Casa do Progressivo - Progressive House: Il Baricentro

Il Baricentro - Sconcerto (1976)

Postado por CesinhaBiker às 05:48

“Sconcerto” is, first of all, a very beautiful and tasteful album, that reveals Il Baricentro as what it is in its purest form, a proficient jazz-rock ensemble with a very strong melodic sense and with a capability to do energetic interplaying in a most colorful manner. The two keyboardists, brothers Boccuzzi, stay well away from the mutual dueling scheme; on the contrary, they use their combined keyboard inputs (mostly pianos and synthesizers, with a noticeable deal of clavinet and harpsichord, and occasionally, some room for organ, too) as portrayers of the candid melodic ideas and elegant textures that keep coming around with the sonic flow. They seem to intend to act as subtle leaders of the band, making the effective rhythm duo come to the fore with their excellent foundations, while they pull the musical strings (well, ivories to be more precise) without showing off. The way that the rhythm section provides swing and groove to all the individual pieces helps the cadence to become a most important element of enhancement for the melodies. The opening namesake track serves as the perfect Baricentro sample for the neophyte. Let me add that I find the presence of the harpsichord in this fusion-esque amalgam quite intriguing: its crystalline vibrato helps the track to preserve an aura of distinction among the groove. This was actually my first Baricentro experience, the track that made me fall in love with this band’s proposal. Further ahead, ‘Afka’ is more focused on the funky trend, while ‘Meridioni e Paralleli’ and ‘Comunque’ make a sort of compromise between jazz-fusion and funky – as usual, all well accomplished, very close to what Weather Report was doing at the time in the USA. On the softer side of things, ‘Lido Bianco’ shows the most academic side of Il Baricentro’s ideology: this track is the closest to standard symphonic prog that this band can get. In fact, this track somewhat reminds me of “Ultima Cena”-era Banco del Mutuo Soccorso. ‘Pietre di Luna’ is plainly beautiful, an evocative serenade instilled with melancholy that needs no lyrics to create emotions in the listener’s soul. ‘Della Venis’ is yet another serene track, ethereal and melodically pristine. These softer tracks are cohesively harmonized with the album’s repertoire as a whole. So, all in all, “Sconcerto” is a potential excellent addition for the collections of those who love a strong dose of jazz in their prog, or, mutatis mutandis, those jazz-fusion freaks with a progressive sensibility. - Review by Cesar Inca (César Inca Mendoza Loyola)

Track Listings

1. Sconcerto (4:58)
2. Lido Bianco (10:04)
3. Meridioni E Paralleli (6:15)
4. Afka (6:11)
5. Pietre Di Luna (4:29)
6. Della Venis (4:16)
7. Comunque... (Todo Modo) (5:27)

Total Time: 41:40
Line-up/Musicians

- Francesco Boccuzzi / keyboards, guitars, percussion
- Vanni Boccuzzi / keyboards, percussion
- Tonio Napolitano / bass, percussion
- Piero Mangini / drums, percussion
Releases information

LP 3C064-18152 / MMP210 (1976)

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