[reviews] afe104cd
never known: live at the cosmic egg, 10.06.2000

"Live at The Cosmic Egg" is a live performance officially released on CDs (Next to "Live at Molto" and "Live in Due Acque" which were performed around the same period). It has been recently re-issued by Afe Records. It remains an important document to appreciating Andrea Marutti's ability to create achieved soundscaping improvisations built on an arsenal of various electronic effects and keyboards.

"Live at The Cosmic Egg" is a fascinating listening experience that takes the listener into a rich spacious environment that articulates the properties of sound movements, of duration and ambient aestheticism. It introduces us into a ravishing, ecstatic world of sounds, natural amplified noises that justify a mystical journey through the unknown.

It opens with the fundamental composition "Promenade" then it carries on as a spiritual-mindscaping electronic piece called "Spheres". It features long spacey synthesized lines punctuated by various micro-sounds and electronic scintillations. The music doesn't deliver bleak or desolate ambiences, it's pure cosmic electronics with an enthusiastic feel concomitant to aesthetically religious dimensions.

This astral-dreamy like voyage carries on sweet sonic soundscapes, suspenseful drones mixed with haunted electronic transmissions. It evocates the schematic division between equilibrium- foundation and energy-transformation. Some pieces feature sound materials taken from last studio releases ("On the Edge of Forever", etc).

A real imaginative live performance that tries to extract the best from the spacious context. It experiences music as a "noumenon" or music as a ritualized activity.

[Philippe Blache]