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Pif Magazine
Pif Magazine |
Hypertext Killed the Video Star : Page 1, 2, 3 The Amon Tobin site itself is a "site" to behold. You'll need Macromedia's Flash plug-in, which already comes pre-installed in most browsers. The entire site looks like some sort futuristic database biography of Amon Tobin, British techno groover extraordinaire. It looks like the part in every sci-fi detective movie when Lieutenant Edwards "calls something up on the screen," invoking all these semi-transparent images and scrolling green text, and then The Chief says, "Wait, freeze that. Scroll back to Sector 12. There! There's our missing data." In other words, the site looks groovy. If you feel stuck, just start clicking on things. If that doesn't work, just wait. The data we are looking for is accessed by clicking the second tiny square to the right. As you mouse over the square, it cryptically labels itself "data2/Supermodifier." Supermodifier, the audio machine itself, is an elegant keyboard interface controlling sixteen audio loops. The loops begin downloading one at a time, so you can start tweaking the first of them while the others are on their way. Different keyboard letters trigger or de-activate the loops. Not all sixteen loops will play at the same time (depending on the power of your computer), but when the maximum number of simultaneous loops is exceeded, the least recent loop automatically drops out, so you don't have to bother with the details. Supermodifier is tricky because the software does not synch the loops up. The loops are not all running silently the entire time, merely waiting for us to trigger their volume. Instead, each loop runs independently of the other loops, and we are in total control of when they start. It seems like this would lead to chaos – and it can – but the trick is to figure out which letters trigger the drum loops and then hit all those letters simultaneously. The non-drum loops are rhythmical, but not critically so, so you can just add them "by feel." And some of the other loops are just plain ambient hums or rings, so it doesn't matter when you trigger them. I'm fond of the combination R-K-H-D (rhodes + saboteur_loop + anvil + rhino_fx), but of course you choose your own combinations and start times, and that's the point. The sixteen tracks include elements of funk, distortion, ambience, and even world music rhythms. If one combination grates, another will probably soothe. I revisit this machine frequently, because it's not just a single piece of music; it's a spectrum of musical possibilities. Each visit unfolds differently, depending on my mood at the time. As technologically advanced as this genre of "interactive/unfinished" music is, it paradoxically re-introduces the lost concept of live performance. Not everyone is a musician, but with the loops ready-made for you, you really do not have to be musical at all. Supermodifier is every wanna-be rave DJ's dream realized. You are "the man on the mike." You are the master at the helm. Who wouldn't want to sit there for hours tweaking this stuff? Well, maybe not hours, but... Moby's "Body Rock" mix machine at broadcast.com has a few more technological requirements than Supermodifier. It won't let me use Internet Explorer on my Mac, only Netscape (PC requirements probably vary). You need the "Beatnik" plug-in, and I think there are even a few extra proprietary Shockwave plug-ins to install. The good news is, the site analyzes your system, figures out what you need, and then talks you through the download process. It's a no-brainer; it just takes some time. Once you've downloaded your plug-ins, there are several remixes from which to choose, ranging from David Bowie's "Fame" to Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me With Science." But the grand daddy of them all is Moby's "Body Rock." Unlike Amon Tobin, the "Body Rock" loops are synched up. This means you have less control, but you are also less likely to make a noisy mess. The "Body Rock" interface has a left channel and a right channel. The same seven loops are available for each channel. Each loop has two variations. So there are really 14 discrete loops in all. In the middle of the board is a fader, and that's the cool part. You can get a bunch of loops playing in the left channel, push the fader hard left, and then set up your loops silently in the right channel. Then when you're ready to switch over, you throw the fader hard right and your new mix seamlessly kicks in. At this point, words fail to describe all the possible combinations that such a set-up allows. Add a special bounce button that pings your mix set-ups instantly from side to side, and you've got yourself one great big time sinkhole. Forget solitaire on your lunch break. Just remix Moby. If all this seems confusing, you can hear/view a demo constructed by Moby himself. As you watch the mix machine react to Moby's choices, you begin to see what's possible. To make things even more interesting, you can record your own remix, play it back, and email it to a friend so she can be blown away by your funky genius. How cool is that? If the song itself were lame, it might not be so cool. Fortunately, in addition to all the wacky interactive mayhem we're licensed to unleash, "Body Rock" is a massive techno-funk rocker. One of the rap loops says it best, "we rock the body, rock the body, come on, get down with me, gonna make you freak." Personally, I do not even touch the synth or piano loops. The funk bass, conga, and fuzz guitar alone are plenty mighty. Again, the live performance vibe is in full effect, particularly since each mix is being recorded. The first time I discovered this site, I must have done thirty takes before I got "the perfect mix." I was so proud of my creation. Of course, the fact that I created neither the audio loops nor the technology that allowed my mix hardly seemed to matter. The song was mine; mine I tell you! I was not a visitor, a surfer, a concert-goer, a fan, or a listener. I was a CREATOR!... or at least a co-creator. Such empowerment is heady stuff for a 30-minute lunch break. |
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