My Cat Is an Alien
What Space Is Made For
The monumental set 'What Space Is Made For' has been recorded in their secret base on the Western Alps, and unlike MCIAA's previous works, it's mostly made of short pieces and songs. In addition to their (un)usual instrumentation (electric and acoustic guitars, space toys, percussion), MCIAA have self-made, modified, and assembled / disassembled primitive electronic equipment. So the result may sound their most 'experimental' as well as their most 'accessible' work to date. An alternate edit of …
S/T
"2 psyched-out sides from the collaboration between mighty Aliens and Norways own answer to Hall & Oates - Bjerga/Iversen. These sides are boiled down from about 2+ hours worth of material recorded last summer in the stunning alpine village of Luserna San Giovanni, just outside of Torino, Italy.Space electronics, weightless freestyle strings, buzzing voices from the outer heliospheres and garbled and warped messages from the great beyond handed down on recycled trashcan tapes.... celestial harmo…
Photoelectric Season
After a period of mystic retreat in a remote region of the Western Alps, MCIAA return with a brand new double album, one of their most innovative and mysterious to date. During six months of physical and psychic isolation, the Opalio brothers's unique plays have been Giacinto Scelsi, Erik Satie and Maki Asakawa, while they have chosen as their sole mates writers August Strindberg and Isidore Ducasse compte de Lautréamont. Few words can de…
Black Shadows from Jupiter, Vol. I & II
Double CD featuring the previously unreleased 'stereo version' of Volume One, plus an entire second disc of new material presented here as Volume Two. 'Black Shadows from Jupiter, Volume I' was indeed issued in 2005 as one of the legendary and ultra-rare, private vinyl editions by Opalio brothers' own Opax Records imprint, pressed in 120 copies in 'Monalien Fidelity' - a clear reference/tribute to ESP's incredible 'monaural' sound record…
\'Live @ Sensational Fix
On June 17, 2008, the exhibition Sonic Youth etc.: Sensational Fix openedat LiFE in Saint-Nazaire, France, with a focus on their multi-disciplinary activitiessince 1981 collaborations with visual artists, filmmakers, designers,and musicians, as well as other works selected by the band.As part of the exhibition project, My Cat Is An Alien performed on stagewith their long-time collaborator Ramona Ponzini (Painting Petals OnPlanet Ghost, Black Magic Disco, Z ev) singing Japanese, Michael Mo…
Cosmic Debris, Vol.III
CD re-issue of the third installment in the "Cosmic Debris" split ART-LP series set up by Maurizio and Roberto Opalio, aka My Cat Is An Alien, on their own Opax Records. The Vol.III sees the two space brothers from Torino, Italy, alongside Japanese cult musician and dark shaman Keiji Haino. Imagine a cosmic bomb exploding in your brain, and you'll have an approximate idea of this collaborative release. So, …
The Cosmological Eye Trilogy
They call their home studio the Space Room; they name their pieces after galaxies and nebulas; and their cat appears to be an alien. Please act surprised when you learn that this duo from Torino, Italy, plays space music -- not your ordinary brand, though: experimental space music. Maurizio Opalio and Roberto Opalio are exploring the cosmos through epic improvised journeys involving astral percussion, electric astral guitar drones, and space toys. Their territory is somewhere past the fringes of…
Mort aux vaches
Packaged in a three-panel lenticular sleeve. Artwork & concept by Staalplaat. Limited edition of 500 copies.
There\'s A Flame ___ Sometimes
MY CAT IS AN ALIEN is the improv duo formed by the brothers MAURIZIO and ROBERTO OPALIO from Torino, Italy, in late 1997. They both primarily play electric and acoustic guitars, various toy-instruments and voice toy-microphones, percussions.
Cosmic Debris, Vol.V
The fifth and final volume in the "Cosmic Debris" series of split ART-LP releases set up by the Opalio brothers, aka MY CAT IS AN ALIEN (MCIAA), on their own Opax Records, ends up at its best with the space duo sharing the vinyl surface with the legendary avant-blues guitarist Loren M. Connors. Connors, who can be considered as the last real bluesman on earth, has the rare ability to turn single guitar chords into pure poetry, and don't you think we all need more of that in these dark days? The …
On air at Sound Projecting
The entire recording of the improvised live performance at Ed Pinsent’s "Sound Projecting" radio show, broadcasted by London’s Resonance 104.4 fm on December 10th 2004. In these sessions MCIAA don’t play their usual cosmic guitars, but only a couple of space toys & toy-microphones, plus a pocket theremin & mini-casio provided by Pinsent on the occasion; also featuring Pinsent himself at turntables. A different aspect of MCIAA’s experimental research, as well as a new amazing adventure through th…
There\'s a flame___sometimes
New Opax edition of this key-work, recorded in Fall 2003 at the glorious MCIAA's Space Room studio which was based in an abandoned factory zone in Torino, Italy, and where all the Opalio brothers' first recordings saw the light! Based on a spoken-word poem whispered by Roberto Opalio over the space brothers' subtle texture of percussions, guitars and electronics, and now newly available in two lavishly packaged vinyl editions. Vinyl with handwritten labels, in handmade heavy cardboard folder jac…
Alien Blood
Original soundtrack from Roberto Opalio's film 'Alien Blood' (2005-2008), currently shown at SONIC YOUTH etc.: SENSATIONAL FIX museum exhibition, opened at LiFE museum (France) in June 2008, and already scheduled around the globe for the next couple of years. The improvised score by My Cat Is An Alien follows the minimal and surrealistic beginning of the film with sparse echoes of eerie sounds, growing in dark timbres and pathos. Maurizio Opalio's heavily effected 'blood percussions' compress th…
Different Shades Of Blue
This release is the reissue of the original one, once released in different form, as a limited edition cd-r on Tom Greenwood's U-Sound Archive (Vol. 19). Improvisation recorded on February 12th, 2004 at MCIAA's Space Room, Torino, Italy (no overdubs/ no outtakes). This new vinyl edition is a different version, remastered and re-edited of "Different shades of Blue". Furthermore, this special edition will include also the un-edited artwork originally made by Roberto Opalio and completely inspired …
From The Earth To The Spheres Vol. 6
My Cat Is An Alien also share a split CD with Turntable-manipulator Christian Marclay and cellist Okkyung Lee, and it is their live collaboration “Rubbing” that opens the album. Full of disjointed sounds, scratches and stabs of cello, the piece is a rollercoaster of sonic experimentation, the two players complementing each other to create a wonderfully playful piece of music. After A tentative sounding opening “Beyond The Limit Of The Stars/Beyond The Limit Of The Grooves” Slowly begins to becom…
The Secret of the Dancing Snow
Another voyage into the inky blackness with the cosmos-loving Italians and another gem. MCIAA have gone from making dronescapes that were merely beautiful to listen to (merely!) to vast vistas of sound that seem to exert an almost gravitational pull into their depths. This opens with Roberto Opalio's parched vocal trances and the calming ching of Oriental bells and builds into a soporific sea of echoing guitar notes with bells rippling through it like a warm wind. For some reason, the line from …