Two years after New Day With New Possibilities, Sonny Smith returns for his ninth album with The Sunsets. As with any release by the band, it’s always interesting to find out which version of Sonny & The Sunsets will show up. Is it country like the last one? Is it garage? Is it something extraterrestial? The only sure thing is the pop heart and distinct voice of Sonny Smith. With Self Awareness Through Macrame, it’s a mix of everything the band did before, and if you’d make a greatest hits LP, it wouldn’t be all that different in terms of sonic range and vibe. Shadow for example sounds like the follow up to Palmreader from Antenna To The Afterworld (2013), Waiting could have been a song from Talent Night At The Ashram (2015), Pink Cake could be from Hit After Hit (2011), and several songs (City Life, Memory Lane) could have been from 2010’s Tomorrow Will Be Alright. The piano driven album closer Situps is the outsider track and gives Daniel Johnston vibes. “I don’t like situps, but they make me think of you,” Smith sings repeatedly before counting slowly to ten. Listening to any Sonny & The Sunsets record is a life-affirming experience. You won’t leave unharmed though. Pieces of your heart will get broken, but don’t worry, Sonny & The Sunsets will glue and stitch everything back together eventually.
Self Awareness Through Macrame will be out September 1st through Rocks In Your Head, but is already available on the streaming services. What about the weird album title? It’s from a course Smith’s mom once developed for a community center. No one signed up, and if there is any band that finds inspiration and a punch line in such events it is Sonny & The Sunsets.