Restiform Bodies are the newest of Oakland’s infamous label Anitcon (home to Why? Dose One, Subtle, Themselves + more…) and it all began in New Hampshire. “I started free styling and deejaying to a wall in my room and then bought a sampler and disc recorder and that’s how it all started.” Says Passage, one of the 3 members of Restiform Bodies, whom I have had a chance to dialogue with… “We all grew up together… met around grade 9… got into trouble, took drugs, drank a lot in basements, ignored high school etc. Then we got really into hip hop.”
Currently the group is touring with label-mates Why? In time to promote their new album “TV Loves You Back” and they are stopping all along the west coast of Canada and the US and will be playing at Richard’s on Richards tonight (October 2) for their Vancouver BC show. The 3 began their music pursuit in 2000, “We jacked a swimming pool full of obvious loops, half free styled a demo and found a mega nerd neurology term from a medical text book, folded tape inlays and drove 16 hours to Cincinnati for Scribble jam… We hooked the anticon guys up with tapes and jacked like a gaggle of teenage girls.” It wasn’t until recently that Anticon put out said Restiform Bodies album. “Once we figured out what email was, and that the people we were listening to were a molecule away from the people Bomarr traded tapes with online, the Atak underground hip hop empire, all roads pointed toward anticon.”
After leaving the east coast in 2000 to explore the scene on the west coast, the 3 became nicely situated in the Oakland music scene. “Oakland is all about small venues… dual functioning gallery/venue spaces… Oakland based music, bands etc… I don’t know what to mention that isn’t pretty under-whelming with the exception of a handful of cool electronic acts like Eats Tapes, Bleachy Bleach, MNDR. Across the bridge there’s some more awesome shit going on, our favorite of course being Lazer Sword… Anon Day is another SF artist on our hit list.”
Restiform Bodies take an original spin on old school hip hop vocal dubs and heavily electronic beats that will really heat up a room. They are a tad obscure but have a very tasteful way of representing underground hip hop culture and making it more of a bastion than a trend. When listening to ‘TV Loves You Back’ it’s hard to assume who influences their sound, “In high school we listened to a lot of Joy Division, Bauhaus, Aphex Twin, Crass, Depeche Mode, Sub Humans, Brian Eno, Amon Tobin and tons of old acid house and electro.” Now they peer over to liking/ admiring Hot Chip, Lil Wayne, The Cool Kids, Magnetic Fields, LCD Soundsystem, and Jay Reatard. “That’s the stuff we love and respect, stuff we’d give up limbs to open for, remix… you know.”
Machines make it possible, since the grunt work (other than a slew of lyrics) is carefully compiling new sounds from ‘Ableton Live’ music software that allows you to multi-task instruments/ synths live to loop and sample.) After filing through gear and selling off cheapie samplers and drum machines for rent money it left them fixated with some real treasures. “Personally, I’ve settled on two really powerful Wavetable synthesizers, one being the Waldorf Microwave XT and an Access Virus TI… Right now we’re using a drum sampler program called Battery 3 made by Native Instruments in our live set, for a lot of the drums and percussion triggering that Bomarr’s doing.”
For these tour dates only 2 members of Restiform Bodies will be performing (Passage and Bomarr). “Telephone Jim Jesus the third member of the group was not available to play these shows with us, so his parts are canned on audio tracks. We DJ those parts, synced via fire wire and MPC with one of the synths I mentioned which helps to automate some of the impossible for two people elements of the songs.” Although it’s a duo act the show is supposedly really amazing and it sounds like the 3 really know their gear inside and out to be able to multitask the wiring of music alongside hybrid vocals. “…everybody should come see it (the live show)… it’s exactly what it needs to be for us right now. We wanted to represent the new record almost in full and as closely as possible.”
There has been a lot of enhancement from their first set of demos to their Self Titled album to the current album, ‘TV Loves You Back.’ “…it’s all generative sounds, no samples. The songs more song-like, though they still have dramatic changes in weird places, but they have choruses! Or at least my version of choruses. The lyrics are better, which honestly doesn’t take much considering how ridiculous I feel they used to be. It’s all together more grown up and danceable I hope.”
The 3 have toured their music nationally and internationally and there can be some pretty seriously crazy things that happen. “I flew without a passport post 9/11 through two countries in flip flops (don’t even) with a trash bag… smelling like a refugee. I mean I was on a plane… I didn’t flap my arms, but I made a terrible reputation for us in Scandinavia. I regret that part of it, but the overall experience was a turning point in my life. Plus we saw Iggy and The Stooges. That was just amazing.”
The 3 have sure put the time, work, gear and heart into their music and it prevails. It can be considered many things but overall it should be considered extremely good. “It’s rap music with a distinct electronic/industrial/ dance influence, or weirdo hip hop… this is just what we know how to do best. I’m a better emcee than I am a singer. Though I’m a better singer than I am a waiter, so hopefully shit works out.” [...]
Kristen Cudmore
Source: Left Hip
