Sonny Smith has never been known to limit himself to just one project, or just one genre, or even just one identity. Antenna to the Afterworld, the latest release from Smith’s band Sonny & the Sunsets and the direct follow up to last year’s country-rooted Longtime Companion, takes yet another route in Smith’s catalog of musical personalities.

Of course Antenna to the Afterworld is not without concept, much like the band’s other albums. It carries veins of new wave synths, giving a new psychedelic glow to Smith’s usual folk sound. The third video from the album (all of which depict an interaction between two of the band members, playing characters filmed in fuzzy black and white) is for the song “natural acts”. The video hones in on bassist Ryan Browne and drummer Kelley Stoltz as they play a goofy, farcical tennis match, full of twists and pratfalls that give homage to old silent movies.

In addition to the new video release, the band has also announced its summer tour, with several stops alongside fellow folk-rock legend Kurt Vile. Sonny & the Sunset’s San Francisco show, however, will be sans Vile, at The Chapel on August 31st.

Sonny & The Sunsets, Warm Soda
The Chapel
August 31st, 2013
9pm, $15 adv/ $17 door