Illusions of time is the new musical project of the duo composed by Maria de San Juan and Simon Kay. Fast-paced guitar rhythms for him, English, and Spanish blood and tradition for her, born in Madrid, merge into the notes of songs with folk and blues sounds.
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The meeting between the two happened for the first time in the fall of 2012 in the province of Varese, where both played in the band Border Crossing, a group founded by Simon and characterized by the international scope among the members coming from all over the world: in addition to Spain and UK also Italy, Belgium, Bulgaria, Finland and the United States.
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After a few years, however, Simon leaves the band and Italy to move to Belgium. In the meantime, Maria, at her first experience as a singer in a band, composes the music and records together with More Than Indie Records (MIR) the debut album of Border Crossing: Time Remains.
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Later, Maria also settled in Belgium, in Brussels. Here the musical partnership with Simon resumes, but this time under the name of Illusions of Time, title chosen by the duo also for one of their songs.
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English, Spanish and Italian, music speaks a universal language and so do the songs written by Maria, grouped together in the EP "Rivage" (MIR). In French the word Rivage means "landing point on the bank of a river, shore", a concept that serves to encapsulate the songs that tell, with sensitivity and delicacy, the everyday life in the Belgian city in the heart of Europe, as in "Al mal tiempo" and "Sainte-Catherine", or "Todo da igual", inspired by the lock-down period.
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But for Simon and Maria, music also means sharing. Indeed, Maria, author of lyrics and music, wrote the songs with the important contribution of her husband, Michiel Cherlet, and friends, such as Cecilia Nono, bassist of Border Crossing, who collaborated to the writing of the lyrics of the song "Due Donne".