STEREOKIMONO

This is my very first attempt to write a review, so I hope I will not as many english mistakes I am afraid I am going to do. What has impressed me more about this album are two things, mainly: sounds and the way songs (a bit "reductive" as term, but I could not find any better) are composed. I have had the impression that all this album might sound a bit "vintage" (just to recall mellotron in a pair of passages) but as matter of facts, Stereokimono has spent a lot of time researching sounds that might perfectly fit all the songs (and I personally love the Mellotron sounds). Furthermore, all their songs flow naturally, with a clear beginning and a clear end, instead of many "progressive composers" who might t think that writing some songs with odd signatures sounds "prog". Those guys have also found time and money to invest in this project, and all the great influences they have, have been greatly merged in this album. Great work, for me 5 over 5.

Robaerus

This last cd from Stereokimono spreads wide open over progressive, colliding with psichedelia, post-rock, space and experimental music. Take a tour to the Cafè and listen to the tracks to have a multisensorial experience that vary from track to track... and it is suprisingly immediate to the listener. Maybe this feature does not make Intergalactic Art Cafè really "proggy inside", but to me, that I am not a real prog fan, it has been a pleasure and I am sure it will pay. The recording is accurate and contribute to let the record slide down gently in my ears, with the always precious tunes made up by the trio. It has been a long time since the last cd effort, but it has been worthwhile. My favourite track ? "Space surfer".

Italian band STEREOKIMONO was formed back in the mid 1990's, and with their first two albums from 2000 and 2002 respectively they showcased to good effect that they were a good quality act of the kind that is hard to place within a set genre definition. Intergalactic Art Cafe is their third full length production, and was released through the Immaginifica label in 2012. Ten years after their previous album.

And while it have taken the band 10 years to create this disc, it appears that those years have been used well to develop their material. The core of the material is a curious blend of styles, with early 80's King Crimson and jazzrock as prominent details. Liberally flavoured with a touch of late 80's Rush and space rock. The guitarwork caters for the majority of the Crimson references, or perhaps Frippian would be a better description. Generally light in tone and playful in expression, with picked reverberating notes and quirkier wanderings utilizing a tonal range that often makes them sound a tad off kilter, in a nice and intriguing sort of way. Perhaps closer to the Frippian universe in sound than in expression, but with quite a few quirky and most likely fairly challenging escapades to enjoy too. And with occasional jazzrock references to boot.

But it's the steady and occasionally funky bass guitar that provides the majority of the jazzrock references. Solid, steady and energetic, and tightly interwoven with high quality drum patterns there's a solid foundation catering for momentum and energy quite nicely in the rhythms department.

Flavouring the proceedings quite nicely are keyboards of various sorts. Dreamladen Mellotron passages, cosmic synthesizer sounds and fluctuating keyboard textures with more of a symphonic character all have their place here, although it is the former two that are most commonly utilized. All of these details are used to good effect in solid compositions throughout, with a fair degree of diversity too. Generally light n tone and playful in expression, on relatively straightforward pieces like opening tune Fuga da Algon, with eastern inspired textures on Indian Breakfast or exploring theme variations as on three part mini epic Rebus. Slower paced, gentle dreamladen affairs gets a few spots too, with The Gnome on the Moon as possibly the most interesting of these, and they even play around with a few country and folk inspired recurring themes on Lumacacactus, a composition that also features classic space rock Hawkwind style and some clever, quirky Frippian inserts.

A high quality production through and through, Inergalactic Art Cafe should be a safe acquisition for those with a taste for space rock that avoids the most common stylistic expressions of that genre. And if you tend to enjoy music that have a few occasional nods towards the more accessible parts of King Crimson's early 80's productions too I'd suspect you'd find this disc to be a real treat.

This is my first (daring) attempt with this Italian outfit ... and please believe me, nothing to regret to sum it up. Wow - a lush sound all the way through when considering them a trio. So overdubs are to be expected ... twin guitars often enough are competing as well as harmonizing with diverse keyboard stuff ... and there's a very lively rhythm section which is much more than a backing ... there you go! As for a first proper overview I'd say this is a rock music blend of crimson-esque leanings and psychedelic ingredients. Wind instruments in terms of saxophone and trumpet are implemented at the beginning in order to mention some guest appearance.

Nine years after the previous album 'Prismosfera' their new Intergalactic Art Cafe is announced to be an interdimensional place, rich in contaminations, unexpected contributions. An exaggeration to talk about? Not at all! While acting nearly instrumental the songs are excellently arranged, consisting of titles which are in English and Italian equally. The cosmic journey starts with the escape from Algon - Fuga Da Algon - which is the real masterpiece just right from the start I'd say - a fantastic workout outfitted with many variants ... and my beloved mellotron. And then they are cheerfully underway like the Space Surfers - this tune perfectly presents the band's good-tempered optimistic attitude ... in the same way as Indian Breakfast with a slight eastern touch due to the guitar appearance.

The gripping 'Rebus' trilogy/centerpiece is blatantly KC oriented, no failure at all, very tricky, shows some weird vocal attendance for example. Bubbling water and ska excursions are to detect on Lumacacactus and they even seem to loose orientation with the poppy The Gnome On The Moon for a while. Oltre Algon finally closes the circle - oltre means beyond here I'm sure - and now they obviously have reached their goal ... a wonderful ballad-esque psych outro to close this album.

Although STEREOKIMONO are definitely operating in their own league music-wise - as for a proper orientation I dare to call up some references to bands such as King Crimson, Moonwagon, Pink Floyd, Hypnos 69 and fellow countrymen Delirio Sonoro ... a wondrous scale, eh? I know, I know ... it only remains for me to add that Franz Di Cioccio, the drummer of PFM, is involved regarding the production. Fine, fine ... an entertaining album is waiting to be checked out, folks - highly recommended!

Psychophonic oblique rock?

After several months of avoiding discovering new music I dropped in on the progstreaming web site and these guys (actually two guys and one gal) were in the top spot. The cover art looked kind of cool. The music hooked me on first listen.

It's primarily instrumental with some guest vocals. The music is diverse in keeping with the concept of the album - the café is "an interdimensional place, suspended somewhere in the universe, where strange musicians meet each other playing futuristic sessions".

On first impression the music reminds me a lot of one of PFM's newer albums, Stati Di Immaginazione. I guess that shouldn't be too surprising as they hail from Italy and have Franz Di Cioccio on board for production.

The album opens with a nice eleven minutes plus adventurous instrumental Fugua Da (Escape From) Algon. Ah yes, "Algon, fifth world in the system of Aldebaran, the Red Giant in the constellation of Sagittarius. Here an ordinary cup of drinking chocolate costs four million pounds." From an old Monty Python sketch. Space Surfer is another instrumental, surf sci-fi music.

Indian Breakfast, yep, Indian space music, guest drone, sitarific. Never actually had Indian for breakfast, myself.

Next a Rebus in three parts: Game (instrumental, very PFM-ish), Metaphor, and Solution (weird vocals, Mr. Bungle-esque).

Lumacacactus or Snailcactus was actually made into a video. Damn shame MTV doesn't still run videos might have been a hit. They take on a little country and western twang.

The Gnome On The Moon is like Daevid Allen's Gong dropping in on the café.

Zona d'ombra (shadow zone) (thela hun gingeet, thela hun gingeet) '80's King Crimson dropping by?

The party is capped off by another Algon, psychedelic, spacey.

A contemporary juggernaut

Stereokimono is an exciting group from Bologna that has released two albums over the past few years. I only hope that the lack of new updates on their webpage does not mean they have decided to stop as this is a promising band. Their unique style of modern spacey rock sounds on the surface just a little reminiscent of latter day Crimson but there is a certain underlying appreciation of melody here that makes this more appealing to me than some harsher, more angular sounds. "Prismosfera" is instrumental joyriding that will make fans of the Ozrics and Djam Karet jolt to attention and it will win them over. Produced by none other than Franz Di Cioccio of PFM the album has a sound that manages to be both light and airy while packing significant punch at the right times.

We like to think to our music as a becoming of psycho-sensorial experiences, stimulating fantasy and imagination ... something like a soundtrack for interior and cosmic journeys. We have playfully defined our project/genre Psychophonic Oblique Rock [from the Band: Antonio Severi, Alessandro Vittorio, Christina Atzori]

Indeed! This music is like a huge floating sentient being shapeshifting its way through some weirdly lighted sky in a distant universe. It is one of those bands where I am almost intimidated by the thought of trying to describe it in writing because it should not be subjected to the limitations of my pen. The wide variety of keyboards, guitars, electronics, sound/voice samples, and percussions allow soundscapes that vary between daydreams at times to pulling one in with direct sound communication at others. And the transitions between the different colors are tastefully handled making the listener experience more "real" if you will, as opposed to simply reacting to units of entertainment we call songs. I feel as if I'm getting mini-musical vignettes rather than songs. I am usually attracted to music with a more direct, obvious emotional connection but here the style works for me for the most part. I think most adventurous listeners will appreciate this very much. The band impresses with technical proficiency yet maintains playfulness and taste throughout, always attempting the head spin. "Rosso Di Luna" is a real favorite of mine: the guitars are layered so nicely.there are leads of course but you never feel like the solos are some extraneous thing, rather they are integrated into the overall sound as a component. The bass and drums are beautifully nuanced in their parts and similarly part of the weave rather than "backing" the lead guitar exclusively. Same with the keys. Simply great instrumental rock and easily recommended to anyone who may like the above bands or groups like Gourishankar, Porcupine Tree, or Lost World.

At the end of the album the band has a little contest for fun by stringing together short samples of '70s prog classics and inviting listeners to see how many of the 30 they can identify on their website. They also put together a nice booklet with cool images that go along with the tracks. The gatefold LP sleeve is quite nice in general.

I listen to this album from time to time and I appreciate it a lot; I think that fans of Djam Karet would feel at home while listening to it. The only song I really *MUST* skip is Bahnhofstrasse, because of the extremely annoying cello synth; this is also the most repetitive and less interesting song in the set.

Other than this, the album flows good as a serie of psychedelic-oriented moments, with a great intro and a good number of changes, intriguing (rather complex but still easily enjoyable) tempo signatures, and good soloes.

Highly recommended for Djam Karet fans, recommended for 70's Tangerine Dream, Hidria Spacefolk and Ozric Tentacles fans, probably not for classic-prog likers.

For their sophomore release, the excellent Italian ensemble Stereokimono provided an enhancement of their musical path as stated in their debut "Ki". This time, "Prismosfera" comprises a repertoire in which the threesome show an increase of both energy and experimental trend, which eventually leads to an awesome opus within the realms of avant-garde prog. Their self-imposed psychofonic oblique label is nothing but an energetic combination of 80s King Crimson, jazz-rock with a funky core, psychedelia with moderate electronic leanings and ethnic sensibilities that come to the fore occasionally. What can go wrong when the group stays cohesive and their sound becomes stronger? 'Onda Beta' is the opener that has to set the initial mood for all things to come afterwards. It kicks off with a set of oppressive, sinister synth layers and sound effects before the main motif erupts, mixing neurotic and joyful vibes. 'Rosso di Luna' is a bit less explosive, more oriented toward the reflective, something that is easy to notice from the evocative guitar leads and keyboard ornaments, as well as the splendid electric piano solo that emerges somewhere in the middle: yet, it's not a languid number really, but an excuse to make the jazz element more noticeable. 'Bahnhofstrasse' finds the band exploring the virtues of ethnic-infused jazz fusion based on Arabic ambiences. The midi sounds emulating cello and violin create a beautiful sonic architecture sustained firmly by the ever-efficient rhythm section. Once again, the synth effects come by to provide some sort of mystic feel (to some degree, like the Ozrics or classic Gong), especially during the track's second half, in which the tempo shifts to a faster pace. 'Xetrov 5' is the aggressive apex in the album, starting with a dark synth-based soundscape and then following with a very RIO-esque motif built on a challenging 5/4 tempo. Things get a bit closer to Present and other robust RIO acts. 'L'Uomo Nuvola' is yet another exhibition of typical psychofonic oblique rock, albeit with a sleight added touch of pop that allows the main melody be easily noticeable and get its hooks on the listener. Attention to the beautiful clarinet solo - is it a midi guitar trick? Also attention to the jolly country coda, which brings an air of easygoing relief to the band's bizarre musical vision. 'Salamandra' makes things get aggressive again, with a massive display of hard-rock colors on a funky basis: it almost equals the dark approach of 'Xetrov 5'. The last piece in the strictly musical collection is the ethnic 'La Soffitta Volante', which gradually keeps on growing from a mesmeric succession of acoustic guitar chords, percussive ornaments and keyboard layers all the way until the final climax, full of frenzy and mystery. The album's last 4 minutes are occupied by a series of old prog and art-rock classic albums' samplers: spot pieces of material from Yes, Pink Floyd, Gentle Giant, Genesis, Tangerine Dream, King Crimson, Gong, Camel, Area, ELP,. floating by among the birds in the forest. A homage to the old stuff made by one of the most amazing prog acts of the new millennium. General conclusion: "Prismosfera" is a real contemporary masterpiece.

I´ll be honest, I haven´t heard to whole Cd, so I will make my review for what a have heard, I think I can made a good review, I have just heard 3 tracks but the musical piece that most atractted me was Bahnhostrasse, Bahnhostrasse sounded like the Ninja Gaiden´s soundtrack (a Tecmo videogame from the 80¨s) and that is not a bad think, guitars, bass and keybords, and drums mix together pretty well but it sounds like if the instruments were playing on its on side. Stereokimono´s compossion are always on the line of Italian prog rock, so if you are a fan of Italian prog rock, like Banco or Arti Mestieri, then Stereokimono is a band that you must need to listen, they surelly won´t dissapoint you.

Immediately after the release of "Ki", their debut album, Stereokimono hava managed to catch the attention of many European prog magazines and e-zines: in fact, it has been acclaimed to the point of being awarded by many of these as one of the top prog releases of the year. The musicians themselves prefer to label their musical style as "psychophonic oblique rock" - or something like it -, which may seem humorous and self-satirical, but may as well serve as an accurate description, after all. Let's focus on the terms "psycho" and "oblique". Their tracks are usually semi-free-form jams (some of them more extended than others) performed on the basis of a few sequences of atonal chords, which give a kind of "crazy" mood to their music in the energetic numbers (e.g., "Eh! Ah!", "Il Nulla Respira"), and a somber air of obscure mystery in the slower ones (e.g., "Phileas Fogg"); occasionally, even some exotic atmosphere (e.g., "Istanbul Di Giorno"). My personal fave track is the challenging, "L'Altra Marea", which kicks off with a quite disturbing intro and then moves on with an energetic motif delivered with inventiveness. Major influences in Stereokimono's music are 80's King Crimson and early Henry Cow's less aggressive side, plus some noticeable touches of contemporary jazz fusion: their own penchant for dissonant chord progressions and twists is handled with exquisite elegance. Even though their repertoire shows a high level of proficiency in the performance aspect, there is not a display of over-the-top exhibitionism here: it is the musical ensemble as an organic unit what is emphasized here, and the solos are not as prominent as the harmonic textures, which are more featured and fill every single space in each track quite efficiently. A couple of supporting musicians (an extra guitarist, and occasionally, a violin player) manage to help successfully in building the sound textures. In short, highly recommended for anyone who can properly appreciate the jazzier side of progressive musical tradition, which Stereokimono so wisely absorbs and recycles for the new millenium.