POST-BURNOUT
Originally beginning as a small studio project among some local musicians in different towns and villages of the Fife council area of Scotland, the alternative shoegaze project Sunstinger have been going for almost a decade now, having released their debut single, “Even When,” in the halcyon days of 2018.
Their lead vocalist and guitarist, Taylor Wright, admits that he could not have foreseen their longevity. “Where we’re from, there was a general music scene,” he tells Post-Burnout of how they formed. “When I was young, it was in a place called Glenrothes. A few bands came there.“So, a lot of people from the villages around went to that town, you know, for a night out, and to watch guys and stuff, and met at places like that. And there was a music scene in Dunfermline. That’s where we kind of base ourselves from, now.”
“In my neck of the woods, Dunfermline’s a town where everyone from the villages comes in, for the scene,” adds their guitarist, David McCulloch. “Fife’s not the place, man. Dunfermline’s a city nearby that’s big, and there’s, maybe, four big towns, and hundreds of villages, all surrounding it.”
While in their local scene, Sunstinger would become synonymous with a certain genre, that they didn’t intend. “The whole shoegaze thing wasn’t planned,” Taylor says. “We were sort of post-punk at the start. We were never really planning anything; we were just jamming. And then we got a few pedals, and put them on, and, suddenly, we were a shoegaze band! [Laughs]”
In fact, Sunstinger have always been metamorphosing. When David originally joined the band, in between their 2021 EP Beyond the Frame and 2024’s Worthless, he came on to add New Order-esque keys, but when their original guitarist left, he took his place, and their sound evolved again.
Courtesy of Old Crows Promotions
For their upcoming EP, SPARE ME THE RAPTURE, the band are making their gloomiest and most foreboding effort to date. Their atmospheric inspiration for the EP was the desaturated post-industrial landscapes they saw around Scotland, from their back gardens to the major cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh.
“This EP was more of a concentrated effort,” David says of SPARE ME THE RAPTURE. “There were three songs, and they worked so well together, that we thought, ‘How can we expand this, and make it a continuous piece of thing, where it just works together?’ So, for this release, there was an effort to make that a broad thing. […] When you listen to it, it’s almost completely seamless”
While the EP features material the band had been laboriously crafting piecemeal for over a year, when it came time to record, mix, and master the tracks with the producer Sean Mitchell at Glasgow’s Organic Audio, the process was rather expedient, taking only a few weeks.
Before the EP drops on the 27th, fans can hear the title track, which was released as a single last month. “We initially just wanted the whole thing as a oner, so it could be listened to as is intended, as a cohesive piece, as six tracks,” David says of choosing the lead single.
“But Michael [Smyth, who’s providing PR for the release] talked us into it, and I’m glad he did. He said, ‘It has to have a lead single. If I’m going to do PR for this, man, I need to be able to do PR on something! [Laughs] Rather than…nothing!’ Which is understandable!
“Like I said, I’m glad he twisted our arm into it, because it’s had a great response. Aye, it really has. Loads of kind words and great reviews and stuff, and it’s hit numbers in the first two weeks that are double what we’ve had with previous releases.”
When it comes to the EP’s title and meaning, however, the band are a little reticent to discuss it. “I’m really bad at explaining this!” laughs Taylor when asked. “It’s, basically, what it says on the tin: Spare me the rapture, you know what I mean? Take what you will from that! Whatever that means! Some people want help, some people don’t want help.”
The day after the EP, the band will perform two nights in Ireland as part of GazeFest. On August 28th, they’ll be at The Grand Social, Dublin, and, the following day, at the Oh Yeah Music Centre in Belfast. The band have played at GazeFest before, and they’re looking forward to coming back!
“It’s just great, man,” Taylor says of GazeFest. “Good people, good venue, good city. It’s just good fun! [Laughs]” “Aye, it’s a good crowd, man,” agrees David. “It’s good to see folk that we’ve met two years ago, and returning punters from a couple of years ago. Aye, it’s a good vibe, man. I wish we had something like that here.”
Sunstinger’s latest single, “SPARE ME THE RAPTURE,” is out now, and the EP of the same name will be released on August 27th. You can keep up with the band through their Linktree.
You can see Sunstinger live in Ireland and Scotland at:
August 28th – Dublin – GazeFest @ The Grand Social
August 29th – Belfast – GazeFest @ Oh Yeah Music Centre
September 4th – Aberdeen – Café Drummonds
September 6th – Edinburgh – Edinburgh Psych Fest 2026 @ Summerhall Arts
November 14th – Dunfermline – P.J. Mollys
Tune into POSTBURNOUT.COM Interviews… tonight at 22:00 (IST) to hear this interview in full. Available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music Podcasts.
Aaron Kavanagh is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Post-Burnout. His writing can also be found in the Irish Daily Star, Buzz.ie, Totally Dublin, The GOO, Headstuff, New Noise Magazine, XS Noize, DSCVRD and more.