The Sun

Love & Death

On their new six-song EP, rock quartet The Sun keep things fast and fun. The band forgoes any bluffing and shows their hand of musical influences in the first 25 seconds of the album’s opening track, “Felt So Hard.”

A heavy drum beat and screeching guitars over a wailing scream sound like Iggy Pop sitting in with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. Before the song is 10 seconds old, the band drops out, only to kick back in with a supercharged stomping punk rock groove that sounds more than a little bit like The Hives.

Less than two minutes later, the song is over and you know exactly where The Sun is coming from. They don’t make any effort to mask their influences, but who cares when the influences are so awesome.

The Sun continues to mix it up with Nintendo-style keyboard sounds and Dr.Dre synthesizer lines on the more subdued and slightly dubbed-out “Rockstop.” They rock out to a disco beat on the extremely danceable “Carry It All,” and on more than one occasion, The Sun employ the under-used and under-appreciated sounds of distorted drums.

Whether flailing away on some raw riffs or chilling out on experimental tracks, The Sun give off an undeniable aura of cool. They inject their songs with a refreshing dose of attitude and interesting quirks and changes that keep listeners on their toes throughout the EP.

Love and Death is a very promising start for a band who could make some serious contributions to the face of rock in the future.

Genre: Indie Rock

Next of Kin: The Dandy Warhols, Supergrass

Five Stars

Published on February 24, 2003 at 12:00 pm