On October 24th Ardua Music will unveil Ars Onirica's new EP of dreaming doom, 2.5 Nighttime

Ars Onirica began life in 2003 in Rome, a full, five piece band who produced just one demo before fading back into the darkness. It wasn’t until 2018 that Alessandro Sforza resurrected the band name and Ars Onirica started its second life, as a solo project. A first album, I: Cold, was released in 2019 and then in 2022 II: Lost followed, an excellent album that really began to establish the Ars Onirica name. II: Lost rightly garnered much critical acclaim from the metal press, with Musipedia Of Metal noting how “affecting and filled with emotion” Alessandro’s compositions were. Now, nearly three years on from the release of II: Lost, the next chapter in Ars Onirica’s story is here - an EP rather than a full album, but still overflowing with priceless treasures - 2.5 Nighttime is a potent and powerful display of Ars Onirica’s unique magic.

Beginning with the immersive and transportative ‘Dusk (An Ode To The Stars)’ you are immediately drawn into Ars Onirica’s world of dreaming doom. The three parts of ‘Nighttime’ follow, each distinctly different yet each so clearly intertwined. Warmth and wide-eyed wonder flow smoothly into majestic power and fiery, impassioned vocals; spiralling melodies cascade down into darkly shadowed urgency and the contrasts of light and shade, power and poignancy are woven masterfully together. Alessandro’s guitar playing is superb and both the harsh and clean vocals are of exceptional quality. After the tumultuous wonders of ‘Nighttime’ – parts I – III – the EP closes with the beautiful sunrise of ‘Dawn’, the sorceries of dreams drifting away with the starlight in a fabulously realised conclusion. To dismiss 2.5 Nighttime as ‘just an EP’, would be a grave mistake, as Alessandro Sforza has forged something rare and precious, a collection of songs that will shine for years to come, an intrinsic part of Ars Onirica’s unique tale.

Ardua Music will unveil 2.5 Nighttime’s singular enchantments on October 24th, adorned in the breathtaking artwork of Disturbing Grace Design – imagery that speaks with the same voice as the remarkable music within. The EP was recorded, mixed and mastered at Blue Ocean Recording Studio by Alessandro Sforza and Lorenzo Carlini of Black Therapy and Invernoir, who also worked on I: Cold and II: Lost and the palette of sound that they have captured is just perfect for these layered and vibrant songs. Be ready to enter the world of dreams once more as the door to Ars Onirica’s kingdom opens again as the Autumn leaves begin to fall.