Sunlight (Spacey Jane album)

In November 2018, Spacey Jane released their second extended play (EP), In the Slight. In July 2019, the group announced bassist Amelia Murray would be amicably leaving the band to pursue a career in medicine.[3] She was soon replaced by Peppa Lane from Margaret River, who had studied at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts and performed on double bass in her group, the Friendly Folk.[4]

On 20 December 2019, Spacey Jane signed with English record label AWAL, following a "breakout year" for the band, having become the fifth most played artist on Triple J Unearthed in 2019.[5]

Frontman Caleb Harper wrote most of Sunlight over 18 months beginning in mid-2018. In that time, he experienced the beginning and end of a relationship, which informed much of the record's lyricism.[6] Spacey Jane recorded the album from January to December 2019,[7] in around 10 studio sessions arranged around the band members' work and studies.[2][8] With this busy schedule, Harper said it was difficult trying to craft a thematically cohesive record.[6]

Out of the twelve tracks on Sunlight, five were co-written by Murray before her departure, and she performs bass guitar in five songs including "Booster Seat", which additionally features backing vocals from new member Lane.[9] Some songs were written while the band was in the studio, including "Sunlight" and "Trucks".[10] The latter features the first and only vocal take Harper recorded for the song, with a synth demo that guitarist Ashton Harman-Le Cornu created on his phone.[10]

Sunlight was produced by Dave Parkin in Perth, who had worked with the band on their first two EPs, and mastered by William Bowden in Launceston, Tasmania.[11]

Described as an alternative[12] and indie rock album with jangling guitars,[2] the addition of synth lines and cooing backing vocals on Sunlight saw the band's musical palette expand from their guitar-driven EPs. Harper was admittedly nervous about these textural changes, saying to NME the album has "no sound to it that is typical of us".[8] The band experimented particularly on "Weightless" with a synth arpeggio and the song's lack of distinctive riffs. Harper said the track was "a test to see how ready we are to expand beyond the indie based guitar music we’ve been making".[10] Drummer Kieran Lama explored alternative percussion options on "Skin", using congas for the first time in a Spacey Jane song.[10]

While the album consists of uptempo anthems including "Head Cold" and "Good for You"– the latter described by Ali Shutler of NME as containing "all frantic guitar solos and rough-around-the-edges grit"– Harper's lyricism on Sunlight often encompasses emotions of introspection,[13] anxiety and depression[10] due to relationship and family breakdowns.[13] "Booster Seat" in particular explores "feelings of trust, guilt and losing control."[14] More pensive tracks like "Trucks" and "Sunlight" have a more desolate sonic landscape, while the "tight, sour-faced rock" production on "Love Me Like I Haven't Changed" features "wispy harmony vocals" and a sound reminiscent of the Strokes, according Ben Malkin of music publication Indie Is Not a Genre.[12]

The lead single "Good Grief" was released on 24 April 2019,[15] and was supported by a six-date Australian tour.[16] "Good for You" and "Head Cold" followed as the next two singles in August and November respectively, with the latter being supported by the nationwide Head Cold tour.[17][18] "Good for You" polled at number 80 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2019, marking the band's first appearance in the countdown.

On 26 February 2020, the band announced the album's release date alongside fourth single "Skin" and another national tour.[19] Harper said the band was "so incredibly excited" to premiere the album.[20] The fifth and final single "Straightfaced" was released on 1 May.[21] In the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2020, album track "Booster Seat" polled at number two.[22] The track was subsequently sent to commercial radio as the sixth single on 7 May 2021.[23]

Upon the album's release on 12 June 2020, the band held an online party with customers of the album via Zoom.[24] Sunlight peaked at number two on the ARIA Albums Chart and topped Triple J's annual Album Poll.[25] At the 2021 AIR Awards, Sunlight was nominated for Independent Album of the Year and Best Independent Rock Album.[26] In March 2021, the band embarked on the nationwide, 26-date Sunlight Tour, with support from Carla Geneve.[27]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
The Canberra Times	[13]
Indie Is Not a Genre	[12]
NME	[14]

Sunlight received widespread acclaim upon release.[28] Reviewing for Indie Is Not a Genre, Malkin called the release a "well-toned alt rock force, fit for radio but layered with emotional complexity".[12] Ali Shutler of NME agreed, writing that "as huge as Spacey Jane sound on Sunlight, it's never at the expense of their heartfelt honesty".[14] Reviewing for Triple J, Declan Byrne summarised the album as "one of the smoothest indie rock rides you’ll enjoy from an Aussie guitar band this year," praising its "breezy-sounding songs with emotional weight and heft".[2] Looking forward to their next endeavours, Josh Leeson for the Canberra Times said the band still has "plenty of room to mature in future releases to flesh out a more unique sound".[13]

Standard edition

Deluxe edition[29]

Musicians

• Caleb Harper – lead vocals, guitar (tracks 1–11), writing
• Ashton Hardman-Le Cornu – lead guitar, synth (track 10), writing
• Kieran Lama – drums, congas (track 3), writing
• Peppa Lane – bass guitar (tracks 3, 5, 7–8, 10–12), backing vocals (tracks 6, 9), writing (tracks 3, 5, 7–8, 10–12)
• Amelia Murray – bass guitar (tracks 1–2, 4, 6, 9), backing vocals (track 4), writing (tracks 1–2, 4, 6, 9)

Technical

• Dave Parkin – producer
• William Bowden – mastering

Promotional

• Daniel Hildebrand – photography
• Garreth Pearse – deluxe edition design
• Matt Sav – cover photography

• Sunlight at Discogs (list of releases)