It’s been a long time coming, but finally, an EP and an album in, Oakland’s Day Wave make their first visit to Montreal. The project of Jackson Philips, Day Wave have been garnering all kinds of attention on alternative radio over the past couple of years, and almost 100 turn up at Bar Le Ritz tonight to check them out for themselves.

First up, though, are New York’s Blonder, playing apparently just their 26th show ever. For such a new band, they have an excellent stage presence, and sound a lot like The Virgins or Hot Hot Heat, with a smattering of The Bravery thrown in for good measure; very slick for a self-confessed “brand new band.” The band seem genuinely thrilled to have such a crowd to play their brand new songs for, and interact very confidently with them. An engaging 30 minutes, and certainly a promising start to their career.

Strangely, Day Wave don’t seem quite as confident and relaxed, and have notably less crowd interaction during their 65-minute set, which consists of offerings from debut EP Headcase and debut album The Days We Had, plus a stellar cover of Ceremony by New Order (especially appropriate given the Joy Division shirt Jackson is sporting tonight!).

Having been given heavy rotation over the past couple of years on satellite radio, the set almost has a Greatest Hits feel to it for those who’ve been listening over that time, though there is a sense that many of the songs follow a very similar formula (driving bass, upbeat riffs, etc.), such that it might be hard to tell them all apart for the untrained ear. Indeed, only with the arrival of You towards the end of the set do things slow down a little, and the vibe feels notably different. You Know Who You Are follows next, and is similarly laid back. Perhaps mixing these slow songs in amongst the first 11 songs on the set list would mix things up a little, and avoid it sounding a little samey? Minor tweaks though; all in all, it’s a very competent debut. Something Here, Wasting Time, and Drag elicit the biggest cheers of the night, and the band show their gratitude by returning for an unscripted encore of Promises, before leaving the stage for good. A solid first visit to Montreal, and hopefully the first of many more to come.

Set List
1 Something Here
2 Gone
3 Untitled
4 Come Home Now
5 Bring You Down
6 Ceremony
7 On Your Side
8 Wasting Time
9 Total Zombie
10 Deadbeat Girl
11 Ordinary
12 You
13 You Are Who You Are
14 We Try But We Don’t Fit In
15 Drag

16 Promises

Review & photos – Simon Williams

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