Interview The Sunshine Underground
Camille Ainsworth catches up with the dance-influenced Leeds rockers prior to the release of their second album, Nobody's Coming To Save You
Interview: The Sunshine Underground
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‘Put You In Your Place’ was The Sunshine Underground’s first ever single. It was also unashamedly an anthem from Leeds boys back in 2006. It graced the airwaves of national radio and continues to fill dance floors; it plunged their debut album Raise The Alarm into national awareness and at the Independent Leeds Music Awards 2005 they were named Live Band Of the Year. This February they are, finally, releasing their second album.
“Since Raise The Alarm we toured pretty much non stop until 2008,” says bassist Daley Smith, reminiscing about times when they supported LCD Soundsystem, “after that we spent time writing, we now have an album we are very proud of.”
It’s normal after a first successful release that a band keeps quiet. There’s the fear of the infamous second album pressure, and all the attention that initial success brings can see bands scuttle into the shadows for a well earned rest. But The Sunshine Underground have remained consistently active since the circus around Raise The Alarm began to die down. In early 2009 they released a free download with house boys FC Kahuna, played free secret shows at Crash Records and in November released an EP called Everything, Right Now.
“Most of the hardcore fans knew that we had written around about 50 songs for the second album,” says Daley. “So they were probably wondering what happened to the other 39 songs that didn’t make it.” The band brought together the best five remaining songs that missed the cut for the second album. “The E.P was a nice thing to do for the fans - a way to showcase some of the work that didn’t fit the album for whatever reason.”
The second album, Nobody’s Coming To Save You (continuing the crisis theme in their titles) marks a development in the bands sound. “With the second album we have tried to enhance everything that we liked about the first album,” says Daley. “We wanted better songs, bigger guitars and harder beats. I think Nobody’s Coming To Save You is a better body of work as a whole, whereas the first album was a collection of the first 11 songs we had.”
With a new record to push, the boys are out on tour. Traversing the country they’re finishing up the 14 date tour in their home town with an energetic live show at Leeds Academy on 19th February.
For information, music and tour dates see www.myspace.com/thesunshineunderground
Posted on Wednesday 20th January 2010
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