Sunset Sons - Very Rarely Say Die

Sunset Sons

Very Rarely Say Die

As the album title says, a word only used by group members when having their hair tinted or addressing Welsh fans. There are two reasons for running this piece – it’s a new album to review but also the group held a show to raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust over in Islington. We were there, happily coughed up the price of the tickets and enjoyed their show, so lads we salute you for that….

On to the record now – as a pop-rock four-piece Sunset Sons throw themselves into their music and involve their audience as much as they can. It’s quite invigorating watching them perform as their enthusiasm gives them a real presence and it’s not a slick all-moves-rehearsed show, it’s more akin to a party, it would be fair to say.

Frontman Rory Williams sings and plays the keyboards, Jed Laidlaw handles drums and percussion, Robin Windram plays guitar and sings, Pete Harper is on bass guitar. I can tell you this as I own a magnifying glass, rarely have I seen such small print in a booklet. Unless I have The Borrowers edition…

The better songs among the thirteen cuts are these:

Know My Name is a pounding and insistent opener with a throaty vocal and some neat guitar figures seeping through ; Tick Tock has a steady funk beat and tambourine plus a catchy, jangly melody. The acoustic chug of Bring The Bright Lights leads us to some almost Shakespearian lyrics and the best vocal on the set whilst September Song has striking chilled chords intro and angsty vocal (a lot of them are).

The Jam (Interlude) is rocky and pleasant using dynamics at every turn; Gold draws on emphatic piano chords. Already sounds like a hit and the guitar arpeggios are neatly phrased, the bass exactly right for the gentle tumble of the song. Somewhere Maybe is a bit U2 Lite, taken a bit faster it would have more impact. LOA is my pick here, an intriguing song which sounds heartfelt and played really well by the group.

Lost Company has a call-to-arms paced intro, with a hint of The Kinks in the acoustic guitar parts. The set rolls out on I Can’t Wait which Williams puts over like a poem. Effective stuff indeed.

Whilst too many songs here tread the four-chord-sequence-pattern-repeated that Coldplay etc have flogged to death, this is a young band of quality players who will break out of that default mode and vary their compositions in the near, I am sure. It’s a good debut and clearly the start of something promising.