There’s a very specific kind of ennui that hits in early adulthood — that fog of feeling unmotivated to create, to socialize, to keep up with everyone around you. Winnipeg’s sundayclub just bottled it perfectly with Sad Summer, the latest single off their forthcoming self-titled debut LP, out July 10th via Paper Bag Records.
The track is hazy and glistening in equal measure, pairing reverb-soaked guitars with Courtney Carmichael’s ghostly vocals for something that feels less like a song and more like a mood you can’t quite shake. It arrives alongside a video directed by Qran Zhu.
“‘Sad Summer’ came about as a result of feeling extremely unmotivated–to create, but especially to socialize and keep up with our peers. It started with a singular riff, which became paramount to discovering and shaping our sound. It ended up becoming what we consider to be the first true ‘sundayclub’ song,” Carmichael explains. “The lyrics really delve into my feelings of apathy and boredom mixed with the evergrowing pressure I began to feel to always be creating and producing things musically. There’s something so freeing about how direct and blunt that is, which differs from a lot of our other songs that are more vague and open-ended.”
Sad Summer rounds out a video trilogy for the record, following Camera Shy and Blue Wave — two singles that already picked up love from Consequence, Brooklyn Vegan, FLOOD, Guitar World, Exclaim!, The Line of Best Fit, Billboard Canada, Under the Radar, and more.
The Story Behind ‘SUNDAYCLUB’
Formed by Courtney Carmichael and Nikki St. Pierre in the stillness of rural Canada, sundayclub started as a way to process the strange limbo of early adulthood — caught between who you were and who you’re becoming. Their chemistry is the whole engine of the project, and it didn’t take long for the right people to notice: Stephen Carroll, guitarist of Canadian indie-rock legends The Weakerthans, tipped off Paper Bag Records’ A&R after catching the duo’s spark, leading to their first label signing.
They dropped their debut EP ‘Bannatyne’ in 2025, landing a spot on Exclaim!’s “5 Emerging Canadian Artists You Need to Hear” list. Now comes ‘SUNDAYCLUB’, a four-year labor of love that started in the basement bedroom of Carmichael’s family home.
“It was extremely fulfilling but also all-consuming and emotionally taxing. While we had the time to experiment and refine things, we also had the time—and maybe too much of it—to overthink, torment, and second-guess ourselves,” Carmichael notes. “But what we’ve come out with, we’re very proud of,” St. Pierre resolves.
Sonically, the record leans into nostalgia and ephemera — sunlight through a window, ink bleeding across a page, a grainy photo blurring at the edges. It’s a confident, unmistakable arrival from a band that sounds far more assured than their years would suggest.
Early Praise for ‘SUNDAYCLUB’
Consequence called Blue Wave a track that taps into the purest reverb-drenched indie sound, evoking nostalgia for hot summer night drives — melancholic in theme but sonically free. Guitar World pointed to the shoegaze-meets-’90s-rock sparkle of Camera Shy, while FLOOD praised the duo for reveling fully in the chaos of youth on their self-titled debut. Exclaim! summed up Camera Shy in two words: dramatically twinkling.
sundayclub Live Dates
07/20 – Quebec City, QC – L’Anti Bar
07/22 – Montreal, QC – P’tit Ours
07/23 – Ottawa, ON – 27 Club
07/24 – Hamilton, ON – Doors Pub
07/25 – Toronto, ON – St-Stephens-In-The-Field (Loveless Festival)
09/24–26 – Toronto, ON – Second Summer Festival
‘SUNDAYCLUB’ is out July 10th via Paper Bag Records — pre-save/pre-order it now.
Find sundayclub: Website | Instagram | Bandcamp
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