Lion Music (2010)

Guitarist Torben Enevoldsen has a wide musical palate when it comes to his personal tastes. With Acacia Avenue (no, not a reference to the famous Iron Maiden song), Torben assembles a lineup of stellar singers to pursue more of his melodic hard rock and AOR-type influences when it comes to songwriting and bands he enjoys. What’s even better is you get the chance to hear his bluesy pipes tackling the lead vocals on a couple of songs, “Jamie’s In Love” and “Let Go”, which recall one of his guitar heroes Steve Lukather.

Torben handles all the guitars and keyboards and splits bass duties with Savage Affair bassist Carsten Neumann while longtime Section A/ Decoy drummer Thomas Heintzelmann keeps the rhythmic backbone once again. Current TNT singer Tony Mills reigns supreme with his harmonics on opener “Don’t Call Me Tonight”, and another highlight is Pangea vocalist Torben Lysholm with the mid-tempo / West Coast influenced “Can’t Make You Stay” with it’s pulsating keyboards and quieter guitar lines. What I enjoy about the solo work on this album is Torben’s exploration of slower, emotive dynamics - especially in some of the slower offerings as he’s beyond being a mere chop heavy player and can create some classy arrangements.

The following artists come to mind when I listen to “Acacia Avenue” and these 11 songs - Toto, Giant, Saga and Loverboy.  I can understand why Torben felt the need to explore different territory with this album - it’s still heavy in spots but I think veers into probably his 80’s roots moreso than Decoy. So close your eyes, roll down your windows and let the sunshine and cool breeze hit your face as your brain and mouth engage in sing a long recall.

www.myspace.com/acaciaavenuetheband
www.lionmusic.com

Composed by Matt Coe