Few people can say they have become a synonym for a sound, but Robert Moog is one such person. His name instantly brings to mind the trippy-sounding roboticized noises that helped supply the soundtrack for the '60s and '70s. In 1964, composer Herbert Deutsch and Moog (it rhymes with "vogue") created the first modular synthesizer, a device that made working with electronic sounds much easier than traveling to a room filled with wires and circuits or coaxing a theremin. As a testament to how unusual the Moog synthesizer seemed at the time, Moog recalls a story about a conference where someone asked him if he felt "guilty" for his invention, as if the synthesizer was somehow unnatural compared to other instruments. Unnatural or not, it took off. Championed by Walter (now Wendy) Carlos on the popular Switched-On Bach album, the Moog became a favorite of prog-rockers, experimental composers, and science-fiction soundtrack artists alike.
The short and shapeless but nonetheless welcome documentary Moog catches up with Moog, who now lives a quiet country life while maintaining an interest in music's cutting edge. Director Hans Fjellestad concentrates heavily on recent footage of Moog, following him to meetings with disciples from the old days, as well as contemporary fans like DJ Spooky and Money Mark. Occasionally, Moog will pause for a performance or some revelatory archival footage, like a clip that indirectly suggests the Moog-enhancing qualities of Schaefer beer. ("When you're having more than one.")
Moog proves too undirected to reveal much about the man or his music, apart from factoids like Moog's fondness for cooking with fresh herbs. Fortunately, Moog is a genial enough subject to patch over some of the film's shortcomings. He likes to talk, and he can go on at length about the scientific properties of analog synthesizers and about the place where science ends. "I can feel what's going on inside a piece of electronic equipment," Moog claims early on, and the readily evident kinship between the man and his machines backs up his claims.