BACK TO ORION

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ELECTRONIC MUSIC (Russia) At last I am holding a new outing by Mac & FaBIO in my hands! Let's see if the results are worth the wait. "Return To Earth" starts with resonating bells and fat synth pad. This is pretty haunting stuff. Soon a terrific sequence arrives, making this short opener a true Berlin School gem. The track's got anthemic qualities, too, especially once the drums come in. One can see how BIOnighT's sound has evolved from their previous efforts released several years ago. The music has become more powerful but at the same time crystalline-clear. "Sinus Iridum" has reflective harp-like sequence coupled with cello leads. This is almost Classical music in its scope and feel. What a surprise and what a great track it is! All textures are organic and / or sampled and yet everything is arranged like an EM piece. Subtle synthetic bass pulses can be heard that do not, however, interfere with the flow of this acoustic-sounding number. Everything then stops abruptly as we are left in a windswept landscape. Bass drum beats a couple of times and then goes away. Strange sounds like electronic flies swarm around the stereo spectrum. The bass drum pattern constantly repeats until a relaxed section supported by a steady drum rhythm appears. Is that the theremin I hear? At least it sounds like it. Excellent, moody music! If you like epic EM (and I mean epic in the sense of Symphonic Rock) then you must listen to this! "Floating Thoughts" begins with sparse melancholic notes. After a while some fat synth pads appear. What a reflective track, this one. Although "Back To Orion" is a collective work, this particular track was composed entirely by FaBIO with some contributions from Mac. A tinkling sequence appears towards the end, never really becoming a mainstay, the track remaining essentially an atmospheric number. "Moon Rocks" (excellent title for an EM track!) starts with strange sounds as if multiple balls are jumping off the floor. However, this one turns out to be the "pop single" of the album. Ok, I don't mean pop music of course, but this track is perhaps as catchy and "easy-listening" as BIOnighT gets. Seriously, you can even whistle along to it! It's a good song that somehow reminds me on an updated version of French band Space. Excellent work with sound here, the guys really managed to fill all the stereo space, resulting in the music sounding very intense, but at the same time open-ended, not compressed as is often the case with recent releases. The next track is "Little Gravity", composed entirely by Mac. What can I say? Sequences galore would be the description of it! Excellent, excellent pulsations, and that unmistakable "classic EM" feel. Pure cosmic power! Sorry, been away just enjoying the GORGEOUS sequences on this track! In stark contrast, "Falling" surprises with an aggressive sequence, heavy drums and excellent echoey analogue leads. Very evocative of its title! By now it is quite clear that "Back To Orion" is one of the best (if not the best) releases of 2007. At least in my book, it will be right up there with the top ones! But wait, there's one (long) track left, called "Ride On the Moon". Abstract sounds give way for a bass sequence. It is then joined by various synth sounds and Mellotron choir. This track has a rather loose structure, akin to mid 1970's Tangerine Dream. Until the upbeat drum rhythm is introduced, that is. After that it turns into some rocky EM with a bite to it that only a couple of Italian guys like Mac and FaBIO could achieve. It all then calms down, leaving us with the sounds of wind and a tolling bell. Synthetic textures then attack us from all sides before calming down again. A pad is heard and a nice relaxed sequence starts. More sequences are added together with one of the tastiest synth solos I've heard! This is some EM to die for! On this album, Mac & FaBIO have created something spectacular: they've showed why Electronic Music is the best genre in the world! Artemi Pugachov To visit this website click HERE

MENNO VON BRUCKEN FOCK (NL) The Italian duo BIOnighT are Mac and Sbrizzi FaBIO, Mac being pretty well known as a solo artist for he has released an impressive number of solo albums already. The title gives us a clue as to what kind of music one might expect: floating and dreaming into space? Not quite. Listening to the disc that's not really the case and I mean that in a very positive sense! The influences of the grandfathers of Electronic Music, Tangerine Dream, Jean Michel Jarre and Klaus Schulze can be detected easily throughout this delicious work by the two guys. The opening track reminds of TD from the late seventies, then we hear a gentle Jarre-like piece and the third one is more in a Schulze vein. The track Moon Rocks is a sort of a synthesis between TD and Nova/Peru (relatively well-known acts from and in The Netherlands during the eighties), while the next piece, "Little Gravity," can be compared with TD's music from the time they released "Phaedra" and "Stratosfear". Our journey through space continues with "Falling", a tune characterised by subtle percussion and a nice catchy bass loop as we know it from - for instance - Depeche Mode, therefore slightly in the direction of the ever so popular synthpop. The last and also longest track , over 14 minutes, is built up quite nicely: distant synthesizer sounds make way for sequencer-like themes. With these and high pitched melodies, plus a wide variety of colorful accompanying sounds, BIOnighT create an atmosphere again as TD from the early seventies at their best. In conclusion, I would say this is an excellent release in the "Berlin School" genre, and the best news is that Mac and FaBIO let us re-live "those good old days" without the slightest suspicion of stealing melodies from their sources of inspiration. To visit this website click HERE

Albert Pollard for Aural Innovations (USA) BIOnighT are a two man sound experimentation machine, and collectively, as well as solo, they have been progressively producing and creating excellent electronic synthesized music for nearly a decade now in their native Italy. Sbrizzi FaBIO and Mac, as they are also known, create cinematic soundscapes, here on Back to Orion, reminiscent of those early German pioneers Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Hans Joachim Roedelius, and many more. Back to Orion is their seventh release and it offers seven tracks lasting just over fifty minutes. The sound is ambient in its essence, sequential in its form. It is earthy, spacey, hypnotic and journeying. It flows enchanting, evolving and devolving through frequency and vibration, through time and space, and in my opinion, it is necessary listening for any lover of electronic music. From start to finish, we are immersed in colourful electronics that pump new life and fresh blood back into the veins of the aforementioned pioneers. Each track weaves seamless to the next and each new phase is relevant to the former. The ride is modern and vibrant, energy driven, and powerful, and it spiritually captures, overall, a Cyclone era Tangerine Dream feel, which is executed with craftsmanship, quality and passionate emotion. It is well worth investigation on the part of headphone experimenters and synthesizer adventurers. You will not be disappointed. To visit this website click HERE

Phil Derby - Electroambient Space (USA) After a hiatus of a couple of years, Mac has teamed up again with BIOnighT bandmate Sbrizzi Fabio, with the usual positive outcome. "Return to Earth" is a light bubbly melodic piece that serves to ease the listener gently into the album. "Sinus Iridum" starts with dreamy soft sequencing. A melancholy oboe-like synth plays the melody. A punchy playful bass line brightens things up nicely. Halfway through the mood changes considerably as a more ambient experimental section ensues, quite surprising but no less enjoyable than the rest. "Floating Thoughts" is a cool drifter, darker than the BIOnighT norm but again very good, a nice change of pace. "Moon Rocks" shows the duo's playful side, with unusual fun sound effects at the beginning followed by a soothing pleasant melody and bouncy moderate sequencing; a wonderfully light touch on this one. Equally pleasurable is "Little Gravity," with the flavor of mid-1980s Tangerine Dream but with a style all their own. "Falling" is like good 80s synth pop without the words. "Ride on the Moon" is a great 15-minute sci-fi trip across the lunar surface to bring the disc to a close. To visit this website click HERE

GUTS OF DARKNESS (FRANCE) "Back to Orion is the 3rd part of Bionight trilogy. Here, as on The Rain is Over, both accomplices offer an eurhythmic album where the fragrances of a retro Berlin School marinade with a digital modernity and a prog rock approach, without ever altering the fusion of a melody tinted with a nostalgic romanticism which animates these two long-time friends. The first chords of Return to Earth put us in appetite. Fine hesitating arpeggios float in a synthesized cloudiness, before melting in a sequential spherical movement where the rhythm grinds in a harmonious synth. Between the poetic cosmos and the desert plains of western spaghetti, Bionight draws a musical structure, semi cosmic semi progressive. Rolling percussions, synth with ethereal singing exercises and with catchy melody, Return to Earth opens Back to Orion with harmony and rhythm. Sinus Iridium is more spatial. A beautiful carousel of keys swirls hypnotically, as a soft cosmic bolero, on a melancholic synth. Statics, the movement remains not less interesting until a drum and a heavy bass line confers a sensual movement seizing on a synth to ghostly breaths. A very beautiful piece of music. Purely ambient, Floating Thoughts flows with a cosmic fantasy printed by nostalgia. Moon Rocks wears well its title with a robust rhythmic approach where heavenly voices accompany a harmonious synth. Some Space Art, version 2009. A good track which draws the attention rather quickly, quite as the boiling Falling and its neurotic sequences on a well structured cosmic universe. More complex, Little Gravity multiplies the sequential keys in a whirlwind staccato, supported by a synth with discreet breaths. A line of bass and some cosmic sound effects coat this static movement which spawns on a sequence in waterfall. Epic track of Back to Orion, Ride on the Moon introduces us into the various spheres of EM where the gliding moves mix smoothly to hard-hitting rhythms. Behind a solitary and wavy synth is outlining a sequence with frenetic jerks. A particular rhythmic paradox, the intro progresses through a synth with symphonic waves, encircled by a bluesy kind line of and unbridled percussions, while mellotrons choirs try to drill this disorderly sound wall. We are in a sphere of electronic jazz which quietly eases to revisit the spatial ways and resume a more balanced rhythmic but always so harmonious." Sylvain Lupari Original French version: "Back To Orion est le 3ième volet de la trilogie Bionight. Ici, comme sur The Rain is Over, les deux compères offrent un album eurythmique où les effluves d’une Berlin School rétro marinent avec une modernité digitale et une approche prog rock, sans jamais altérer la fusion d’une mélodie teintée d’un romantisme nostalgique qui anime ces deux amis de longue date. Les premiers accords de Return to Earth nous mettent en appétit. De fins arpèges hésitants flottent dans une nébulosité synthétisée, avant de fondre en un mouvement séquentiel sphéroïdal où le rythme se moule à un synthé harmonieux. Entre le cosmos poétique et les plaines désertiques d’un western spaghetti, Bionight dessine une structure musicale semi cosmique, semi progressive. Percussions roulantes, synthés aux vocalises éthérées et à la mélodie accrochante, Return to Orion ouvre Back to Orion avec harmonie et rythme. Sinus Iridium est plus spatial. Un beau carrousel d’accords tournoie hypnotiquement, comme un doux boléro cosmique, sur un synthé mélancolique. Statique, le mouvement n’en demeure pas moins intéressant jusqu’à ce qu’une batterie et une lourde basse lui confère un mouvement sensuel saisissant sur un synthé aux souffles fantomatiques. Un très beau morceau. Purement ambiant, Floating Thoughts coule avec une fantaisie cosmique empreint de nostalgie. Moon Rocks porte bien son titre avec une solide approche rythmique où voix célestes accompagnent un synthé harmonieux. Du Space Art version 2009. Un bon morceau qui attire l’attention assez rapidement, tout comme le bouillant Falling et ses séquences névrotiques dans un univers cosmique bien structuré. Plus complexe, Little Gravity multiplie les accords séquentiels en un tourbillon staccato, appuyé d’un synthé aux souffles discrets. Une ligne de basse et des effets sonores cosmiques viennent enrober ce mouvement statique qui fraye sur une séquence en cascade. Pièce épique de Back to Orion, Ride on the Moon nous introduit dans les différentes sphères de la MÉ où le planant côtoie les rythmes percutants. Derrière un synthé solitaire et ondulant se dessine une séquence aux sautillements frénétiques. Paradoxe rythmique particulier, l’intro progresse au travers un synthé aux ondes symphoniques, cernées par une ligne de basse assez ‘’bluesy’’ et des percussions débridées, alors que des chœurs mellotronnés tentent de percer cette muraille sonore désordonnée. Nous sommes dans une sphère de jazz électronique qui, tranquillement, s’atténue pour revisiter les voies spatiales et reprendre une rythmique plus pondérée mais toujours aussi harmonieuse." Sylvain Lupari To visit this website click HERE