Dilly Dally were a Canadian

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band from

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

."A stronger, healthier Dilly Dally reaches for Heaven on second album"
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division. ...

'', September 8, 2018. The band consisted of Enda Monks (rhythm guitar and vocals), Liz Ball (lead guitar), Annie Jane Marie (bassist) and Benjamin Reinhartz (drummer). They announced their breakup on March 2, 2023. Dilly Dally released three singles, one 7" ("Candy Mountain", 2014) and two full-length albums, ''Sore'' (2015) and ''

Heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...

'' (2018).

History

Early years (2009–2014)

Dilly Dally was formed in 2009 by childhood friends Enda Monks and Liz Ball. Monks and Ball met while in high school in

Newmarket, Ontario Newmarket (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 87,942) is a town and regional seat of the Regional Municipality of York in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. It is part of Greater Toronto Area, Greater Toron ...

, just outside of Toronto. The two self-taught guitarists were determined to start a band, and developed their sound through years of playing shows in the Toronto alternative and punk scenes. The band is known for their signature guitar tones as well as Monk's raspy vocals. Monks and Ball self-released the band's first single, "Next Gold", in 2013 with an alternate rhythm section. In 2013, Benjamin Reinhartz (drummer) and Annie Jane Marie (bassist) joined the project: the new musicians helped solidify the band's sound. In 2014,

Buzz Records Buzz Records is a Canadian-based independent record label with headquarters in Toronto, Ontario. The label evolved out of the underground performance space, The Garage. In 2011, the first releases from the Buzz Records collective were live record ...

(Canada) and

Fat Possum Records Fat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Water Valley and Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording previously unknown Mississippi blues artists (typically from Oxford or Holly Sprin ...

(United States) released their first 7", "Candy Mountain", but there was limited public interest in the band. After a positive ''Pitchfork'' review of the "Next Gold" single, Dilly Dally's notoriety increased internationally.

''Sore'' (2015–2017)

Dilly Dally's first full-length album, ''Sore'', was released on October 9, 2015, on

in Canada and

Partisan Records Partisan Records is an independent record label with offices in London, Berlin, and Los Angeles, as well as in New York City, where the company was co-founded in 2007 by Tim Putnam and Ian Wheeler. The label, initially run out of Putnam's South B ...

in the United States and United Kingdom. ''Sore'' was a longlisted nominee for the

2016 Polaris Music Prize The 2016 edition of the Canada, Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 19, 2016 at The Carlu event theatre in Toronto, Ontario."Polaris Music Prize unveils long list of albums in Whitehorse"
''

Edmonton Journal The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Postmedia Network. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunn ...

'', June 15, 2016. as well as a

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

nominee for

Alternative Album of the Year Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an alternative to mainstream superh ...

at the

Juno Awards of 2017 The Juno Awards of 2017, honouring Canadian music achievements, were presented in Ottawa, Ontario the weekend of 1–2 April 2017. The ceremonies were held at the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata and televised on CTV with Bryan Adams and Russell ...

. The single "Desire" was a

SOCAN Songwriting Prize The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, SOCAN Songwriting Prize, formerly known as the ECHO Songwriting Prize, was an annual competition recognizing the best in Canadian emerging music, both anglophone and francophone, fro ...

finalist in 2016. Additionally, the video for "Snakehead" was long-listed for the

Prism Prize The Prism Prize is a national juried award recognizing the artistry of the modern music video in Canada.Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...

"50 Best Canadian Albums of the 2010s" list. The band toured extensively during the ''Sore'' album cycle. Monks recalls: "When you put four people in a box for two years, it's psychologically fucked. (...) The machine was going full speed ahead. As the manager, I just kept confirming dates." The relentless pace of those tours almost caused the band to break up.

''Heaven'' (2018–2019)

After taking a mental health break, the band got back together in 2017 to write their second full-length record. ''

'' was released on September 14, 2018, by

Dine Alone Records Dine Alone Records is a Canadian and American record label, founded in St. Catharines and Toronto by Joel Carriere. The label is now based in Toronto, Nashville and Los Angeles. History Dine Alone was born out of founder Joel Carriere's home ...

in Canada and

in the United States and United Kingdom. The songs on this release cover themes such as marijuana use, queerness, depression and substance abuse in the music industry. The album was produced and mixed in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Rob Schnapf Rob Schnapf is an American record producer. He was the co-producer (along with Tom Rothrock) of Elliott Smith's albums '' Either/Or'', '' XO'' (on which he also played guitar on the song " Baby Britain"), '' Figure 8'' and ''From a Basement o ...

. ''Heaven'' was longlisted for the 2019

Polaris Music Prize The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize. The prize was inc ...

. The song "Bad Biology" was a finalist for the

in 2019.

Final shows and breakup (2020–2023)

Dilly Dally had shows announced for 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of tours and festivals worldwide. Dilly Dally opened for the band

My Chemical Romance My Chemical Romance is an American Rock music, rock band from New Jersey. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, lead guitarist Ray Toro, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way. They are considered one of ...

for several dates in 2022. On March 2, 2023, the band announced they were breaking up, saying "It's time for us to move forward and continue our journeys separately." They released their last two singles, "Colour of Joy" and "Morning Light", and announced the date for their final concert on May 27 at

Lee's Palace Lee's Palace is a rock concert hall located on the south side of Bloor Street West east of Lippincott Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The two-floor facility in The Annex neighbourhood has a long history prior to being adapted in September 19 ...

in Toronto. A second show was announced for the next night on March 7.

Personal lives

The band is outspoken in their support of

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

issues. Monks identifies as queer, and Annie Jane Marie has come out as transgender. The song "Sober Motel" was written by Monks in relation to Annie's journey into sobriety.

Discography

References

External links

*
Dilly Dally
on

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

Dilly Dally

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Dilly Dally

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Dilly Dally

page {{Authority control 2009 establishments in Canada Canadian alternative rock groups Canadian grunge groups Musical groups established in 2009 Musical groups from Toronto Partisan Records artists Dine Alone Records artists