On the chilly evening of Feb. 1, Californian indie pop band Almost Monday brought an early summer to Purgatory at The Masquerade. Their infectious music won over the venue of approximately 300 people and left the audience feeling light and euphoric.
Almost Monday consists of childhood friends Dawson Daugherty (vocals), Cole Clisby (guitar) and Luke Fabry (bass). The band began making music in 2020 and gained recognition on TikTok for songs such as “sunburn” and “cough drops.” Last summer, they toured with The Driver Era, expanding their fanbase and drawing new fans to their headline shows.
The concert opened with Atlanta-based indie rock band Midsummer Motel, whose thunderous drums instantly grabbed the crowd’s attention. The band used jarring beats, soulful lyrics and surf rock elements to deliver an impressive set. Lead singer Ethan Intveld’s performance was especially notable as he delivered captivating vocals while simultaneously playing intense guitar riffs.
Their memorable songs included the groovy “where do all the good people go?” and “ghosts.” At one point, a girl asked for Intveld’s guitar pick, and he responded with, “If you can find it!” as he pretended to throw it into the crowd. Not long after, another audience member complimented his shoes, and he cheekily responded, “Thanks. I considered not wearing any,” as the band launched into the angsty song “guerilla.”
Midsummer Motel’s final song was “adolescent love,” which used big, booming drums that reverberated through the venue. Intveld got down on his knees to play a passionate guitar solo, and he ended the song on his back as the crowd erupted into cheers.
Almost Monday took to the stage soon after, and the venue overflowed with audience screams as Daugherty emerged, clad in his iconic sunglasses and a t-shirt that read “Breaking up is hard to do.”
The band started their first song “only wanna dance,” an upbeat, energetic tune that perfectly set the stage for the rest of the show.
The next song was “cool enough,” and Daugherty took the time to make a special connection with many individuals in the crowd.
As he sang, he graciously accepted beaded bracelets that a girl made for him, and he took some fans’ phones to record himself making silly faces into the camera.
Daugherty prefaced “don’t say you’re ordinary” by calling it his favorite song.
He crooned about a lover who is too self-critical, encouraging self-love. During the outro of the song, he introduced the other members of Almost Monday, Clisby and Fabry, as well as stand-in drummer Rafael Vidal. They each soloed on their respective instruments and received resounding applause.
The following song was a cover of “What I Like About You” by The Romantics. Nearly everyone in the venue knew the song, and Daugherty fed off of their energy, dancing and performing high kicks on stage.
Towards the end of the song, he executed a flawless harmonica solo.
Later in the evening, the band performed the fan-favorite “sun keeps on shining.” The crowd sang the lyrics, “I’m looking for lemon but they gave me a lime / The days are getting harder but I’m still alive / And the sun keeps on shining.”
During the performance, Daugherty accepted a fan’s phone mid-song to take their BeReal for them.
Almost Monday played “sunburn” next, their most popular song with nearly 27 million streams on Spotify. The lighthearted, sunny tune brought a smile to every fan’s face as they shouted the words back to Daugherty.
The band’s final song of the night was “life goes by,” and the crowd’s energy soared as Daugherty skipped and jumped across the stage. He brought the concert to a close by wishing the audience well, yelling, “Have a good one, Georgia!” as the band left the stage.
The band’s tunes were the perfect escape from the dreary winter night, leaving each concert-goer longing for the summer months ahead.