Alessandro Cortini of Nine Inch Nails fame is releasing his third and final solo album under the name SONOIO (“It’s Me.”), Fine.
Cortini toured with Nine Inch Nails from 2005 to 2008 as part of the live band, playing the role of touring keyboard, guitar and bass guitar player. He was a part of the band’s “Live: With Teeth”, “Performance 2007” and “Lights In The Sky Over North/South America” tours. Cortini also contributed to the instrumental album Ghosts I-IV (receiving co-writing credits on a number of tracks), the 2008 album The Slip and features in the live DVD Beside You In Time, as well as the music videos for The Hand That Feeds and Survivalism. He left the band at the end of 2008 to pursue other projects.
Cortini later joined How To Destroy Angels, a project consisted of Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Rob Sheridan and Mariqueen Maandig, as a touring member. He remixed their single “The Spaces in Between” as SONOIO which was as the show finale for the majority of the tour. In 2013, Cortini returned to Nine Inch Nails as a touring member, and co-wrote the opening track of Hesitation Marks with Trent Reznor. He has performed with them again as recently as 2017.
Cortini has accomplished much as an independent artist. He was the frontman of Los Angeles band Modwheelmood with former Abandoned Pools guitarist Pelle Hillstrom. They have released two EPs, ? (2003) and Enemies & Immigrants (2006). In 2007, they released Things Will Change, a remix album of Enemies & Immigrants, and they released the first part of their album Pearls to Pigs, Vol. 1 on December 25, 2007 as an exclusive digital release.
Alessandro Cortini also worked with Ladytron in the production of two of their albums, Velocifero and Gravity the Seducer. in 2013 He also co-produced the second track, “We Are the Sea”, from the debut album Crystal World of Ladytron’s main singer, Marnie.
In 2010, he contributed electronic production to a song called “Birds of Prey” by Christina Aguilera, produced by Ladytron, appearing on the deluxe edition of her fourth studio album Bionic.
In 2013, he released another side project titled Forse Vol I. The double deluxe LP was pressed in an edition of only 500 copies.On July 10th, 2014, Cortini announced and released, Sonno, an instrumental album on the label, Hospital Productions.
In 2010, Cortini formed the electronic-alternative band SONOIO. His two prior albums are SONOIO Blue and SONOIO Red, released in 2010 and 2011, respectively. As SONOIO, he has also released the EP, Custom Synth.
The third and final SONOIO installment was delayed several times due to in increase in other engagements. In 2014 however, SONOIO posted the single and video for the song “Thanks For Calling” exclusively on sonoio.org and reignited rumors and hope for an album release.
Fine is being called “personal, layered and complex….achieves greatness as both a singular example of deep and inspiring pop music.” The official single “Thanks For Calling” from Fine, has been re-released and can be listened to below.
Fine will be the first SONOIO full length to be released on vinyl, and is scheduled for release on July 27th. The album art and tracklist are below.
01 I Don’t Know
02 Left
03 Thanks for Calling
04 Pieces
05 Vitamin D
06 Bad Habit
07 Under The Sea
08 What’s Before
09 I Don’t Know (Coda)