It eventually turned out the spectral presences were hallucinations brought on by undetected gas leaks within the property. However, Sunny War’s musical MO certainly packs plenty of echoes (or ghosts) of past masters of seemingly disparate styles, most prominently old-timey folk music and politically engaged punk rock. This may seem like the outcome of a dare to pick out two random and unconnected musical strands until you consider the political ire and drive for a fairer society that connects, say, Woody Guthrie and Crass (Ward started out as a punk rocker before gravitating towards finger-picked guitar).
Armageddon In A Summer Dress – Ward’s second album for esteemed US label New West – scales back the influence of American roots music that guided Sunny War’s brooding and predominantly sparse (and excellent) 2023 New West debut Anarchist Gospel. Written, played and sung almost entirely by Ward, the (comparatively speaking) polished surfaces and electric rock band presentation of the infectious, mantra-like opener “One Way Train” (an update of the visions of kindness and plenty for all in cult folk classic “Big Rock Candy Mountain” presented as a breathless recital ala “Subterranean Homesick Blues” or "It’s The End of The World As We Know It”) may initially sound almost unrecognisable for anyone expecting a repeat of Anarchist Gospel. For all the Tom Petty-ian guitars and new wave keyboards that roam where nimble finger-picked acoustic guitar used to rule supreme, Sunny War’s core values remain unchanged. It’s just that the musical palette has expanded considerably in the two years (much of it spent touring) since Anarchist Gospel.
These songs depict a world where survival is a precarious tightrope walk and security and comfort are fleeting: the protagonist of “Rise” is convinced that ‘’the worst is yet to come’’, while “Bad Times” concludes, ‘’I’ve got no money so I’ve got no power’’. In the absence of anyone else to care, the sparkling soul-rock of “No One Calls Me Baby” finds a declaration from Ward: ‘’I hold my own hand’’. Featuring Steve Ignorant of Crass (one of Ward’s all-time heroes) on shared vocals, “Walking Contradiction” is better still, a stinging breakdown of the sorry state of contemporary US and the unpalatable compromises needed to survive in a society that provides little or no safety net set to a hypnotic, gritty groove that soon proves impossible to shake off.
The product of constant playing and musical experimentation between tour duties, Armageddon In A Summer Dress marks the point where the nominally folkie Ward goes electric. The effect is frequently electrifying.
