The Foundry was packed with eager fans waiting to see San Diego indie pop band almost monday on Saturday, Feb. 8 for the Philadelphia stop on their “DIVE” tour, named after their debut album. The deluxe version of the album was released just a few weeks ago on Wednesday, Jan. 22.
The opener, Adrian Lyles, who also plays Jett on the television series “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” took the stage at 8 p.m. sporting a black leather bomber jacket and a silver chain. Behind him, the background reflected on the stage curtains was a lime green gradient. Lyles brought an energetic stage presence, starting his performance off by interacting with the crowd, giving equal attention to each side of the stage.
Lyles admitted to the crowd, “This is my first time being on tour,” and expressed that his cure for being nervous on stage was “crowd engagement where you guys do fun shit with me and we try that.”
The 20-year-old singer’s set consisted of upbeat tracks that the crowd danced to such as “Way Down” (unreleased) and ballads such as “King of Everything.” The aforementioned track showed off Lyles’ vocal skill and was about his efforts to make it in music for the past seven years. His set finished at 8:33 p.m. and he met fans at the merch table at the back of the venue before almost monday took the stage.
At 9 p.m., almost monday’s set began as the stage was cast with blue lights and a backdrop of the cover art for their debut album “DIVE.” Dawson Daugherty on lead vocals, Luke Fabry on bass and Cole Clisby on guitar emerged on the stage to the album’s one-minute long title track introduction. Daugherty wore a brown hoodie and black shades, while Clisby was dressed in a blue t-shirt and Fabry in a black and white checkered button up and tank top.
Following “dive,” the trio immediately launched into the beachy track “is it too late?” from the same album. Fans’ cheers and the intense collision of shoes against the ground were heard along with Daugherty’s lively vocals. Daugherty fed off the energy of the crowd, dancing to the beat and twirling around the stage.
The band also shook the crowd with their single “can’t slow down” which hit number 1 on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay on Saturday, Feb. 1, just a week before their show. The band took a pause in their set after this track to say “GO BIRDS!,” acknowledging the upcoming Super Bowl.
Going back a bit into their older music the band performed their 2022 single “cough drops” which seemed to be a fan favorite. Daugherty interacted with the crowd on the right side of the stage, making fake fighting hand gestures to a fan. “cough drops”s notorious bridge had fans clapping along with the track, transitioning into “only wanna dance,” a 2023 single.
The band described Philadelphia as “one of [their] favorite places in the world to play” before doing a call and response with the crowd for their track “tidal wave” on the “ooo”s throughout the song, with Daugherty dipping into his falsetto range.
Fabry stole the spotlight with an impressive guitar solo on the band’s track “jupiter” from “DIVE” which is in their top five tracks on Spotify. This track set a tame, but groovy vibe in the crowd. Fans also waved their hands along with the song.
“Let’s go on a holiday,” Daugherty joked, shaking his head and smiling bashfully at the crowd before stepping back up to the mic and singing “holiday,” also off “DIVE.” “It always sounds better in your head,” he continued. At the end of the song the members of the trio came together, Daugherty grabbing Fabry’s shoulder and facing the drums.
On the same wave of going on a holiday, the band also asked the crowd for permission to “take it back to San Diego for a bit,” moving into their 2023 single “coast to coast.” This track quite literally floated over the crowd with its chill and wavy feel. The band stayed with this coastal theme continuing into their 2023 single “sweet feelings.”
Before continuing their set, Daugherty explained to the crowd that he was not feeling well.
“I woke up and had no voice and I was really nervous about the show but I came out and heard you guys screaming and it made me feel better,” he beamed. Even though his voice was faltering earlier in the day, Daugherty gave a stellar performance.
Diving back into their older music, the band performed a mashup of “broken people/parking lot view,” getting the crowd dancing. Keeping with this lively energy, the band played “you look so good,” and Daugherty took a pair of sunglasses from a fan. With a fan’s phone, he recorded himself and the crowd.
The band ended their set with their fun 2023 single “life goes by.” They preceded the song by saying, “Let’s take care of each other. We’ll see you next time.” Fabry stepped toward the front of the stage as the band ended the track all playing towards each other. Daugherty made half a heart with a fan before exiting the stage.
The trio will continue with the North American leg of their tour until Feb. 22, turning to the EU + UK leg on March 1.