One/Sunbeam Sound Machine, by Melbourne songwriter Nick Sowersby (AKA Sunbeam Sound Machine), is actually two very different EPs.
One has a scrappy tone, the bedroom noodlings of a kid who’s both in love with and frustrated by the world around him. ‘Sound Of Glass Breaking’ is delightfully confounding; parts protestation, adolescent confusion, and psychedelic musing. ‘Shake (Sleep Walking)’ channels the rhythmic attitude of The Feelies and the kaleidoscopic bubblegum pop of The Dolly Rocker Movement. ‘Little While’ is a ’60s-inspired meander through the contemporary suburban diaspora. The self-titled EP floats in with the ethereal ‘Whistle While You Wait’: lie back, close your eyes, and your pain lifts like dark clouds disturbed by southern winds. And in ‘I Dreamt I Saw You In A Dream’ lies the key to transcending the superficial monochromatic ugliness of the world around us to reveal the infinite magnificence of the natural world and the human condition.
It’s said that daydreaming is highly productive; and if that’s the case, Sunbeam Sound Machine opens a gateway to emotional awareness that is sorely in demand.
Out now on Dot Dash/Remote Control.
