Dayglow review: 'A night of joy, nostalgia and celebration'

Now, you may not be familiar with the indie-pop of Dayglow, but it’s hard to argue with what they have achieved thus far, and they are without a doubt a band on the rise. Formed and fronted by mixer, producer and songwriter Sloan Struble, Dayglow have a fine catalogue of tracks from their four albums that were released in the space of six years, and each record has adopted a different sonic approach.

Since emerging on the scene following the release of the platinum-certified ‘Can I Call You Tonight?’, the band have gone from strength to strength with the aforementioned four albums, sold-out tours globally and graced festival stages at Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Bonnaroo and even Reading & Leeds in 2022. Their latest record, simply titled ‘Dayglow’, is a “back to basics” album that has a lot of “electric, distorted guitars and raw as possible”, as Struble explained during our sit-down interview prior to the show, and that “back to basics” approach certainly works in a live setting.

Launching into the groovy opening notes of ‘Hot Rod’, the fuzzy guitars, impactful drumming and Struble’s soaring vocals create a dreamy atmosphere before the jangly guitar-led rendition of ‘Then It All Goes Away’, and as Struble swayed from side to side, it was obvious that the frontman had a pep in his step from the outset.

As the night unfolded, Struble provided the audience with a taste of what is to come in the future with performances of the unreleased ‘Love Song for Waffle House", ‘All Star Number One’ and the Rock ‘N’ Roll-inspired ‘Ricochet’, which, judging from the reaction of the 1,500 in attendance in Manchester, are surefire crowd-pleasers.

Throughout the evening, the band’s “back to basics” record was on full display and is already a fan favourite. On tracks such as the reflective ‘Mindless Creatures’ – the sound of shimmery guitars and punchy drums stands out in front of an awe-stricken audience; the catchy ‘Every Little Thing I Say I Do’ and ‘Nothing Ever Does’ are delivered in a manner that sees Struble exude energy, joy, enthusiasm and a level of charm that is increasingly infectious.

Following a rendition of the aforementioned ‘Can I Call You Tonight’, the band returned to the stage for the encore and exploded into a performance of the synth-y, 80s-sounding and dance-inducing ‘Close to You’ that puts the O2 Ritz into full-blown party mode. To close out the evening, a rendition of the Tears for Fears classic ‘Everybody Wants To Rule The World’ sparks a mass singalong before the fan-favourite ‘Run The World!!!’ is a joyous celebration of indie-pop and a fitting closer on a night of joy, nostalgia and celebration.