Stereokimono - Ki


Year of Release: 2000
Label: IrIdea Records
Catalog Number: 2000-11-03
Format: CD
Total Time: 48:09:00

"Psychophonic oblique rock." That's how the members of Italian oddity StereoKimono have chosen to describe their quirky, jerky, own bizarre vision of progressive rock and its instrumental perspectives regarding Verne, being a God, dancing children in Istanbul, and piano benches jealous of the instrument itself and trying to imitate a violin in order to get even. Right on the money. These are the proverbial Italian weirdos, armed with a curious sense of stuttering syncopation, comically military march, and a Bat-twist sense of dance that sometimes coalesce into downright slaphappy enjoyment. Interesting indeed for such music to come from the normally more melodramatic produce of Europe's very own cowboy boot.

And interesting as well to witness how the light humor and jumpy nature of Ki at times become infectiously epidemical; enough to make the listener unwillingly bulge his eyes and move one's head in mock robot fashion. The interplay between Alex Vittorio's bass and Antonio Severi's cartoon guitar moods is of course more than professional enough to keep the progressive snobs from arching their eyes in childish aristocratic contempt, but the result comes across as a member of the aristocracy who finds one's peers insufferably ridiculous and keeps poking fun at them with wacko antics. Of course, Cristina Atzori's drums play no small part in keeping up the mischief either ... no machismo to be found here, my friends. Credit is due where credit is due.

Which probably should be on the quirky epitome "Eh! Ah!" or in the Middle Eastern belly dance jiggling of "Istanbul Di Giorno," probably the best industrial-strength showcase of what StereoKimono has to offer and the solidest points of reference to be found on Ki; the advents of marvelous news, bringers of quirk, masters of Atari. Right there and then, in the dense spoon of juice concentrate, is where and when one realizes that this is one promising trio armed with a curious sense of humor and plenty of pizzazz. On the mix itself though, when the concentrate has dissolved into water and spread its essence out, things don't quite work so well. Consider, for instance, the track "Apoteotico," which eventually manages to kick into gear big time but before that takes forever to take off. A delayed airline customer is not a happy one.

Not necessarily a murderously angry one either, however. Every single time that StereoKimono shifts gear into its jerking syncopations bathed in bizarre instrumental humor a flight is on time again, and that happens certainly more than once across the duration of Ki. On the other hand, every time the band chooses to experiment instead with a more ambient nature, regardless of whether it appears in a serious or lightweight tone, things tend to get kind of boring: passengers subjected to infinite reruns of Titanic (yaaawn). Still, the balance in the end shifts towards StereoKimono's favor, and the airline evades the pits of bankruptcy.

Now what it needs is to reorganize in order to not only form part of economically solvent yet unimpressive airlines, but to leave them behind and reach something much greater. And with the quality and dedication of pilots Atzori, Vittorio, and Severi, that is quite a possible scenario for the future.


Tracklisting:
Eh! Ah! (4:53) / Apoteotico (Apotheosis) (4:52) / Phileas Fogg (11:11) / Per Verderlo Devi Chiudere Gli Occhi (In Order To See It You Have To Close Your Eyes) (4:11) / L'Altra Marea (A Different Tide) (8:33) / Istanbul Di Giorno (Istanbul By Day) (5:58) / Concerto N. 1 Per Pianoforte E Sgabello (Concerto N.1 For Piano And Stool) (0:58) / Il Nulla Respira (The Nothingness Breathes) (7:24)

Musicians:
Cristina Atzori - drums, percussion
Antonio Severi - electric, acoustic and midi guitars, keyboards
Alex Vittorio - bass, keyboards

Discography:
Ki (2000)
Primosfera (2003)

Genre: RIO

Origin IT

Added: July 16th 2002
Reviewer: Marcelo Silveyra

Artist website: www.stereokimono.com
Hits: 1816
Language: english

  

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