Antoni Maiovvi : Psychonaut

Listening to Antoni Maiovvi’s brand new album Psychonaut is a visceral experience. It seems to embody all those darkly perfect musical twists and turns we’ve come to love from the horror score/Giallo Disco/imagined soundtrack provocateur. Ominous ambient pieces, sweaty disco synth, and beautifully built synth pop all wrapped up in an all-encompassing musical journey.

Maiovvi has been releasing masterfully curated albums for years now. From imagined scores(Shadow Of The Bloodstained Kiss, Before & After The Bomb) to actual film scores(Housewife, Cuckoo) – as well as music under Antoni Maiovvi & ANTA – Maiovvi seems to have one main drive in life and that is to make music that opens a portal to a simpler, seedier time in music and cinema. And his curation of revered record label Giallo Disco Records puts him at nearly saint status at this point.

With Psychonaut Antoni Maiovvi builds a sonic world where we the listener leave the real world at the door. In its place is a visceral sound experience where nostalgia combines with modern touches, creating this hazy, mysterious album that engulfs you into a world familiar and alien at the same time.

This album has all the ingredients to get truly lost in Maiovvi’s latest musical narrative. “Opening” is ominous yet alluring. Synth notes ache in the air, bringing to mind everything from Charles Bernstein to This Mortal Coil to John Harrison. It’s our portal into Maiovvi’s musical world. “Let The Weapon Come To You” is sinister early 80s synth pop through and through. Electronic drums and synth lines come together in a blur of early Ministry and Depeche Mode, leaving arterial spray on the dance floor. The heavy, humid mood of “Immeasurable Tension” brings to mind Mark Korven’s The Lighthouse score in the best way possible. You can cut the vibe with a straight razor it’s so thick.

The record ebbs and flows between the caustic moods of early 80s slashers, ambient interludes, and the absolute beauty of dreamy synth pop. “Glyph” takes a moment to pull us from the shadowy, humid vibes that came before while “Atomized” brings quiet contemplation with its piano-driven melody. “In Pursuit of Pleasure” has the hedonistic sway of an 80s underground dance club in some sleazy corner of Chicago’s north side, while “Punishment Sequence” gives us some early NIN vibes.

One of my personal favorites is the dreamy, eloquent “A Million Monarchs”. It’s a gorgeous, melancholy piece that wavers between sadness and a sort of resigned peace to whatever fate lies ahead. It’s a brilliant bit of work.

Psychonaut is a fascinating and engaging record. Whether you piece together a sort of concept behind the music or you just listen as if finding some lost music relic from the 80s, this album works on many levels. It also goes to prove that there is none more capable of such an imagined musical feat than the maestro, Antoni Maiovvi.

‘Psychonaut’ is out now. Buy it digitally or on limited edition vinyl via NewRetroWave.