The Sunshine Underground : Stoke Sugarmill : 07.05.2009
It’s been a while since anyone has heard anything of The Sunshine Underground, their first album Raise The Alarm was released to much critical appraisal, however disappointingly it was never reflected in the album sales. It would seem however that the band do have very dedicated and die-hard Sunshine fans (or TSU army as I believe they would prefer) who were out in full force, as a sold out audience eagerly awaited the band to bring to the stage some new material that justifies why they have been in the dark for so long.
Luckily for the band they seemed to have produced exactly what the crowd wanted, a sound that has kept to the same vein of the bands previous work but has improved a lot as well. The guitars are a lot heavier, their song writing a lot more consistent. Also judging by some of the songs it sounded as if their forthcoming album could be the one that finally gets the band the credit they deserve, credit that is a long time overdue.
Much to some audience members dismay the band chose to fill their 70 minute set mainly with tracks from the forthcoming album. However the songs they did play from the previous album have taken on a much bigger sound since their last tour. Crowd favourite ‘Borders’ has been slowed down and stripped of any drums for the majority of the song, making it the ideal ‘arms round your friends’ moment as it was turned from a speeding fast guitar heavy track to a slow sing-along, a transition that worked incredibly well. ‘Put you in your place’ was transformed into a faster, louder, more epic, more aggressive track that seemed more maniacal than its original recording but was all the better for it.
The band seemed overwhelmed with the audience’s adulation for them, and came across sometimes as being a little nervous. They kept the talking to a minimum, but this was probably a wise decision as it would have been difficult to hear them talking above the crowds enthusiastic football chants. The band proved that years away from the limelight have not hindered but helped them. During a time of financial instability the bands brand of ‘dance yourself silly’ rock is exactly what people need.
Words: Kevin Angel
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