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Arcacia
Avenue is the debut album from the band of the same name and the
brainchild of guitarist and songwriter Torben
Enevoldsen, who has been working on the project since 2008 and had twenty
songs to work on, eleven of them becoming this album.
It’s
no good having a great songs if you haven’t got great vocals for them
and Enevoldsen has four mighty vocalist's appearing on this album apart
from his own. First up is MALL favourite Tony Mills, second up is
Geir Rönning, the third is Torben Lysholm and finally we have Lars Säfsund.
Along
with this vocal talent Enevoldsen has called on the talents of Thomas
Heintzelmann for drumming duties and bass from Carsten Neumann, and
together they have put together an album that mixes traditional AOR with
Melodic
Hard Rock with great results.
Opening
up with Mills at the mike on ‘Don’t Call Me Tonight’, you're
instantly blown away by the quality of not just Mills vocals, but the
musicianship on the track, something that is carried on throughout the
opus.
Rönning
makes his first appearance as vocalist on ‘Hold On’, a song with a
more hard rock feel to this one. Much grittier guitars and a bigger
rhythm section all making this song feel much more meatier than most of
the rest of the album. Probably the most modern feeling track of the
album.
If
you're more into the old school AOR then check out ‘Illusion’
featuring Lars Säfsund. A track very much in the TOTO vein and that
eighties style. More keyboard orientated than the previous two
tracks and one for the diehard fans of the genre for sure.
Enevoldsen
shows his vocal might on the next song ‘Jamies In Love’. This is
actually one of my favourite tracks off the album, it has a wow factor
from the off, a great guitar line and quite simply rocks.
It’s
back to Lysholm for ‘Can't Make You Stay’, again straying toward the
Melodic Rock side of things before Enevoldson shows off his guitar skills
on the instrumental ‘Mad Antenna’.
Another
of my favourite tracks off the album sees Tony Mills return to the mike
for ‘Wait No More’, this is one for all the Shy fans out there waiting
for the new album. This song is Mills at his very best.
‘No
Looking Back’ again has that eighties feel a gentle melody filled track
on which Torben produces the goods once more. Then the tempo is picked up
once more with the storming almost Van Halen like guitars of ‘Just Wanna
Be With You’ before the rockier vibe of ‘Let Go’.
The
album comes to a close with ‘Digging’ as Torben rocks out Free style
on the final track of a great debut album. I don’t know if this
would become a touring project but as a listener this is one hell of debut
and one that all fans of great Melodic and AOR will appreciate no matter
what bands you're into.
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