I can remember it so clearly. May 1989. I was in 10th grade, miserable at the all-boys school Chaminade. The school year was almost over, and I was craving something new to listen to. One morning, my friend Tony came barreling into school, waving a cassette that I absolutely had to hear. That tape was the fourth album from Norwegian rockers TNT — Intuition. At that point, I only knew one song from the band, and I wasn’t exactly a fan. But Tony and I shared very similar tastes, especially when it came to lighter rock.
At Chaminade, we all lived in different towns, so there was an unwritten rule: if someone loaned you a tape, you took it home, dubbed (yep, I said dubbed!) a copy for yourself, and brought it back the next day. After blasting this thing during the entire 40-minute bus ride home, then again while rounding up shopping carts in the King Kullen parking lot, and then pretty much all night long, I almost forgot to return it. I think I finally copied it sometime around 2 a.m. I loved — and still love — this album.
After the intro “A Nation Free,” Ronni Le Tekrø’s guitar slices through the speakers on “Caught Between the Tigers,” and then Tony Harnell arrives with that unmistakable voice. Back then, I believed the higher the vocal, the better, and Harnell impressed the hell out of me right away. I also quickly realized that Intuition was far more polished than earlier TNT records, packed with layers of harmonies and keyboards. That was fine by me. The guitars still sit perfectly in the mix, making this one of the best-produced albums of the era in my book.
“Tonight I’m Falling” is one of those songs that still pops into my head at random moments all these years later. When it does, I end up listening to the entire album again — and at only 37 minutes, that’s an easy commitment. The band slows things down with the ballad “End of the Line,” and Harnell’s performance alone should put him in the conversation among the great vocalists of the era. Side one, closer, and title track “Intuition” is sugary melodic pop-metal perfection — uplifting, ridiculously catchy, and still my favorite song on the album.
TNT reminds listeners they’re still very much a metal band with “Forever Shine On,” where Le Tekrø absolutely lets it rip. The man can shred. “Learn to Love” leans a little more toward AOR territory, but I’m not complaining. Then there’s the brief and bizarre 53-second interlude “Ordinary Lover,” with Le Tekrø on vocals. It’s a head-scratcher the first time you hear it, but even now I enjoy doing my own version and waiting for the inevitable “What the fuck was that?” reaction. Hahahahaaa!!
“Take Me Down (Fallen Angel)” was — and still is — another favorite. The synth work in the chorus blends with the guitar in a way I’d never heard before, and it sounded incredible blasting through my headphones late at night. That’s where this album got most of its spins that summer. The closing track, “Wisdom,” is another ballad, but far from typical. The arrangement is unique, and the guitar solo goes completely off the rails in the best way possible.
Bottom line: whenever I want to listen to an album that makes me smile from start to finish, TNT’s Intuition is the one I reach for. It carries memories of starting my job at King Kullen, knowing I only had a month left at that miserable school, and getting ready for the Summer of ’89. For those reasons and more, this will always be a Classic Album.
—THE MAESTRO
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