Sun Room Concert Review: Surf and Rock, Sun Room Does It Both

With a calm stride, Sun Room took the stage at House of Blues on Oct. 8, ready to play some chill rock and roll. The Southern Californian surf rock band was supporting Dayglow as part of his self-titled tour, while celebrating their brand new “Can’t Explain” EP which brings an emo energy to their previously sunny discography.

The group opened with “Just Yesterday,” a surfy pop tune that lead singer and guitarist, Luke Asgian, brought a rock vibe to with his raspy vocals. Sun Room’s strength was their tempo, as they played around with long, suspenseful pauses that transitioned quickly into a hard bass line. Matching this energy were the colorful background lights that paused, flashed, and twinkled at intervals to energize the crowd. But the focus of the set was undoubtedly on the music, with very few stage antics. Each member was thoroughly invested in his musical job, especially drummer Thomas Rhodes, who rarely looked up from his drums.

Sun Room played hard into their chill rock persona. By Hugo C. Chiasson

Sun Room played hard into their chill rock persona. After a calm greeting, “Sup Boston,” the group went straight into “Get Me Outta New York City,” a song from their new EP.

After a few relatively fast-paced tracks, ending with “Hate It When You Call,” the set took a more personal turn. The band introduced themselves — Ashton Minnich on electric guitar, Max Pinnamonti on bass, Rhodes on drums, and Asgian on vocals and lead guitar — and then treated the audience to a slower performance of “Sunset Garage.” This more emotional song, accompanied by dark red lighting, provided a refreshing end to the first half of the set.

The slow tunes didn’t last long. By Hugo C. Chiasson

But the slow tunes didn’t last long, and with a flash of purple the set went right back into its former quick pace. From then on, the group didn’t offer much diversity in sound. Each song had the same medium tempo, chill rock beat, dramatic pauses, and basic guitar line. By the second half, they began to lose steam — and the attention of the crowd.

They rarely paused in between songs, sticking with a calm “thank you” between tracks, and the repetitive surfy bass lines soon blended together. Luckily, their seventh song in the ten song setlist was their most famous. “Sol Del Sur,” with its laid back, Southern California energy, got the audience back into the show. The performance was a notable standout in the set, with Minnich’s guitar work and Asgian’s laidback vocals making the whole venue feel reminiscent of sunny Southern California.

The rhythm only got faster and faster, with each member more and more focused on their respective instrument. By Hugo C. Chiasson

From there, the pace built up once again, and the set ended with the jaunty, quick-tempoed “Cadillac.” The rhythm only got faster and faster, with each member more and more focused on their respective instrument, until suddenly it ended. The ending of the set encapsulated the group’s energy better than any one song. Just as calmly as they had entered, Sun Room walked off — but not before emphasizing their rock star side by throwing their drumsticks into the hands of an eager crowd.