ModCaf: “Test Chamber”, an album review
It's not often I get the chance to review a new album before it's official launch, so I am very excited to be doing just that in the latest issue of Modulations
If you have been following me for awhile or best of all subscribed to this newsletter, you will know that I am a member of ModCaf and have attended many of their meet-ups in Aldershot since last year.
If not, let me briefly describe who they are, what they do.
MODCAF has been created to support an existing, growing community of musicians.
The Modular Café Aldershot provides the opportunity for like minded synthesizer enthusiasts to meet socially, to exchange ideas, practices, to collaborate, encourage and support one another on a regular basis.
Follow the link above, so that you can learn more about them, watch the videos there and find links to Soundcloud etc.
I remember hearing about the Test Chamber project in early 2020, when I attended an event at the West End centre for something unrelated. Amongst the people who were present that evening, were these two guys, Ian and Ben, who were there to promote ModCaf which they’d launched in 2018 out of the same venue.
I recall chatting to them and they briefly mentioned recording something in Farnborough’s old wind tunnels, the Test Chamber.
Then Covid happened, my family and I moved away in 2022 from Farnborough and I forgot about it all.
Until one day when I was browsing Instagram and there they were, the ModCaf guys in my feed with photos and videos of this incredible event that had just taken place I had missed it completely but then again had I? Did I miss out?
Not exactly.
Last year I decided to pop along to one of their meet-ups, a total stranger, I knew nobody there at all and I was naturally a bit nervous, what if these people were scary and weird?
It turned out I needn’t have worried and they were no weirder than I. It was on this first night, they presented one of the mastered recordings from the Test Chamber project and that a record was in the process of being pressed and a documentary film being edited.
Event: Listening Party, 3rd October
Since that first visit, I’ve got to know the people there a bit better and along the way mentioned this newsletter. There are a lot of ModCaffers on here now, which is great and hence Ben invited me to review the album (the main part of this issue) prior to a listening party.
Did I say listening party?
Oh yes indeedy! If you are UK based and within reach of Aldershot in Hampshire, then come along on the 3rd October where around 10 or so of the tracks from the record will be played on the excellent sound system that’s installed at The West End Centre. It’s a public event and you will get to meet the ModCaf regulars and of course myself.
The event is not being streamed online, it’s an in-person shindig. So it will be rather special. If you can’t make it, there will be other opportunities.
Setting the scene, the video
So before we go any further, set yourself some time, maybe save this article in Substack because this is the biggest thing I’ve written in years; please watch the following video, to learn more about ModCaf and the build-up to the Test Chamber event last summer.
Then the rest will make more sense with this background information.
Tracks
I apologise to Ben if these sections aren’t in order of the tracks and that is because I’ve been listening in the order of my review copy files that I downloaded thanks to the Bandcamp invite code. The album will be unlocked the day after the listening party where you’ll be able to buy on vinyl, cassette and various digital formats.
Here I have had a listen to and share my thoughts on ten of the tracks and the others I will write about in future issues, so that I can help continue promoting this brilliant album. So do check back to hear about those and we shall then share the Bandcamp links more fully at that point of time too.
The project is an absolute marvel, it really is and I’m not being biased because the ModCaffers are all a truly lovely bunch of people. I feel that this collection of works, all the individual talents of a mixture of people, whom come from different backgrounds, age groups and experience levels musically: Everyone shines on this album, personalities are expressed and it’s a radiant example of what is possible with relatively inexpensive equipment and the help of a group of recording professionals to facilitate a truly unique event such as Test Chamber.
Overall I would say, buy this album, my readies are very much ready for launch day!
Here is a taster…
Adrian Utley - Q121 Drone for dark days
Adrian may be a name you’ve come across before? If not, how about the band Portishead? Ring any bells? Adrian has been one of the band members over the years alongside Beth and Geoff, they formed in the early 90’s, which was an incredible time, I can remember it well, as I was very much into the Bristol scene at the time, the trip-hop phenomenon that emerged from the city has long placed it firmly on the music industry map. Bristol has often been regarded as the “Media City”.
His track is haunting, stirring and atmospheric. Adrian’s synth, meanders through the cavity of the chamber, garnished with the delicate minor key of the cellist who accompanied him for the recording.
If you watched the video above, you will have noted that during the preparation process for the recordings, great care and attention was paid to the acoustics of the venue allowing each artist the use of some specialist microphones and speakers through which they could explore these properties. It is interesting how in each of the recordings I noted, how all of artists tried different things.
Adrian spent a lot of time with the ModCaf crew in the setup for the event.
I asked Ben Champion, who is one of the founding members, whether they knew Adrian beforehand and as it turns out they didn’t. They decided it would be really good to get a celebrity artist involved, Adrian’s name came up, they made contact with him and he was very much up for it!
What a fantastic opportunity for the artists of ModCaf and helps add legitimacy to the project.
Akira Sileas - Study 13 Enigma
Akira’s track, I really enjoyed, it stood out and from the outset made me for some reason think of Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland, poetry and the otherworld. Their performance being broken down into magical chapters, each exploring a series of intriguing ideas, with an aura of mystery.
I would love to know what they used on the occasion, I am thinking Buchla, the modular synthesizer system that they demonstrated and did a walk-hrough of at a separate ModCaf event I attended. Something I love ModCaf for as all members share their passion and enthusiasm for their machines on a regular basis.
There are some lovely bell, chime and glassy sounds in this recording that rise and fall, during this delightful adventure.
In future issues we will be talking to individual artists from ModCaf to find out more about them and their memories of working on the TC project.
Ambit - Chambers
Oooh! A bit of Old Skool/House/Dance floor here and the recording is a great quality too, so credit goes to both Ambit and the sound engineers on the night. A strong four-to-the-floor beat with step sequenced and live synth tweaking at play and a live vocal lead on the top. It’s surely a floor filler this one. Love the hi-hats, one of my favourites instruments! Oh and the 303 bassline of course, great number this one.
So far the variety is very impressive on this album, I am writing these notes as I listen to each track, something of a 3 hour listening marathon but one that is highly enjoyable. I can see this record being a success with everyone. It will released shortly on vinyl, cassette and digital via the official shop, powered by Bandcamp.
Chambers makes great use of the ambience/reverb the venue offered and it must have been absolutely incredible to have been there. Each act was also accompanied by visuals, which would have turned the venue’s darkness into an incredible indoor lightshow.
Blackdown - chiaroscuro
The term “Chiaroscuro” means the treatment of light and shade in painting, especially strong contrasts of light and originated from the Rennaisance movement in the 1500’s. It can also be applied to other arts from photography to music.
Blackdown’s track starts with a rising and falling wind synth sound that morphs into a textured ambience and field recordings of birdsong, easing into a regular breathing rythym, calmly leading into a gorgeous piano performance that demonstrates a strong connection with film scores. I could imagine this piece being the final titles of an emotional motion picture. It’s beauty is tantalising to the listener.
I can see, or at least guess why Blackdown chose the title for the piece, as the contrasts, dance through the music, leading to a percussive reprise towards the end.
The album spans a multitude of genres and this is a great neo-classical piece.
I’d love to know if the artists when reading this in the future agree with my definitions of their tracks?! Maybe I should invite each one to a podcast episode after the album is released?
Crowd of Ghosts - Tunnel Vision
Introductions in music are always interesting, when you first listen and are then taken by surprise when the main part kicks in. Tunnel vision starts with some lovely ambiences, the build-up on what sounds like a live drumkit and then a resonant kick knocks on the door, intensifies, as if travelling down the tunnel towards you the listener. Then all of a sudden, boom, we are in progressive rock territory, with a delightful medley of instrumentation, that really reminds me of Mike Oldfield, especially the guitar parts. It is pure joy in my headphones.
The entire album was recorded using binaural equipment, so headphones are highly recommended.
Cyber N Powers - You fight, you lose
Techno makes an entrance on this track with a steady flow of complex, infectious rhythms, that weave in and out of each other and a strong melody that rides along with the beat. The vocal samples that are fun and witty. It’s a frenetic track and one that I will go back to again and again.
That is the thing with albums, you form favourites and the tracks you go back to versus those that don’t make a lasting impression. So far I’ve not come aross any of the latter
David James - Broken Swarm
Slowly building from quiet ambiance, this horn flavoured track gradually evolves in volume with rich chords and layered strings blooming into the void. It stirs images in my mind of the daylight or perhaps a swarm of bees emerging from their hive and flying into big blue yonder. It has a feeling of gradual evolution, with it’s lush layers. Is this an orchestra? It sounds a lot like one but of course, it isn’t, it’s a symphony of well crafted synth lines to create a beautiful whole. I really like this one.
Etive - Sweeps
Plucky strings open “Sweeps”, exploring the ambience of the venue, which you can actually download as a convolution reverb for your DAW, as you will have seen in the video. Let me know if ypu’d like a follow up with details on how to use that.
The orchestral sounds, continue to evolve with a lovely underlining cello-esque bass. I am guessing the intrumentation a little bit of course, as I don’t really know, it is just how it sounds and divine it is too. There are some beautiful woodwind sounds in this for sure, such as Oboe and Clarinet, as well as the leading Pizzacato syth that leads us along.
Oooh, then it intensifies. I did say that I chose to write this article in realtime whilst listening to the record, I thought it would be a novel way of doing it. There is so much to take in. What a project this is!
Let’s press on - I shall share the full details at the end for those who would like to attend the launch party or just purchase the album. Either way your support will be much appreciated, I am sure of that!
Ian-O - Fathers Day
A powerful track that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Gave me goosebumps pretty much, as its story remembers those who bravely defended our country in World War II - especially the pilots who flew Lancaster bombers. The track revolves around one man’s account of his experiences during the war, those who were captured, shot down in battle. Ian’s orchestration builds as the story unfolds. Such a good track and the first one of Ian’s I’ve heard as at many of the meet ups he is very busy being host!
That’s all we have time for in this issue and space to be honest, in order for this to fit in an email for sharing. Talking of sharing, please pass this on!
We will be returning to a mostly weekly publishing schedule from next week and will be reviewing more individual tracks from the album and this is something I will continue to do once the Bandcamp page has gone live and the track links can be embedded in our issues. So keep your eyes peeled.
The artists we will be coming back to are:
John Christian - His Majesty’s Balloon Factory
Marolaeth ft. Robert Rhoades - Stranded
Minor Joy - The Tunnel
RackAddicts - Deep Minds
SecretHuman - Orpheus
Seeker Systems - Cockpit Emergency
Alex Mousley - Echoes of my father
Seven Aphid
Simon Morton - Breaking Wind Tunnel Rules
Terpischores - Propellors
The Third - Siblings
Tim Higham - First contact
Volva - Plane Waves
You are here - Concrete Bunker
Graham Johnson - High Flight
Thanks for your support everyone and it’s exciting to be a growing publication!