Monday night at Brooklyn Steel marked the halfway point for Beach Fossils’ “Out in the Way Tour,” as the band cruises through thirty-two cities this fall.
Beach Fossils is Brooklyn born and bred. Formed in 2009, it began as the project of Dustin Payseur, who owns and operates the band’s independent label Bayonet Records with his wife Katie Garcia.
So it was ever more sweet when, joined by friend-of-the-band Wild Nothing – on a tour initially planned for 2020, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their respective debut albums – Beach Fossils was back in their home borough, performing for a sold out crowd at Brooklyn Steel.
Monday’s homecoming was a mellow and scripted turn for the band, who are known for their rowdy performance antics and improvisational riffs. Indie rock openers Hannah Jadagu and Wild Nothing established the laid back, surf rock sounds and intimate lyrics echoed in subsequent Beach Fossils tunes.
Payseur, joined by bassist Jack Doyle Smith, guitarist Tommy Davidson, and drummer Anton Hochheim, executed on the difficult task of keeping a fluid momentum alive, as the performance ebbed from speedier, lo-fi tracks to stripped down, slow moving melodies, spanning the band’s decade rich discography.
Midway through the show the band tapped a personal favorite, “Adversity,” from their 2011 album What A Pleasure; a snaking bassline structures the chorus, drawing out Payseur’s dreamy voice. It struck a certain chord with the audience: a crowd swaying in sync, settling in, immersed in the energy and familiarity of the moment, like a neighborhood crew watching their friends perform.
To cap off the night, Jack Tatum of Wild Nothing joined Beach Fossils back on stage, with Payseur reminiscing, momentarily, about writing songs together in Greenpoint – only a few blocks from where they now stood – reflecting on the spirit of their collaboration and community, a sonic landscape a decade in the making.
Beach Fossils and Wild Nothing, joined by The Red Pears, head west for the second half of the tour, performing in Seattle on November 11th.
