Suuns

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Suuns
Suuns performing in 2013
Suuns performing in 2013
Background information
OriginMontreal, Quebec, Canada
GenresKrautrock, neo-psychedelia, art punk[1]
Years active2007–present
Labels
Websitesuuns.net
MembersBen Shemie
Liam O'Neill
Joseph Yarmush
Past membersMax Henry

Suuns (/suːns/) is a Canadian rock band from Montreal. It was formed in mid-2007 when vocalist and guitarist Ben Shemie and guitarist and bassist Joe Yarmush got together to make some beats which quickly evolved into a few songs. The duo was soon joined by drummer Liam O'Neill and bassist and keyboardist Max Henry to complete the original line-up. The band signed to Secretly Canadian in 2010. Since 2010, Suuns saw the departure of Henry as an official member[2] (he continues to record in the studio) to pursue a scholastic path, and in 2020 they officially signed with Joyful Noise Recordings with their 2020 output of Fiction EP.

History[]

In 2009, Suuns entered Breakglass Studios with Jace Lasek of the Besnard Lakes co-producing and engineering, and recorded their first album, Zeroes QC. Upon its release in 2010, a reviewer of The New York Times said that it offered a "rigorous strategy behind every gorgeous onslaught."[3] The album appeared on the !Earshot National Top 50 Chart.[4] Suuns toured the East Coast in the summer with Parlovr and further established their fan base during their fall tour with Land of Talk and The Besnard Lakes.

Suuns spent much of 2011 performing in the U.S., Europe and Canada including New York's CMJ, SXSW, Primavera Sound, and over twelve other festivals. They also headlined a Canadian tour and co-headlined a North American tour with PS I Love You. During a rare couple weeks off in Montreal, Suuns decided to take a risk to experiment and create two new, unusual songs. "Red Song" and "Bambi" were extended pieces unlike Suuns' previous works.

In 2012, they were the curators for the Sonic City Festival in Belgium. Other festival performances included the National's ATP Festival, London's Village Underground, and Paris's Point Ephemere. The band also spent much of the year preparing to release their second album, Images Du Futur, which they announced in November, and gearing up for the busy year ahead. They finished off 2012 with a month-long tour from mid-November through mid-December.

The band kicked off the year with a January release of new music video "Edie's Dream" and a February release of the video for "2020". Their second album, Images Du Futur, was released by Secretly Canadian on March 5 (except in Canada on Secret City Records) in the middle of Suuns' international three-month tour featuring We Are Wolves and Plants and Animals. The Line of Best Fit describes the album: "Images Du Futur is exciting in a way that few albums manage to be, dangerous and compelling like a first cigarette or fumbled sexual encounter, and nothing here quite seems real: these ten tracks exist in a half-light, a nocturnal fog a step removed from lucid thought. And a long, long way from anything routine."[5] In June 2013, the album was longlisted for the 2013 Polaris Music Prize.

Suuns and Jerusalem In My Heart released their self-titled album worldwide on April 14, 2015, and announced tour and festival dates. An Exclaim! interview states, "Recorded over a week in November 2012, the tracks mixed the strengths of both bands: the Eastern modes and drones plus the Arabic vocal delivered by Moumneh, and the keyboard arpeggios and incisive guitars of Suuns' Shemie and Joe Yarmush."[6]

In May 2015 the band began recording Hold/Still in Dallas, Texas with producer John Congleton. During the three-week recording session, Congleton encouraged the band to capture flawless live takes of each track, without use of overdubs. The album includes songs that the band had been working on for several years but never showed up on previous albums, including "Translate" and "Infinity". It was released on April 15, 2016, via Secretly Canadian.

In November 2016, the band also curates their own program during the tenth Anniversary Edition of Le Guess Who? Festival in Utrecht, The Netherlands. This curated program includes performances by amongst others Pauline Oliveros, Alessandro Cortini, Patrick Higgins and Jerusalem in My Heart.

On October 30, 2020, the band released their EP, Fiction, via Secret City and Joyful Noise Recordings.[7]

In the decade-plus since their formation, Montreal's (now) three-piece SUUNS have established themselves as one of Canada's most respected purveyors of avant-garde rock music. On September 3, they'll release The Witness, the follow-up full-length to 2018's Felt, and on June 9, 2021, FADER premiered fist single and video for "Witness Protection",[8] along with the announcement of the new record out September 3, 2021, on Joyful Noise Recordings[9] (worldwide) & Secret City (Canada).

O'Neill appears on Charlotte Cornfield's forthcoming album Highs in the Minuses.[10]

In popular culture[]

Their song "Up Past The Nursery" is used in the TV series The Blacklist.

Their song "2020" was featured in season 1, episode 10 of the TV series Halt and Catch Fire.

The song "2020" was also featured as backing track to the closing credits in season 3, episode 7 of the TV series Continuum.

Discography[]

Studio albums

EP

Singles

  • "Bambi" b/w "Red Song" (2011), Secretly Canadian

Collaborative albums

References[]

  1. ^ Berman, Stuart (April 10, 2015). "Suuns and Jerusalem in My Heart". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  2. ^ "In Conversation: Suuns Discuss Pursuing New Ideas on Their Experimental "Fiction" EP". FLOOD. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  3. ^ Jon Pareles. "The Reliable (Melodic) Drone of Suuns". The New York Times. Retrieved October 10, 2010.
  4. ^ "The National Top 50 For the Week Ending: Tuesday, October 26, 2010". !Earshot.
  5. ^ "Suuns - Images Du Futur | The Line Of Best Fit". March 9, 2013. Archived from the original on March 9, 2013. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
  6. ^ Hill, Eric. "Suuns Talk Their Meeting of Minds with Jerusalem in My Heart". Exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on June 5, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2015.
  7. ^ Vitagliano, Joe (October 30, 2020). "Suuns Explores New Territory And New Vibes On New EP, "FICTION"". American Songwriter. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  8. ^ "SUUNS give isolation a haunting soundtrack with "Witness Protection"". The FADER. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  9. ^ "SUUNS | The Witness | Joyful Noise Recordings | Joyful Noise Recordings". www.joyfulnoiserecordings.com. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  10. ^ Pappis, Konstantinos (August 5, 2021). "Charlotte Cornfield Announces New Album, Shares Video for New Song 'Headlines'". Our Culture Mag. Retrieved August 7, 2021.

External links[]

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