Gentile, acousti-rock is a tricky genre. The divide between pop culture classic and overplayed, nausea inducer is frustratingly hazy and sometimes audiences just can’t tell the difference. For example, “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz could possibly be the greatest song ever written, but because I’ve heard it in passing more than any song in my life,  I now cringe at the thought of the opening guitar slide (nothing against Jason Mraz, but that’s just what happens sometimes when the hegemonic-powers-that-be want to capitalize on a popular track). Completely content at the prospect of never hearing that track again, I’ve grown to write off anything that resembles such acoustic balladeering.With such cynicism in mind, Behind Sapphire’s long-time-coming, self-titled debut album is unsettling, in a positive way. Directly citing Jason Mraz as an influence, Behind Sapphire’s primary songwriters Grant Cassell and Matthew Mazankowski take a frustratingly overused genre and breathe new life into it. Every track radiates with Cassell’s soft, delicate vocals over neatly constructed chord formations. Cassell even dares to flirt with skat-like transitions within many of the tracks, which is probably the most contrived element of their genre. However, on this record it feels natural.While on the surface, Behind Sapphire shares a likeness to Jason Mraz and the other acoustic crooners, their approach on this record is more richly calculated, and generally smarter than most of their contemporaries. The arrangements are full and diverse, adding multiple layers to the underlying guitar and vocals tracks that could easily carry these tracks alone. The conclusion of the record’s best track, “Waiting By The Satellites”, as well as other notable tracks “Christmas Nigh” and “Crazy Critters” demonstrates the subtle versatility of these arrangements by adding colour, without overpowering the vocals or lyrics. “Christmas Nigh” also highlights the band’s chemistry and vocal prowess, painting effortless multi-part harmony overtop of the instrumental layers. In retrospect, many of these tracks share a greater resemblance to Illinoise-era Sufjan Stevens than to Jason Mraz.While these nuances greatly benefit the presentation of the record, Behind Sapphire play it safe, rarely navigating away from their pretty, picaresque formula. Certainly, it’s difficult to blame Behind Sapphire for continuing to play with styles that work for them, but ultimately, aside from a few tracks other than the stand outs I mentioned, many of the tracks blend together, failing to differentiate themselves from one another. That is until the album closer, “Oh My, What A Fine Day”, in which all the positive elements of this record melt into a lush, orchestral track that drips with serenity and optimism.The old adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is rendered into a mindless cliché once perspective is imposed. If a genre clearly works at selling records, surely it doesn’t need to be tweaked. Behind Sapphire doesn’t prescribe to this train of thought, as they lend their unique perspective to this tired genre with a strong, contemplative debut.Words: JAMIE CESSFORD