"Beyond the Illusion" is the reissue of keyboardist Stefano Panunzi's 2021 album. A Roman musician who has been working independently for over a decade, Panunzi imbues his albums with strong instrumental echoes that directly reference the works of Jansen, Barbieri & Karn, Porcupine Tree, No-Man, and King Crimson's ProjeKCts series. "Beyond the Illusion" is a moody collage of progressive influences: a work rooted in art rock and ambient jazz, cinematic soundscape and alternative rock.
On this album, Panunzi collaborated with internationally renowned artists: GRICE, Tim Bowness (No-Man), Monica Canfora, Nicola Lori (Fijeri), Cristiano Capobianco, Lorenzo Feliciati (Tiromancino, Niccolò Fabi, Pat Mastellotto, Roy Powell, Colin Edwin), Fabio Fraschini (Novembre, Zero Assoluto, Il Volo, Marina Rei), Ivan Ricchiuto, Luca Calabrese (Isildurs Bane, Richard Barbieri), Mike Applebaum (Ennio Morricone, Jovanotti, Zucchero, Tiromancino), Mike Bearpark (Tim Bowness, No-Man), Yuri Croscenko, Davide Alivernini, Gavin Harrison (Porcupine Tree, King Crimson, The Pineapple Thief), and Dario Vero (orchestrator, conductor, and soundtrack composer).
