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Sunspot - Singalong Rock with Big Guitars, Smart Lyrics, and a Sense of Humor

Madison, Wisconsin’s Sunspot is the physical impact of hard-hitting rock with the ear candy of pop music and the thoughtful words of a singer-songwriter. Think the Fountains of Wayne or Barenaked Ladies with Lars Ulrich on drums and Eddie Van Halen on guitar.

In 2010, Sunspot is creating a new kind of live show. One that exists as a combination of theater, art, music, and live performance piece. It’s about creating a completely new type of experience that’s personal like a rock concert in a club, has the emotional weight of a musical, that’s dynamic visually like a film, and has the depth of great literature. The band will be premiering that show at SXSW this March.

Sunspot's most recent release, Singularity, was the latest in a series of grand experiments for the band. They released a track and music video every month for a year and the CD/DVD set is a collection of those songs and videos. After joining forces in 1996 as students at the University of Wisconsin, they’ve gone on to record and release five albums, a DVD, and over a hundred biweekly video podcasts (Sunspot Road Mania), and have performed hundreds of shows all over the country, sharing the stage with bands like Death Cab for Cutie, The Flaming Lips, Sponge, SevenMaryThree, Hot Hot Heat, and Sick Puppies. Punk rock pioneer Milo Aukerman, from the legendary Descendents, has even joined them onstage for a performance on live television.

Sunspot’s music and live performance is a communal experience for the audience. Bringing people together is something they do extraordinarily well (there have been plenty of weddings from people that have met at Sunspot shows!) The band is about bridging the gaps in the human condition by making the show as much about the audience as it is about the band.

Some of their biggest successes come from their most ridiculous songs. Their unabashedly geeky tune, “Scott Bakula”, ended up being used by the man himself as the theme song for his 50th birthday party. Their album “Loser of the Year” went on to be named Rock Album of the Year at the Madison Area Music Awards and the next year, the band was awarded the state’s biggest music nod as Artist of the Year by the Wisconsin Area Music Industry.

With only three members, everyone’s individuality gets a chance to shine. Guitarist Ben Jaeger is an intensely physical performer, executing guitar licks and fretboard fireworks with the chops of a classically trained musician. Vocalist and bassist Mike Huberty holds down the bottom end, but brings in the cerebral with lyrics that have a flair for the quirky, sarcastic, and fantastic. Drummer Wendy Lynn Staats keeps the spirit alive and uplifted with her steady beats and vocal harmonies. It’s only the sum of the characters together that makes Sunspot alternately sweet and sardonic, sharp and engaging.

Listen to Sunspot songs, check out their music videos, and meet the band at www.sunspotmusic.com