Cosmic Room 99 interview: ‘DIY definitely is our motto’
Cosmic Room 99
In 2022, a new Italian music project called Cosmic Room 99 was born. Founded by Antonio Angeli and Matteo Scarpa—both known from the successful Kill Your Boyfriend—along with Diego Menegaldo (formerly involved with New Candys), the trio released their promising self-titled debut album on Shyrek, Little Cloud Records, and Sister 9 Recordings at the end of 2024. Their music is a fusion of Post-Punk, Shoegaze, and even a touch of Krautrock. The songs take listeners on an immersive musical journey that is difficult to resist. I had a chat with the three musicians, who shared more insights about this exciting new project. (Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)
Q: How did you come together, and what led to the formation of Cosmic Room 99? Musically, what does this new project offer that you couldn’t fully express with your other band(s)?
Antonio: The friendship that binds us to Diego has lasted for many years now. This was the key that triggered in us the desire to try to work together on something different from our other projects. The music that came out of it is a good mix of our sensibilities without stylistic preconceptions.
Diego: I’ve always been a fan of Kill Your Boyfriend, and of their great taste in mixing dark sounds, gloomy atmospheres, sharp guitars, bass that stimulates the audience to move. Musically Cosmic Room 99 is a meeting of two worlds somehow similar, it was really stimulating to also combine the psychedelic and dreamy part with the slightly more ‘Pop’ voices and the choirs. The voices are more central, all three of us sing and this is a prerogative that we would like to maintain for the future. The result is a dreamlike world with chiaroscuro traits that were sometimes raw, which was what I dreamed of.
Matteo: We have known Diego and we have been friends for many years. We have always liked his musical attitude. When the possibility of creating a project together that differed from our usual musical paths arose we did not let it slip away.
Q: How did the collaboration and songwriting process for your debut album unfold? Did you have a specific vision or sound in mind from the start, and were there particular influences that shaped it?
Matteo: Antonio and I have had a consolidated method for years in writing songs at least as far as Kill Your Boyfriend is concerned. The addition of the variable Diego allowed us to change our path by introducing sounds and melodies that were not usually ours. The ‘sound’ of Cosmic Room 99 came out naturally things if it were there ready to wait for us.
Diego: The writing process personally surprised me and fascinated me; the initial ideas came from all three of us and all three of us worked on every single aspect, contaminating each other. I do not deny that some incipits have been completely distorted over time, the process consisted of stripping the initial idea down to the bone. Then we reassembled it giving a new look that, at times, remained more faithful, at other times instead gave a completely new and decidedly better cut.
Antonio: Fortunately, all three of us have the possibility of recording at home using technologies once unimaginable. This allows us to begin to think about a song starting from a solid idea of sounds and structure. Many of the parts recorded at home then also end up on the records.
Q: Launching a new project always comes with challenges. How do you reflect on the journey so far? What were the biggest obstacles in creating and finalizing this debut?
Diego: To date the journey is still in its early stages but, despite having only taken a few steps, we have already collected some satisfactions (e.g. a spot on BBC 6 Radio in the program curated by Iggy Pop). The goal is to bring our music throughout and be able to embrace you all.
Antonio: Launching a new band is first of all a challenge with yourself and we can say we have won this by producing an album that we are very proud of. Perhaps the biggest obstacle is the fear of starting from scratch despite having a background with established bands.
Matteo: It is always an important test to succeed in establishing yourself with a new band in the music scene, especially in this last period where anyone can create music through the latest technological developments. The album for us is a ‘gem’ and we trust that we can achieve all the goals we have set ourselves thanks also to the help and support of all those who believed in us, starting from the labels Sister9 Recordings, Little Cloud Records and Shyrec, and reaching all the fans.
Q: Is there a specific meaning behind the band name and the self-titled debut album? What inspired the lyrics, and how do they compare in importance to the music itself?
Matteo: The band’s name, Cosmic Room 99, was inspired by a documentary called “The Cosmic Room,” which tells the story of NATO employee Bob Cohen accidentally discovering a top-secret plan to annihilate part of the world’s population to maintain Earth’s sustainability. The number 99 in numerology represents someone who uses their gifts to make the world a better place, encapsulating the band’s ethos.
Antonio: In the debut album what transpires is a sort of revenge against life, trying not to be overwhelmed or annihilated by the superstructures of modern society that surround us -such as work, the pursuit of pleasure or the pursuit of material wealth. What is wanted to highlight in the lyrics is reflected in the music that follows where there is room for dreamy refrains, at times rarefied and at times tight atmospheres, dynamic screams of rebellion and great reverbs that season everything in a psych-shoegaze key.
Q: You’ve been busy planning live shows so what can audiences expect from Cosmic Room 99 on stage? Will there be notable differences between the studio recordings and live performances, and can fans look forward to new, unreleased material?
Antonio: Personally, live concerts are the part I prefer in the whole process. Physically seeing the audience’s reaction to what you have created with perseverance is priceless… and since I was a child I have always wanted to play live as much as possible. Sitting around doing nothing is a waste of time and, in fact, we are already creating the songs that will make up what will be the second album.
Diego: The live set is basic, bass, drums, a guitar and 3 voices. We use some backing tracks but they are mostly synth drones and small details, the songs are therefore faithful to the album and all the main parts are played. Obviously the attitude changes; the live impact is increasingly full of energy and allows us to bring out even more markedly the Punk vein. We like to interact as much as possible with the audience which is precisely the plus that completes the Quadro. The best thing is to eliminate the distance and the detachment between the audience and the stage.
Matteo: For me too, the live aspect is important (perhaps the best part of our work as you get an immediate response from the audience). The live songs are very similar to the album, having used classical instruments in the recordings. We hope to let you hear as soon as possible the new material.
Q: You’ve also put a lot of effort into creating music videos. What message or atmosphere are you aiming to convey through them? And finally, what are your future plans for this project and your other musical endeavors?
Antonio: DIY is our motto. This applies to music and everything that comes with it such as videos, single covers, photos, etc. As for our videos, sometimes they follow the meaning of the lyrics of the song while other times they can follow the aesthetics of the band. In the near future we have a series of other promotional concerts for the debut album and, speaking of the other reality I am part of, a new EP by Kill Your Boyfriend will be released in a split version on 12” vinyl with a band of our friends from Manchester Neu Oscuro on May 9th via Sister9Recordings.
Diego: We believe that music should be valued in all aspects, we spend a lot of time on it but we consider it well invested to provide a complete and fun experience in order to reach the audience in the best possible way. We like that each aspect is coordinated and faithful to the concept of the album. Each video or cover is in any case unique, it is tailor-made for each other for this reason but it has a common thread. The last video released is “Atmosphere” which ends precisely with suspension points… follow us for further developments!
Matteo: We manage to create all the content related to the band by ourselves. Luckily, each of us brings different technical skills and artistic sensibilities that allow us to produce all the multimedia content we need. Our plan for now is to try to play live as much as possible and finish composing our second album. Furthermore, as Antonio writes, a new EP by Kill Your Boyfriend will be released soon, heralded by a couple of singles (the first single “Obsession” has been released on March 14th) that we can’t wait to let you hear.
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