Five years after debuting with the excellent neo-folk album Yossis, Sun Parade reinvents itself and returns with a sound that is much brasher and more aggressive. The new album, Shuggy Mtn Breakdown is a well-crafted amalgamation of garage rock, psychedelia, and melodic pop with a hint of the folk roots from which founder Chris Marlon Jennings began.
Sun Parade has always had a bit of a folk-rock hybrid, but this time the band has flipped the order of influence. Whereas Yossis was a mostly acoustic folk album that had the energy of a rock album and featured occasional rock flourishes, Shuggy Mtn Breakdown is a mostly loud rock album that retains the former album’s folk melodies and vocal cadences. Another duality to the album is the splitting of lead vocals between fellow guitarists Jennings and Jeff Lewis.
From the guitar distortion and feedback in the opening seconds of the album, “Sleep Alone” sets the tone. Combining folksy strumming on slightly distorted guitars with snaking lead guitar, sing-along choruses with subtle tambourine, the song has a retro vibe that feeds off the lovesick lyrics. “Maybe you didn’t notice the way I feel about you,” Lewis sings as the drums and bass kick the song from folksy territory to retro rock. “Baby, you should notice the way I feel; it’s true.” The song “Werewolves,” which is sung from the perspective of a literal werewolf, is a similarly melodic song, with Lewis singing over clean fingerpicking and an R&B beat.
Sun Parade does melody well, but when Shuggy Mtn Breakdown gets heavy, it brings the energy and raw power of retro garage rock. In “Steal My Thunder,” Jennings’ distorted vocals shout over fuzzed-out power chords, heavy classic rock riffing, and a pounding rhythm section. The stomping banger “Shuggy Mtn” finds Jennings sounding his barbaric yawp over a thrashing riff that rattles with fury.
The duality of melodic hooks and rocking out is omnipresent throughout the album, but Sun Parade’s best work is when merging the styles within the same song. In “Psycho,” a dance-ready R&B beat in the verses morphs into a guitar-driven rock chorus while still retaining the melodic pop vocals. “Know that I want you; know that I think about you more than I ought to now,” Jennings sings in the bouncing second verse. As loud distorted guitars and rumbling drums crash into the song at the chorus, Jennings becomes less introspective and more confrontational.
Whether playing folksy pop with a rock attitude as with Yossis or playing aggressive rock music with folksy melodies as with Shuggy Mtn Breakdown, Sun Parade has shown an ability to meld its dual natures into a sound that is refreshingly unique and memorable.
