By: David de Young
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Chris Burney of the Sun at the Varsity Theater - Photo by David de Young
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It took me a while to actually listen to the new disc from the Sun after it came in the mail a couple months ago. I was quick to note the red sticker on the cover: “Warning! This is not a CD. This is the world’s first DVD album.” What that translated as was: “I can’t listen to this in my car.”
One evening at home when I had time to give it my full attention, I popped it into my DVD player and was immediately blown away by the first song, “Must Be You,” enjoying not only the super hi-fi sound of the DVD (superior to a CD) but also the slick and interesting video. I was hooked, and for the next 15 songs it was like watching MTV (which I confess I haven’t watched in over a dozen years) gripped by song after song from the same band. (Another howastheshow writer who missed the show, but has the album called it "crack-like addictive.")
Fortunately, the videos went through as many stylistic changes as the songs, from your traditional storyline interspersed with clips of the band playing, to a video of the band on a faux bicycle tour (“Lost At Home”), to a straight studio video of the band in the studio, to a video featuring nothing but clips from beautifulagony.com (“Romantic Death”). (Watch some for yourself on the band's MySpace page at www.myspace.com/thesun.)
One listening/viewing of the disc was enough to inspire me to catch the band live when they came to the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis. (This was actually the third time the Sun has played the Twin Cities in a year.) The DVD allows the capability of ripping to MP3’s, and when I was finally able to listen to the CD in the car it more than passed that test too.
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The Sun at The Varsity
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Thursday’s bill had sold out due to the Sun’s growing reputation as well as the popularity of headliners the Shout Out Louds and middle band Rosebuds. The band opened with “Valentine,” the last song their album Blame It On The Youth, (Warner Brothers, 2005). I didn’t get a set list, but I discerned that most of their ten song set came from this disc, including “Rockstop,” “Justice,” and “Pavement Jive,” and the set ended with the disc’s first song, “Must Be You.” It was one of the quickest 40 minutes in a long time, and what I mean by that is that the band's energy was contagious, and there was no down time.
One criticism came from one audience member who said they are too “straight ahead.” But I have no problem with “straight ahead” when it’s done right and with passion. Front man Chris Burney (who incidentally used to room with Tim Easton and play bass for him) is an excellent young songwriter who despite the fact that his band is already signed to a major label still shows signs of even greater potential. Burney seems to have a lot of fun with what he does and has surrounded himself with great bandmates. Drummer and founding member Sam Brown also contributes in the songwriting department.
With the work ethic of an indie band and the backing of a major label, I can see The Sun’s popularity growing quickly over the next year. With Blame It On The Youth and their live shows, they have clearly demonstrated they know how to get their audience’s attention. And despite their previous trips through town that I overlooked, they finally got mine.
Location Info:
The Varsity Theater
Artist Info: The Sun
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