What’s in a name? For the members of Atlanta’s Gringo Star, it’s a reprieve from having to answer the same question in their old band, A Fir-Ju Well.
“‘What’s your name? What did you say? What does that mean?’” said Nick Furgiele. “It was every night. It wasn’t like we changed our sound or anything like that. We just wanted a different name.”
Indeed, Gringo Star simply picks up where A Fir-Ju Well left off: rollicking, oft-baroque or psych-tinged pop/rock. Each member brings his own songwriting style, offering a certain breadth of approach.
“If it was only one songwriter, we probably would only appeal to a third of the audience that we do,” said Chris Kaufmann, the act’s most recent arrival, “though, we have a lot of the audience that loves everybody’s songs.”
Kaufmann picked up bass, guitar and keyboard duties nine months after the release of Gringo Star’s 2009 debut, “All Yall,” a tuneful blend of British Invasion acts injected with a bit of ramshackle, bespectacled indiepop quirkiness.
Gringo Star is supporting its second album, “Count Yer Lucky Stars.”
Originally scheduled for release last month, the album was delayed until Oct. 25, so the group will play more than half its tour before the disc is out.
“Nothing ever goes exactly how you plan it,” Kaufmann said. “We are getting antsy. We want it to be out there, and we’re a little disappointed we can’t sell it at any of these shows. But at the same time, with as much as we tour, it’s not really a big deal. We’ll be back there real soon.”
Again, “Count Yer Lucky Stars” is recorded with producer Ben H. Allen (Animal Collective, M.I.A. Cee-Lo Green), who’s proven adept at creating a widescreen sonic palette. He’s helped Gringo Star keep things tight and focused.
The result is a lively and alluring batch of songs, ranging from catchy, ’60s folk-rock to a smoky, cello-abetted waltz and slinky power pop. “Trying to write a catchy song,” Furgiele said. “I think we’ve definitely been honing song structures for 10 years now, just writing naturally pop structures and stuff.”
