At the Crossroads: Music for Faust (FringeNYC)

"A largely mesmerizing experience, one that gives audience members a new appreciation for the power of music and its ability to set a mood. Cohen's driving drums and Singer's slide guitar match the bold visuals of the film as the music lurks ominously under the already haunting imagery...Perhaps it isn't the best entry for a primarily theater-driven festival. But it is its own kind of stage art, one geared toward cinephiles, for whom this is an ideal way to experience a little-known classic." Full Review

"Singer's music functions both literally, as sound effects, and abstractly, as a way of setting mood and expressing emotions. It's both jarring and thrilling to hear such modern instrumentation accompanying these antique images, and reminds us that the best works of art are always ripe for rediscovery and reinterpretation...'At the Crossroads' achieves an amazing feat: simultaneously taking us back to the silent era while creating something utterly contemporary." Full Review

"'At the Crossroads: Music for Faust,' with a new score by Modern Robot, provided an opportunity to see that the 89-year-old film...Modern Robot’s score was neither 'classical' nor 'movie soundtrack'...Instead, composer Ben Singer on guitar and Spencer Cohen on drums provided mood...'At the Crossroads: Music for Faust' did not show the complete film. Still, it was enough to appreciate what an uninhibited, unscholarly adaptation it remains." Full Review

"The Gothic potency of the images is complemented by an original score...What the music lacks in melodic variety it makes up for in proficiency and rapport. In the more kinetic moments, and especially in the film’s brutal climax, both musicians get a chance to shine, with fuzz pedal distortion and other hard rock pyrotechnics put to effective use. A neglected classic, 'Faust' is ripe for rediscovery, and the added energy of live music makes it all the more compelling." Full Review

"The brilliance of this esoteric art lies in the intimate intersection of the new music and the venerable images on the screen. At times sweet and benign, at times driven and relentless, the music accompanies the German Expressionist aesthetic of distorted perspectives, powerful clashing of light and dark, and long, convoluted shadows...Singer and Cohen approach the sound with precision and lots of spirit." Full Review