Impossible Recording Machine
April 9, Smart Bar, Chicago
This electronic band is the first outside band to make Positron Records,
the label belonging to Lisa and Chris Randall (Sister MachineGun). This
performance is the first by this two man band....and as their name might
suggest they do not yet have any of their work recorded.
I didn't know what to expect of such an unknown group, on a night that was
thinly publicized outside the SMG newsgroup, but I was pleasantly surprised
by the pure creativity and originality that IMR so deftly displayed. While they
really have nothing in the realm of stage show, they more than make up for it
musically. Armed with an excellent live drummer, and another multi-talented guy
who runs keyboards, DAT, and anything else electronic, Impossible Recording
Machine weaves a soundscape that can hover anywhere between acid jazz,
ambient and techno. To say these guys are experimental is only scratching the surface.
Each song had more of one flavor than another...their was a distinct jazz feel
to many while others remained strictly more hard edged, and others were just
trippy. Several of them could be quite danceable, even with all the spontaeous
arrangement in rhythms. Vocals were indistinct....not really needing to be distinct
when the voice was just being used as another intricate layer in the whole map of
instrumentation. Clashes, purposeful misalignment of rhythms, dissonance and
complex melodic elements characterize this groups sound, and keep them interesting.
There were a few surprises as well....the keyboard guy suddenly whipped out a
saxophone from out of nowhere and started playing in the middle of the piece!
Blink, and you'll miss something...that's the attitude to have when you see IRM
perform. It's like you're eavesdropping on an intimate jam session. The two guys
feed off each others creativity, reacting to one another and not just playing what
was rehearsed. I probably heard things that will not get recorded and I may never
hear them again. But, that's the beauty of IRM's musical kaleidoscope - complex,
beautiful, and impermanent. It's great to see this kind of innovation.
Keep an eye out for these guys.