Do You Feel [us Import]

Following John Mayer's splendid 2001 debut Room For Squares, an exciting movement of young, male singer/songwriters began. Gavin DeGraw, Jamie Cullum and Jason Mraz were among the many talents to find a big audience during that time, and many fans endlessly debated which of the oft-similar sounding artists were better by comparison.

Somewhat lost in the mix was a young Texan named Bryce Avery, more commonly known by his stage name, The Rocket Summer. While he was no less talented than his counterparts, he was at somewhat a disadvantage back then. Still in his teens and not quite possessing the fully developed chops to stake his place in pop music, he remained in the background, though his albums, Calendar Days and Hello Good Friend, did moderately well.

Avery may have been neglected from the spotlight in years prior, but with Do You Feel, The Rocket Summer takes a major step towards becoming a household name. Now in his twenties and fully realizing his talents, the wunderkind is riding with an album that is fun, kinetic and widely appealing.

On Do You Feel, Avery inadvertently shows that he bests his counterparts in every way as he combines what they had to offer with his own style. He's a madman on the piano like Cullum, but is more likeable. He has DeGraw's penchant for power pop, but he never slips up. He has Mraz' charisma, but minus the raunchiness. Combine all of those with his positive, energetic music and jack-of-all-trades approach to making songs and the result is a winner.

Knowing The Rocket Summer is a one man band made the "jack of all trades" label somewhat a gimmick in the past, but it's a badge of honor on Do You Feel. Avery plays the instruments on every song, which gives him with a total of nine spots in the credits (if vocals are excluded). Knowing this, a song like "Break It Out," where the piano jams, the drums are crisp, and the guitar punctuates every crescendo, and Avery hits all the right notes becomes all the more marvelous to hear.

Also impressive is Avery's range of his influences. The title track is an outstanding pop-geared song, as is "Save." "High Life Scenery" rocks like a gospel jam with its syncopated piano and drums. On "Run To You," Avery dials down the pace and settles in with his piano to deliver an intimate, love-affirming ballad. But even if Avery were only contributing vocals, he would still be an amazing talent, as seen on "So Much Love," where he wins over the audience with sheer energy alone.

It's a shame Do You Feel came out so late in the summer; with so many breezy, yet textured songs, the album could have been a stable for summertime hits. But with a record this good, timing doesn't matter. The Rocket Summer already has a steady fan base, particularly in the faith community, and a set of wholesome, crowd-pleasing songs like this will probably earn spots on at least one TV show on CW, Fox, or some other network (which also happened to DeGraw, Cullum and company). Avery deserves a big hand for Do You Feel; it is a starmaking album.