Cineplexx

The Argentinean graphic artist Sebastian Litmanovich began making recordings under the name of Cineplexx in 1997 following a life-altering stint in New York City, during which Litmanovich started his first band, the Amarena Incident. A prolific artist, Litmanovich released four albums (Comprimido, Posologia, Electrocardiograma, and Capacidad Maxima: 1 Persona) over the course of the next six years in addition to working on graphic design projects. These albums were radically different from his later work, composed of subdued, hermetic swaths of electronic noise. By the time his 2003 mini-album Pequenos Accidentes Dommesticos rolled around, however, Litmanovich's songs had more or less abandoned their remote artsiness and had transformed into acoustic and synth-driven indie pop tunes rooted in the rainbow-tinted daydreams of bands like the Flaming Lips and Magnetic Fields. Working out of his design studio in Barcelona, Litmanovich spent the next few years playing live gigs throughout Europe and putting together a new batch of sweet, dreamy pop material, which culminated in 2006's Restar. Litmanovich teamed up with a posse of high-profile indie types for his 2008 release, Picnic; the album featured appearances by Jad Fair, the BMX Bandits' Duglas Stewart, Teenage Fanclub's Norman Blake, and Federico Aubele.