The Daze To Celebrate New Single's Release with Upcoming Show at CODA

Growing up, the Daze singer-guitarist Eddie Grier says he mostly listened to classic rock since that was what his father liked.

“He was a big ‘70s and ‘80s rock guy,” says Grier in a phone interview. The Daze headlines CODA on Friday, Dec. 20, and the concert will also feature locals Casket Splinter, Echoes on Water and The Brakes. It begins at 7 p.m. “I listened to a lot of Rush. That was his favorite band. That became my favorite band. There was a lot of Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. The Cars were also a big one. When I got older, I got into the alternative scene and liked Stone Temple Pilots and Dinosaur Jr. We’re going for a heavy, grunge atmospheric sound.”

Right before the COVID pandemic hit, Grier formed the Daze with a group of friends from his high school band’s program at Jefferson High School.

“Once the pandemic hit, we were staying home and took up our instruments from band and decided to play together in the garage rather than in a classroom,” he explains. “It started with covers by Nirvana and Fugazi and the Vines. From there, we evolved more and started writing music. People around the high school would come to my driveway to watch us perform.”

For its debut, Methomania, the band made use of a makeshift studio at Jefferson.

“That was very interesting because I had taken college classes throughout high school,” says Grier.” I had study hall periods and would ask my band director if I could come to the band room where they had a studio. I had a lot of free time during the school day because I had taken college classes throughout high school. Throughout my school day, I would record this album. It took about six months in total. It was almost like a senior project. I had had these songs in my head, and we were performing live, and we just had to hunker down and grind them out.”

The Incubus-like “Time as It Stands” starts with melodic guitars before the distortion kicks in. It offers a distinctive mix of atmospheric grunge and hard rock and has become the band’s fastest-streamed song to date. It already has 3,000 streams on Spotify.

“It was written last year, but it didn’t fit the album,” says Grier when asked about the tune. “It had a darker sound to it. I thought it would be a great single. Eventually, we will put out some more singles and a new album in the next year. It’ll follow that same style and have some more atmospheric, darker tunes. We have started to focus on writing more songs.

In addition to the upcoming show at CODA, the band will open for Formerly Candice on Friday, Jan. 31, at Mahall’s 20 Lanes in Lakewood, and it’ll perform as part of a punk festival slated to take place in February at the Foundry, which is relocating from Lakewood to Old Brooklyn.