Alessandro Cortini Shares New Track And Video "LO SPECCHIO"; New Album Out June 11

ALESSANDRO CORTINI   SHARES NEW TRACK AND VIDEO “LO SPECCHIO”   NEW ALBUM SCURO CHIARO OUT JUNE 11

credit: Emilie Elizabeth

“[Cortini's] work draws from the cosmic yearning of ’70s Berlin, the stillness of ambient, and the deep focus of drone. But more than any single style, what distinguishes it is its sonic character: distant, muted, at once futuristic and ancient…[SCURO CHIARO] revels in moody, shimmering tones that live up to the meaning of the title: 'dark light.'" – PITCHFORK   Alessandro Cortini today shares the video for new track, “LO SPECCHIO,” the latest to be taken from his forthcoming new album, SCURO CHIARO, out June 11 on vinyl, CD and digital platforms.   SCURO CHIARO comes from a place that delights in the affirmation of life's constant variations, simultaneously presenting both bewilderment and vulnerability with its somber hues and pulsing, synthetic surfaces. The new video illustrates this perfectly as once again, Cortini collaborates with director Marco Ciceri and CGI creators Ciceri and Axel Schoterman for this journey through strangely familiar terrain. Watch here.   Pre-order SCURO CHIARO here. Watch the previously released video for “CHIAROSCURO” here.   MORE ABOUT SCURO CHIARO The album's title plays on the term for heavily contrasting light and shadow in painting and other visual arts. Cortini explains, "SCURO CHIARO is the opposite of chiaroscuro [the use of light and shadow to give strong contrast], and in a way it shows that no matter how you order things there's always going to be two elements that tend to be the opposite of each other that make up the truth—or make up everything."   On his previous album, VOLUME MASSIMO (2019, his first for Mute), Cortini developed a process he carried through to this album, working through his archive of personal recordings and carefully surveying to find sounds and elements with which to compose. "To me things that were created apart in time can fit together in a work of art, and it doesn't matter when they were created," says Cortini. "You drink wine that is ten years old with a meal that is freshly handmade. The final product, in my opinion, doesn't need to be made at the same time." The artwork for SCURO CHIARO, shot by Emilie Elizabeth, is an extension of the thematic bridge between the two works.   Cortini recently collaborated with electronic musical instrument manufacturer Make Noise to create a bespoke instrument and effects unit, Strega. "Strega is a successful attempt to condense my sonic aesthetic into a music making box," Cortini says. "Throughout the time that I finished the record I was receiving prototypes, and their work was integrated on the record."   The beauty of SCURO CHIARO lies in its contradictions. The abrasive elements that cycle in and out of focus across the album all find resolution in the warm ambiences that crackle and hiss into life in the background of every track. SCURO CHIARO TRACKLISTING: 1. ECCO 2. CHIAROSCURO 3. LO SPECCHIO 4. CORRI 5. SEMPRE 6. VERDE 7. NESSUNO 8. FIAMMA   RECENT DISCOGRAPHY: ILLUSION OF TIME – with Daniel Avery (2020, Mute / Phantasy) VOLUME MASSIMO (2019, Mute) IMMEDIATE HORIZON – with Lawrence English (2018, Important Records) AVANTI (2017, Point of Departure Recordings) ALESSANDRO CORTINI AND MERZBOW (2017, Important Records) FORSE (2015, Important Records)   Pre-order SCURO CHIARO Watch the “CHIAROSCURO” video Watch the “LO SPECCHIO” video ALESSANDRO CORTINI: TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC | BANDCAMP | SOUNDCLOUD MUTE: WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM