SOFTSUN - Eternal Sunrise (Album Review)

Release Date: November 07th 2025. Record Label: Heavy Psych Sounds. Formats: CD/DD/Vinyl

Eternal Sunrise - Tracklisting

1.Sacred Heart 07:33

2.A Hundred And Sixteen 08:06

3.Anywhere But Here 04:53

4.Sleep The Day Away 06:25

5.Abandoned Lands 05:29

6.Cremation Sunlight 08:28

Members

Guitars: Gary Arce

Bass and vocals: Pia Isaksen

Drums: Robert Garson

Review

Shoegaze/Desert Rock/Psych Rockers SOFTSUN return with their sophomore album Eternal Sunrise which comes almost exactly a year after their critically acclaimed debut album Daylight In The Dark. This is the band formed by Pia Isaksen (PIA ISA, Superlynx) and Gary Arce (Yawning Man, Fatso Jetson, Big Scenic Nowhere). This time round they’re joined by Robert Garson on drums for a record that continues their Psychedelic, Ambient and Trippy journey into the legendary sounds of the Desert.

With a more emotionally charged Shoegaze element at its central core with Pia’s exquisite vocals leading the way. There are elements of Yawning Man and Superlynx that you can hear everywhere with the legendary sounds of the Californian Desert merged with the emotionally charged Post-Rock and gloomy sounds of the Norwegian scene which appeared on their debut album.

The record is quite reflective with intense lyrics allowing SOFTSUN to perfectly capture that Gloom & Doom sound with a sudden shift in slowly played Shoegaze melodies with a haunting Progressive charge that never feels rushed or aggressively delivered. The opening tracks of Sacred Heart, A Hundred And Sixteen and Anywhere But Here offer twenty minutes of superbly captured movements of Shoegaze with a lingering sense of adventure with the music slowly transforming into beautiful areas of Dream Pop surroundings. 

SOFTSUN can be quite heavy and beautifully dynamic whenever the mood calls for it with screeching doomed out guitars and epic cinematic drumming that leads into classic strands of YAWNING MAN based Desert Rock. Though, Pia’s vocals keep everything real with an affectionate and highly involving vocal performance that has moments of classic Nineties Alt-Rock attitude throughout. 

Eternal Sunrise is equally uplifting and deceptively bleak with moody sonic passages forming with a surreal Dreamlike and ethereal quality. There’s some Post-Punk dynamics heard within the later stages of the record but merged with the surreal charm of the Desert Rock landscape with SOFTSUN never afraid to experiment with their overall sound on tracks such as Sleep The Day Away and Cremation Sunlight. 

There are a lot of overlapping Ambient, Sonic and Psychedelic creative themes which gives Eternal Sunrise a different sound and energy compared to their debut album. I called that album “a truly majestic work of art” last year. However, this is an even better album with SOFTSUN delving into more aggressive and bolder areas of music whilst still remaining superbly close to that superb record. 

Eternal Sunrise is an outstanding example of merging different sounds into a highly captivating style of music that leaves you in a euphoric and truly uplifting state of mind. There are not many albums that you can describe as absolutely gorgeous but you can apply to this incredible record. 

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Purple Sage PR for the promo.

Eternal Sunrise is available to buy now on CD/DD/Vinyl via Heavy Psych Sounds.

Links

Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram

Shoegaze Duo SOFTSUN (with Yawning Man guitarist) presents new video "Sacred Heart"; "Eternal Sunrise" out November 7th on Heavy Psych Sounds

Californian and Norwegian shoegaze and post-rock duo SOFTSUN share a dreamy new track and video taken from their forthcoming sophomore full-length "Eternal Sunrise" on November 7th, and present the first track "A Hundred And Sixteen" today.

Watch new video "Sacred Heart" via The Sleeping Shaman 

SoftSun is the result of a divine collaboration between visionary musicians from opposite sides of the world: Yawning Man guitarist Gary Arce from the Californian Mojave Desert and vocalist and bassist Pia Isaksen from the cold and ever-inspiring grounds of Norway.

Their environments are nearly palpable in their beautifully heavy yet ethereal sound. Arce’s trademark cinematic guitar soundscapes provide a stark contrast to Isaksen's heavy and melodic compositions, as her ethereal vocals elevate the sound to dreamy shoegaze realms. This second offering and Heavy Psych Sounds debut dives deeper into the duo's dusk-to-dawn reveries, resulting in a masterful and moody exploration, at once beautifully experimental and utterly organic, pushed by the gentle percussions of drummer Robert Garson. Experience the magic with their latest single A Hundred And Sixteen!

New album "Eternal Sunrise" - Out November 7th on Heavy Psych Sounds

SoftSun was formed in 2023 by Gary Arce and Pia Isaksen after they had been wanting to make music together for several years. It all started in 2020 when Arce played guitar on the first album of Isaksen's solo project Pia Isa. Discovering how perfectly their musical expressions fit together, they knew they really wanted to create more music together. With Arce's unique and beautiful guitar melodies and sounds, Isaksen's heavy bass and haunting vocals, combined with Dan Joeright's perfectly patient drumming, SoftSun delivers heavy, mellow, and dreamy music with its own sound.

After a few years of collaborating on two of Pia's albums from opposite sides of the planet (Moss in Norway and Yucca Valley in California) and becoming good friends, Gary and Pia finally met in person in late 2023. They instantly became inseparable and started planning their musical project.

Released in the fall of 2024, their debut album “Daylight in the Dark” on Ripple Music is a profound journey into shadowy, expansive soundscapes. Hailed as “a truly majestic work of art” by UK website Outlaws of the Sun, the record masterfully conjures a vibe where dark and atmospheric psychedelia feel like reverberating out over the desert at nightfall — an immersive experience that creates “something that will haunt you long after you step away from these tracks,” as stated by Joshua Tree Voice.

SoftSun is

Gary Arce - Guitars
Pia Isaksen - Bass and vocals
Robert Garson - Drums

SoftSun links

Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram

Heavy Psych Sounds links

Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram | Youtube

Thanks to Purple Sage PR for the details.

SoftSun - Daylight In The Dark (Album Review)

Release Date: November 08th 2024. Record Label: Ripple Music. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl

Daylight In The Dark - Track Listing:

1.Unholy Waters 06:50

2.Daylight in the Dark 07:13

3.Exit Wounds 05:52

4.Continents 04:50

5.Dragged Across The Desert Floor 05:03

6.Soft Sun 11:22

Members

Pia Isaksen - Bass/Vocals

Gary Arce - Guitar

Dan Joeright - Drums

Review

Daylight In The Dark is the debut album from Heavy Psych/Desert Rock/Stoner Rock outfit SoftSun who employ a cinematic style of Shoegaze to bring their music to life. The band is made up of seasoned members of the Stoner Rock scene with Pia Isaksen (PIA ISA, Superlynx), Gary Arce (Yawning Man, Fatso Jetson, Big Scenic Nowhere) and Dan Joeright (Earth Moon Earth). The end result is an almost dreamlike journey into the finer parts of the Stoner Rock Psyche with Pia’s enchanting vocals matched against Gary Arce’s legendary swirling soundscape based guitars and Dan Joeright’s measured and precise drumming. 

The album is beautifully HEAVY without the need of crushing dynamics as SoftSun blend Post-Rock structures and Doomgaze passages which do have a slight resemblance to the earlier works of Yawning Man but with the added bonus of Pia’s ice cool vocals that add a sublime NORDIC sound to them. The lyrics are very honest and quite heartfelt with the sounds of the Californian Desert being quite bleak, opaque and even romantic at times especially on tracks such as Unholy Waters, Daylight In The Dark and Exit Wounds.

There’s a deep reliance on 1980’s Shoegaze imagery which propels SoftSun into their own unique world with layers of SONIC based Progressive Rock whilst still harnessing the classic Californian Desert/Stoner Rock sound which drifts further and further into the realms of Space Rock for the lengthier instrumental grooves that appear throughout the album.

After multiple listens you begin to experience influences such as EARTH and SUNN O))) in places wiih a DRONE based quality appearing with the shoegaze leaning guitars. The drumming brings an organic and mellow creative approach to the whole album but it’s Pia’s vocals that’s perhaps the real “HEART” and “EMOTION” that holds everything together especially on the later stages of the album.

The second half of the album allows SoftSun to experiment with their sound ever so slightly but still keeping with the beautiful and meditative energy that allows the band to drift into Sludgier surroundings where the record becomes that little bit DOOM & GLOOM obsessed in places.

The final two tracks of Dragged Across The Desert Floor and Soft Sun are the standout moments of the album for me. As the album can be quite bleak and despairing in places with Soft Sun still allowing themselves the perfect time and opportunity to play some truly uplifting SONIC grooves with Pia’s exquisite vocals keeping everything REAL and SURREAL. 

Daylight In The Dark is a truly majestic work of art which showcases a different style of Desert Rock and Stoner Rock. With the winter months slowly appearing, this album is the perfect soundtrack to lose yourselves in. 

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Purple Sage PR for the promo

Daylight In The Dark  is available to buy now on CD/DD/Vinyl via Ripple Music

Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Dronegaze/Post-Rock trio SOFTSUN (with Yawning Man, Pia Isa members) to release debut album "Daylight in the Dark" on Ripple Music; first track streaming!

Dronegaze trio SOFTSUN (with Yawning Man, Pia Isa members) to release debut album "Daylight in the Dark" on Ripple Music; first track streaming!

SoftSun, the new dronegaze and post-rock trio formed by Gary Arce (Yawning Man, Fatso Jetson) on guitar, Pia Isaksen (Pia Isa) on bass and vocals and Dan Joeright (Earth Moon Earth) on drums, announce the release of their debut album "Daylight in the Dark" this November 8th through Ripple Music.

Watch SoftSun's otherworldly video for "Unholy Waters" + listen to the song on all streaming services

SoftSun is the result of a divine collaboration between very unique and visionary musicians. Pia Isaksen and Gary Arce along with Dan Joeright come from opposite sides of the world. Vocalist and bass player Pia Isaksen grew up in Norway, while Gary Arce and drummer Dan Joeright are based in the Southern California Mojave desert.

The environments they occupy are evident in the beautifully heavy yet ethereal sound of this band. Arce’s dreamscaping cinematic guitar work gives a stark contrast of balance to the heavy melodic bass driven compositions. Pia’s voice, ethereal in nature, levitates the sound and brings a dreamlike shoegaze quality to the songs. Cocteau Twins, True Widow, Yawning Man, Diiv would be appropriate reference points for this unique approach to songwriting.

Debut album "Daylight in the Dark" - Out November 8th on Ripple Music (LP/CD/digital)

TRACKLIST:

1. Unholy Waters
2. Daylight in the Dark
3. Exit Wounds
4. Continents
5. Dragged Across the Desert Floor
6. Soft Sun

SoftSun was formed in 2023 by Gary Arce, Pia Isaksen and Dan Joeright after Arce and Isaksen had been wanting to make music together for several years. It all started in 2020 when Arce played guitar on the first album by Isaksen's solo project Pia Isa. Discovering how perfect their musical expressions fit together they knew they really wanted to create more music together. With Arce's unique and beautiful guitar melodies and sounds, Isaksen's heavy bass and haunting vocals combined with Joeright's perfectly patient drumming, SoftSun delivers heavy mellow and dreamy music with its own sound.

After a few years of collaborating on two of Pia's albums from opposite sides of the planet (Moss in Norway and Yucca Valley in California) and becoming good friends, Gary and Pia finally met in person in late 2023. They instantly became inseparable and started planning their musical project.

The first SoftSun songs were written by Pia in Moss and sent to with Gary who wrote guitar melodies for them in Yucca Valley before Pia then got on the plane to California in January 2024. During three weeks they wrote more songs and got together with drummer and studio owner Dan Joeright who turned out to be a perfect fit for the band. After only three practices and two and a half days in Gatos Trail Recording Studio, the trio recorded their first album live. The vocals were done by Pia back in Norway before. Dan then mixed the album. On Pia's next trip to California six weeks later, the trio booked another studio session and recorded a few more songs. The result is their debut album "Daylight in the Dark", to be released in November 2024 through Californian independent label Ripple Music.

The album was engineered by Dan Joeright and Aaron Farinelli at Gatos Trail Recording Studio, mixed by Dan Joeright and mastered by Kent Stump. Artwork and layout by Pia Isaksen

SOFTSUN line-up

Gary Arce - Guitars
Pia Isaksen - Bass and vocals
Dan Joeright - Drums

SOFTSUN links

Facebook ⎪ Bandcamp ⎪ Instagram ⎪ Spotify

RIPPLE MUSIC links

Website ⎪ Facebook ⎪ Bandcamp ⎪ Instagram

Thanks to Purple Sage PR for all of the details.