Paik - The Orson Fader

  by Richard Mather

published: 9 / 3 / 2003

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Paik are a 3 piece instrumental  band, which first formed in 1997.  Paik’s artistic vision seems to be as much about mixing audio and visuals into live multimedia experiences as simply creating music.  'The Orson Fader' is their third album and is not for those looking for a quick fix of pop or easily assimilated melodies. Their sound is deceptively straightforward, yet immensely demanding.  I haven’t heard their first two albums, so I am taking 'The Orson Fader' simply as I find it. Paik take their inspiration for this album from their home town, Detroit. Uncomplicated melodies create challenging space-rock soundscapes, delivered repeatedly, driving home the uncompromising starkness of the world they explore.  A sometimes languid, often assaulting barrage of guitar, bass and drums is woven together with distortion and reverb.  They paint a canvas of sombre musical hues, of eerie, gritty and bleak impressions of human fragility and urban despair, which is to some degree balanced by moments of optimism and purity. Listening to 'The Orson Fader' the first time reminded me of the experience of listening to 'Kid A' for the first time, one of bewilderment and frustration. Then, as I did with 'Kid A', I gave it  time, letting it play itself into my mind and waiting before I drew my conclusions.  I haven’t come around to liking 'The Orson Fader' as I have 'Kid A', but then the comparison is a little unfair.  The 'Orson Fader' is brave and experimental but from a different genre to Kid A, although it's challenge and shock value is comparable. 'The Orson Fader' is not meant to be cosy and familiar. It is perhaps over-indulgent and is certainly not going to be to everyone’s taste. Upbeat is not a word I would use to describe this 62 minute barrage of sound. From the opening bars, 'The Orson Fader' exudes intensity and tension. 'Detroit' is, to me, a raw three minute evocation of an apocalyptic industrial city.  'Tall Winds', at eight minutes long, evokes a lone figure standing atop a skyscraper on a bleak, icy and stormy night.  'Purple', probably my preferred track, also begins starkly, weaving into a more uplifting tone after a couple of minutes, before reaching a raw and screeching conclusion and feeding straight into 'Black Car', a seven minute distorted assault, which eventually stabilises into a more sinister and unsettling rhythm. 'Low Battery Transmission' is three minutes of sparse, bleak, noise, before 'Ghost Ship' calms things down initially with the rise and fall of the swell of dark, murky waters.  'Star 80' then gives some lighter relief before ''Loops of Chrome', which is an eerie, whispering filler lasting just one minute twenty seconds.  The title track is another interesting eight minute marathon with a faster pace. After this there is 'Twilight Storms', which is a short, shimmering track that leads us to 'Killing Windmills', a further lengthy expanse of sound which starts softly and builds and builds as more distorted guitar is added.  A slow wind down to an anguished foghorn guitar climax then transmutes into the final track 'Red Currents', two minutes of unworldly and insectoid sounds that closes 'The Orson Fader 'with an uncertain vision of a harsh new world. In a live show environment, with multimedia lights and effects, Paik would almost certainly present you with an exhilarating, awe-inspiring and epic experience.  The Orson Fader is not intended for the masses, but if hardened space-rock and experimentation are your thing, then Paik merit exploration if you haven’t already found them.

Track Listing:-

1 detroit
2 tall winds
3 purple
4 black car
5 low battery transmission
6 ghost ship
7 star 80
8 loops for chrome
9 orson fader
10 twilight storms
11 killing windmills
12 red current

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