It seems like all the best bands know just how to mix the tried and true methods of the icons of their genre with their own brand of freshness and intrigue. A Leaf is one of those bands. Hailing from Tacoma, A Leaf is Chris Bridges (guitar,) Nate Daley (vocals/guitar,) Stephen Demuth (drums,) Andy Wambam (bass) and Shannon Donahue (vocals/guitar.) A Leaf has the honest qualities of '60s psychedelia and harmonic folk with a splash of this generation's shoe-gazey pop rock. A Leaf's songs range from groovy instrumental to Beatlesesque love songs. The stories told are catchy and engaging; something listeners can relate to, and dream with, such as, "See the world inside a seed. Feel the ocean moving through me. Fell asleep on a trembling leaf, woke up in a cloud and I heard them sing, "Wherever we go, wherever we go... we're alright". I'm a caterpillar you're a butterfly." There's a motivation behind the music that seems to work itself out in every riff and harmony, allowing a sense of movement and grounding at the same time.

A LEAF, w/Owl Parliament, A Breakthrough In Field Studies, 8 p.m., The New Frontier Lounge, 301 E. 25^th St., Tacoma, $5, 253.572.4020