Festival Itinerary: Pitchfork Music Festival
Festival lineups can be intimidating. Let us recommend Sonny and the Sunsets for your schedule.
Front man Sonny Smith is a native of San Francisco, but it wasn’t the rich counter-culture of the city by the bay that jumpstarted Sonny’s music career. It was, instead, the small town of Gunnison, Colorado that sparked Sonny’s musical career as a professional musician. Coupled with Sonny’s residence, Gunnison is also the town used in one of the Alien vs Predator movies. Impress your friends with that one.
Gunnison was abandoned for Denver and Denver was short lived for Costa Rica. It was in Costa Rica where Sonny started writing songs and short stories while working for an organic farm. In 1996 Sonny moved back to San Francisco and released albums throughout the early 2000s, which saw him tour with Neko Case.
Now Sonny has his Sunsets (members of Thee Oh Seas, the Fresh & Onlys and Citay), a new release that is critically acclaimed in Tomorrow Is Alright and a new deal with Fat Possum Records.
Tomorrow is Alright is a folk album that was presumably written while sitting in the sun. Influenced by 60’s pop – Sonny brings a sense of humor to a somewhat poignant album. But don’t let the lightheartedness turn you off (“Lovin’ on an Older Gal” talks about sex with an older woman) – as some of Sonny’s songwriting is heavy, focusing on the life and times and how quickly it passes. Have a listen to “Too Young To Burn” below.
Sonny & the Sunsets will be playing at 1:55 on Saturday at the Balance Stage.
Posted by Wes Soltis on Jul 06, 2010 @ 7:07 am
