[Reviewed by stark]
It seems that Stefano Musso and Bakis Sirros liked their collaboration on “Circo Divino”, at least as much as I did, because after five years they join forces once again, and as a result we have an album called “Elusive Metaphor”.
Looking at the cover and listening to the first track aroused a strong feeling of déjà-vu. The picture adorning the front of the digipak is again created by Romanie Sanchez. A similar design, although this time the colors are less saturated. Also the composition titled “Unspoken Shapes” is decorated with India Czajkowska’s vocals, which were an incredibly powerful element of “Circo Divino”. I guess the guys had some of her recordings from the previous session left, so it would be regrettable to waste them… It turns out, however, that this is her sole contribution to “Elusive Metaphor” – after that the music remains instrumental.
Despite the feminine delicacy covering “Unspoken Shapes” it seems to me that this piece is quite minimal and a little (just a little) darker than anything that could be heard on the two artists’ previous album. At the same time you can notice that both Italian and Greek did not intend to cavort or wheel and deal, and concentrate more on what gave them satisfaction before. In short mixing organic, delicate electronics and field recordings with classic analog synths and sounds. Who is responsible for what, I think you’ll figure out without much effort.
The formula surely has not run out, as it sounds intriguing all the time. Listen to “The Dispersed Expectance” – you aren’t sure when the drones stop and the sounds captured from the environment begin. Modular synths fake the sounds of nature, bringing the listener into a rainforest of polymer trees, lianas made from polycarbonate, the moist air filled with zeros and ones, and you almost literally hear the sound of information passing from one branch to another.
What I like is the indeterminate mood. “Elusive Metaphor” is neither dark nor nostalgic, it doesn’t fit any term related to typical human feelings. Even though it may seem otherwise, appearances can be deceiving. Machines converse with flora, interact, penetrate each other and combine in such a way that it is hard to define when one component passes in the second.
In short, Stefano Musso and Bakis Sirros did it again. After several listens I can’t tell which album is better or even which pleases me more. I will go back to both every now and then, when I get bored of the natural green of leaves and of sky blue.
Alio Die ≈ Parallel Worlds – Elusive Metaphor
Hic Sunt Leones, HSL 075
CD/Digital 2014
Santa Sangre 