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The Alisa Coral story began somewhere in the late 90s in Moscow when she played bass and keyboards in a variety of local heavy-metal bands. That music appeared to stifle Alisa, and she pursued a solo career in 2001. Few recordings were produced at her newly equipped home-studio. It was a surprising departure from metal intensity and from guitar-oriented music in general. Instead, she worked primary with synthesizers, creating cold, sorrowful and sometimes sinister ambience not so far from gothic-industrial and post-industrial exercises. In August 2002, SPACE MIRRORS were born, an “Infernal Apocalyptic Space Rock” duo of Alisa Coral and Australian guitarist Michael Blackman (ALIEN DREAM) which put out a string of remarkably intense albums with internationally acclaimed guest-performers: multi-instrumentalist Arjen Lucassen (AYREON, STAR ONE), bassist Martin Litmus (LITMUS), vocalists Metatron (THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL) and Martyr Lucifer (HORTUS ANIMAE), saxophonist Nik Turner (of HAWKWIND and SPACE RITUAL fame) among others. Launched in 2008, Alisa Coral’s newest project PSI CORPS lies somewhere in between various aesthetics: dark rock, kraut rock, progressive rock, experimental and cinematic ambient.
Alisa Coral is also a sound engineer and sound producer for various bands and projects. She has been working with KALUTALIKSUAK, VESPERO, RUSHUS, THE LUST, JET JAGUAR (USA), and GUILD NAVIGATORS (USA). Bands and artists interested in cooperation can contact Alisa at SPACE MIRRORS official homepage.
Psi Corps / All Roads Lead to Amber. Parts I&II (2010) / CD $11.00
PSI CORPS' new studio album is inspired by Roger Zelazny's first two books from “The Amber Chronicles” and continues Alisa Coral’s original “soundtrack-to-book” concept. “It’s quite logical for me to do a Zelazny album after the Poe album since Zelazny was a fan of the Poe's style, especially the poetic side… The Amber Chronicles is a rather dark fantasy, and this fits perfectly the Psi Corps’ dark Lovecraftian atmosphere…” – tells Alisa. All Roads Lead To Amber consists of two parts: “The Siege of Amber” (with 4 tracks) and “Along the Black Road” (5 tracks). Each track relates to certain events of the book, and the music, with all its rhythm and mood breaks and changes, tends to reflect what’s going on in the book. Everything was recorded by Alisa Coral (bass, effects, theremin, synthesizers, drums) and Charles Van de Kree of JET JAGUAR (electric and acoustic guitars, guitar synth, synthesizers, detuned glockenspiel) with a little help from Arkady Fedotov of VESPERO (add. bass), and then thoroughly assembled by Alisa at her KZI Studio in Moscow. The result is far from conventional rock-metal or electronic-tinged albums. With the sonic ocean of cryptic, discrete and weird sounds, swirling vintage synthesizers, heavily processed on the edge of sanity guitars, fluid melodic patterns, stumbling organic and machine-made beats… the music sounds like a cold and brain-expanding excursion of dark-psychedelic-industrial-space-acid rock collisions. Alisa Coral unleashed another modern psychedelic-nightmare masterpiece! Artwork, layout, and photography by Kevin Sommers. (9 tracks - 61 min.)
PRESS CLIPS
"All Roads Lead To Amber is even more like a modern instrumental rock symphony based on themes of medieval-goes-fantasy images, in which there are dark and brooding settinger, evil is lurking in the dark and the protagonists fight it out with their swords. Musically we are confronted with psychedelic space rock that likes to put a lot of effect pedals onto the guitars and then round off the brooding hashmash with a bunch of synthesizers and, most remarkably, also a theremin." – by Georg Gartlgruber of Monochrom-Cracked (Austria) (September 2010).
"The listener is presented with nine well crafted, moody and atmospheric pieces that are really effective, being original in approach and sound. The album has been constructed in such a way that it doesn’t sound like it conforms to any real convention, sonically being unique, a free spirit, with its curious and strange soundscapes, but we aren’t talking avant garde here. The album works on two levels sonically for me. Quietly through headphones where you can hear all the little nuances that Psi Corps have created, dragging you into their music, with its rhythmic, trance like passages, featuring interjections of spacey, psychedelic tones, almost cinematic in approach; every note being positioned in the construction perfectly, which at first sounds odd, but is very effective. Secondly when the album is played loud, the whole dynamics of the piece just seems to change, it becomes intense, powerful, dark and menacing, the room fills with powerful sonic passages, air sculptures that swirl and twist, leaving you under no illusions that Psi Corps mean business. Alisa’s has put her experience to good use, making music that would appeal to fans of Hawkwind, Space Mirrors, Ozric Tentacles, Ayreon and Tangerine Dream. Throughout, a balance of keyboard and guitar led tracks has been maintained, one underpinning the other, coexisting in a state of unification. On the whole, the experience of hearing the instrumentation coalescing perfectly is an aural pleasure to behold. Van de Kree immense guitar work is stunning, perfectly matching Coral’s musical prowess. An easy path hasn’t been chosen here, which makes this an even more exciting prospect for the listener, the soundscapes shifting, sounding as if they are altering reality, choosing which elements to keep, and which to switch between, powerful indeed... I seriously can’t wait to see where Alisa and co. go from here. At this moment in time Russia is really turning out some high quality prog, becoming a force to be reckoned with, and an avenue that should be explored further by you good folks. (Conclusion: 8 out of 10)" – by John O'Boyle of DPRP (UK) (September 2010)."The album is split into two parts but its basically nine well crafted pieces that blend ambient atmospheric sections with heavy guitar parts and space-rock inspired synthesizers. Being more or less an concept album, the recording flows like its one long piece lasting more than a hour but don't be put off by the concept tag. Its not a self-indulgent type of album but rather a collection of great songs that blend and flow together into a flawless soundtrack that matches the visions of writer Roger Zelazny. The medi-evil fantasy themes are recreated here musically with dark, brooding themes mixed with psychedelic hypnotic sections. The music is very cinematic with sounds resembling what you would read in the fantasy inspired writings. What is also very effective is the mixture of loud and quiet parts which is perfect for both headphones or a surround-sound system, quiet parts that are both strange and unique blend well with loud sections that are dark and menacing. The use of guitar effects and spacey sounds gives everything a very spacious atmosphere and you even get the use of the theremin! The album is not too complex but its no easy-listening experience either, the constantly shifting sound-scapes and mood changes make this an challenging album to listen to but along the way there is also some powerful emotional moments that keep your attention level up to a premium. This is a album for ambient music fans as well as prog-rock fans but its the lovers of Space Rock that will mostly appreciate whats on offer on All Roads Lead To Amber. (score: 8.5/10)" – by Ed Barnard of Doommantia (USA) (September 2010).
"This latest release to come out of Russia just further confirms what I've been saying now for the past couple of years. One has got to be impressed by the amount of innovative, fresh sounding and richly rewarding music that has been filtering out of that country, especially on the RAIG label. These guys have established a stellar track record for issuing high quality, cutting edge music and you can definitely place Alisa Coral and her Psi Corps into this upper echelon of artistic genius. All Roads Lead To Amber should be considered as nothing less than essential nourishment for the soul and pure cinematic bliss for the brain. (Score: 4.5/5)" – by Ryan Sparks of Sea Of Tranquility (USA) (October 2010).
"All Roads Lead to Amber is a tour de force of spaced out psychedelic progressive rock. The music is busy and demands full attention to really absorb and appreciate all that is going on. There are multiple layers of guitars, keyboards, synths, and percussion, often going in various directions but coming together into a cohesive whole. Searing, screaming guitars combine with grinding acidic guitars, rocking hard to driving percussion. There's lots of electronics to give the music an alien vibe. And the keyboards can be symphonic at times, adding the more prog rock oriented elements to the music." – by Spaceman33 of Aural Innovations (USA) (October 2010).
The album was also reviewed at: Metal Library (Russia), Psychotropic Zone (Finland), Elitarian Music (Italy).
Psi Corps / Shadow Creatures (2010) / MP3-file
Comprising four tracks (“Through the Shadow Realms”, “Temporal Fugue - The Fight”, “Thing That Cries In The Night”, and “Skagganauk Abyss”), Shadow Creatures EP is based on the “Creatures of Light and Darkness” book by Roger Zelazny. The recording sessions began in winter 2010 but were postponed in favor of finalizing the “All Roads Lead to Amber” full-length album, another Alisa Coral’s book-based-soundtrack on R.Zelazny. The work was resumed in late spring and resulted in four down-tuned and gloomy atmospheric soundscapes which might be defined as doom-ambient. Performed, recorded, mixed and mastered by Alisa Coral (bass guitar, synths, theremin, percussion) at her KZI Studio. Artwork by Kevin Sommers. (4 tracks - 28 min.)
FREE-TO-DOWNLOAD: FMA or Bandcamp
PRESS CLIPS
"This e.p. is somewhat unique as it sees just Alisa Coral on all instrumentation this time around, predominantly bass and synths. Boy, she's done a fantastic job here. The wall of sound created is mammoth, the sheer utter power and magnitude makes it sound like the heavens being born. We are assaulted by four convoluted and layered tracks of doomy, experimental psychedelic, ambient soundscapes that bore their way into your soul, possessing your mind, menacing your cerebral cortex. Powerchords thundering their way through time and space whipped and lashed by haunting wraith like atmospheric synth passages. (score: 4.5/5)" – by John O'Boyle of Sea Of Tranquility (USA) (October 2010).
The album was also reviewed at: Metal Library (Russia).
Psi Corps / "Tekeli-li" A Soundtrack to the Adventures of A.G.Pym (2009) / CD $11.00
After three albums under the name SPACE MIRRORS, Alisa Coral launched a new musical project PSI CORPS. The debut album "Tekeli-li" was written, recorded and produced by Coral, dedicated to the memory of Edgar Allan Poe, and inspired by his novel “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket”. Michael Blackman (of ALIEN DREAM), yet another co-founder of SPACE MIRRORS, played all guitars and co-wrote several tracks. The duo has taken more experimental approach with this album, combining hard edged space-rock of the earlier works with abstract elements of cinematic music. Vocals have been completely abandoned this time as well as notable guest appearances. Coral and Blackman have amazing talent of introducing memorable synthesizer harmonies and guitar hook lines into their music. Conceived as a soundtrack, "Tekeli-li" is more focused on the scenes and characters behind a structure. As a whole, it sounds misty, obscured and rarefied, though in excitingly familiar manner. (6 tracks - 53 min.)
PRESS CLIPS
"Scoring a soundtrack to film is one thing but attempting to create images and feelings from a text can be equally, if not more challenging, but I have to say they have done a remarkable job with their music in capturing the overall feeling of Poe's writing style. Without delving into the story too much, which would be working on the assumption that the listener has read Poe's tale, the six compositions are basically titled around the actual chapters of the book. In a nutshell its based on the central character Pym, whose adventures and misfortunes at sea include shipwrecks, mutiny and cannibalism. Sound interesting? The first track 'Party at Barnard's (Is Over)' deals with Pym's drunken evening with his friend Augustus Barnard, prior to them sailing out on Pym's small boat the Ariel, which later capsizes during a violent storm at sea. The mood on this relatively composed opening piece of music perfectly sets the tone as Coral's delicate synth washes and rather erratic drum rhythm's give off the feeling of someone stumbling around in a slowly advancing state of inebriation. Whereas 'On Board the Ariel' finds the tempos picking up speed, allowing Blackman plenty of opportunity on this ten minute track to carve out some memorable and spacey guitar lines, highlighted by more of Coral's unique synth textures. Close your eyes and let this trippy music wrap firmly around the mental images of Pym and his friend being tossed about on the rough waters and you'll find yourself right there along with them. 'On Board the Grampus' signifies the duo's second adventure at sea, this time aboard the whaling ship the Grampus. Coral and Blackman's fantastic interplay, creates an ominous feeling of heightened tensions as the ship undergoes a violent mutiny which eventually results in Barnard's death. The fourth track 'Tsalal' is certainly one of the high points of this disc and quite possibly my favorite overall as well. The track begins with a brief, frantic synth passage before Coral lay's down an infectious tribal sounding electronic drum pattern, and Blackman seriously kicks things up a notch with a plethora of searing leads and equally scorching slide work. This engaging composition shifts gears a few times but the duo keeps the gloriously intense, psychedelic themes flowing for the full duration. The album concludes with the epic, thirteen minute title track which succeeds largely because it captures many different moods while it undergoes a myriad of various themeatic changes. Blackman's jagged guitar work is front and center once again, but Coral offsets this nicely with her spooky textures which are performed on the theremin. All in all this is another standout track and a wonderful way to draw things to a close. Psi Corps have crafted a truly masterful opening statement with Tekeli-li, as both Alisa Coral and Michael Blackman prove once again why they are at the forefront of the kraut/ prog/ space rock scene. This album has taken their creative abilities to new levels. If you've read Poe's story that's great, because here's an excuse to dust it off and perhaps revisit it while you let Tekeli-li provide some aural background accompaniment. If you haven't read it, that's no big deal, it's not like it's a prerequisite or anything that might prevent you from getting the maximum results out of the music. All you really need to do is kick back, let your creative impulses flow and allow these two splendidly talented musicians to take you away from the real world for an hour. (Score: 4,5/5)" – by Ryan Sparks of Sea Of Tranquility (USA) (May 2009).
"Highly accomplished and very well imagined suite of composition." – by Ian Abrahams of Spacerock Reviews (UK) (June 2009).
"Party At Barnard’s [Is Over]: This is the shortest piece on the album and is a dark piece that is synth layered with some odd drum beats and sounds like an opening cinematic theme tune setting the tone for the following events to unfold. On Board the Ariel: The guitar work on this track is allowed to lead with the synth and rhythm taking a background roll allowing Blackman to rock out playing some really nice guitar passages. The guitar work becomes more aggressive in approach although still melodic, carving out soundscapes, depicting Pym’s battle against the ravages of the sea in his dinghy whilst Augustus has passed out drunk, a battle he finally loses, from which they are rescued just in time by The Penguin, a returning whaling ship. On Board the Grampus: Pym and Augustus aren’t deterred after their last incident and decide to stowaway on the Grampus, another whaling vessel that is bound for the south. Due to the conditions in the hold Pym becomes increasingly comatose and delirious, which Blackman’s guitar work conveys to great effect, and is reinforced with Coral’s percussions and synth interjections throughout. Tsalal: This to me is probably the best track on the album and the one that I have played more than any of the others, as it’s just got so much soul and vibrancy. It starts of with Coral’s synth work paving the way and then kicking in with some very tribal drum beats. Blackman’s guitar then paves the way for some of his best guitar work on the whole album including some excellent slide work. Both Coral and Blackman bounce off each other whilst jamming this track out. You can just imagine them hearing this track back as a finished product, and both of them looking at each other and just having big smiles on their faces. Further South: Slow paced synth playing this time supported by some interesting guitar passages, space rock noodling, but still driven by Coral’s intense psychedelic playing, and is probably the strangest of all the tracks on the album, which if you are building soundscapes to written work is a not a bad thing. This is part of the book where Pym and co discover a labyrinth of passages in the hills with strange markings and disagree about whether these are products of artifice or natural forces. The guys make a break from the island by stealing a pirogue, and taking a native as prisoners. The boat drifts south as they encounter some strange occurrences, the native dies as a huge shrouded white figure appears before them. The novel then ends abruptly. Tekeli-li: The final and longest track on the album opens with trance style synth work rhythmic drumming, making way for more of Blackman’s guitar work. Both his lead and rhythm guitar work being of a more commercial nature but still driving, more classic than space rock at the beginning. Coral’s addition of the theremin adds an atmospheric spooky tone, leaving the listener to decide who is or what does the white figure symbolise? I have my thoughts, and no doubt you’ll have yours. This is another very strong track and very fitting ending to the album. On the balance Psi Corps have recorded a very good and well produced album that dotted all the I’s and crossed all the T’s. The subject matter chosen has been well represented by their musical prowess, and I will definitely be searching out other recordings by these guys, and recommend others to do so, as they have certainly sparked my curiosity. As with most of these types of albums, imagery created is so important, but it is still subjective to the end user, which Psi Corps in my eyes have hit the nail square and firmly on the head. It’s not necessary a pre requisite to read Poe’s book to enjoy what has been lovingly created here, but I do personally believe that it would increase the experience. I for one will be laying my hands on a copy as this really is classic Poe. Even the art work draws you in sparking your imagination further. Throughout the whole recording nods and winks have been made to their influences, some of these being Hawkwind, Ozric Tentacles, Ayreon and Tangerine Dream, but they have still to some degree kept is sounding original. The really is a grower of an album the more you play it the more you will enjoy it. (Conclusion: 7 out of 10)" – by John O'Boyle of DPRP (UK) (March 2010).
The album was also reviewed at: Sonic Frontiers (USA), Progressive Ears (USA), DisAgreement (Luxembourg), Progressive Area (France), Metal Library (Russia), Progwereld (The Netherlands), Monochrom-Cracked (Austria), Psychotropic Zone (Finland), Psychotropic Zone's interview with Alisa Cora (Finland), Far From Moscow (USA), ProgArchives (USA), Deaf Sparrow (USA).
Alisa Coral's Neutron Star (2002/2005) / CD $11.00
“The album is a sort of soundtrack to the imaginary journey through the stars: the music reflects that happening somewhere deep in the Universe.” – Alisa on the album. Though fairly positioned as “the space synth music album in a style similar to early Tangerine Dream, Tim Blake and Harvey Bainbridge”, this is far from being just another reproduction of Klaus Schulze and Edgar Froeze sci-fi electronic legacy. Moving throughout reflective droning pieces with smooth and slow developments – some are deep sequenced and rhythmically organized, others are long on atmosphere – Alisa reveals herself as a distinctive and captivating story-telling composer. While others are more interested in demonstrating their skills in using an instrument, she concentrates on creating strange spatial textures rich in experimental timbres and sinister overtones which could refer to post-industrialism in the vein of Steve Roach or even Dirk Serries. The effect of these drifting flows is truly mesmerizing: if listeners let their attention wander for a while, they could compile a route-chart of their trip in a celestial map of the Universe. Splendid mood music lovingly re-mastered and re-issued on CD with a bonus track in 2005. (7 tracks - 75 min.). Listen to the tracks of Alisa Coral's NEUTRON STAR & FROZEN FIELDS at ReverbNation.
PRESS CLIPS
"Unlike many new age artists who aspire to capture the mysteries of the universe with sweeping layers of sampled string instruments, Alisa Coral’s combination of analog and digital synthesizers provide a texture of ominous drones, eerie modulating echoes, washes of ambient soundscapes, and sequenced blips and beeps to give a trancelike heartbeat and Voice to the expanding galaxy." – by Joseph Shingler of ProgNaut (USA) (May 2007).
The album was also reviewed at: Aural Innovations (USA), CD Services (UK), iO Pages (The Netherlands).
| Artist/Title | Media | Price |
| EP-CDR (self-released) | N/A | |
| CD-R (self-released) | N/A | |
| CD-R (self-released) | N/A | |
| CD (Atomic Age Records) | $11.00 | |
| CD (Dead Earnest Records) | $14.00 | |
| CD (Sleaszy Rider Records) | $14.00 | |
| CD (Sleaszy Rider Records) | $11.00 | |
| CD (RAIG) | $11.00 | |
| MP3-file (Accessory Takes) | free download | |
| CD (RAIG) | $11.00 |
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