Sonny and the Sunsets Announce 'Antenna to the Afterworld'

BY Gregory AdamsPublished Mar 20, 2013

Less than a year after the release of Longtime Companion LP, prolific California genre-jumping songwriter Sonny Smith and his band the Sunsets are back with a follow-up, titled Antenna to the Afterworld. The record arrives June 11 through Polyvinyl.

A press release explains that Smith is in a much different frame of mind on Antenna to the Afterworld than on the country-flecked break-up LP Longtime Companion. Apparently, the San Francisco artist's latest comes after the murder of a close friend and follows a visit to a psychic that put him in touch with another friend who had died, leading the song cycle to come from thinking about themes of life and death.

Smith apparently fancies himself a space voyageur this time around, introducing listeners to a protagonist from "the planet of dogs" on synth-strewn opener "Dark Corners," which you can stream below. The press release adds that closer "Green Blood" focuses on Smith's extramarital activity with a "spaceling," much to the chagrin of her cyborg husband.

Musically, the 11-song outing is said to take the Sunsets deep into the realms of new wave and post-punk, allegedly touting a Joy Division influence. You can see the tracklisting down below, where you'll also find an album trailer.

Polyvinyl will release the album on CD, LP, digitally and on cassette. If you pre-order the record on vinyl here on the label site, you can get the LP on purple wax (limited to 500 copies).

In other Sunsets-related news, the troupe are offering up a new 7-inch ahead of Antenna to the Afterworld on Record Store Day (April 20) that features a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine" on the A-side, and the Beach Boys' "Surfer Girl" on the flip.

Antenna to the Afterworld:

1. Dark Corners

2. Mutilator

3. Palmreader

4. Path Of Orbit

5. Natural Acts

6. Girl On The Street

7. Death Scene

8. Primitive

9. Void

10. Earth Girl

11. Green Blood



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