The latest release from Joseph Branciforte‘s greyfade label doesn’t stray at all from the concepts of previous albums in its catalog. Founded in 2019, the label, according to its official website, “takes as its basic premise the idea of a music release as a complete conceptual universe, integrating sound, compositional architecture, visual design, and text into a single object worthy of sustained engagement”.
In other words, process-based composition and performance isn’t just a contributing element to greyfade releases; it’s the label’s raison d’etre. That being said, Catherine Lamb’s interius/exterius is a fitting new entry in the greyfade catalog, one that requires deep listening and will undoubtedly result in repeated spins on turntables for years to come.
Lamb, a Berlin-based composer who constantly explores the depths of harmony, temporality, and collective resonance, collaborated with New York’s Ghost Ensemble to create this long-form chamber nonet, whose principles are spelled out in the title. Tones move in “interior” and “exterior” directions, shifting between inward balance within the ensemble and outward expansion toward new harmonic possibilities. The instrumentation includes flute (Margaret Lancaster), oboe (Sky Macklay), accordion (Ben Richter), harp (Lucia Stavros), hammered dulcimer (Chris Nappi), viola (Martine Thomas), cello (Tyler J. Borden), and two contrabasses (James Ilgenfritz and Gregory Chudzik).
Interius/exterius was developed during a series of workshops between Lamb and the musicians, working within the tonal and formal foundations of the composition. The music was performed at Roulette Intermedium in New York in December 2022, leading to a recording of the piece in 2024. The piece’s harmonic material, according to greyfade’s Bandcamp page, “is derived entirely from the harmonic series of a theoretical 10Hz fundamental—an inaudible frequency whose overtones define a resonant, interlocking lattice of sound”.
There is a precision to the execution, but also a fluidity. Broken down into six movements, the first begins with a massive wall of sustained sound as strings are plucked at various intervals, seemingly marking time. While the overall sound initially seems unbearable in its weight, alignments gradually shift and timbres transform. The second movement is initially grounded in the deep tones of the cello, but everything seems to slowly unfold over time, as the instruments are all eventually given space to present themselves, much like a planet rotating around the sun. The overall aesthetic seems to be one of a constant but ever-shifting drone.
As the movements progress, particularly in the last two, individual spikes of string notes are presented, with the droning serving as a more background element. Movement “VI” brings a greater sense of sparseness than anything that came before it. The notes initially seem to be executed randomly, but the process is certainly more elaborate and mathematical to be dismissed as chance moves.
As someone who has reviewed several greyfade releases over the past few years, I feel it’s necessary to present the following caveat when approaching these unique recordings: this is music that is conceived and performed with specific concepts in mind that, once the listener is made aware of them and sits with the record with concentration, purpose, and a good set of headphones, will result in a deeply rewarding sonic experience. Catherine Lamb’s Interius/exterius is much like a thorny, dense postmodern novel – initially challenging to crack open, but eventually an immersive, transcendent journey.