Whether droning madly, spiralling into cascades of infinitely echoing vocals or kicking back with their blissed-out take on classic Americana rock, Sleepy Sun are a band that demand your attention. Formed in Santa Cruz and now based in San Francisco, this intense sextet are set to release their latest single, Sleepy Son (sic), taken from their breathtaking debut album, Embrace, in August.
Comprising Brian Tice (drums), Jack Allen (bass), Rachael Williams (vocals, haberdashery & interpretive dancing) Bret Constantino (vocals & harmonica), Evan Reiss (guitars) and Matt Holliman (guitars) – all 22 and 23, the band met in the counter-cultural hub city of Santa Cruz, California, citing “pizza, horticulture, Neil Percival Young,” as common interests. “With the forest and ocean as our back drop, we were drawn to each other as fellow musicians, friends, and lovers” they say.
Drawing musical inspiration from Black Sabbath, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Can and Creation Records, they forged their sound in intense jams, “free flowing, heady, ‘where am I?’ type jamming.”
Though they’re in the one-time home of psychedelia, it’s not San Francisco per se that influences their sound. “It comes more from Northern California itself more than any scene or city,” they say. “There truly is nowhere on Earth like our little corner of the country where the redwoods smother the ocean.”
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