Upcoming Releases

Sunday State began with Michael Carothers and Kurt Foster, two long-time musicians in the band-breeding ground of the Pacific Northwest who had known each other for 20 years. With nothing more than a casual, "Hey, wanna write a few songs together?" they began digging into instrumental demos Carothers had created.

From the moment the two collaborated it was obvious the material taking shape had a particular voice worth exploring further. Recruiting Jeremy Dietz (Mission Spotlight) on bass, Thom Sullivan (The Pynnacles) on drums, and Steve Turner (Mudhoney/Green River) with his signature harmonic fuzz, the band developed a post-punk, campfire sing-a-long sound complete with cinematic landscapes tethered to jangle riffs rooted in their shared influences.

In this, their self-titled, first full length album, singer Kurt Foster explores familiar themes. Junior Spacecraft Overheated describes the struggle to find a sense of place through the story of a young, autistic rocket pilot who keeps missing his mark. White Pine County speaks to battling with the conflicting desire to run from the darkness, or fight it and bury it. And Take You Over addresses reckoning with the legacy of a diseased family tree.

In every song, Foster's voice both pulls you in and pushes you out into a world we all now know more than ever—lonesomeness for what we may have once had, if we ever had it at all. The band brings Foster’s lyrical themes home with confidence and tone to match. Clean lines and linear playing give way at times to moments of space, and sharp breaks and shifts meet with supporting leads that sound vocal in nature. Nothing is done without purpose and the purpose is to continue the mood.

The lion’s share of the engineering, recording and mixing on the album was done by the band’s dear friend Larry Crane at Jackpot! Recording Studio. Several tracks were recorded with Ken Stringfellow (The Posies, Big Star) at his studio in Seattle. In addition to a guest performance by Stringfellow, the album includes appearances from two of the band’s musical heroes, Scott McCaughey (The Minus 5, Young Fresh Fellows) and Jenny Conlee (The Decemberists, Black Prairie).

Track listing:

1. Timber Town Run
2. Junior Spacecraft
3. White Pine County
4. Faded Nashville
5. Sundown
6. All Sales Final
7. Absolution
8. Write the Letters
9. Fields of Grass
10. Take You Over
11. Union Motel
12. Picture Your Audience