Slaughter Beach, Dog
Returning to Houston Texas, Slaughter Beach, Dog brought familiar and heartfelt melodies to the table leaving the audience no choice but to dance and sing along. With the release of their seventh album, “Crying, Laughing, Waving, Smiling”, the band has taken a different yet beautiful sound than previous albums. The album is noticeably softer than the others and has almost a country feel-good vibe while also maintaining the classic indie/rock sound.
Before Slaughter Beach, Dog performed, Houston warmly welcomed the Band SunJune to the stage. SunJune is an indie pop band originally from Austin Texas and has released 3 studio albums. The most recent being “Somewhere” which was released in 2021 and extended in 2022. The lead singer, Laura Colwell, interacted with the audience, telling stories about songs before they were played. The audience smiled, and although not everyone had heard of SunJune before tonight, remained engaged by dancing and having a good time. Slaughter Beach, Dog was formed in 2014 as a side project by Singer, Jake Ewald. Originally, the band consisted of bassist Ian Farmer, guitarist Nick Harris, (who was replaced by Adam Meisterhans in 2020), and drummer Zach Robbins.
This isn’t the first time the band has visited Texas, as they played a show at Houstons White Oak Music Hall. This time, with a setlist containing 17 songs, the show features popular hits such as “Acolyte”, “104 Degrees”, and “Your Cat”. My favorite of the three is Acolyte, a soft yet beautiful song that reminds me of a warm spring day. The humming of the guitar and meaningful lyrics put this piece together. As the show progresses from the first song, “Bobcat Club”, the lighting shifts and matches the tone of the music. In certain songs, the mirror ball illuminates the crowd’s mesmerized faces with little speckles of light. It was beautiful to be in the photo pit and witness music move a crowd. Although the songs are simple, each is sincere and sung beautifully by Jake Ewald’s voice and accompanied by a magnificently talented band.
At the end of the show, Slaughter Beach, Dog bid Houston farewell by playing their most streamed song, Acolyte (my favorite). The audience’s expression lit up after hearing the first few chords of the song and continued to vibe as the show came to an end. The mirrorball lit up the room one final time as the band finished the end of Acolyte. Once the show had concluded, fans made their way to the merch tables to bring home collectibles such as shirts, stickers, and hoodies.
As an Indie music fan, a getaway to a Slaughter Beach, Dog show was a perfect start to begin 2024. I am looking forward to seeing what else this talented band brings to the table.
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