Adrian Klumpes + Shoeb Ahmad

“The idea of a mistake is beside the point,” John Cage once said, “for once anything happens, it authentically is.” In the clammy, overcrowded experimental underground, it often feels like artists use this doctrine to absolve their lack of any real direction. Since Cage’s position was indirectly hijacked by punk rock, it’s become the norm to view improvisational music as inherently academic and therefore devoid of soul.

Tonight Adrian Klumpes, erstwhile Triosk keyboardist and solo experimenter, and Shoeb Ahmad, Canberra processed-guitar maestro, performed as if they were in separate rooms. Ahmad’s guitar was gasping for volume, and while the audible sounds were impressively alien, they were still distinct from the vibe that Klumpes was drawing from his organ. For Ahmad, an element of spectacle was his saving grace: he went to great lengths to emit unknown sounds from his axe, wielding two drum sticks and what appeared to be a mobile phone. But while both musicians were impressive to witness, the two units of sound just never seemed to gel. When Klumpes’ pristine organ drones and minimal pockets of melody suddenly grew a small rhythm section things seemed close to buckling.

During the half hour set, the more straightforward explorations of texture were the most engaging moments. Perhaps it worked because swirling layers of processed sound admit no error. The parts of the performance that demanded precision seemed to fragment quickly, and whether the resultant tension was the point or not, Klumpes and Ahmad achieve much greater heights when they’re on their own.

by Shaun Prescott