Performer Notes

Sunny Day Real Estate: Daniel Hoerner, Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar); Nate Mendel (bass); William Goldsmith (drums); Matt Conlon.
Additional personnel: Casey Rice, Piggy Rice (guitar).
Recorded at Idful, Chicago, Illinois.
From the crunching, frenetic yet undeniably melodic opening chords of "Seven," it is apparent that DIARY, the debut offering from Seattle's Sunny Day Real Estate, brings something unique to the table. Perhaps it is Jeremy Enigk's high-pitched and skyward-spiraling rasp, a variety of rasp heard neither before nor since, or the brilliantly oblique-without-being-pretentious lyrics. It could also be the profound pop-tinge that outshines the work of contemporaries such as Quicksand and Seaweed.
DIARY, which was produced by the ever-dependable Brad Wood, is made up of a series of perfectly positioned epic songs that flow into one another in a way that resembles a rock opera. From the roaring pop masterpiece "Seven" to the imploring "In Circles" to the whirling, wandering ballad "Song About an Angel," a compelling thread weaves through DIARY. Nowhere is the majesty more evident than on the somber "Grendel," a near-gothic symphony strong enough to move the most ardent hardcore kid to tears. The truest testimonial to the significance of DIARY has come from the host of bands (the Promise Ring, the Get Up Kids, Mineral, etc.) who have claimed Sunny Day as an influence.

Professional Reviews

Spin (p.86) - "[With] soaring, impassioned vocals; expansive dynamics, circular riff patterns; and driving guitars."

Q (12/94, p.147) - 3 Stars - Good - "...Sunny Day Real Estate have the most potential of the emotionally expressive melodic grungers...to emerge in Nirvana's wake, though the band eschew Cobain's anthemic pop focus for a more undulating, splintered surge of guitar/vocal..."

Alternative Press (3/02, p.96) - Included in AP's "Essential Punk Influences '02 Style" - "...Provided the template for second-wave emo....Musically it was Nirvana's dynamics matched with Slint's angualr chops..."

Musician (6/94, p.84) - "...Sunny Day Real Estate manage to merge the drive of early U2, the acrid, aching melodicism of Dinosaur Jr. and a touch of the wicked, weird, un-pop of the Flaming Lips....The whole affair is deliriously, deliberately erratic--aural clutter that's at once distracting and inviting...."

NME (Magazine) (1/26/02, p.23) - Included in NME's "Most Influential Emo Records Of All Time" - "...The first truly commercial album of the genre..."

Record Collector (magazine) (pp.108-109) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[U]nique...with its bare-boned, visceral raw heart honesty..."

Album: Diary (Remaster) [Vinyl]
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Seven	More Info...	0:04
2)	In Circles	More Info...	0:05
3)	Song About an Angel	More Info...	0:06
4)	Round	More Info...	0:04
5)	47	More Info...	0:04
6)	The Blankets Were the Stairs	More Info...	0:05
7)	Pheurton Skeurto	More Info...	0:02
8)	Shadows	More Info...	0:04
9)	48	More Info...	0:04
10)	Grendel	More Info...	0:05
11)	Sometimes	More Info...	0:05
12)	8	More Info...	0:05
13)	9	More Info...	0:06

Album: Diary (Remaster) [Vinyl]
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Seven	More Info...	0:04
2)	In Circles	More Info...	0:05
3)	Song About an Angel	More Info...	0:06
4)	Round	More Info...	0:04
5)	47	More Info...	0:04
6)	The Blankets Were the Stairs	More Info...	0:05
7)	Pheurton Skeurto	More Info...	0:02
8)	Shadows	More Info...	0:04
9)	48	More Info...	0:04
10)	Grendel	More Info...	0:05
11)	Sometimes	More Info...	0:05
12)	8	More Info...	0:05
13)	9	More Info...	0:06