High Tide

Sunny Day Real Estate's ship comes in

by Sean Richardson

When in 1997 Seattle indie rockers Sunny Day Real Estate got back together after a two-year layoff, they seemed poised for a commercial breakthrough. Since splitting up, the band had seen their two albums, 1994's Diary and 1995's LP2 (both on Sub Pop), become underground classics. Their recorded legacy had almost singlehandedly spawned a rebirth in emo (or emocore, as it's also clunkily referred to), a thriving movement of punk bands who favor a progressive and melodic hard-rock sound as well as serious, often poetic lyrics. But the band found themselves preaching to the converted with their 1998 comeback disc, How It Feels To Be Something On (Sub Pop), which was well received by fans but failed to expand their audience.

After a nasty split with Sub Pop, Sunny Day are back with a new label, the BMG-distributed Time Bomb Recordings, and a new disc, The Rising Tide. They've streamlined their sound, taking a more straightforward approach to songwriting and bringing Jeremy Enigk's passionate vocals closer to the forefront. They've also turned their guitars back up after quieting down a little on How It Feels. On The Rising Tide's lead single, "One," the band create a tuneful maelstrom reminiscent of early Sunny Day favorites like "Seven" and "In Circles." With its meaty guitars and yearning, romantic lyrics, the tune has as much in common with the strident classicism of Metallica's "One," and U2's and Creed's, as it does with emo and indie rock.

Other emo luminaries, like Jimmy Eat World and the Promise Ring, have recently dented the mainstream with similarly catchy releases. But this one might just be the genre's breakthrough album. "When we named this record The Rising Tide, it kind of summed up how we felt about it," says guitarist Dan Hoerner over the phone from Seattle. "We never thought about making a record that could break through to a bigger crowd, but I think this one has the potential. I would love to sell a ton of records. There's just this crap that dominates the consciousness right now -- you know, with the boy bands and everything. To see Sunny Day Real Estate become more of a presence would be really cool, because I think our music is antithetical to that kind of stuff."

After shuffling through a couple of bassists after original bassist Nate Mendel decided he'd rather stay with Foo Fighters than participate in the reunion, Enigk, Hoerner, and drummer William Goldsmith decided to record The Rising Tide as a trio. Adding to his vocal, guitar, and keyboard duties, Enigk also played all the bass on the album. (He's sticking to guitar on Sunny Day's current tour, which will have Nick Macri on bass and Greg Suran on keyboard, guitar, and back-up vocals.) "The songwriting process on this record was pretty interesting because Enigk was wearing so many hats in the studio," says Hoerner. "In the past, he and I would sit at the board together and write lyrics. This time, he scratched his vocals while we were recording, then I took the scratch tapes back and wrote the lyrics. This is the first time that I got to write the vast majority of the lyrics, and I feel like I took a step forward on songs like `Snibe' and `Killed by an Angel.' "

Those two songs, like "One," are aggressive rockers that probably represent Sunny Day's greatest chance at commercial success. On gentle, introspective tracks like "Tearing in My Heart" and "The Ocean," the band cultivate the softer side they've displayed since Diary, occasionally recalling U2 with their chiming guitars and soul-searching lyrics. Producer Lou Giordano, whose work on stellar loud-pop albums like Sugar's Copper Blue (Rykodisc, 1992) and the Goo Goo Dolls' A Boy Named Goo (Warner Bros., 1995) made him an ideal choice for Sunny Day, helped the group reach sonic goals that had eluded them in the past. "Lou's just a fantastic guy for getting sounds," says Hoerner. "In the past, I used to be like, `Dude, I want to get the sound from The Unforgettable Fire on `Pride,' '' and we'd be like, `Uh, well . . . ' But with Lou it was like, `Oh, okay!' "

Whether or not Sunny Day break through to a larger audience with The Rising Tide, Hoerner is proud of the influence the band has had. "People always ask us if we're bummed that there's so many bands out there copying us. And I'm always like, `What?' That's the greatest compliment in the world! I also feel like it's not giving these younger bands enough credit, because ultimately everybody is influenced by somebody. By the same token, I don't care if people want to put on a fake beard and stand up there and be Dan Hoerner. I'm just stoked that people like the band.