Are You Ready (Ready For The Time of Your Life): Laundry Day in Montreal

Two nights ago, I learned that freedom floats through musical decades. When I was younger, I could find it within the hearty bellows of texan-native Janis Joplin. As time passed in the lyrical world, freedom filled its walls with reflections of blistering rhythmic palettes. 

When I faced the February cold after a 7-hour shift, New York-based band Laundry Day became the chicken soup to my soul. As I stepped into Café Campus, the walls rang with anticipatory chatter and echoes of 4 Non Blondes serenated the atmosphere. Just two days prior, my friend Kaitlyn and I rode the train home when she told me they were in town. Who knew that 48 hours later, we'd be swaying around to the sounds of friendship? 

As the night wound down, vocalist Jude Lipkin blistered our hearts in melodic warmth during “FRIENDS” from their 2019 album HOMESICK. Inviting the crowd to hold those they cherish close. An ode to the people that pull us through, those we are lucky to grow up right beside. 

Was I ready? Not much could have prepared me for the perpetual blast that was Laundry Day.

When the lights went down, Montreal drowned in ear-splitting melodies. In harmony, we bumped our heads and waved our bodies to the songs of EARWORM, released in October of last year. For a brief moment, my fears dissolved when I saw you in the dizzying lights. When your arms coddled the microphone with the young adult ecstasy that came out of you, as your soul hovered around the room. Your cheeks were flushed with warm exhaustion, and your smile welcomed the crowd. Into the night, we were invited to let go, wave goodbye and embrace. The time of our lives began when none of us were ready. Yet, with Laundry Day by our side, we knew how it went down that night. We couldn’t stand jaded on the hills of musical thrills by heavily enthralling basslines and striking lyrics. Instead, like the open road, freedom found its shape in rhythmic grooves and whimsical beats. Just as we had connected, it was time for the band to depart. We were just the fourth stop on The Time of Your Life tour.

Sawyer Nunes, we heard you tearing it on drums and singing the woes and joys inside you. Henry Pearl, we melted at your quiet, misty sound as you gently plucked the bass strings. Under your mustache revealed so much more than you let on. Henry Weingartner, how can we forget your compelling guitar on the edge of musical mania? Jude Lipkin, you have marked that stage so profoundly; you engaged in the lyrical frames of your mind. 

Thank you for stepping out onto the edge. Montreal loved you!