SparSrowhawk - Sunflowers in the Moonlight (2026) Hi-Res

It is the second LP from Sparrowhawk, a Minneapolis outfit stacked with members from Private Interests, Mystery Date, Southside Desire, and Radio On. One glance at their name and art direction tells you everything: this band worships at the altar of ROCK in capital letters, and they’re not apologizing for it. Sparrowhawk sound like what would happen if a gang of Minneapolis basement punks crashed a ’70s rock festival, seized the main stage, and won over every confused rocker in the crowd before security could throw them out.

I dug their 2023 debut, but Sunflowers in the Moonlight is on another level entirely. I couldn’t stop spinning this thing over the weekend. It’s a Bermuda Triangle of Thin Lizzy, The Replacements, and The Hold Steady, and getting lost in it is the whole damn point.

I’ve said this in recent write-ups about Josephine Network and Daniel Romano’s Outfit, but we’re living through a legit rock ‘n’ roll renaissance right now. And while I’ll always love my punk loud and angry, there’s something extra joyful about uncomplicated (but flawlessly executed) rock songs in our bleak, polarized world. Fingerlicking, shrieking dual guitar riffs and anthemic choruses built for escape? Yeah, I’ll take that!

At almost 50 minutes, Sunflowers in the Moonlight fills every groove on the LP and doesn’t waste a second. By the time you reach the stunning 11-minute closer The Ranch Trilogy, you’ll be ready to hand Sparrowhawk all your money. And if the music somehow isn’t enough, that apocalyptic album art (glowing planet, sunflower field, lonely farmhouse under cosmic skies) belongs on a 12-inch square, not a phone screen. This is what vinyl was made for.