Born on the Florida panhandle, Bruce Wilson spent his formative years listening to his parents’ Velvet Underground and Beatles albums on repeat. Following decades of innumerable moves and fronting many bands from Tallahassee to Vancouver, Bruce Wilson emerged from a heroin induced haze uncertain about his future. After a long period of recovery and spending time in western Massachusetts he returned to Vancouver to cloister himself away for a year in a small room in east Vancouver’s Waldorf Hotel. There he started writing what was initially a novel and would end up being Sunday Morning’s debut self-titled album released in 2016. A third draft of the novel still sits on his bedside table waiting patiently for another rewrite. The album garnered widespread critical acclaim including being named best Vancouver release by The Georgia Straight. In 2020 on the cusp of a global pandemic Sunday Morning released their “Consequence Of Love” EP described by Canadian Beats as, “Layered and complex, both musically and lyrically. It is creative and unique, utilizing a wide range of abstract influences like Iggy Pop and David Bowie, but adapting and translating their sounds into something wholly new and enthralling.”
At Sunday Morning’s core is guitarist/producer Felix Fung, bassist/keyboardist Max Sample and vocalist/keyboardist Bruce Wilson. Over the years Sunday Morning’s studio line up has included such Vancouver music luminaries as Dave Genn (Matthew Good Band, 54-40), Carmen Bruno (Trailerhawk), JP Carter (Destroyer), Stephen Hamm (Slow), Dominic Conway (Malleus Trio) and drummer Shawn Mrazek (Flash Bastard). They’ve worked with award winning producers like Chris Birkett (Sinead O’Connor) and Howard Redekopp (Mother Mother).
Over the past year, Sunday Morning’s creator and front man Bruce Wilson has been sequestered in his small Vancouver apartment feverishly writing the next Sunday Morning album. Bruce’s songs are short poetic vignettes that are drawn from personal experience. His song cycles follow loose narrative arcs and span genres held together by a continuous thread of vulnerability that he admits still can make him uncomfortable. The release of the “Junky Don’t Care/Explain The World” single on December 2nd is a transitional mark in Sunday Morning’s storied history—from its naissance in a tiny downtown eastside hotel room, through a world of influences and back to a place of solitude ruminating on mortality. Sunday Morning continues its mission to span the wide range of colours on the sonic and emotional spectrums.
Name:
Sunday Morning
Genre:
Post Genre Indie
Founded:
1849 in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania
# of Albums:
Two: Sunday Morning LP (2016) & Consequence Of Love EP (2020)
Latest Album:
Junky Don’t Care//Explain The World (it’s a 2-song single)
Latest Single:
Junky Don’t Care
Latest Video:
Favourite musician growing up:
I listened to a lot of Bowie and The Dead Boys…and Joy Division, there was always Joy Division
Favourite musician now:
I recently saw Sudan Archives and she blew my mind.
Guilty pleasure song:
If it’s pleasurable I don’t have a lot of guilt. As It Was by Harry Styles is fucking brilliant pop song and I love it without shame. Taylor Swift’s 1989 album also kills.
Live show ritual:
Pacing. A lot of pacing…
Favourite local musician:
The new Hunting album “You’ve Got Love (But It Even Tears You Apart)” is a work of art. Brad and Jessicka made something very special.
EP or LP?
EP’s are like a short story anthology and LP’s have a novel’s narrative quality. I like them both!
Early bird or night owl?
These days I get up at an ungodly early hour but I really like the silence and calm of the predawn city.
Road or studio?
There’s a magical quality to being the studio with Felix and Max. We work so well together creatively. Still, nothing beats the frenetic energy of performing live. Is it necessary to choose? Why are you making me choose??
Any shows or albums coming up?
We’ve just released a two-song single that includes our cover from the Art Bergmann song “Junkie Don’t Care” along with our own “Explain The World”.
Where can we follow you?
Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify
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Rapid Fire Vancouver Qs
Favourite local restaurant:
Lately, I’ve been eating at Chau on Victoria Drive a lot and it’s delicious!
Favourite street in your city:
Kingsway splits off from Main a block from where I live and travels a path like someone haphazardly folded the city diagonally. It’s not a pretty street or even a friendly street but I like it because it seems to exist entirely on its own without any pretense or bravado. When I drive its wide four lanes I can pretend I’m anywhere. Plus Michael Turner wrote a beautiful book of poetry about it.
Favourite park in your city:
I spend a lot of time wandering around the Lower Seymour trails. They are a peaceful sanctuary and I find that part of the world incredibly grounding.
Favourite music venue in your city:
I always get excited seeing anything at The Orpheum.
Favourite music store in your city:
Zulu Records makes me happy. Zulu’s owner Grant McDonagh has been shaping my musical tastes since I was a teenager.
