The apocalypse in the summer dress sounds like a casual roots music with punk attitude.
Folk-Punk has a dubious reputation, associated with drinking men who roar Irish folk songs. Sydney Ward alias Sunny War also describes her music as folk punk. The African-American musician from Tennessee sounds different: after a catchy, uninterrupted fusion of rumplic indie rock, country, blues, soul and psychedelia, with agile guitar runs and thick layers from organ and fuzz.
The punk lies in the attitude, especially in the rap-soul number walking contradiction ”. With Steve Ignorant from the English Anarcho-Punks Crass, a long-time favorite band Wards, Air is air over the constraints of capitalism and war crimes financed by tax money.
There is also a lot of loss and frustration with, for example in the soulful-rooty cuddly “Scornful Heart” with Tré Burt or in the bluesy highlight “No One Calls Me Baby”. Armageddon in A Summer Dress still sounds rousing. And if you hold up negativity, in the end, you get out of your tongue in “Debbie Downer”, while airy Afropop-Slicks let your summer dress flutter.
You can find out which albums were published in February 2025 via our monthly publication list.