Sunny Day Sets Fire: Stranger/Remix EP

Sunny Day Sets Fire
Stranger/Remix EP
IAMSOUND
2008-02-26

It’s difficult to know on what grounds to assess the Stranger/Remix EP. Given that the title track is the only one truly representative of Sunny Day Sets Fire’s sound it would seem odd to see it as taster to the multinational quintet’s debut full-length’s release later this year, but then, with three of the remaining seven cuts reinterpreting said track, its difficult, also, to construe it as a coherent release in its own right. Regardless, “Stranger” itself is a sublime slice of summery psychedelic pop; its cute, lovestruck vocals melting into glossy, exuberant guitar meanderings. The remixes, meanwhile, are variable, inevitably, but for the most part, intriguing. Highlights are the injection of CSS’s glittery retro throb into previous single “Wildnerness” and the Slips’ robotic, bass-heavy reinvention of the title track, but the most alluring aspect of Stranger/Remix EP remains the original single, which suggests Sunny Day Sets Fire could be exciting new kids on the indie-pop block.

RATING 7 / 10