Among the barrage of female alternative folk rockers that have jumped aboard the Triple A wagon train the past decade, singer/songwriter JENN AUGUST (http://www.jennaugust.com) can be thankfully categorized with the ones who actually have a distinct voice. There is simply too much blandness and cookie-cutter singing within this genre. In August's case, her vocal resemblance - either she's conscious of it or not - to Natalie Merchant is a plus.
August is a straightforward storyteller; the songs come across as diary entries more than lyrics written for musical arrangement. Some of it would've sounded stiff if she didn't have her own style, using her voice as an instrument to play with the words. And it's August's lyrics that'll touch you the most. "This Is What Men Like" is a brutally honest look at how women are treated as sex objects, even by her father. August's words cut with precision: "I never wanted to learn what he had to teach me/I only wanted him to be my dad."
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"Angels Here Among Us" summarizes the wisdom that August has gained in her life thus far, from feeling a strong sense of liberation in "All the Wrong Reasons" to accepting mortality in "Tracy's Song."
If "Angels Here Among Us" has a flaw, it's this: Much of it sounds too much alike. The record blurs together although the tempo does pick up on the exhilarating "Open Window." Nevertheless, August's vocals and lyrics keep the ears tuned in.
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