Akacia - An Other Life

Year of Release: 2003
Label: Musea Records
Catalog Number: FGBG 4515
Format: CD
Total Time: 57:00:00

This review is excerpted from Clayton's October 5, 2003 The Prog Life column found here -ed.

Some reviewers are nuts over these guys. I haven't yet decided why. Maybe it's because, instrumentally, Akacia is on fire, rocking hard along the lines of early Yes -- or more accurately Yes clone bands like Starcastle and Flash. But, melodically ... not so much. Specifically, the songs here lack interesting vocal melodies. This stumble is especially unfortunate because vocalist Eric Naylor possesses a darn good voice, one that would shine with better material. More harmonies, which are too few and too buried in the mix, would stir the vocals up a bit.

Sonically, the album is nicely recorded, each instrument sounding just as it should, clear and crisp. The production, however, is bare bones, so much so that the album comes across more as a one-off live recording rather than a carefully thought-out studio album. Still, something keeps drawing me back, which is, of course, why I'm talking about it here. The bottom line is that Akacia has a lot of potential. They just need a producer to polish off their rough edges.

Tracklisting:
Order Of Events (16:36) / Mary (6:41) / Hold Me (11.02) / Journal (22:41)

Musicians:
Eric Naylor - voice
Michael Tenenbaum - guitars, keys, voice
Steve Stortz - bass
Doug Meadows - drums, percussion

Discography:
An Other Life (2003)
The Brass Serpent (2005)

Genre: Symphonic Prog

Origin US

Added: October 5th 2003
Reviewer: Clayton Walnum

Artist website: www.akacia.net
Hits: 2834
Language: english