ALESSANDRO CORTINI

Volume Massimo MUTE

7/10

Lush electronics from Nine Inch Nails keys prodder

Alessandro Cortini is best known as the hunky keyboardist in Nine Inch Nails, but as a solo artist the Italian composer has amassed a formidable body of work. Volume Massimo, his seventh solo album since 2013 and first for Mute, is another graceful tug-of-war between sentimental melody and muscular noise, notable on “Amaro Amore” and “Let Go” for Cortini’s exquisite sound design and increasing interest in the pop form. At its best, Cortini’s powerelectronics has a tactile, sculptural quality – his early Forse trilogy might be hewn from granite – but there’s a softening here that allows for candid cuts such as “La Storia”.