The Borrowers, who stand out for their absorbing lyrics, ear-grabbing hooks and musical versatility, are opening for The Why Store at Newport Music Hall tonight. ‘We are looking forward to kicking off our first tour in Columbus,’ said Mark Addison, lead vocalist and guitarist for The Borrowers. ‘We’re excited to play with The Why Store, and from what I’ve heard we should be very compatible.’Although they have done concerts before, The Borrowers are trying their hand at touring.’We’ve done quite a few promotional appearances and have been traveling all over playing with a variety of bands, but this is our first actual tour,’ Addison said.The Borrowers’ self-titled debut on Guardian Records was released this fall and is heating up national radio with the CD’s single, ‘Beautiful Struggle,’. The band’s debut finished in the top 10 in the year-end issue of HITS magazine and finished in the top 20 in all other major radio trades, said Eileen Campion, the band’s publicist from Guardian Records.’The video for ‘Beautiful Struggle’ has recently been added to VH-1, and the song is in the top 5 requests on radio stations in Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago,’ she said.Addison has just on one statement to make regarding the band’s musical style.’I’d just say it’s good music,’ Addison said.The band, consisting of Mark Addison, Joshua Segal, Josef Zimmerman and Nina Singh, combines elements of rock, folk, alternative, classical, acoustic and various ethnic musical styles.’We play basically progressive rock with only acoustic instruments,’ Addison said.Mark Addison is from England and grew up in Cleveland. He played in a variety of Cleveland bands before leaving for Los Angeles in 1991, where he began performing acoustically in coffeehouses and playing with local musicians.Joshua Segal, who plays violin, mandolin, bass clarinet and saxophone, operates as the ‘texture’ guy, contributing to the band’s layered sound, Campion said. Prior to The Borrowers, he was in an early lineup of Porno for Pyros. Playing upright bass for the group, Josef Zimmerman’s aggressive playing style brings the driving edge to the bands sound, Campion said.The fourth member, Nina Singh, plays drums and sings for the band. Singh, whose family had emigrated from India to Vancouver, British Columbia, adds a female perspective, a talented voice and an intriguing culture to draw on, Campion said.As a group, the Borrowers began to take shape when a mutual friend introduced Addison and Zimmerman.Segal, who grew up with Zimmerman, joined the group, and finally Singh auditioned as a drummer, Addison said.The group was picked up by Guardian records after the South By South music conference in Austin, Texas, and their debut CD was released in September. ‘The seeds were sown in 1992 and by early last year, we became what we are now,’ Addison said. The Newport’s doors open at 7 p.m.; tickets are $10.50 presale and $12 at the door.