A FURIOUS TRIP

The first reunion of The Trip ended in 2014 after keyboardist and original member Joe Vescovi passed away. Drummer Furio Chirico gave up and from 2015 on the name and brand of the band has been in the loving hands of Pino Sinnone, drummer on the first two albums of the seventies. Nonetheless, in 2019 Furio Chirico decided to come back to the old repertory of the band with a new line up and with the main idea of continuing to open new paths through research and experimentation, without any nostalgic approach but staying true to the most genuine “progressive rock” texture. In 2022 the new course took form under the name Furio Chirico’s The Trip (to avoid confusion with the other current incarnation of the band) and released an interesting album entitled Equinox with a line up featuring, along with Furio Chirico (drums), also Paolo Silvestri (Hammond, synthesizers, vocals), Giuseppe Lanari (lead vocals, bass) and Marco Rostagno (guitars, vocals).

 

The opening track, “I’m Fury”, was composed by keyboardist Paolo Silvestri who dedicated it to his new band leader. Furio Chirico is here free to express his explosive, virtuosic and brilliant drumming, interacting with the organ and the other instruments in an exemplary way. The rhythm is fast, the atmosphere is full of emotion, the new trip begins...

 

The following “Mother Earth” deals with environmental issues and global warming. The music and lyrics depict a gloomy, arid landscape were you breath sand and ashes. Water is rare and precious, it looks like a Holy Grail. The countdown has begun, time is running out, Mother Earth is dying while we waste our energies in pointless discussions instead of trying to save her...

 

The beautiful “A Suite For Everyone” is a long, complex piece that blends baroque influences and psychedelic visions. It starts softly, the atmosphere is dreamy and relaxed. Then the rhythm takes off and the music goes through many changes. It’s time for memories and reflections about the time spent running after freedom, music, friendship, love and dreams. To be honest, the music is excellent but the vocal parts are not always up to the task and I think it’s a pity that the band did not choose to sing in their mother language. After all, Arvid “Wegg” Andersen was English but the new singer is not...

 

“Catch The Dreamin’” is a good track where the music and lyrics revolve around the concept of carpe diem, the necessity to seize the day and try to make your dreams come true when you have the chance because life is short and nothing can last forever...

 

“Downward Onward” tells of a personal crises. Boredom, drug addiction and bad habits could push you to lock your dreams and even your whole life in a closet, so you fall down. But sometimes joyful memories can do the trick and reverse the course of a life fathomed to doom. The image of your mother appears. She’s here to support and comfort you with her adorable tenderness telling you that you can go on and make it...

 

The acronym of “The Reason Inside Playing” is T.R.I.P. It’s a piece dedicated to the late bassist, vocalist and founder member Arvid “Wegg” Andersen and to the early days of the band. According to an interview, the lyrics of this piece were conceived as a kind of wordplay and the man in black they mention is, of course, Ritchie Blackmore who was part, for a short period, of the very first nucleus of The Trip...

 

The instrumental “Summer Solstice” was composed by guitarist Marco Rostagno and, according to the artist, it’s conceived as a story told by the voice of the lead guitar, imagining the sun that, in its maximum splendour, defeats the darkness, generating a true rebirth. The fiery electric guitar sound is in the forefront and the interaction with the other instruments is pretty good...

 

“Remember Joe” is dedicated to the late The Trip’s keyboardist and founder member Joe Vescovi. It begins by a church like organ section, a kind of requiem that might recall Bach, then the vocals evoke images from Atlantis and a call for a Time Of Change, beautiful sounds from the past that last in the memory of the music lovers. The final organ pattern fades in the last track, the short, dreamy instrumental “Story Of A Friend”...

 

In addition to the CD, this work also includes a DVD with the recording of the live performance at the Salone Internazionale del Libro in Turin on May 23, 2022 where the members of the band showcase all their potential on stage. The set list features three songs from the new album, a selection of tracks from the 1972 album Atlantide, and a piece from the second album from 1971, Caronte.

 

On the whole, a very good work.

 

You can listen to the complete album HERE

 

More info:

https://www.facebook.com/thetrip.official/ 

 

BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON

 

Spectrvm come from Cantù, a town in the province of Como, and their roots date back to 1974 when they took form under the name of Stratus. The first incarnation of the band was active until 1982 but never had the chance to release an album. In 2020, after a long period of hibernation, they came back to life with a new name and a renewed line up featuring Frank Lazzari (vocals, organ, keyboards), Jordan Bozzolan (drums, percussion, backing vocals), Daniele Bozzolan (bass, piano, backing vocals) and Marco Brega (guitars, backing vocals) plus the guest Renato Olivo (vocals, guitar). After a meticulous work in the recording studio, in 2023 they finally released their debut album, entitled Teschio del mondo, on the Terzo Millennio Records label. It’s an interesting work with a strong emphasis on melody that sometimes could recall bands such as Latte e Miele, La Corte dei Miracoli or La Bottega dell’Arte...

 

The opener “Anima” (Soul), alternates frenetic sections and reflective passages with beautiful melodic lines and harmony vocals that could recall New Trolls or Pooh. According to the liner notes, it tells in music and words of an inner journey into the depth of human nature with its fragilities and fears. The lyrics evoke sounds of silence carried by the wind and the image of a man who takes his soul in his hands. It’s a silver soul, a globe of light. At the end a friendly hand appears that helps him overcome his personal crisis...

“Bestia” (Beast) starts by an evocative organ solo and alternates melodic vocals to more aggressive passages (the short instrumental middle section, in fact, could recall Deep Purple). The lyrics describe a strange dream in which an ominous beast weaves a net and waits at the end of the road for his prey. The beast is a metaphor that symbolizes problems like drug addiction, mental illness, a nervous breakdown or a sudden lack of money...

“Nessuno piange, nessuno canta” (No one cries, no one sings) is a long, complex piece that tells the story of a pet dog that during a windy night escapes from the garden of a sad house in the suburbs. But life in a big city is very hard. The puppy is lonely and scared as he wonders through spectral streets, drunk on sounds, whipped by threatening lights, spied on by hostile eyes. He keeps on running, hunted down by kicks and noises, he’s exhausted, but when his heart is about to break a door opens. The ending of the story is up to you...

 

The funny “Sogni di pietra” (Dreams of stone) is a nice piece that describes the dreams of a stone longing for a more interesting life. It’s a metaphorical way to depict the feelings of someone who can’t change the rhythm of his life and whose days are all the same, all life long. Same horizon, same sun and moon, same view, same routine. For eternity...

The title track, Teschio del mondo (Skull of the world) is a short, visionary song that evokes dark thoughts and new expectations. The title refers to the image of the moon reflecting light in a dark, cloudless sky. The night comes wearing its black cloak and the moon looks like a skull. It’s the time when the spiders feed on their preys and the protagonist look at the sky in a hallucinatory way. In the dark someone steals, some other kills, others cry for help. The sun will come like a burning blade to bring back warmth and hope...

“Crisalide” (Chrysalis) is an excellent piece that tells in music and words of a metamorphosis. The dream of a new day and of a body that is going to change, the chrysalis slowly turns into a colourful butterfly, ready to take off with into sky. The chrysalis is still dreaming of its new life, a rebirth and a leap into the unknown, full of dangers like cobwebs or man and his madness. A lightning bolt or a flame could burn the butterfly that now dives into eternity...

 

“Prigione” (Prison) is a piece that expresses amazement and bewilderment. According to the liner notes, it is a tribute to the Seventies and to the psychiatric reform wanted by Franco Basaglia. This piece tells about the exit of a mentally ill person from his room and the eve of his return to the real world after years of isolation. Words and music try to express the feelings of the protagonist...

The last piece, “Templum” (Temple) is sung in Latin and wants to convey an atmosphere of mystic mystery. In fact, the short lyrics are the motto of the Knights Templar, a French military order of the Catholic faith that was founded 1118 to defend pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem and existed for nearly two centuries during the Middle Ages. Non nobis Domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da Gloriam can be translated as Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory...

On the whole, a very good work that deserves a try.

You can listen to the complete album HERE

More info:
https://www.spectrumprog.it/