Fred Lonberg-Holm

Dialogs

BY Chris WhibbsPublished Mar 1, 2005

Although there is much going on here conceptually, Dialogs is really the cello record for those who hate cellos. Literally a recorded sound of the cello eating itself, there is not much in the way of melody or rhythm, but this experiment does keep one’s interest from time to time. Lonberg-Holm is one of the top cellists in his field, and has worked with people from Jim O’Rourke to Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche, but here it’s all him, with just a cello, some speakers and a desire to play, but in a completely new way. One of the most revealing ways comes about halfway through "Dialog 6,” where the cello sounds like its ripping itself apart, while "Dialog 5” does contain some regular cello tones, but they are decidedly different, mostly due to the mucking about in the first four dialogs. Again, there is nothing in the way of linear music present, but conceptually, Lonberg-Holm is subverting the ideas behind a cello and the way our ears have become accustomed to its prevalent sound. A hard listen and flinchingly abrasive at times, Dialogs does not present music, but it does present a new way of thinking about the ways music is presented, which is admirable in its own, albeit ear-shattering, way.
(Emanem)

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