📷 : Tina Mead / ✏️ : Aaron Pylinski

Waltzer kicked off their tour this past Wednesday night at the Golden Dagger. They played with a seriously slick rock band called Lucky Cloud. I was front row for this evening's festivities and it was the best (albeit a bit cramped) seat in the house. I love being up close and personal with music and musicians and I was glad to see the stage situation has improved from the Tonic Room days. It’s a treat to be able to get such a magnified view of these musicians’ art and Lucky Cloud did not disappoint.

They were fantastically driven from the very beginning. They opened with a song called, “Invitation” and the audience immediately got lead vocalist and guitarist Chet Zenor’s talent at face value. His snarl while he sang was unmistakable, and the way he smiled when he strummed was the perfect yin and yang. It added a depth to the music you wouldn’t otherwise get outside of an 8-foot radius.

Throughout the set, there was a mixture of dreamy, lullaby-like ballads like “Undertow” and sickeningly cosmic jazz rock like “The Birds” where the steel pedal guitar from Max Subar was brought in so perfectly it was like magic. My proximity to the bassist Jason Gordon Ashworth was so close (but socially distanced) I could see and feel the strings shake under each strum. It was great to see Spencer Tweedy on drums. He’s not only talented, but he’s someone who cares deeply about the Chicago music scene and it shows.  

This is a band worth seeing any chance you get. This was only their second show and they seem to be here and ready to play. If you see their name on a bill, get tickets immediately.

Waltzer was up next to play behind a giant TV frame set around the stage. The first time I saw Waltzer play a video release show in 2019 at Sleeping Village, I knew there was something special here, that vocalist/guitarist/writer Sophie Sputnik is a visionary performer. The Golden Dagger stage setup was complete with a fog machine that filled the tiny stage area, dancing off the purple and blue lights. Waltzer is more than just a band, they’re a variety experience. Watching WaltzerTV would be beneficial to the average music fan reading this. 

In true free tv fashion, Satan Satan (two black cloak draped musicians) warmed up the crowd with a seriously short two-song set and disappeared. Waltzer took the stage with heavy fuzz guitars, leading into “Orbit #9,” a playful, dreamlike ballad. They played just about everything from their Time Traveler debut EP which came out earlier this year, as well as some new material.

When they went into “Lantern” I thought to myself, “Waltzer has the sound, the stage presence, and the vision to take rock n roll into the future.” Songs like “Ugly Misfits” plays with a nod to the surf rock days and then swings right into blues, it’s no mistaking the influence and the innovation. One of the best songs of the night was “I Don’t Want To Die.” This song is doo-wop through and through. It could easily be heard in a John Waters movie. It was an absolute crack to dance to.  

They finished the night with “Destroyer” , a song draped in guitar-fueled soul. The crowd yelled for the encore and Waltzer wasted no time delivering “Eugene,” an ear blistering rocker that wasn’t so much a wall of sound as it was a layering of purposeful instrumentation and lyricism.  All in all, the evening was great! It was an up close and personal look at two incredible acts. Chicago should be proud of these artists. We’re all incredibly lucky they share their art with us.

-Aaron Pylinski