Album review: Sunwolf “Angel Eyes”

Sunwolf was created in our present-day garage punk revival sound in D.C.  2010 was the year the band sprung though the D.C. scene and were opening acts for Deathfix and the Pharmacists, to name a few.  Their on-stage presence was one of chaos. The antics, both on and off the stage, started to become a concern. This led Kalani (Rob Tifford) to condense the band to a three-piece that included Danny Bentley as the drummer and Tom Bunnell as the bassist.  Sunwolf released their Uncle Punchy EP in January 2013. This led to more chaotic and wild situations up and down the East Coast. After this experience, Kalani realised that Tom was more suited for the rock stylings of the guitar, and he made the switch. These changes helped to produce their current sound.

Angel Eyes is a six-song album created with great collaboration between the band and their producer and shares the same vigorous, punchy attitude and sound as their first album, while being more polished. With the popish upbeat tempos introduced with ‘Push it”, this style continues throughout the album even when the lyrics display a slightly moody feel. In “Dr. Misery”, Tifford  goes into a vocal crescendo expressing “You put your trust to somebody else, but you know it never belonged there.”  He lays out his feelings without profanity, but certainly gets his point across. From there, ‘If I Was You’ and ‘Angel Eyes’ transition the album to upbeat Ramones, Sex Pistols-style, angst-filled ballads.

Sunwolf mastered the combination of garage rock with upbeat tempos and sprinkles of pop that will cause the listeners to hit the repeat button. Angel Eyes will cause listeners to bob their heads and tap their feet while experiencing the old school sounds of garage punk, which many may have thought were lost to the ages.

Album release date: October 8, 2013