Their music is made at the point where cool precision, passion and mechanical frenzy intersect. They synthesize elements of gothic, industrial, edgy electronica, darkwave, ethereal pop, modern rock, and trip-hop into a sty... more »le that is uniquely theirs, soothing yet powerful, smooth yet dangerous. They are Collide: a Los Angeles duo with a knack for intriguing arrangements and compelling performances. Principals Statik and kaRIN, have over their decade together written some of the catchiest songs that will ever haunt you to distraction. Although Collide has won thousands of appreciators, and established a reputation for recording excellence, they'd never performed their music in concert until 2004. Like many electronic acts, Collide was a studio entity. They'd used their machinery, their voices, and their mixing board to generate a sound that's best described as extra-personal: suggestive not of a band playing in the back of a room, but of a dream playing in the back of your head. Transposing an experience this hallucinatory to the stage felt daunting to Statik and kaRIN. Could a group so dependent on electronics for their ferocity "even one this accomplished" manage to replicate the passion, the menace, and the magic of their music live? This DVD is proof that they can. Like The Hunted is documentation of the concert tour that brought Collide's dreams alive. Expanded to a six-piece, the live iteration of the electronica powerhouse brings new dimensions to familiar songs. Guitarists Scott Landes and Rogerio Silva weave alternately processed and raw riffs around Kai Kurosawa's percussive bass and Chaz Pease's thunderous drumming. Statik stands omnipresent behind his electronics, as the virtual sound controller. The band looks and sounds terrific: the five instrumentalists attack their instruments with authority, and kaRIN leads the band with sultry charisma.« less
Steven Cain | Temporal Quantum Pocket | 02/24/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"For the longest time I wondered if Collide would ever take their magic on the road, and how they would be able to translate their studio genius into live songs. I needn't have worried.
From the stunning opening number, Beneath The Skin onwards, this powerful, six-piece Collide takes no prisoners. While the utterly divine Karin prowls the stage like a lioness, the band sustains a richly-layered sonic attack that breathes new life into these already superb songs.
Kai Kurosawa's mastery of the touch-sensitive Warr guitar is a joy to behold, enabling him to play a fascinating combination of guitar and bass on some of the numbers, alternating with his other bass guitar. All three guitarists have tremendous stage presence, especially when they are throwing themselves into some of the more physical numbers, and the drummer is as good as it gets.
The extras are absolutely superb, including an interview with Karin and Statik and some great videos, including a superb version of the showstopper, Wings of Steel.
I emailed Kai recently and he said he was hoping to be going on the road with Collide again in the not too distant future.
This is a must-have DVD."
Fantastic DVD! Truly great work!
Matthew Hutchinson | Shawnee, KS USA | 12/10/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I've been a big fan of Collide ever since hearing "Son of a Preacher Man" a year or so ago. Statik's synth "noise" and kaRIN's sultry vocals collide (hence the band name) to create a sound that is nothing short of mesmerizing. Collide are to the Industrial music scene what Pink Floyd are to Classick Rock. It's a shame they've been strictly a studio band for the last 10 years. Nevertheless, their new DVD does a fantastic job demonstrating just how well they can pull off a live show.
The DVD is feature-packed with live and studio photos, music videos, interviews and out-takes, and a full-length concert of their April, 2005 performance at the El Ray in Los Angeles. The footage is beautiful, crisp, and sounds excellent on my home theater system.
I am very happy with my purchase. I finally got to see how they look and sound live, and I've got three great music videos, a couple of surprisingly good acoustic performances, and lots of pics all on one DVD.
NOTE: In my original review, I gave the DVD 4 stars because I thought they had neglected to include song chapters for the concert. I asked Collide about this, and they told me there's a set list on the bottom left of the Main Menu. I just didn't see it."
Amazing
E.D. Fischer | NYC | 01/19/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Collide makes amazing music.
This DV is an artistic masterpiece you will actually want to watch more than once.
"This DVD is amazing. I give this DVD 5 stars for the following reasons. -Collide put out an *excellent performance filled with much excitement -I love the photos on the DVD -I love KaRIN's hair and makeup and she looks very beautiful as always -The lighting and lyrical content is amazing!!! -There is so much on this DVD and I have watched it over 3 times already. -After watching this DVD I want to see Collide live in concert"
A brilliant production
M. Raadgever | Canberra, ACT | 01/17/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Like everything produced by Collide this DVD is extremely well produced and beats the production of DVD's that I have seen from better known bands hands down.
The music has been very well converted to a live format, considering that Collide is originally a studio project that could have lost a lot of it's power through the conversions necessary to provide a good experience to those who see them live.
From the start of the DVD to the end I was impressed by how tight the band performed, and the comments that kaRIN made between songs seemed to fit perfectly, and meant that it did not feel as sterile as I have found some other music DVD's.
The extra features on the DVD are also excellent, with the interviews giving me an insight into the band that I would not otherwise have, and the additional video clips being well produced...if a little strange.
For someone like me who is unlikely to be able to see collide play live, this DVD is a good substitute, and also provides a good overview of Collide's music to someone who may not know the band already."