Friday, April 22, 2011

Review: The August Infinity “Voices Of A Generation”


Rock
The band’s tagline is: “Too hard to be considered pop but way too pop to be considered hard rock; seriously kids, this is how America writes music”. Even I couldn’t come up with a better way to describe my primary musical preference, so I had to take note of this Brooklyn band called The August Infinity.

The August Infinity is an American five-piece rock band that came together when drummer Ian Pierce discovered singer Joshua Hawksley at the 42nd street subway stop, where Joshua first made an impression on New York City as a one-man subway performer. The band has since honed a catchy hard rock sound playing off the added talents of bassist Chris Moss and guitarists Peter Strzelecki and Frank Grullon. The August Infinity has toured extensively throughout the Northeast, and has shared the stage with a number of national acts including the platinum selling band Hawthorne Heights.

The August Infinity definitely has a hard edge and Hawksley has one of those scratchy voices heard all over the radio during the glam metal days (honestly, he keeps reminding me of Taime Downe from Faster Pussycat). But what is going to pull you into this band’s orbit are the terrific hooks. Super catchy tunes like “Push Pull Shove” and “The Faster That You Run” help this band stand above the crowd. (There’s also an acoustic version of “The Faster That You Run” worth checking out). Other highlights including “Purpose In Life” and “The Promise In The Misery Line” are slightly less melodic, but still worthy rockers that will help you wake up in the morning. Most of the other cuts aren’t bad, but lack that magical ingredient that makes them effortlessly memorable.

To my ears, I’m hearing a lot of Chronic Future, Hawthorne Heights, and Story of the Year. If these bands make you happy, you can’t go wrong with The August Infinity. The band recently wrapped up production on their follow up EP, “To Whom It May Concern” expected later this Spring. In the meantime, catch up by getting into “Voices Of A Generation”.

iPOD-worthy: 2, 4, 5, 10, 12, 13

The August Infinity on MySpace. Official site.

Listen to “Push Pull Shove”