photos taken on a disposable camera by my dear friend Nick Baker
Exactly one month ago, on November 26th, my favorite band played their 2 year reunion show and- it was f*cking awesome. Dawning, who captured the hearts of many in their short 8 month run back in 2022 (consisting of 2 EPs, a myriad of local shows- which included 2 homegrown festivals, and a South East tour alongside Worlds Worst), returned to the 843 for one night only, just two days before Thanksgiving.
The show venue was downtown’s Local 616 bar, complete with old Nintendo consoles and a kitchen- so you could catch a game of Smash Bros and enjoy a burger or a bowl of Weem’s ramen, all while getting your face melted by a bunch of virtuosic hooligans.
Will and Bobby’s Solid Jams were the first act of the night, a duo of rockin’ hardcore shreddage trampled over by a stampede of drums. Their set was righteous, perfectly setting the tone for what was to come.
Following up next was Charleston’s eggpunk heroes, Beer, who you may just recognize from their stickers ‘round town. Scrambled sonics bashed through the bar as Beer got the crowd movin’. Local celebrity, Brett Nash backed the band on drums while frontman/mastermind Dakota egged the crowd with fuzzzzzzy guitars and crazed out vocals. You should check out Beer’s dishpit set at Dals if you haven’t already!
At long last, it was time for Dawning to take the stage for the first time since December 16th, 2022 (a show you can read about through this link here).
Just like the olden days, “In Irons” opened the set. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “In Irons” is one of two at the top of my very favorite songs of all time, just beside my bloody valentine’s “When You Sleep.” So that hit me like a truck. They roared on into “Lorimer St.” and as the air electrified, that nostalgic feeling had gotten the best of me. Next, Wise struck up the chords for “Sediment” and it was as if no time at all had passed since the last time we heard those words,
“There’s nothing to fear here.” – Sediment (Demo Tape)
“Kreuzberg” kicked up the energy and I even got some air. Then, the room was brought back to a lull with “Nosebleed.” Each song commanded the audience’s attention and energy as they veered from song to song, sometimes in the same song, as was the case of “Wading Heron”, which tiptoes between lullaby waves of slowcore and shrieking shoegaze.
Finally, those infamous rock riffs took the show by storm as Dawning performed their closer in the track that started it all, “We All Went Swimming.” The waters rang out in beautiful shoegaze bliss, blasting the bar in a hurricane of havoc. Amidst, the eye of that storm stood Dawning. As distortion rained through the room, sonic whirlpools swept the crowd away as they sang along in shouts. Eventually, that flood took us all home safe where all that was left to do was wonder if it’d all been a dream. I have, however, caught wind of a rumor that this might be a yearly Thanksgiving thing. Guess in time we’ll see if those rumors hold any water.
fin. /SIKE
I want to use this space now to once and for all talk about why Dawning is my favorite band of all time.
Sure, the songs are about boats… Wise’s experiences at sea shine through in his songwriting and set the scene for these songs. As a kid growing up in Charleston, that’s gonna resonate with me. But there’s a through line of authenticity to this project that’s charmed me in a way that’s left an indelible mark on how I see Charleston, and, genuinely, the world beyond.
It’s honest because it’s about people. Each member of Dawning gave a piece of themselves to the project and as a result, it’s become the best parts of all these Charleston creatives. So if you’ll indulge me, I’ll try to summarize the roles of every “Dawner.”
Captain Jackson Wise helmed Dawning out of a shipping container, writing beautiful melodies from a boatyard where he recorded all of the band’s music. He served as the main songwriting engine for the project, weaving in lyrics from his time sailing, channeling them through bellowing vocals that he meshed atop waves of distorted guitar.
Bassist Matt Massera’s creativity and philosophy on music blended perfectly with Dawning’s spirit. His art gave the band a timelessness that made the project feel like something real. I’ll never forget him telling me, “The stupidest thing ever is that people think you have to be ‘smart’ to make music.” The soul of this being that, you don’t need to over-complicate making art or feel like it’s something you can’t be a part of- just make it. Although Jackson commanded the helm of the composition, Matt and him would ping-pong lines together as they strung up lyrics for the songs. Later on, when Massera had moved away, Charleston hardcore rocker Nate McKinley donned the bass to close out 2022. His energy gave the performances an unforgettable flair.
Ev Tilson has held down the drums for the entirety of Dawning’s existence. Whether he’s shouting background vocals or ripping at the drums, his presence in the band has been a pillar in the ethos of the project and it shows in the group’s sound. That slowcore sound just wouldn’t be the same without him and he’s got all the shoegaze sensibilities to turn it up when he needs to.
Carter Long was the original lead guitarist for the live iteration of Dawning. She also mixed and mastered the group’s second EP, Departure. Before Dawning ever existed, I heard her perform as Kid Lake and she’s really the only reason I caught onto this whole wave when I did as she’d been playing with Yawner. (which later became Dawning). She ended up moving up to NYC and Mark Evans joined on as Dawning’s lead guitarist in late 2022. Mark left his… mark… through his sky-shattering solos and electrifying riffs.
I think it goes the extra mile in showing how precious those relationships were to every member of the band. On the other side, as an audience member, I remember hearing these songs right beside my best friends and so hearing that line at the end of Lorimer St. has always hit me really hard.
“and he’s right next to me” – Lorimer St. (Departure)
What made it so special was their commitment to community through DIY methods such as their beautiful screen printed designs done by Matt Massera, their boatyard folk/punk/shoegaze festival: Neilsonfest, and just their general M.O. of looking out for each other. It helped that their shows rocked.
It was like the second coming of “the scene that celebrated itself”, which started it all back in the days of 80’s Glasgow. Discovering Dawning felt like striking gold and getting to be there from the beginning made me appreciate every show I got to catch. It was really formative for me. I started journalism simply because I wanted to write about their shows and be a part of it. “I fell in love with life again.” But a reality of life is that things end. People leave- a lot of these songs are about leaving- hell, the second EP is called Departure– but simultaneously, these songs have such a strong sense of where they came from, or in other words, a home. After all, it’s the departure that makes the longing for home in the first place. And that word, “Departure”, has this hopeful connotation to it- an adventure ahead, a chance to be taken.
“A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for” – John A. Shedd
And what follows a long journey at sea might just be that grand return, as has been this case with Dawning. In a broader sense, sometimes people come back around, or you have a glimpse of nostalgia for something you’d thought you’d never experience again. I dunno, I guess I’m just saying that this band’s given me a deeper appreciation for that stuff.
So… 2 years… that’s a lotta time… everyone’s been up to amazing things so here’s a recap o’ the gang:
Jackson Wise has had a huge 2024 out in Salt Lake City and beyond. In February, he debuted his new band referencing an ol’ hometown hideaway. He’s described Breach Inlet as “Dawning but more skramz.”
Jackson also joined Worlds Worst in full force and they’re decimating the rock world, playing shows with giants such as Dinosaur Jr. & TAGABOW, plus fests with the likes of Unwound, American Football, and Cap’n Jazz. Check out this secret show they played in Brooklyn below.
Drummer Ev Tilson has been rocking out in San Francisco while skating the city’s face off. He recently joined indie rockers bed bug guru and has plans of maximizing his evil schemes of rock and roll.
This year, Carter finally released their long awaited Kid Lake debut EP, as the form wanes, the spirit appears (and it’s incredible). She also dropped an amazing debut EP with “boy band revivalists” Cry Baby, In Love Without You. Furthermore, she’s continued experimenting with new sounds like hyperpop through their duo Girl Heaven and through their production for up and comer Grumpy. New York City first, the world next.
Matt Massera’s been living his best skater life in Germany, punkin’ out in Berlin and continuing to create wonderful graphic designs while curating on Patience Tapes the best assortment of songs anyone could ever find. It was a real special moment to have him back on this side of the Atlantic for this show.
Beyond his rockstar responsibilities, Mark’s been tending to his duties as a family man- which is as rock and roll as it gets. His performance with the band at this reunion show was incredible and he had this to say: “For me, Dawning is really nostalgic music. It’s both happy and sad- and I think all good music should encompass at least two emotions. That dichotomy makes it special.”
The Charleston scene is blessed with the incredible music of Nate McKinley through his hardcore project, To Forget, his new Charleston shoegaze band, Skywatching, and his solo emo project, A Lion Out Of Place. In 2024, he’s released new music through both Skywatching and A Lion Out Of Place.
On top of all that, Nate and some of his friends have started a Charleston shoegaze collective known as Sugarcube which they use to throw sick shows, thrift events, and publish a magazine & CD. Their goal is to raise enough money to one day open a venue in Charleston.
While never a member of Dawning, Yawner.’s David Fuller has always been a wind at the band’s back. Dawning’s name stirred up sort of as a joke with it’s similarity to Yawner.’s and the turnover of members that followed their departure from Charleston (with Massera heading to Germany and Fuller heading to Chicago). Since then, he’s released Yawner.’s debut album Sunkissed, started his own label called Patience Tapes, drawn up album arts for artists such as villagerrr (a patience tapes resident), and joined indie rock darling outfit Friko with whom he’s been touring the world playing bass with the very best of ’em. Friko’s 2024 record, Where we’ve been, Where we go from here, is incredible and I encourage you to give it a listen:
fin.
This article is dedicated to Phillip Perez who I shared the joy of discovering this wonderful band with.
