Following the 10-year anniversary of both
Beach Fossils and
Wild Nothing’s debut albums
Beach Fossils &
Gemini, they announced a heaping tour together that naturally got music fans exhilarated. Of course like every other tour in 2020, it got postponed, however it was certainly worth the wait. The two indie rock staples stopped by Thalia Hall for two captivating nights last week, along with singer songwriter Hannah Jadagu.
Wild Nothing emerged on stage and quickly electrified the crowd with their buoyant and lively song “Summer Holiday.” Being an anniversary tour, they played a hefty handful of old favorites such as “O Lilac” and “Live in Dreams.” They also blessed the audience with one of their more underrated gems “Paradise,” a track that takes you on a hazy journey of ambient guitars, synths as well as distant bird calls that make it truly seem like paradise for your ears. Wild Nothing is one of those bands that makes one feel like they’re floating with their dreamy guitar riffs and lead singer Jack Tatum’s reverberated vocals. They did not disappoint the audience, having their lulling sounds come to life throughout Thalia Hall was absolutely magical.
After the impeccable show that Wild Nothing put on, it was almost too good to be true that
Beach Fossils were on deck. The crowd was packed tight, eager to mosh the second lead singer Dustin Payseur plucked the first notes to “This Year” on his guitar. It wasn’t difficult to see that the boys from Beach Fossils were all very ecstatic to be back playing shows again. “Generational Synthetic” really got the audience going as half the crowd broke out into a mosh, not even security could keep them on a tight rein. Moshing is somewhat of a tradition at a Beach Fossils show, their music fueling the carelessness and angst that the modern world repeatedly loves to suppress.
“Down the Line,” another cult favorite, was also met with open arms by the audience. A song about wanting to go against the grain and being there for someone whenever they may need you. The band came back for an encore of three songs including a performance with Wild Nothing’s Jack Tatum on “Out in the Way,” from Beach Fossils EP
What a Pleasure. The song has always featured Wild Nothing but them touring together was the perfect opportunity to bring it to life, especially for longtime fans. Beach Fossils closed out the night with high spirits, their live performance restoring dopamine to the entire room.
This was honestly the perfect pairing of bands to go on tour together. Beach Fossils and Wild Nothing are both very similar yet very different in terms of having intricate instrumentals and dreamy vocals yet making it completely their own. Playing two shows at Thalia Hall really set the bar up higher for both indie rock bands to play for bigger audiences and crowds down the line.
All photos by Andrew Lagunas.