Sunny Bleau and The Moons – Breakfast Served Cold
Coco Music LLC/Underdog Music and Publishing
11 songs – 42 minutes
Sunny Bleau and The Moons are based out of Rochester, Michigan, and Breakfast Served Cold is their debut release. With ten original songs (primarily written by Ms. Bleau and her guitarist/producer, Nicholas A. Cocco) and one well-chosen cover, Breakfast Served Cold is a fascinating and very enjoyable collection of tracks that mix rock, pop, blues and even a hint of jazz.
The Moons are a belting band, comprising Cocco on guitars, piano and organ, Paul Kastick on drums and percussion and Alex Karasinski on bass (check out his glorious groove on “On Your Way To Me”). Christopher Barrick (saxophone) and Roberto Warren (percussion) both guest. Together, the band backs Bleau superbly, offering muscular support on the rockier numbers and a supple, slippery groove on the more rhythmic numbers.
The opening track, “Let It Slide” is a good example as Cocco’s deceptively simple guitar part floats over the sort of mid-paced groove in which Rumours-era Fleetwood Mac specialized.
Bleau has an impressively raucous voice. Her background is apparently primarily in jazz, but as she bestrides the classic rock of “King Of Hearts” or the heavy rock of “Holy Water And Hell Fire” (featuring ace sax from Barrick), she comes over as an absolute badass rock’n’roller. Indeed, on the early 70s-esque “He’s My Peach”, there is more than a hint of the barely restrained abandon of Janis Joplin.
The hypnotic groove of “Winning” has echoes of the late 60s in its heavily reverbed guitar hook, while the dreamy folk of “Sparrow Song” recalls the great Chris Smither in its acoustic finger-picking. By contrast, Johnny Mercer’s “Autumn Leaves” is given a light Latin reworking as it segues into “Besame Mucho”. These tracks, together with the sultry lounge jazz of “Bedroom Rendezvous” and the closing power ballad “I Should Be Sleeping”, emphasize how versatile the Moons are.
Lyrically, Bleau addresses the universal themes of love, loss, lust and redemption, throwing herself fully into each tale she tells.
Breakfast Served Cold is at the rockier/poppier end of the blues-rock spectrum and there are no pure blues songs on the album, but the blues certainly infuses both the writing and performances.
Excellently recorded, mixed and mastered at 148 South Street Studio in Rochester, Michigan, Breakfast Served Cold is a fine introduction to a very impressive band.
