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Imagine if you had a pitcher of sunshine and 10 glasses. You poured a little of the sunshine into each glass and served it to a group of people who greeted you with a smile. That’s what EAT SUNSCREEN sounds like. Each song is bursting with positive energy, uplifting production and lyrics that are filled with happiness and motivation. These aren’t songs you only hear or even experience, they’re songs you feel. SUNSCREEN is a feeling and he wants to share that feeling with the world.
SUNSCREEN created this album to help people appreciate the small things in life. Common activities like enjoying the sunshine, traveling with friends or simply drinking water first thing in the morning are celebrated across EAT SUNSCREEN. Each of the 10 tracks are about a central theme or aspect of life that SUNSCREEN wants people to focus on enjoying and the lyrics shed light on how beautiful they all are. SUNSCREEN wrote and produced the entire album; it also features contributions from his guitarist friend Avery Benter. It was mixed by Michael Guillot and was mastered by Voyager Mastering. With these helping hands, SUNSCREEN was able to craft the sunshine soaked soundscapes he envisioned his listeners to feel.
“The inspiration behind starting this album was to hone in on the little things in life that make up the grander narrative of our lives and celebrate those things. I feel like the little things we find in life bring us the most joy. I focused on these things in my own life and wrote songs by saying as much as I could about each one of them.”
A standout track from EAT SUNSCREEN is “MOVE WITH ME” which is centered around one of the greatest joys we have in life: dancing. The track is soaked in fun guitars and upbeat drums that give it a surf rock feel. The lyrics of the track contain counting, which goes hand in hand with the choreography in the music video, which SUNSCREEN created with his friend Janie Hoffman. The video was actually directed by SUNSCREEN and was shot, edited and colored by Avery Benter. SUNSCREEN wears a bright pink suit in the video which pops well with the peach background and blue - yes blue - people on the instruments. The fun colors and smiling faces of the people in the video all contribute to the happiness that shines through the song.The entire track has a “get up and move” feeling which was completely intentional.
“I wanted it to have that ‘Footloose’ feel. I was thinking we needed a fresh, new wedding dance floor song. I’m hoping that people can find it and use it at their own weddings, dance parties and gatherings.”
Meanwhile, the music videos for “ICE COLD WATER” and “GO OUTSIDE” strip back the aspects of a full on production and take things back to the basics - a home video camcorder and a few locations. Little moments like going out with a camera and capturing life’s moments are right in line with the feeling of SUNSCREEN. The music video for “ICE COLD WATER” is one shot, which cinematography fans will appreciate. In it, SUNSCREEN sings:
And I’m sipping on ice cold water in the morning
And I’m living my life with you here by my side
You can’t take my happiness away from me
I found the joy in all the little things
Like ice cold water in the morning
As the video plays - while still in his signature brightly colored hat and attention grabbing sunglasses - SUNSCREEN drinks several glasses of water and the camera follows him for each one as he continues to dance and sing too. It’s a video whose straightforward yet fun concept fits the song and is sure to make you smile but SUNSCREEN hopes it inspires people too.
“I wanted to give it a home video feel. The video was shot on an actual home video camcorder and I wanted to give it a ‘anyone can do this’ vibe.”
SUNSCREEN knew what type of sound he wanted the album to have when he began creating it. The throughline of being outside, enjoying the day and appreciating life’s small but wonderful moments is reflected through the upbeat, fast paced, bouncy sounds throughout the production. Many of the songs intentionally follow the classic verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus format. The formatting of the songs calls back to the straightforward fun aspect of songs of the past that many people know and love and always associate with the pleasant feeling of enjoying life. They call back to a time where those little three minutes and 45 seconds of joy could be found in a single song that you could play again and again and get the same feeling every time.
“I’m trying to recapture the golden age of the 2010s indie pop rock scene that I fell in love with so much through bands like Walk The Moon, Foster and the People and Passion Pit. But, I want to recontextualize that feeling for the modern day. I want that unashamed exuberance and joy to be felt in every song.”
The little things in life that bring us joy are sometimes forgotten as we go about our busy lives. But, SUNSCREEN wants to bring them to the forefront with his album EAT SUNSCREEN. He wants listeners to know those feelings of joy and happiness can still exist amongst our other commitments. He wants them to know the feeling of SUNSCREEN can be a part of their daily lives. The album’s summer soundscapes may seem out of place in the midst of the cool crisp fall season but SUNSCREEN has a plan for it.
“I want people to know that even though I’m making music that feels like summer, this kind of vibe can be listened to all year long. I want it to be people’s year-long soundtrack. If people are feeling cold inside, don’t want to go outside and the gloomy seasonal depression has hit them - turn on SUNSCREEN.”
EAT SUNSCREEN is available now on all streaming platforms.
You can feel even more of SUNSCREEN by following him on his social channels below.
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