Dilly Dally is a Canadian

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...

and

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band from

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

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

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', September 8, 2018. The band consists of Enda Monks (rhythm guitar and vocals), Liz Ball (lead guitar), Annie Jane Marie (bassist) and Benjamin Reinhartz (drummer). Dilly Dally have released one single (''Next Gold'', 2013), one 7" (''Candy Mountain,'' ''2014'') and two full length albums, ''Sore'' (2015) and ''Heaven'' (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 ( 2021 population: 87,942) is a town and regional seat of the Regional Municipality of York in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is part of Greater Toronto in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario. The name stems from the ...

, 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 A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

review of the ''Next gold'' single, Dilly Dally's notoriety increased internationally.

''Sore'' Release (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 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 Brooklyn ...

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

2016 Polaris Music Prize The 2016 edition of the 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 in Edmonton, Alberta. 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. Cunningham — as ...

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

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

nominee for Alternative Album of the Year 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 SOCAN Songwriting Prize, formerly known as the ECHO Songwriting Prize, is an annual competition recognizing the best in Canadian emerging music, both anglophone and francophone. Established in 2006, the competition was designed to recognize som ...

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 in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

"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'' Release (2018–2019)

Dilly_Dally_at_Rough_Trade_(44338728255)

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

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

'' was released on September 14, 2018 by

Dine Alone Records Dine Alone Records is a Canadian and American independent 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 Ca ...

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 ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Rob Schnapf Rob Schnapf is an American record producer and musician. 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 ...

. ''Heaven'' was long listed 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 incr ...

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

in 2019.

2020

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

Personal lives

The band is outspoken in their support of

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...

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 audio distribution platform founded in 2007 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with headquarters in Oakland, California, US. On March 2, 2022, Bandcamp ...

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