New August

In a genre rife with trite, derivative rock acts, New Augusts debut album, stands on its own, featuring hook-laden pop songs with a unique blend of alt-country, straight-up rock, and a bit of funk. When a bands sound is this effortlessly complex, when each instrument seems to play off the others and each note clings tightly to the twists and turns of the singers voice, the creation of that band can only be described as cosmic.New Augusts songs unfold into intricate but spare forms, in which every note is crucial, and the words achieve something close to poetry as they weave through hooks and ride down streams of melody. How can a band with such a fine-tuned sensibility rock this hard?In the end, it comes to talent, or rather to the talents that intersect within this Charlotte, North Carolina-based quartet. Bassist Patrick Boyd and drummer Trey Walker are the bedrock of the band, the dynamo that drives the band through moments of lyrical introspection and surging rhythm. Guitarist Stacey Leazers ear for arrangement stands second to none in this business. All built around keyboardist Joey Auch's expressive singing, startling range, and ambitious songwriting marking him as an artist of amazing dimension.Each player complements the other. Every track offers a different insight: the sudden shifts from soft, fine-veined acoustic passages to eruptions of power guitar and delicate, bell-like timbres on "You're Good"; the jumble of judgment and fragility in the words to "Fall"; the rolling, rootsy groove and upbeat assurance of "Already Paid"; and the uncanny balance of sophistication and accessibility on their first single, the enigmatic "Yellow Star." a