Horror rarely stays at one intensity.
A scene can begin with something barely perceptible - a feeling that something is wrong - and gradually become much more physical. But moving with that escalation often means jumping between different sounds, articulations or instruments.
We wanted to make one instrument that could follow that movement without forcing the composer into a completely different sound world along the way.
That became the starting point for SEVER.
Rather than recording a collection of isolated one-shots and extended techniques, we worked with Berlin-based bassist and improviser James Banner on long-form double-bass improvisations at two different levels of intensity.
We used recognisable horror-film moments and visual references as shared starting points. James could stay with an idea for longer - allowing techniques to change, collide and develop naturally within the same performance.
That gave us two connected sides of the same sound world:
UNEASE for disquiet, anticipation and restrained tension.
RUPTURE for panic, pursuit, force and more visceral moments.
The next challenge was turning those performances into an instrument without flattening what made them interesting in the first place.
We cut, recombined and shaped material from within the improvisations so it could be played from the keyboard, while preserving the shifts, instability and movement that happened during the original performances.
The result is an instrument that can move from subtle unease to full rupture while still feeling like it belongs to the same musical world.
Improvised Tension. Made Playable.
SEVER out on: 20 October.
Preview SEVER here →
