The rule of thumb in musical circles is that the 'difficult second album syndrome' ensures that a band's sophomore long-player is a real slog after the time afforded them to anonymously craft their debut, but for Melbourne rockers The Smith Street Band this couldn't be further from the truth. “I'm really happy with it,” frontman and songwriter Wil Wagner says of Sunshine & Technology. “We had a bit more time to record this one than the first one, so it's a bit more polished and we had a bit more time to work on the tones and do vocals for a bit longer, so we're all super-proud of it.”

The new album is a marked progression from their 2011 debut No One Gets Lost Anymore, a lyric-driven set of songs about urban alienation and the socio-political struggles inherent in modern society, a struggle for understanding as much as a rail against any perceived injustice. According to Wagner, despite many recurring motifs about the modern malaise, there's no real overriding theme to the record. “I don't think so,” he muses. “I try and just take myself out of writing as much as I can – I don't really edit anything. I just let it all happen as naturally as possible and then go back and look at it and go, 'Oh, that's what I meant!' I try not to have any, 'This will be a break-up song' or, 'This will be that type of song' because as soon as you start doing that it loses a bit of spontaneity. I guess there are themes just because there are things that I'm naturally annoyed about and stuff that I think about – like I do think that people spend way too much time inside so that's probably going to pop up a few times, and people focus on money too much so that'll be in there a few times, but it was never really conscious.

“They're pretty much all autobiographical, with a touch of poetic license. But it's all pretty much true to life I think – the ones that aren't about me are about things that my friends have done, or things I've seen them do when I've been there… I'm good at talking about myself.”

Wagner admits being lyrically influenced by the usual suspects, but also to gleaning some more left-of-centre inspiration. “I'm really inspired by local bands like Sweet Teens or Foxtrot or The Bennies – all the local Melbourne bands that we're bros and good friends with,” he tells. “You're sort of automatically inspired by them… Besides that I'm lyrically influenced by your obvious folky singer-songwriters like Billy Bragg, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Paul Kelly – all those guys are pretty inspirational to me. But I think probably hip hop is my main lyrical influence. Good, weird hip hop, not gun, bitches and bling kinda shit – guys like Astronautalis, Why? and Aesop Rock and Sage Francis. Plus Wu-Tang of course – for a fat, white Jewish guy I really love my hip hop. I'm just doing Smith Street because I can't be a rapper.”