Fans of Beach Fossils followed the bunny down the bunny hole at the Franklin Music Hall in Philadelphia and melted into a hazy daydream of surf rock-infused dream pop as Beach Fossils hopped through the city on their Bunny Record Release Tour in support of their new record.
Bunny was released June 2nd, 2023 via Bayonet Records, the Brooklyn-based label birthed from the accomplished camaraderie of Dustin Payseur, the vocalist of Beach Fossils, and his wife Katie Garcia. It was the band’s fourth album and their first in six whole years, but that time spent patiently waiting by fans simply melted away as a new era of Beach Fossils began to drift amongst them and their built-up anticipation. Their uncontainable cheers and the band’s prompt smiles revealed a palpably warm connection that evaporated any physical space between the stage and barricade, further illuminating just how special this celebration of new music was about to be.
The night began as, through the dazzling aura of stage lights, Payseur, guitarist Tommy Davidson, bassist Jack Doyle Smith, and drummer Anton Hochheim emerged. A glistening twang sounded the start of “Don’t Fade Away” and with it followed the airy and effortless nature of Payseur’s vocals. It didn’t take long for attendees to participate with equal effortlessness, crowdsurfers being driven by the band’s atmospheric music magic as they weightlessly floated above the others like clouds. The hypnotic instrumentation of “Sleeping on My Own” and “Dare Me” danced into listeners’ ears while saturating the room with pink and blue hues. The room was drenched in the full Bunny experience.
The band was sure to pay a visit to their past releases too, catering to older fans with songs like “Down the Line,” “Sleep Apnea,” and “What a Pleasure”. Experiencing the eras of Beach Fossils live reinforced their equally retro and refreshing sound as twinkles of various influential pop stylings shone throughout their songs to create a catalog fit for an array of listeners. Through spanning their eras, one commonality persisted amongst them all; the music’s ability to move both its fans and creators.
During any given song, the crowd could be seen swaying and swirling while the band leaned into their instruments as they swept across the stage; the room an open field to frolic through and the sonic trance of the band calling us to follow them. It’s this encouraged free-spiritedness (and the band’s pronounced appreciation for all that came that evening) that made the “Daydream” goodbye so bittersweet.
It’s fair to say we all left that show yearning for more of the feeling it graced us with, but we also left with the reminder that we could press play on a Beach Fossils song and “daydream the days away” until the next one. So here’s your friendly reminder; follow the bunny down the bunny hole and let yourself slip into the glimmering daze of the world of Beach Fossils. You won’t regret it.
Be sure to give Bunny by Beach Fossils a listen and catch them on their European tour in February through March of 2024!
View Full Gallery
Show Date: 11.21.23 | Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall | Beach Fossils New Record Bunny and Daydream Through The Eras
Photographed by Suzanne Leszczynski
