The Monarch from Metal Hammer Magazine

SUNNA

The Monarch, London

They’re from Bristol, they’ve got associations with home town buddies Massive Attack (singer/guitarist Jon Harris played on their ‘Mezzanine’ album and Sunna have signed to their Melankolic imprint), they feature Richie Mills - drummer with Derby’s gone but not forgotten unsung heroes Cable - and their debut tour of the States was with A Perfect Circle. You’ve read that all before, but just in case you haven’t, we thought we’d remind you. Sunna have a major buzz around them at the moment. All the above has certainly helped them - particularly the APC tour. Lucky bastards maybe, but what Sunna also have is one hell of a blistering debut album (the recently released ‘One Minute Science’) under their belts too.

And that, my friends, is not luck, that’s down to talent. The Monarch therefore is suitably packed. Sunna don’t need to be playing such dives. The band look cramped, the crowd certainly is, and maybe that’s the reason why Sunna choose to play a rather subdued set, opting to play, in my opinion, too many slowies in one go and leaving the ‘rockier’ tracks till the end. Sunna though, undoubtedly have some fine songs - ‘I’m Not Trading’, ‘Power Struggle’, ‘7%’ and ‘Insanity Pulse’ - being but a few. Comparisons? How’s about Alice In Chains doing trip hop? It’s different. In Harris, Sunna have an enigmatic frontman, a Mike Patton lookalike with a glint of roguish charm in his half-open eyes. And what of the future? Sunna and the punters know they’re onto a winning formula. It’s just a shame that this gig didn’t really do them any justice. Still who’s going to remember a gig at The Monarch when sometime very soon Sunnawill be playing much, much bigger places. (7)

Jon Machin
Metal Hammer - Christmas 2000
(thanks to Laura)

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