The year 2020 sure wasn’t the most ideal time to form a band, especially for a group of musicians who never played together before. Indeed, frontman TJ Freda assembled New York rock quintet GIFT by cherry-picking members of some of his favorite other bands, crossing his fingers and hoping for the best. Having assembled on a lark in the Big Apple from roots as diverse as Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Brazil and Boston, the musicians leaned on their collective deep experiences in numerous non-performing aspects of the biz as part of settling on a bold new sound – a dizzying blend of early shoegaze, classic ‘90s alternative rock and even modern pop.

Indeed, that GIFT emerged somewhat fully formed on their 2022 debut album Momentary Presence was a testament to the untapped creative potential laying deep within, and it wasn’t long before the band was pricking up the ears of adventurous listeners both at home and across the Atlantic Ocean.

Now, Illuminator, their Aug. 23 debut album for revered New York independent label Captured Tracks, is the long-awaited payoff of GIFT’s ever-growing musical and human chemistry. And while nods are apparent to label forerunners such as Beach Fossils, DIIV and Wild Nothing, GIFT are shepherding those elements into wondrous new vessels for the present moment – sleek, often danceable and frequently mesmerizing.

GIFT – vocalist/guitarist Freda, multi-instrumentalists Jessica Gurewitz and Justin Hrabovsky, drummer Gabe Camarano and bassist Kallan Campbell – are firmly enmeshed in the New York scene as talent buyers, photographers, DJs, audio engineers, art directors and, in the case of Campbell, an owner of the beloved Brooklyn DIY venue Alphaville. The melting pot of these varied skills helps make Illuminator an even more cohesive listening experience, with Gurewitz, a relative newcomer to making music herself, contributing a host of lyrics and vocal melodies and Camarano’s drumming providing the crucial rhythmic underpinning to the album’s 11 tracks. Hrabovsky, who previously engineered at Asheville, N.C.’s beloved studios Drop of Sun and Echo Mountain Recording, shared production duties with Freda for the first time.