Review and Photos by Sydney Telford
Tucked below the busy streets of Salt Lake City and in the neon arcade bar Quarters sits the DLC. The venue’s vibrant wall of cassette tapes and colorful lighting give the small space a personality of its own. There is a coziness to The DLC that could make any fan feel at home.
On September 14th, the DLC welcomed the co-headling tour for Not My Weekend and Daisyhead with local band Harbor Patrol as the opener. Their West Coast run began in Colorado Springs earlier this month, traveling through New Mexico, California and Arizona before wrapping up in Salt Lake City. After seeing Not My Weekend perform an acoustic set at Warped Tour in Long Beach earlier this summer, I was especially excited to see how their music would translate with a full band.
Harbor Patrol kicked off the night strong. The Utah-based band set the tone for the evening with an energetic alternative sound. They started off with familiar songs like “Save Me” and “Like a Rose,” immediately gathering a crowd near the stage.
It was clear the band was having just as much fun as the audience. Rather than staying planted behind their microphones, the members moved across the stage and played off one another throughout the set. That energy translated into the crowd, making Harbor Patrol feel like more than just an opener tasked with filling time before the touring bands.
One of the most memorable moments of the set came when Harbor Patrol took a risk and debuted an unfinished song–so unfinished, in fact, that it didn’t have lyrics yet. Instead, the band let the instruments carry the performance. Strong drum fills and guitar riffs filled the space where vocals would eventually sit, while the crowd continued dancing along. The risk paid off, offering a glimpse into the band’s creative process without losing the energy they had built throughout their set. I cannot wait to see what that song evolves into.
By the time Harbor Patrol left the stage, they had done exactly what a strong opener should: introduced themselves to new listeners, given longtime fans a great show and gotten the room ready for what was still to come.
Half of the co-headlining bill, Daisyhead, brought a heavier sound to Quarters. With five members packed onto the venue’s small stage, the band immediately had a commanding presence. Their layered guitars and hard-hitting drums filled the room, bringing a different edge to the night.
Throughout their set, Daisyhead seemed completely immersed in the music. The vocals carried an intensity that matched the weight of the band’s sound. The rest of the band matched that energy, moving around the already-crowded stage and making the performance feel raw and emotionally charged.
That intensity worked particularly well in a venue like The DLC. With little distance between the band and the audience, there was nowhere for their energy to get lost. Five musicians may have made the stage feel crowded, but it only added to the performance. Daisyhead filled both the physical space and the room itself with a sound that felt considerably bigger than the venue surrounding them.
Daisyhead brought something distinctly different to the lineup. Their heavier, more emotionally charged performance showed another side of a night that moved between different corners of alternative music, while their energy onstage made it difficult to look away.
The other half of the co-headlining bill, Not My Weekend, immediately captivated the audience. Starting out with songs from their album SHIMMER.SEASON, they quickly engaged the crowd by asking everyone to sing along to the choruses. They didn’t have to do much convincing. Throughout the set, the room was filled with people singing and dancing along, making it clear that Not My Weekend has built a strong fan base in Salt Lake City.
In contrast to Daisyhead’s five-member lineup, Not My Weekend created an impressively full sound with only three people onstage. Their music feels fresh while also drawing clear influence from the pop-punk sound of the early 2000s, combining catchy choruses with heavier guitars and plenty of energy. I found myself singing the chorus of “Lightning” my entire drive home. After seeing the band perform acoustically at Warped Tour in Long Beach, I was pleasantly surprised by just how much bigger and fuller those same songs felt with the entire band behind them.
Not My Weekend’s discography is full of collaborations, featuring artists like Diva Bleach, Brian Butcher and Kellin Quinn. Although none of these artists were present in Salt Lake City, the songs still felt complete. The band was able to translate the collaborations into a three-person live performance without losing the fullness or energy of the recorded versions.
More than anything, Not My Weekend made a point to be as engaged with the crowd as possible. For most of the show, it was hard to tell where the stage ended and the crowd started. Lead singer Patrick Gilchrist spent nearly the entire set standing on a speaker at the edge of the stage, putting him only inches from the audience. During guitar solos, guitarist Nick Hudson followed suit, playing directly in front of the crowd. Behind the kit, drummer Deven Pile was a driving force throughout the set, bringing an intensity that helped make the three-piece sound much larger than it was. And he did it all while wearing an Avril Lavigne shirt, a small detail that felt perfectly at home alongside the band’s early-2000s influences.
That connection extended beyond the stage itself. Patrick eventually made his way offstage and through the audience, bringing the performance directly into the crowd. Toward the end of the set, he walked all the way to the back of the venue and encouraged everyone to follow. Moments like this made the audience feel less like spectators and more like an active part of the show. Whether they were following the band across the room, dancing or shouting lyrics back toward the stage, the crowd remained engaged throughout the set.
Even after their performance ended, the band’s connection with their fans continued. Not My Weekend followed their full-band set with an additional acoustic performance outside the venue. It felt like a fitting end to a show built so strongly around breaking down the barrier between the band and the fans who came to see them.
With their new song “Brain Rot” dropping September 25th, Not My Weekend doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon. Their set showed just how strong of a connection they have built with their Salt Lake City fan base. They left the city with plenty to look forward to whenever they return, and I know I’ll be there when they do.
Sound Script 
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