The Tealeaves only formed in 2008, but you wouldn't know it from listening to their self-titled debut, a tight collection of 12 indie-folk songs, produced by Hadyn Buxton. Fronted by James Von Cuylenburg, and made up of a collection of his friends and housemates, the Melbourne seven-piece have accomplished a lot in little over a year, having played at last year's Queenscliff Music Festival, and earning a place on the bill of this month's Port Fairy Folk Festival.

The Tealeaves self-titled debut show no signs of a band in such infancy. All the tracks were penned by Van Cuylenburg, (with the exception of the gorgeous Magnetic Fields cover, It's Only Time) and he certainly knows how to create a big wall of sound. Opening track Barefoot and Beautiful is a glorious blend of soaring vocals and harmonies provided by co-vocalist Jess Wilson. Unfortunately, a few of the tracks that follow can be quite similar in sound and at times can border on blandness. The sweetness of The Tealeaves lyrics and melodies can at times be a little too saccharine, and there are a few songs that can't quite be saved by the band's unquestionable musicianship.

But there's a beautiful, almost haunting intensity to the quieter numbers on the album. Standout tracks like Josh and I Come Undone strip away the layers to leave just piano, strings, or accoustic guitar with vocals, and it's these tracks where the Tealeaves really come into their own. Van Cuylenburg's vocals are full of raw emotion, and it's the tracks that let them shine that are the real winners here.

Written by Sarah Bella