Sunshine for the Blind

"...It was definitely worth sticking around [the High Noon Saloon] for the duration in order to see Sunshine for the Blind, because this was only their second show of the year. A power trio consisting of guitarist/vocalist Brian Daly (co-owner of Madison's DNA Studios and sought-after producter), drummer Daphna Ron and bassist Ken Stevenson, SFtB play insistent, instantly likeable rock with roots in the Beatles' Revolver album. Even without any gigs on the calendar, they've obviously been practicing; regardless of how intense the songs got, they stopped with remarkable precision. Stocking-hatted with Pippi Longstocking braids, Ron in particular was a force to be reckoned with; her simple, solid drumming drove the songs. Daly's pleasant voice and guitar skill on infectious songs like "Disappearing" and "See The River Rise" made me wish they would finish the album their website promised for October of 2005 (not a typo).... Sunshine for the Blind easily stole the show. They're just lucky the dancing librarians never showed up."

- Rick's Cafe

"(Daly) writes songs so catchy they burn into your memory bank!"
-Tom Laskin - The Isthmus

The Onion (01.17.2007)
Sunshine for the Blind + Lorenzo's Music, Electric Automatic
King Club, 9pm
"Sunshine for the Blind's new album, See the River Rise, captures the Madison trio exercising various sets of muscles, handling the riff-heavy power-guitar workouts like the title track and "Drop the Weight" while also deftly executing simpler jangly numbers like "Dedication" and "Disappearing". The Band is at its best when the voices of guitarist Brian Daly and drummer Daphna Ron mesh, as they do on the ultra-hooky "Open the Door". Daly, known in the scene for his board work at DNA Studios, also recorded and produced the album, rendering a sound that's crisp, clean, and straight-to-the-point, which is how the band sounds live."

- The Onion

"Sunshine for the Blind is going to make me rewrite my 'Best of 2006' list.'"
- Rick's Cafe

by Mike Huberty---Two years in the making, Sunshine For The Blind’s debut album, “See the River Rise,” is an accomplished culmination of the Madison trio’s dedication to hook-laden guitar rock that effortlessly moves between it’s new-wave, power-pop, alternative, and indie influences. Vocalist and guitarist (and co-owner of Madison's DNA Studios) Brian Daly recruited drummer Daphna Ron in 2003 and bassist Ken Stevenson in early 2005. He describes his dualist philosophy on rock music, which drives the band, as, “On the one hand it’s fun, ephemeral, and it’s all been done before (like fashion). On the other hand it (like all art) gives life meaning.”

That edge between flippancy and earnestness highlights the songs, as well as Daly’s descriptions of them. He talks of the title track as “finding oneself surprised to have survived personal trials, only to be alive in a fantastical world of near anarchic forces of creation and destruction. Also, Daphna had this really cool beat.” He brings out the quintessential “existential confusion” to pontificate on “Disappearing,” one of the record’s catchiest tracks, but in the next breath tosses “Another Sun” out as “kind of like that one Police song…” (I think he’s talking about Synchronicity”) It’s a track that Daly says was the toughest to get right on record, but it’s hard to imagine the CD without its spacey vibe.

While the record contains rock moments from solemn to driving, their live show is an entirely more visceral experience. “We all sing and have a lot of fun kicking out the jams. I wouldn’t say that we sound like anybody else, but since we use familiar building blocks for our sound, it is easy for the audiences who have never heard us to get the music right away.” “See the River Rise” gets unleashed at The King Club, Jan. 16, with openers Electric Automatic and Lorenzo’s Music.
- Maximum Ink, Jan. 2007