and Dan Johnson, the Cube – ‘Symbiotic three-way electronic combat’
It began before the music – as the audience slowly filled the Cube’s seats slowly evolving visuals played out on the cinema screen courtesy of Mr Hopkinson and Melanie Clifford.
Their ever-changing projected contribution would play out throughout the evening, reacting spontaneously to whatever the musicians would throw at them (and us).
Daniel Johnson on drums and John Bisset on double 8 lap steel guitar
It would prove to be a very big ‘whatever’ as the two improvisatory acts also explored their own interactive spontaneities.
Openers John Bisset and Dan Johnson took up their seats behind ‘double 8’ lap steel guitar and drumkit respectively, slowly and tentatively building a reflective mix of stroked strings and shushing cymbals.
Sudden crunching explosions broke that mood and a faster exchange of tones and ideas quickly evolved, driven by fast and sharp drumming patterns.
The multiple strings of the ‘double 8’ resemble an autoharp, permitting a multiplicity of tones and tunings and John’s repertoire of playing techniques was astounding.
Dobro swoops, drumstick taps, clattering fingers and the use of e-bow vibrators to create drones all appeared in various combinations to create an orchestral effect.
After the howls of multiple-droning ‘bagpipes’ he faded to a distant ghostly harp, balanced by minimal cymbals, then swept it aside with swerves and crashes as Dan’s drumming intensified remorselessly into a fast moving groove.
All of these changes were well picked up by the on-screen narrative, slow shifts switching to fractured kaleidoscopes, and the piece resolved into a satisfyingly climactic unity to end.
Lifeline: Pat Thomas, Tony Orrell, Dominic Lash
After the interval the stage had cleared, leaving two tables-full of wires’n’gizmos and a guitar amp.
Given Lifeline’s line-up of Pat Thomas, Tony Orrell and Dominic Lash you could be forgiven for expecting to see piano, drum kit and double bass – the instrumentation of their parallel project BleySchool – but Pat and Tony are equally respected as electronic artists while Dominic’s electric guitar work is a strong part of his musical repertoire.
Whatever (sic!), the trio took their seats in front of the flickering screen and launched for starters into what can only be described as block-rocking beats, albeit overlaid with squiggling electronics and scratchy feedback guitar.
Pat Thomas of BleySchool appeared in his electronic alter ego
What followed was a form of symbiotic three-way electronic combat cheerfully executed to maximum effect.
After a while the three roles became clear – Pat, seated in shadows, producing sonic flights of post-bop melodic fragments, Dominic across the stage thickening the sound field with a mix of roaring chords and riffing phrases while Tony, better lit with the projections flashing off his enormous chrome headphones, sat centrally, a Buddha-like silhouette delivering looping sequences.
The wall of sound was not unbroken however, with sudden stops that made you realise how, in this context, silence can be as much of a bludgeon as bedlam.
Tony Orrell delivered looped sequences as part of the trio’s electronica-powered set
There was a definite sonic logic to the shifting soundscapes of their first two pieces, each moving to a definite end-point.
So conclusive was the second finale, in fact, that the three seemed unsure as to whether they had finished the show. Happily the audience’s unanimous appeal for more led to a third outing which produced a kind of avant-funk reminiscent of 80s New York acts like James Chance and Glenn Branca before devolving into thunderous drumming and an unmistakeably final crescendo.
It was all clever stuff, classy and entertaining at the same time, and the shared grins onstage confirmed that the three musicians had had as much fun as their audience.
All images: Tony Benjamin
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