SPIME.IM — ZERO

Built around the many faces of synthesized beats, SPIME.IM deliver the audio end of their immersive art experience. Based in Turin, this collective moves to bring the human-machine interaction in art to the masses, showing the ubiquitousness of machines in the human experience and blurring the lines between flesh and synthetics. Performing at festivals and putting on an audio-visual, 360° live show SPIME.IM try to capture some of that essence with this release, ZERO. Astonishingly immersive for just one facet of their performance, ZERO showcases the crossover point between man and machine, glitching and pulsating its way through integration.

Short and to the point, ZERO is four pieces of synthesized thinking that feels like the development of a cybernetic cerebellum. Opening with "ZERO19," one can feel the pieces coming together to form a cohesive whole. Starting with scattered, random synth tones and glitches, their gravitational mass brings them together, swirling and colliding like the formation of a planetary body. This being comes to life and gains control of its limbs and movement in "ZERO4." Learning how to control its new shape leads to some awkward patterns in movement and thought, and this is captured very well by SPIME.IM. Glitchy and intriguing, this being's formative moments are sonically captured for the world to hear. Finishing up with some fast paced, pounding electronics, one can hear that it didn't take long for this being to hit full stride. Adding some ambient elements into the stream, "ZERO8" brings in the external element and captures the being's interactions with the world around it. Touching, tasting, feeling, living, this is creating new cognitive pathways and the ecstatic moments are well played through the excited synth notes. Closing with a completely ambient track, "ZERO9" shows the being's integration as complete. From creation to exploration to integration, ZERO quickly captures the early stages of a man-machine hybrid and its journey into the world.

Intriguing, fast, and fun, SPIME.IM's ZERO covers lots of ground in its abbreviated run time. Going between glitchy electronics and ambient, this collective brings their art to the masses with this EP. Open to interpretation, ZERO bears repeated listens and can elicit many varied reactions depending on when it is played. That is no easy feat, and one that makes this EP worth coming back for.