WINTER ALWAYS TURNS INTO SPRING

 After a long hiatus, in 2002 Agorà came to life again on the initiative of original members Ovidio Urbani (sax), Renato Gasparini (guitar), Mauro Mencaroni (drums) and Lucio Cesari (bass) who teamed up with Alessandra Pacheco (vocals), Giovanni Ceccarelli (piano) and Maurizio Mercuri (guitar). Along the years the new line up went through some changes and it wasn’t until 2014 that Agorà finally released a new album entitled Ichinen on the independent Aereostella-Immaginifica label. It’s a kind of compendium of the band’s activity after the 1976 studio album Agorà 2 where you can find some new arrangements of old pieces, some previously unreleased tracks from the late seventies recorded before the split up and some brand new compositions. According to the liner notes, “the music was inspired by the fundamental Buddhist teachings of Nichiren Daishonin and the Human Revolution of the individual with its emphasis on the value and respect of the sanctity of life and the environment” and the art cover tries to convey this concept... 

 

The charming opener “Serra San Quirico” is a shortened acoustic version of a piece from their 1975 debut album Live In Montreux and was recorded with a line up featuring Ovidio Urbani (sax), Renato Gasparini (acoustic guitar), Gabriele Possenti (acoustic guitar), Gianni Pieri (cello) and Lucio Cesari (acoustic bass). It sounds very different from the original version with the interaction between the acoustic guitars in the forefront, soaring lines of cello and sax and a calm, dreamy mood... 

 

“Ichinen” is a new track recorded by the line up featuring Ovidio Urbani (sax), Renato Gasparini (guitar, vocals), Mauro Mencaroni (drums), Lucio Cesari (acoustic bass), Alessandra Pacheco (vocals), Giovanni Ceccarelli (piano) and Karl Potter (congas, djambè). Here the wordless voices are used just as another instrument and take you to exotic landscapes where you can relax and think about the meaning of life... The following “Sensei” was recorded by the same line up (without Karl Potter) and is a delicate, reflective piece dedicated to Japanese Buddhist philosopher Daisaku Ikeda... 

 

 

“Work In Progress” is a nice duet for acoustic guitar played by Renato Gasparini and Gabriele Possenti, then the line up featuring Ovidio Urbani (sax), Renato Gasparini (guitar, vocals), Mauro Mencaroni (drums), Lucio Cesari (acoustic bass), Alessandra Pacheco (vocals), Giovanni Ceccarelli (piano) and Karl Potter (congas, djambè) come back for “Starstrings”, a reflective piece evoking the inner power that is hidden into everyone’s body and the ability to use it... 

 

“Istante per istante” (Moment by moment) is another beautiful acoustic guitar duet with Mediterranean flavours, this time performed by Renato Gasparini and Maurizio Mercuri, then it’s the turn of the Oriental scents of “Tre Maggio” (Third of May), performed in trio by Renato Gasparini (guitar, vocals), Alessandra Pacheco (vocals), and Giovanni Ceccarelli (piano, tabla). 

 

The slow, melancholic “Oceano” (Ocean) tries to take you on an inner journey in the depths of your ego and features Renato Gasparini (guitar, vocals), Mauro Mencaroni (drums), Lucio Cesari (acoustic bass), Alessandra Pacheco (vocals) and Giovanni Ceccarelli (piano, tabla) while the following “Wood Of Guitar” is a good dreamy track played by Gabriele Possenti (guitar, bass) that reminds me of Will Ackerman... 

 

Next two tracks come out from the late seventies sessions of the line up featuring Renato Gasparini (Roland guitar synth), Ovidio Urbani (sax), Roberto Bacchiocchi (piano Rhodes), Robert Clark (electric bass) and Massimo Manzi (drums). “Progressive Suite” is full of positive energy and in the booklet you can read a quote from Nicheren Daishonin that well describes its feeling, “winter always turns into spring”, while the lively “Costa dell'est” (East Coast) could recall Weather Report... 

 

The medley “Piramide di domani - Cavalcata solare” (Pyramid of tomorrow - Solar ride) ends the album by blending two tracks from Agorà’s 1976 second album and delivering them in a new interesting acoustic version performed by the line up featuring Ovidio Urbani (sax), Renato Gasparini (acoustic guitar), Gabriele Possenti (acoustic guitar), Gianni Pieri (cello) and Lucio Cesari (acoustic bass). 

 

On the whole, a very good album! 

 

You can listen to the complete album HERE

 

Agorà: Ichinen (2014). Other opinions: 

Conor Fynes: I feel mixed about this one. It seems like Agorà are at a tentative crossroads, and regardless of what years these tracks were recorded in, Ichinen is a reflection of that... (You can read the complete review HERE)