MY CAT IS AN ALIEN - "Leave me in the Black No-Thing" CD (Important Records)

"Leave me in the Black No-thing finds the brothers Opalio in a much colder, lightless and bleak mood than there normal intergalactic trips into sound. This feels like a trip inside a black void deep in spaces changing seas, or a trip into inner space, trawling and drifting though the darken shore of ones self.
As well as the tone been greyer and almost monochrome for much of the playing time, they add in more subdued noise like elements- muffled and strained static and dark psychedelic synth eruptions. Making their first none space influenced cover artwork seem very apt with it's black and white pictures. But dont let that make you think this is any less detailed sonically or complete involving as their other work, it's just the grimmer side of space. This time the album is spit into two long pieces, both nearing the half an hour mark. Both tracks start off very lightless and the feeling off spinning in an nothing void, but as they progress more depth and shades of grey are added, almost the feeling of contemplation glide in towards the end of each track. As if your spirit is calm with-in the shifts of grey though to black and white space.
A very rewarding and different take on My Cat is An Alien sound, An album that offers up new depths and detail of the every turn void with each replay. Really another masterpiece."
(Roger Batty, January 2007, Musique Machine)

PRAXINOSCOPE - "Epocsonixarp" LP / CD-R (Opax Records)

"This ltd release is a collaboration between one half of My Cat is an Alien Robert Opalio and Ramona Ponzini of Painting Petals On Planet Ghost. It Finds the pair investigating more earth bound and richly meditative structures than My Cat Is an Alien.
The album consists of wonderful rich and warm and sometimes playful 30 minute track, which is built around handmade wooden percussion, Japanese bells, Wind Chimes, toy piano and strange looped chanted vocals courtesy of Robert Opalio. It just feels so soothing and calming, the various sounds slowly shift and merging to make a wonderful futile rhythmic and ambient journey. I guess you can hear traces of drone music, world music and toy town musically explorations, but they managed to make it very much of their own soothing sound, with its captivating, delicate and intricate tones. It seems to become more haunted and less playfully as the track progresses streached out certain tones, with other baying and calling ,bellow them like strange spoken voices from the other side.
Yet another very rewarding My Cat is an Alien related releasers. Really it beggars belief that they seem unable to put not a foot wrong at present, when you look at the prolific nature of there releases. Go and get this before there all gone just here [www.mycatisanalien.com]."
(Roger Batty, December 2006, Musique Machine)

MY CAT IS AN ALIEN - "Greetings from the Great Void" 2xLP / CD (Eclipse Records)

"Greetings From The Great Void finds us once more drifting and invesgating strange star systems via the Opalio brothers intergalactic rich droning come (off) world music. From the openers cascading star tunnel tones right untill the last moments of the exit tracks melancholy ritual space float, your utterly transfixed and lost in the sounds here.
The album seems almost deeper and more meditative than there other albums . It's like looking a endless star corridor or a slowly swirling black hole, that just seems to stretch on further than the eye can see. Other parts seem to conjure up visions of a visit to a strange blue and purple planet, it's a expanse of blue sand deserts and water logged jungles, plant live slow untangling and tangling it's self. The planet is inhabited by a deeply religious people who live in strange black wood huts above the watery jungle floor. The slowly turning sad early Tangerine Dream drones of Here on a sad planet, seem to indicate an escape from a dieing planet, as it spins off towards a huge sun. Next The title track mixes slowly unfolding medative air, licked by the sound of water and strange alien hovering chants which almost seem to be calling to you, as your craft touches down into the canopy of the jungle. As the track develops it becomes denser, as if your been led from your craft out into a tapestry of different shaped and coloured faces, strange birds chatter and hover above you. Near half way point the sound becomes less opening - you feeling like your been led into a vast hall, as slowly ominous percussion unfolds and sinister folds of guitar and space instruments echo. Soon the percussion and other elements become more hectic and almost frantic as the halls walls are twitching and sucking in and out. As the track exits your led back out of the hall into the calmer world of the jungle. And that's just the first tow tracks ?!.
The rest of the album is made up of another tow shorter tracks at 5 minutes a piece, and another large painted sound canvas of near on 25 minutes which is a return to less grounded terrority and more endless space floating as spacey gitar tone unfolding on for every. I wont say anymore, as it'll ruin your own personal jouney into the stars. But trust me if you enjoy drone, ambient or rich sound world recordings, you to need to buy this now. Yet another perfect star lined trip. To buy direct and find more about the band drift into this star system."
(Roger Batty, November 2006, Musique Machine)

My Cat is an Alien - Cosmic light of the third Millennium (Important Records)

My Cat Is An Alien are purveyors of fine space music, utilizing guitar, percussion and space toys (what ever they may be). They managed to create without a synthesizer base, something akin to a more droney early Tangerine Dream. Let's say if you enjoyed Tangerine Dream's three early albums, you'll lap this up. This is wonderful heady, long form space music.
The albums made up of three tracks in all Cosmic light of the Third Millennium sections one to three. The first two tracks are the meat of the album weighing in at near the 20 minute length each, the last track feels more like an outro at six minutes. Section one starts with quiet guitar pickings, but as the sound grows, an eastern like droning element emerges, which sounds if it's made by guitar harmonics. As the track develops, it's almost like you've been drifting over a vast desert planet and your coming closer to the planet. Though the green cloud atmosphere, down towards the planets surface. A wonderfully sinister, alien sound pattern evolves, the planet itself is giving out pulses of strange light. Percussion elements appear, and now on the horizon you can see a sea of twisting and turning multi-limbed creatures coming towards you, as you drift lower and lower. Their body altering shape as they move through the pulses of light, they seem to be getting closer as you touch down on the planet's surface- they throw strange tools from limb to in a most bizarre way- many eyed heads lulling on reptile shoulders, and every eye is looking at you. This is indeed a very potent sound world. As the track exits xylophone tones enter, it's like they've finally got to where you stand now. Their shape shifting limbs twitching over and exploring your body.
Section two starts off slowly again with limited percussion hits and very quiet sounds - difficult to really make out what's going on. Slowly but surely it starts to build up, with toylike tones and guitar tapings. This feels like you're now being tied to a strange stretcher, that seems to be alive. Its pulse rippling under you. As the track goes on you become dragged near and near to their settlement, as more broken guitarelements emerge and an alien drone ripple cascades. The walls of the buildings are lined with flapping tentacles, which seem to emit odd sounds. You are brought towards the town square, which seems to consist of a vast mirrored, hexagon-like shape, as the sounds get busier. You are slipped off the stretcher and on to the mirror shape. As you are dropped on to it, you sink slightly into its jellylike skin. Now your head is filled with very strange half formed images. You can hear your pulse in your ears and are aware of your twitching limbs, alive with violent pumping of blood, you seem to pass out. As you dream, you float on golden water, pretty musical tinklings surrounding you as the track exits. The air seems so fresh and tranquil and your body floats apart as the track exits in audio bliss.
Section three starts with vibrating drones of hypnotic guitar, it feels like your coming around. You're back on the planets surfaces, the creatures are twisting and turning away from you, and the track leaves you with a strange longing both beautiful and some how deeply sad, at the same time, as the guitar drones intermingle, into a mass of cold sound.
Without a doubt an audio trip worth taking, just lay back on the bed headphones in place, and My Cat Is An Alien will take you away to strange new worlds.
(Roger Batty, May 2006, Musique Machine)