@acumen
I (Dimitrious) formed Acumen in Los Angeles in 1988. We've released 1 EP cassette "James & The Acumen , and three full length albums (CD only) - "THINK" (93) & "OUT OF BALANCE" (97) and new album, "DIVERSITY". Acumen has toured consistantly since the release of "THINK" in January of 1993. Acumen's music is a culmination of song writing efforts of Dimitrious James and original song writing partner David P. Bedinghaus, which developed into its own unique approach, style, and niche. Acumen's live line up has seen numerous changes since it's original line up in '88. ACUMEN now includes female singer Cyndy Teseniar, Drummer Tim O'Neill, Guitarist Justin Todhunter, and Bassist Jared Manker.
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Acumen Blog
This band has a great knack for vocal melodies, layering them with a wide variety of techniques, complete with (at times) somewhat overwrought pontifications and "lonely boy searching for an answer" themes. For some reason, musically, I'm reminded of the Moody Blues, albeit with a much heavier folk influence. The great Moog (or one of its many offspring) even turns in a nice solo on "All I Know." Standout cut is "Big Out West," which seems to realize it has a great vocal chorus hook and proceeds to repeat it over and over. --Bryan Baker, GAJOOB #9, 1994