Zillo, 02/1998

Kirlian Camera - The Drug Against Obsession

With their last two albums, "Solaris. The Last Corridor" and "Pictures From Eternity", Italian avantgarde-electro-pop formation Kirlian Camera presents hypnotically intrinsic and different from the enormous field of electronic music, showing the maintenance of pop-structures, soundtrack like impressions and experimental soundcollages. On their new album "The Desert Inside" (Triton) KC take the advantage with the theme which was to date quite sporadic - the orchestral filmmusic.

Because of permanent lineup changing, we can suppose this is not final style shifting, but the songs and lyrics are written again solely by Angelo Bergamini, the mastermind behind the band. Besides the multiinstrumentalist/electronic genius Simon Balestrazzi and charismatic singer Emilia Lo Jacono (she had finished their medicine studium and became doctor) there are two new bandmembers. Whether Barbara Boffelli is new singer (previously active as singer in various italian pop-bands), keyboardist Ivano Bizzi worked since 70s as soundengineer at filmindustry, TV, radioshows and is known as musician in KC related projects like Andromeda Complex und T.A.C. Of course there are the reasons for new album attitude.
"I was influenced with such bands as Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze and Kraftwerk in my adolescence, but the old english bands like Pink Floyd, King Crimson and early Genesis took their part too. In the 80s, I liked Propaganda and Ultravox very much, and today I still love Laibach" - says Ivano Bizzi, and his words proving the similarity of intentions between band members. But there is no strong conceptions behind this albums: "Honestly, I don't know what the music comes from. Certainly we are influenced by thousands musicians when we work on sound, but the main influence is impossible to reveal." - Angelo says. "Sometimes our music seems to be poppy, but in general it isn't pop. First, I am living in the world of music I'd heard, which is mixed with real life. And second, all sounds we produce are fused together and explain our evolution: doing what we want destroyed all danceable, pop elements and became our last friend. And the last voice."
Near the pop-hits like "The Desert Inside", "The Icy Dawn" and "Motionless" there is experimental piece called "Ocean Of Disappearance", composed using only radioloops and three vocal samles, in the ambient style very similar to "Far From Heaven" - a soundtrack that was composed by Angelo not so far. "We will continue with filmmusic because it will help us to survive, but have also many stress moments" - says Angelo "I prefer to keep our music far from cinema industry, in absolutely freedom".
The forthcoming album will show us new facets of KC self-identity - their old songs will be rearranged for classical instruments and performed by real orchestra, just like Attrition did in their "Etude" album. "We want to produce representation album covering the period from 1980 to present time. Then we plan to be on tour and will come in Germany late spring."

Dirk Hoffmann

English translation: Dmitry Vasilyev