on 2009-09-07 hstisgod Said:

In short, I agree with you Archelon, the inmbalance or indecision of his vocals are the focus and fall of August Rising. Very upbeat, but what is missing here?
Rating: 7/10

Review:

on 2009-09-07 Archelon Said:

A difficult one, this. The big, emotional pop-rock sound (is it?) certainly takes us through a rollercoaster of emotions, some conveyed and others because of the music itself. Highs and lows are aplenty - but so are average moments.

The whole album is very melodic and has the kind of crashing waves of sound that bands like Counting Crows and Rooster are known for, and for 4 out of the 5 this works well. Jeff Stauning however, seems not to be able to make up his mind as to whether he should shout, sing or croon most of the time. When he gets it right, as on 'And I Will' (a rock song) and 'I'm Giving In' (Dashboard-esq acoustic) it sounds great.

On the other hand, he can sometimes get it wrong. And when he does, it's at the forefront of the sound and the song becomes something to be played while you're doing something else. Background music, in short, and it's clear that's not what these guys are aiming for. Amd you know what, they could hit those highs, of that I'm sure.

The majority of this 5-piece (4 of them, to be precise) seem to have settled in well in their two years of existence. For a relatively young band they are all musically accomplished, and the production of this self-titled debut is quite good. But at the same time, I think Jeff needs to find his singing niche - what he likes, where he feels comfortbale. Even I can't keep up with 5 different vocal tones in one song.
Rating: 6/10