"We're just taking our time because we don't want it to close. It's, like, too good for this city," Dilly Dally fronter Katie Monks said to the crowd swirling in the mix of fog and hot sweat before her. "I thought of a million things I wanted to say on stage tonight, but now I don't really want to do it."
The Torontonian foursome brought their manic mess to the final Friday at the historic Silver Dollar Room last night (April 28), and all involved made sure it was a night that wouldn't be leaving anyone's memory anytime soon.
With a wild shout of "1, 2, 3, 4", Monks began the set with "Desire" off their 2015 debut, Sore, and all in the crowd shouted right back at her. Early tune "Gender Role" had drummer Ben Reinhartz really bring it, while "Ballin' Chain" proved another Monks standout, her voice delving into extremely gravelly territory.
Dilly Dally's reinvention of Drake's "Know Yourself' also made an appearance, then — without skipping a beat — the band transitioned into "Purple Rage." With every "Yeah" that Monks dished out, the crowd reciprocated with equal shouts. "Alexander" sounded fantastic (particularly thanks to its bass riff), and judging by the wildness of the crowd, "The Touch" might've been the evening's favourite.
The audience showed their appreciation with whoops and hoots throughout the set, to say nothing of the multitude of phones held high; it seems there were plenty of keeners looking to document Dilly Dally's last dance at the Dollar. Still, that didn't dissuade the frenzied folk in the pit at the room's core.
"Who here has seen us before?" Monks later asked. "Cool, not much has changed. I still fuck up all the time." That admission clearly didn't deter the diehards, calling for an encore with shouts of "Dilly! Dollar!"
The ideal crowd surfing conditions weren't totally taken advantage of (which was especially surprising given that it was one of the last times to sail atop the crowd at the closing venue), but at least one woman got up there for a final ride — and stayed there until the encore-closer and tribute to legendary Silver Dollar Room booker Dan Burke, "Green Slime," was through.
