Sunfall Festival - Monday 23
(self-released)
I first heard Sunfall Festival at a small café in Utah five years ago. At that time I
was more impressed with the band's sound and musicianship than I was with the actual
songs. I was instantly drawn in by the beautiful rich tones coming from guitarist Scott
Wiley's amplifier and the finesse with which he played. Drummer Chris Peterson's
playing reminded me of Seam drummer Reg Shrader (one of my favorite drummers), and
Amy Greetham's voice had such an appealing timbre.
Fast forward five years, to the first time I heard Monday 23, Sunfall Festival's
latest release, and it is the songs that have left me so impressed I haven't taken it out of
my CD player for a week. Don't get me wrong; Scott Wiley (who also engineered the
album) still has amazing ability to get gorgeous sounds, not only out of his guitar, but
also out of every instrument and voice on the recording. His guitar playing has also only
gotten better with time, becoming very intricate and detailed. Monday 23 also finds the rest of the
band in top form musically, and Amy Greetham's vocals have only gotten stronger.
The songs, rather than following typical verse chorus song structure, seem to
weave their own natural course, being guided by Greetham's shimmering vocals.
Greetham's lyrical content also shows a real introspective depth and maturity. There
isn't an element of Monday 23 that seems lacking or out of place, from the tasteful string
and horn arrangements to the cover art.
Monday 23 is the most refreshing and best thing I've heard yet this year.
The only thing stopping me from giving the album a perfect rating is the
fact that I have only had the album for a week.
It needs to stand the test of time before it gets that perfect score.
Monday 23 will be available on Monday April 23rd on the bands website,
www.sunfallfestival.com, and is most likely the bands last independent release, as they
have just won a $250,000 recording contract from www.garageband.com (details are
available on the band's website as well as garageband.com). Also available that day is
23b, a collection of remixes, b-sides, and outtakes spanning the bands career, which is
something I also recommend.
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