Honeytrap is the debut album by the young talented guitarist Leo Abrahams. He has a busy career, having worked with such well known artists as Brian Eno and Paul Simon, among others, and has played on film soundtracks. His aim with this album was to create music regardless of commercial concerns, one that uses authentic instrumentation rather than sampling and electronics. To this end he complements the guitar work with cello, trumpet, and ethnic percussion. This is a diverse album, fourteen short tracks (the longest is just over five minutes long) of guitar based instrumentals including adult contemporary, Bollywood violins, folk, and even waltz! Strong melodies and rhythms dominant the album, though there are some tracks where atmospheric musing is the order of the day. A good example of the latter is "The Distance" on which soulful electric guitar lines criss-cross each other yearning for something far away. The title track "Honeytrap" is also strong on atmosphere with laid back finger picked guitar accompanied by aching electric guitar lines. These two tracks bear some comparison to Hammock's Kenotic. It's difficult to know which tracks to pick out for description because there's so much of interest on Honeytrap. The waltz track "Rise" is one of the highlights for me. Beginning with slow drums, masterful meandering lines on electric guitar, gloopy sounds, and tinkles it then breaks into a stately movement of lovely plucked guitar providing both rhythm and melody. Behind that, mild trumpet pads help to fill out the piece. Most tracks are easygoing, though there are a few louder and livelier exceptions. Take "Slippery Jack" for instance, here funky rippling melodies and rhythms plus percussion lead one to imagine a hedonistic and boozy quarter of a Latin city. The trumpet that comes in towards the end adds nicely to this impression. Or there is the raw and intense "Siren" with its Bollywood-esque rhythms and overwrought melodies. There's a rich assortment of music on Honeytrap. It's an accomplished acoustic work which is bound to appeal to the guitar fans out there.