Lunison’s debut EP ‘See Me As A Friend’ presented five tracks where a rock core sound was twisted into some very interesting shapes. ‘Name Three Songs’ managed to open with a riff that mixed garage rock and an almost post-grunge dirtiness, only to turn that on its head with a huge, melodic chorus full of ringing guitars sounding like a throwback to a great Gin Blossoms tune; ‘Smile, Cruel World’ borrowed from a couple of The Black Keys’ more groove-centric numbers, but added a more melodic vocal, again, calling back to a world of 90s pop-rock sounds, and ‘Velcro’ introduced a reverbed, 50s guitar twang in places, which set against a pumping bass and harmony vocals ended up sounding like a funky take on something from Arctic Monkeys ‘AM’.
Just as the Britpop-esque bounce of their earlier single ‘Candles’ wouldn’t prepare the Lunison’s audience for the sounds of that EP, nothing on ‘See Me As A Friend’ really connects with the curling vocal melodies and funky chops that drive the band’s current single ‘Susciety Gurl’.
The overall mood here is more of a light funk rock than college rock, leaving only a familiar vocal tone as one of the band’s only identifiable elements. In some ways, this shift is a great one: it really shows off the musical versatility within this trio, but also conveys the kind of melodic edge that could expand their fan base. From the outset, a slightly bluesy guitar tone dominates, and that sounds great weaving in and out of a semi-funky rhythm. From that strong musical base, a very melodic vocal shares a great tone, and even though the lyrical hooks here aren’t as strong as on a couple of earlier Lunison numbers, the unity between the musicians feels even tighter. Whether working the flowing groove of the verse, or punching with the chorus elements which make an unexpectedly late appearance here, everyone is in great form, and this leads to the kind of single that’ll really stick after a few spins.
Regarding the track’s funkier edge (and to a degree, the band’s ever evolving sound), frontman Matt Vantine sheds a little light: “I think that, having grown up in the Philadelphia indie scene, I shied away from writing songs in the genres of funk, blues, classic rock etc. Once I matured a little bit and broke away from all of that, I realized that it’s perfectly fine to infuse our songs with all of my musical influences. After all, I have a strong relationship with the music that I grew to love as a kid and that passion shines through when drawing from those inspirations to write songs like “Susciety Gurl”. As they say, “If it comes from the heart, it’ll go to the heart”. You can hear my love of guitar over a funky bass line and beat when you listen to this tune. I have high hopes for this song to be the lead single off our upcoming album, “Fakepink” – dropping everywhere Friday, August 8th!”
Visit LUNISON online:
https://www.instagram.com/lunison_music
https://linktr.ee/lunison_music
https://www.facebook.com/lunison
https://www.youtube.com/@lunisonmusic
https://lunison.bandcamp.com/music
https://music.apple.com/us/artist/lunison/1625415074
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6ylH1S9d5FL7YzCDpD3Guc?si=URCmFHDxT8-Edf72z5mXSw
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