RISVEGLIO

And I am not a one-day fan of Italian prog, no, I am a truly follower of that progressive rock scene because they are always bringing new, fresh and original music, of course, with elements taken from past influences, but with an own and rising sound. Egonon is a new band whose music surpasses the RPI cannon, and includes an interesting blend of symphonic rock, with folk elements, jazzy moments and even some avant-garde tunes. They released in 2011 their debut album entitled 'Risveglio', whose 15 tracks will make you have a satisfying experience.

It opens with 'Phosforo' which is a wonderful opener song. Piano, percussion, strings and a great voice begin to build up this track. There are soft moments which later are contrasted with heavier ones in which electric guitars appear; there is also a brief passage where English lyrics appear, but well, I love Italian language, so I always prefer bands sing in their native language, it gives uniqueness. After some four minutes when you don't think about it, you are already listening to 'Lacrime di Luce' which is one of my favorite tracks of this album. Here I love the keyboards as background, the sometimes delicate sometimes heavy guitars, and of course I love Fabio Calo's voice. The song is very well crafted and gives as a result a wonderful composition.

With only two tracks, one can feel satisfied and wait for more good tunes. The next track is 'Risveglio', it features a sitar that produces an obvious mid-east sound complemented by percussion, however, seconds later it makes a drastic change making a heavier sound with electric guitar and strong vocals. The variety of musical and cultural elements in this song is worth highlighting, because we can listen to the 'ordinary' instruments, but in some moments they bring a flute, a sax, a sitar, and even a guest male voice that all together make an outstanding track, whose four minutes are a proof of the top-notch quality of Egonon.

'Alma senza virt'' continues with that particular Egonon sound which does not stand in only one style. Here we can listen again to sax, plus a wonderful viola, as well as the conventional instruments. One of the things I really appreciate is how the album easily flows, I mean, we are listening to a giant track divided in 15 episodes which are connected each other, here all of them are essential for the album's success. 'L'uomo Libero' is an example of that perfect fluency, and another of my favorite tracks, especially after two minutes when sax enters and a true dynamic passage is created.

'Voglio essere piccolo' has a powerful starting but it is softened seconds later, though guess what, it is like a roller coaster with moments of high and low intensity that is transmitted to the listener, so one can feel what the music suggests, no matter if you understand Italian or not. I am about to say that this is another of my favorite tracks, but well, which isn't? 'Golgotha' starts with a delicate saxophone for almost a minute, then guitars, drums, bass and voice enter, along with that particular mid-eastern flavor. Here we can listen how they enjoy experimenting and trespass boundaries.

'Khamsin' is the shortest track, but it is a very peculiar one nonetheless due to the addition of a disarming African voice, I ignore the language, but it sounds terrific. It is liked to 'Maya' where the Italian lyrics return but the mid-east sound is still there. Here, besides those sounds and cultural styles we can listen to a jazzy passage thanks to the saxophone, but later a violin and female vocals produce once again the folkish sound. Man, what a great mixture of elements, sounds, textures, cultures, styles, nuances, etc.

'Rosso asfalto' has a powerful introduction with the sax, drums and bass, later it slows down and little by little it begins to progress once again. The mellotron background is wonderful in the whole album, as well as the voice. There is a short pause after 4 minutes, later some spoken voices are heard and the song softly vanishes. 'Tra la note e l'Alba' continues with that soft sound in the beginning, but later it progresses little by little, adding electric guitar riffs, heavier tunes that all of a sudden are combined and contrasted with some experimental moments, like the entrance of sax.

'Tutto cio che avevo era un'anima' starts again with a delicate sound, with violoncello accompanying voice and guitar, later mellotron joins and creates a wonderful choral background. The last minute is vertiginous, faster and with some cool backing vocals. 'Sul lato caldo della strada' combines once again Italian and English lyrics, while the music lies in a mellotron atmosphere, along with rockish guitars (acoustic and electric), jazzy saxophone and nice bass lines.

'L'abito bianco' has a kind of sacred sound in the beginning, but later a new structure is being built with a delicate and mellow sound that in moments is even sensual with the addition of the clarinet. However, as usual they change and produce different sounds and moods, which is part of the own style of Egonon. The album finishes with 'Coda: 42km' a two-minute ending track that is like the final experiment of the band. Case closed, turn the page, and wait for their new album.

What a wonderful experience I had with this album, now I am eagerly expecting for the new Egonon work, which will be sure a guarantee of good music. My final grade will be five stars, masterpiece!

Enjoy it!

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