Little Suns
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Little Suns

Montréal, Quebec, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2012 | INDIE

Montréal, Quebec, Canada | INDIE
Established on Jan, 2012
Band Folk Pop

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"Song of the Day: 'Sunboat' by Little Suns"

The new breed of orchestral-folk bands is nothing if not precocious, and
Montreal, Quebec band Little Suns is surely that, as well as spry in its
rhythms and wry in its message of hope and companionship. - KDHX


"Little Suns - Normal Human Feelings review"

Little Suns' debut Normal Human Feelings is a globally-minded take on folk as adventurous as it is heartfelt. Though many folk acts have taken on influences from outside the States, what's truly impressive about the album is how fluently it works Eastern European sounds into American ones: neither receives short shrift, and they complement each other wonderfully. The band is just as likely to spin an accordion melody into a dance party as it is to wind down the other way. One need look no further than the first track to realize this: "Sunboat" opens the album with an eight-minute
romp through pastoral fields, rowdy marketplaces, and darkly-lit ballrooms. By song's end we have scribbles of piano cutting into galloping rhythms that bring Gloria Estefan to mind, trumpets soaring like banners over night skies, and subtle bass licks keeping track of the song's pulse amidst the chaos. In a month that's been rife with outstanding releases, it takes a lot to stand out, but if you listen closely enough, you'll find it here. Stream Normal Human Feelings below: - Muzik Dizcovery


"Little Suns - Normal Human Feelings - Full album stream"

Little Suns — Normal Human Feelings - Full Album
Stream
Hands down, this is one of the best debut records I have been sent in a long, long
time! Stream this terrific debut album from Montréal–based indie folk act Little Suns,
due for release on Divergent Recordings October 8th, 2013. - Viva Indie Blog


"Little Suns: Normal Human Feelings"

Nick Miller of New Girl didn’t believe we were supposed to talk about our feelings. I agree to an
extent. Have you ever asked a friend a simple, “How you doin’?” only to be met with a Dawson’s
Creek like response met with too many clichés about growing up and waterworks? It’s awkward
and makes me uncomfortable. Thankfully the feelings on Little Suns’ Normal Human Feelings
didn’t cause me to look for the nearest exit (like I would with a dramatic friend). You’d think it would
but I kind of dug their gypsy meets India meets today sound.
So there are a lot of layers to this record, much like the human psyche that makes up emotions and
therefore feelings. On one end you have the vagabond jingles with songs like “Black Elephant” and
my favorite, “Sunboat” – which is the answer to, what do you get when you mix Sting, Coldplay and
gypsies? That traveler spirit is then intertwined with lavish Indian decadence in “Child of the Night.”
Then you get to this point where Little Suns isn’t the band you thought you knew with this tracks that
could wind up on the nearest AC radio station near you. “Where Do People Go When They Go Away”
and “Wake Up” were completely different from the rest to me.
Little Suns is a band that embraces worldly sounds and tosses them in with contemporary ways but
keeps the folk alive and well. If you’re into the obscure and are okay with your feelings and like to
express them through song, check out Normal Human Feelings, out now. - The Golden Mixtape


"Dry River Caravan [Little Suns] and The Opposite of Everything @ the Black Sheep Inn, Wakefield QC"

If you’ve never had the opportunity to catch a show at the Black
Sheep Inn, you should plan a trip to Wakefield, Quebec in the very
near future. The small town surroundings, friendly people,
fantastic food, and local brews make the perfect backdrop for
many a quietly rambunctious musical experience. The Black Sheep
is known for hosting bands as varied in home towns as they are in
musical styles, and they always knock it out of the park. Last week
the staged was graced by local Ottawa outfit Dry River Caravan [Little Suns] supported by The Opposite of Everything out of Toronto.
I should preface this review by saying that the last show I saw at
The Black Sheep was an unqualified success with Montreal’s Lake
of Stew warming up the crowd for banjoman extraordinaire Old
Man Luedecke, and reciving the only opening-band-encore I have
ever experienced. Needless to say the bar was set rather high…
Had I not had this in the back of my mind the Opposite of
Everything may have impressed me more, but alas it was not the
case.
All the pieces were certainly there- the eclectic mix of klesmer and bluegrass combined with Indian and
African rhythms provided an interesting base, but the songs just didn’t seem to come together. The individual
members of the band were fantastic musicians (Particularly John Williams on clarinet and harmonica)- and
each looked as if they were having a great time up on stage- but again the pieces didn’t really seem to come
together. Lead singer Jaron Freeman-Fox and accordion/keys player Johnny Spence even physically collided
with each other on several occasions (and not in that we’re-so-excited-we-bash-into-each-other-on-purpose
kind of excellent way, more in a hey-I-didn’t-see you-there-cuz-I’m-off-in-my-own-world kind of a way…). The
overall performance, while clearly showing immense amounts of promise, seemed in need of a healthy dose of
practice and significantly more direction. From reading other reviews of their live show I am inclined to think
they were just having a bit of an off night, so I would certainly give them another chance, but this was far from
the best performance I’ve ever seen…
In striking contrast were headliners Dry River Caravan [Little Suns] . I first came across this local group at one of Ottawa’s
gigantic neighborhood street sales and instantly fell in love with their music. An interesting mix of several folky
styles, my enjoyment of the music was helped along by their engaging smiles and never-ending enthusiasmnot
many people can play an eight-hour garage sale and still be smiling by the end of it! This was my first
opportunity to see them playing in a more traditional indoor-setting.

The very definition of a group, the members of Dry River Caravan [Little Suns] fed off of each other in every aspect of their
performance. Robin Meyer-MacLeod did not seem to be able to wipe the smile off of his face through singing,
clarinet playing and happy-dancing, and bouzouki player Matt Smith is quite possibly one of the most
entertainingly into-it performers I have ever seen, even looking like he was going to openly weep during several
melodramatic moments. John Cockburn’s beautifully charismatic voice and energetic acordioning provided
the anchor lacking in the opener’s performance, and Daniel Grewal on upright bass, Liam Smith on drums ,
and the guest trumepteer beautifully rounded out the group. after getting off to a slow start, they soon won the
crowd over and had several members of the audience making up impromptu dance routines and cheers.
Mixing klezmer, bluegrass, and folk with sweeping narratives and an energetic performance, there could not
have been a more perfect compliment to the swirling snow outside, the cold beers, and the friendly crowd.
I will certainly be keeping an eye out for future shows by both bands- a sure-thing from Dry River Caravan [Little Suns] , and
a second look at The Opposite of Everything. - Grayowl Point


Discography

Normal Human Feelings, 2013

Photos

Bio

Little Suns is a musical collective that simply cant be placed in any sort of genre as a task deemed near impossible to try and contain a sound that is larger than life with influences both near and far, while it may happen to be clich to say it is safe to say there is no need for comparison as it is virtually impossible.

Folk/pop fusion Little Suns consists of John Aaron Cockburn, Robin MeyerMacLeod, Daniel Grewal, Liam Smith, Raphael WeinrothBrown and Duncan Campbell who bring together a unique union of sounds on their debut release, Normal Human Feelings.

Produced by Leon Taheny (Owen Pallet, Wooden Sky, Bruce Peninsula) Normal Human Feelings expands on an already elaborate soun. The album features additional musicians and arrangements including Brownman (trumpet), Tamar Ilana (vocals), Evan Runge (violin) and Ross Davison (saxophone, uilleann pipes).

Little Suns draws influences from folk music from every corner of the world which is then filtered through each band members respective qualities and style giving listeners a western pop audio experience. Effortlessly laced with heavy eastern European influence after John Aaron Cockburn and Robin MeyerMacLeod ventured off to Romania and Hungary; it was there with instruments strapped to their backs that a new sound was created. This musical pilgrimage gave Normal Human Feelings its authentic reverberation.

Being immersed in the culture I was trying to emulate at the time, it gave more realism to and authenticity (to the sound) of what I was trying to create. In general, travel helped expand my worldview, says John Aaron Cockburn on the musical journey that brought him back to his roots in turn giving life to the Eastern Europe influence that achieves a universal resonance.

Over the course of a year producer Leon Taheny tweaked the fusion of sounds to make a cohesive arrangement of songs while emphasizing on the strengths. Other arrangements and lyrics were born more organically and on the fly lending to the worldly sound and majestic vibe that makes up Little Suns.

Band Members