Released: 2002
SCCD 344 | EAN: 8018344013442 | 
Buy CD
SCLP 344 | EAN: 8018344113449 | Buy 2LP
With Sobrenatural, Stefano Tirone officially joined the Schema Records family, finding in the label the ideal home for a musical vision that had already reached a distinctive artistic maturity. This was not a new beginning, but the natural convergence of an artist whose creative voice was already fully formed and a record label that shared the very same aesthetic philosophy.
When Sobrenatural first appeared in 2002, the language of “lounge” had already become fashionable. Record stores were filling their shelves with compilations inspired by cocktail culture, downtempo grooves and easy-listening nostalgia. Yet very few of those productions possessed a genuine musical identity. Most were built around atmosphere alone.
S-Tone Inc. had taken a different path.
Stefano Tirone’s musical journey had already begun several years earlier with three remarkable albums released on the visionary Milano 2000 label—Love Unlimited, Space Odyssey (under the Cosmorama alias) and Blue Spirit. Those recordings had already revealed an unmistakable artistic personality: sophisticated but never academic, electronic without losing the warmth of real musicians, deeply inspired by Brazilian music, jazz, soul and Italian cinematic soundtracks.
Rather than assembling samples or chasing club trends, S-Tone Inc. approached music as a composer and arranger. Every instrument had a purpose. Every harmony carried emotional weight. Every groove was built around musicianship before technology.
By the time Sobrenatural arrived, that language had reached full maturity.
Its release also marked an important milestone: it became the first official S-Tone Inc. album issued by Schema Records.
The meeting between artist and label felt almost inevitable.
Since its foundation, Schema Records had developed a distinctive musical philosophy. Jazz, Brazilian music, soul, funk, rare grooves and contemporary production were never treated as separate genres but as parts of the same cultural conversation. Instead of looking backwards with nostalgia, Schema looked at musical tradition as living material—something to reinterpret with elegance and imagination.
Sobrenatural perfectly embodied that vision.
More than an album, it became a musical passport. Paris meets Rio. London acid jazz encounters Italian film music. Baden Powell quietly converses with European chanson. American soul grooves coexist with delicate electronic textures. Nothing feels forced because every influence serves the composition rather than the concept.
Perhaps this is the true meaning behind the album’s title.
The Portuguese word Sobrenatural literally translates as “supernatural,” yet the music never suggests anything mystical. Instead, it evokes something that exists beyond ordinary musical boundaries—a place where styles, cultures and emotions dissolve into one seamless language. Not supernatural in the fantasy sense, but extraordinary in its ability to transform familiar elements into something uniquely its own.
Listening today, it is striking how contemporary the album still sounds.
Long before phrases such as organic grooves, nu-jazz, Brazilian electronica or cinematic downtempo became part of everyday musical vocabulary, S-Tone Inc. had already imagined a sound where acoustic instruments and electronic production could coexist naturally. Nothing feels dated because the album was never built around fashion. It was built around songs.
Its greatest strength lies in restraint.
There are no unnecessary virtuoso displays, no excessive production tricks, no attempt to overwhelm the listener. Instead, every arrangement breathes. Silence is allowed to exist alongside rhythm. Melody remains the emotional centre of every composition.
That sense of balance is reinforced by an outstanding group of musicians and vocalists. Laura Fedele’s elegant voice becomes one of the album’s defining colours, while Adi Souza brings an authentic Brazilian warmth that perfectly complements Stefano Tirone’s refined arrangements. Acoustic guitars, live bass, horns, flutes, keyboards and subtle electronics interact with remarkable naturalness, creating a sonic landscape that still feels luxurious more than two decades later.
Today, Sobrenatural occupies a special place not only within the S-Tone Inc. catalogue but also in the history of Schema Records. It represents the moment when a musical vision reached complete artistic maturity, offering an album that remains immune to the passing of trends.
It never tried to be fashionable.
It simply chose to be timeless.
Track Notes
In The Mood For Love
The journey begins suspended somewhere between Paris and Rio de Janeiro. French-inspired melodies float effortlessly over Brazilian rhythms while Laura Fedele’s timeless voice transforms the composition into an intimate cinematic vignette. Romantic, sophisticated and unmistakably elegant, it opens the album like the first scene of an imaginary film.
Take 4
Driven by an infectious groove, Take 4 celebrates the spirit of 1970s jazz-funk. A soaring soprano saxophone leads the melody while crisp guitar phrases and delicate flute lines dance around an irresistible rhythm section. It is vibrant, refined and unmistakably S-Tone Inc.
Rendez-vous à Minuit
Late-night sophistication distilled into music. Soft bossa nova rhythms, Wes Montgomery-inspired guitar lines and graceful scat vocals create an atmosphere of effortless elegance, evoking the feeling of an endless midnight cruise beneath warm summer skies.
Vai Ser Bom
Dedicated to Iemanjá, the Afro-Brazilian Queen of the Sea, this gentle composition unfolds with spiritual grace. Adi Souza’s expressive voice is embraced by acoustic guitars inspired by Baden Powell, creating one of the album’s most heartfelt and emotionally resonant moments.
La Boca del Rio
Acoustic bass, piano, keyboards and lush string arrangements merge with subtle house influences and Brazilian rhythms to create a sophisticated fusion of Latin jazz and contemporary groove. Rich in detail yet wonderfully relaxed, it perfectly captures the album’s cosmopolitan spirit.
Limbe
One of the album’s most evocative soundscapes. Indian-inspired sitars and tablas provide a gently psychedelic backdrop for a delicate French melody, while Laura Fedele’s velvety vocal performance adds depth, intimacy and quiet elegance.
Memphis Freeway
A joyful tribute to classic American funk. Opening with an unforgettable flute theme before expanding into bold horn arrangements worthy of the great soul orchestras of the 1970s, the track rides confidently on a deep groove anchored by an irresistible bass line.
Entre o Céu e a Terra
As its title suggests, the music constantly balances opposing forces. Spoken-word passages create dramatic tension before giving way to radiant melodies, all carried by an energetic bossa-infused rhythm that celebrates movement, contrast and light.
Effetto Notte
The closing chapter unfolds like the final sequence of a European art-house film. Gentle keyboards, orchestral textures and suspended harmonies slowly dissolve into silence, leaving the listener suspended between memory and imagination.
More than twenty years after its original release, Sobrenatural continues to remind us that truly elegant music never belongs to a single era. It belongs to those willing to listen beyond fashion, beyond categories and beyond expectations.
Some albums are rediscovered.
Others simply return home.
CREDITS
Produced and mixed by Stefano Tirone at Panorama Studio, Milan05 mixed at Rec Studio by Sergio Nachira & Stefano Tirone
Mastered at Nautilus by Antonio Baglio
S-Tone Inc. is: Stefano Tirone - keyboards, guitars and programming - with:
Laura Fedele: vocals on 01 and 06, accordion
Manuela Ravaglioli: vocals on 05, 09
Adi Souza: vocals on 04, 07
Milton Martins: vocals on 07
Marlon Marinoni: sax soprano, flute
Maurizio Albini: solo guitar on 07, rhythm guitar on 08
Fabrizio Bernasconi: piano 05 and 08, rhodes on 05
Artwork by Giulio Maini @ Disco Grafica Srl - Milan