East Temple Avenue – 'Both Sides of Midnight'

Despite what many people thought, AOR didn’t actually die. Yes, it was driven underground and regularly ridiculed by the musical trend-setters… but it was always there. Even throughout the lean years, bands such as Giant, FM and many others continued to release well-received albums, keeping the genre alive for the dedicated core fans. It was this core fanbase throughout the world that refused to let AOR be forgotten and ultimately helped to oversee the ‘Phoenix from the ashes’ revival of the scene over the past 15 years years or so. The legendary bands have recorded new music and toured once again but arguably more importantly, a plethora of new bands have come to prominence, releasing brilliant music that pays homage to the genre’s heritage whilst modernising it with new ideas and fresh sounds; step forward Work of Art, Find Me and Cruzh to name a few!

East Temple Avenue is a new band hoping to become a big part of the modern day resurgence of AOR/melodic rock. Incorporating members of the aforementioned European-based bands Work of Art, Find Me and Cruzh alongside musicians from Australia’s The Darren Phillips Project, the idea was conceived a few years ago, with two excellent singles released in 2019. On 27th November 2020, the band will release their long-awaited debut album, ‘Both Sides of Midnight’ through the AOR Heaven label… despite the fact that they have never actually been in the same room at the same time! Indeed, some of the members have only ever spoken by Messenger! But this has been no barrier to East Temple Avenue, consisting of Robbie LaBlanc (vocals), Darren Phillips (rhythm guitar), Dennis Butabi Borg (bass), Philip Lindstrand (lead guitar), Dan Skeed (synth/lead rhythm) and Herman Furin (drums). With parts recorded at opposite ends of the world and sent back and forth between Australia, Sweden and the USA to be mixed together via the wonders of technology, this album has been a truly collaborative, worldwide effort. However, does that make ‘Both Sides of Midnight’ worthy of a place at the table next to the AOR/melodic rock heavyweights?

Opening track Mountain makes a statement from the outset, starting with a classic hard rock-style riff and some excellent lead guitar work… and that’s all before LaBlanc’s silky-smooth vocals come in for the verse, accompanied by rhythm guitar and keyboards with bass and drums working in unison to keep the tempo up. A sing-along chorus and the type of lyrics we’ve all pretty much heard before are reassuringly present; “I wanna be your mountain. I wanna be the rock you can lean on too. I wanna be the one who wipes your tears away every time you’re blue”. Classic AOR!! This is a driving melodic rocker that’ll have you singing along in no time with your heart rate elevated… and there’s a great guitar solo towards the end too. As an introduction to an album, this one isn’t too shabby at all!

Next track Don’t Make Believe was the second single released by the band in October 2019, ultimately helping to attract the attention of record label AOR Heaven. Starting with a double crack of Herman Furin’s drums that lead to a funky sounding guitar riff mirrored by Borg’s bass, it holds similarities to some of Work of Art’s music… and that’s a good thing! With catchy, recurring

keyboard chords in the background throughout the verse, this mid-tempo song could easily have featured in a Top Gun-type movie in the 80s. Robbie LaBlanc’s vocals sound effortless throughout and never seem stretched or overly challenged, even in the higher octaves. There’s some excellent vocal harmonies in the bridge section where the song momentarily goes off to a slightly different place before returning to the familiarity of the chorus and nice guitar soloing for the outro. At first, third track Fool For Love sounds as if it’s going to be slow and atmospheric with it’s piano intro and good use of synths but that all changes when LaBlanc screams “when it comes to love, gotta play for keeps”. The song bursts to life and LaBlanc sings with energy and gusto, as if he means every damn word!

AOR wouldn’t be AOR without a lighters-in-the-air, saccharine-sweet power ballad about always being there for that special person… and East Temple Avenue deliver on this expectation with My Last Breath. A piano intro not completely dissimilar to Journey’s When You Love a Woman makes way for an emotional yet controlled vocal performance accompanied only by piano/synths with lyrics perfectly matched to the feel of the music; “Take my arms. They will carry all the weight you have to bear. Take my heart. It’ll only break in two if you’re not there. Take my life. Coz I know that it would just be nothing without you. So if you need my last breath”. The emotion builds in the second verse as the other musicians join in, driven along by a straight forward drumbeat, harmonising backing vocals and even a power chord or two quietly working away lower in the mix! The obligatory guitar solo is played with real class and control and leads to an impressive key change - another necessary ingredient in any good power ballad! For me, the measure of a ballad’s success is whether my good wife Mrs Griffiths will want to dim the lights, embrace me and dance romantically… and I have no doubt it’ll happen when I hit the play button on this song! It’s pretty much got everything that any power ballad aficionado looks for. I dare you not to fall for it’s charm!

As the album approaches the midway point, mid-tempo melodic rockers are the order of the day! Next track Everything begins with a piano-led intro but the pace picks up as bass and rhythm guitar riffing drive this song along over a layer of lush synth/keyboard chords and drumming that never misses a beat. This is followed by the Thin Lizzy-like, twin guitar opener of Forever Yours, a song that I found myself drumming along to with two biro pens in hand (always a good indication of how catchy a song is!!). Fly High is in a similar vain, with a chorus made for singing along to and a great opening guitar riff that makes another appearance towards the end. LaBlanc appears to be singing in the higher range of his vocal register at times here, yet never appears to be straining or struggling. He’s clearly enjoying himself, as heard in the “whoooo” he excitedly screams during the guitar solo. Yes, it could be argued that all three of these songs are standard fare in melodic rock and nothing groundbreaking. But that doesn’t matter as East Temple Drive aren’t trying to reinvent the wheel! It’s what fans of AOR expect and more importantly, what they want!

When I’m With You is up next, a driving rock song that starts fast and doesn’t let up until the end! There’s great use of keyboards and synths, something which has been pleasingly prominent throughout this album whilst many of their peers often bury the sound deep in the mix. It’s the type of song you can imagine listening to in an open-topped car on a sunny day whilst cruising along the Pacific Coast of the USA! But you’d have to be careful not to exceed the speed limit, particularly during some of the impressive guitar soloing towards the end!

After such a pacy few minutes, the tempo is reduced for penultimate track The End of Me and You. This is another classy ballad that lyrically appears to be about heartbreak and the end of a bitter relationship; “The last time you left me will last forever. The end of misery. The end of despair”. I believe it’s called a ‘break-up song’ by the youth of the world! There’s a stark and simple beauty to this song that probably has to be heard to be understood. Unlike many power ballads, it’s not an overblown and overplayed epic. It’s pretty much vocals accompanied by piano, keyboard chords, some backing vocal harmonies and simple, straight forward percussion with impassioned sounding lead guitar playing on top of it all. But it works really well and creates an atmosphere to the music that causes the listener to visualise a heartbroken man singing this as he prepares to move on with his life. Sometimes in music, less is more and final track Where Love Is continues with this mantra. It’s a gentle acoustic ballad accompanied by soft synths and genuinely outstanding vocals by Robbie LaBlanc to bring the album to a close. Some bands try to end albums with an almighty bang, with varying results… but I personally like the track order chosen by East Temple Avenue throughout ‘Both Sides of Midnight’. Ending on a lighter, more reflective track ensures there’s nothing to detract from what came before. Perhaps more rock bands should consider this approach.

As mentioned at the beginning of this review, some members of East Temple Avenue have never met and live over three separate continents. To some bands and musicians, such geographical challenges would present an unsurmountable challenge and have a detrimental effect on the quality of music but that clearly isn’t the case here. Even if they haven’t physically met, the band members appear to know the musical strengths that each person possesses. They know what each musician can bring to the table and how that fits into the wider aim of the project, undoubtedly highlighting the immense depth of talent within this band. With ‘Both Sides of Midnight’, East Temple Avenue have created an album that has a modern, polished sheen well suited to the modern day resurgence of AOR, yet would still have been a massive hit during the golden years of the genre. It’s pretty much got everything required to be successful in the melodic rock world and I’ve no doubt that when the ‘best of’ lists are being compiled at the end of the year, this gem will be somewhere near the top!

Still struggling to remember the 1980s and the heyday of AOR/melodic rock? Search for East Temple Avenue and give ‘Both Sides of Midnight’ a listen.