FURIO CHIRICO'S THE TRIP: EQUINOX

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.