Encinitas’ almost monday catches next big wave with sophomore album, headlining tour

San Diego indie-pop trio almost monday has been riding a wave of success since its 2024 debut album, “DIVE” launched the No. 1 alternative radio hit “can’t slow down.” But not long ago, the band was trying to make a name for itself by booking gigs in the back of an Encinitas surf shop. 

Growing up together in the beach community, vocalist Dawson Daugherty and bassist Luke Fabry have been inseparable since childhood.

“Every single chapter of our life, we’ve been intertwined together,” Daugherty said. “Learning how to surf at the same time, then playing music, then college roommates and then dropping out of college to be in the band. So, Luke is more of a brother at this point.”

Daugherty met guitarist Cole Clisby, son of surf legend Gary Clisby, on the water. At first, the singer thought Clisby’s surfing skills would lend the band extra cool points. Then he discovered he was also a phenomenal guitarist.

When they weren’t ripping at Swami’s Beach, they’d be at UNIV, the former surf shop across from the Self-Realization Fellowship that doubled as one of the area’s few all-ages music venues.

“John Humphrey, the guy who was running it, was so cool because there’s not a lot of great venues in North County,” Daugherty reflected. “John opened up that surf shop in the back, and it played so well as a sick little venue. All of our homies would come up, and some of our best memories as a band happened there.”

As the band built a local following at those gigs in 2016-17, they funneled merch sales into studio time to record songs. When the money ran out, they’d return to UNIV and repeat the cycle to fund their dreams.

The group originally started out as The Mondays before discovering a Syracuse-based cover band already owned the name. So, they settled on almost monday, stylized in lowercase, and never looked back.

Mentor Mark Needham helped them get discovered when he invited a Hollywood Records A&R rep to one of the band’s shows, leading to a record deal and the release of “DIVE.” 

Capturing youth’s carefree moments in such songs as “jupiter,” “sunburn” and “you look so good,” the album introduced almost monday to audiences far beyond Southern California. It also opened the door to the band’s first international tour, taking them to South Korea, the United Kingdom and across Europe.

“The first time we played in Korea was such an unbelievable experience,” Daugherty recalled. “These fans who don’t speak English knew every word. To know that your songs made it all the way to those ears … it’s really crazy.” 

Fast forward to this summer: On June 27, almost monday wrapped a tour supporting Young the Giant and Cold War Kids, leaving Daugherty battling the “post-tour blues.”

“I’m always so fascinated by people who still have the spark of joy and wonder in what they do, even when they’ve been doing it for a long time,” he said. “Both of those bands seemed like they’re still really excited to be doing it, and that left a really big impression on me.”

The band approached their sophomore release, “THANK GOD IT’S ALMOST MONDAY,” with that same verve. But almost monday experienced an emotionally challenging year, and those life lessons found their way into several tracks on the album, due out Sept. 9.

Two songs explore loss and grief. Daugherty explained “buzz” was inspired by his grandfather’s passing, while “leaving is easy” cuts even deeper. 

“We had a really hard loss of a family member last year that was really tragic and unexpected,” Daugherty said. “It’s something that’s still being grieved and processed and not something that I think we’re going to go into as a band because it’s still so real.”

The introspection continues with the mid-tempo “losing streak” — recorded with “leaving is easy” at Switchfoot’s Spot X Studio in Carlsbad. The song wrestles with the emotional push and pull of life on the road while loved ones wait at home.

“This is easily the most personal song for me on the record,” Daugherty admitted. “It’s just kind of dealing with the guilt of living this really fun life and feeling like, ‘Man, am I doing the right thing by being out here chasing this dream I’ve had since I was a kid and not being home as much as I want to be for the people I love?’”

An advance listen to the 13-track album finds almost monday paddling past its big pop sound and venturing into new styles, from the reggae-tinged title track and funk-inflected “superprism” to the dance-friendly new single “better late than never.”

Fans also will find familiar ear candy, including “delicate” and “no more regrets,” both boy-pursues-girl songs driven by falsetto-fueled choruses. But taken as a whole, “THANK GOD IT’S ALMOST MONDAY” feels deeper and more adventurous than its predecessor.

“What’s really unique about this album is how it’s revealed itself to me after being made,” Daugherty confessed. “We just got off the road from the ‘DIVE’ tour and went into the studio to make the second album. I think that stressed me out in a weird way, not feeling like I knew what it was or what we were trying to do.

“While making it, you’re like, ‘How do all these songs fit together on this record?’ To be completely transparent, it’s probably been in the last month where I feel like I know what this album is and why we made it.”

In September, the band kicks off its “THANK GOD IT’S ALMOST MONDAY” North American tour, which includes an Oct. 22 stop at the Observatory North Park. Daugherty said he’s excited to build a setlist spanning two albums and plans to make it easier for fans to attend by offering affordable ticket prices.

For a band that once relied on merch money to bankroll another day in the studio, a national headlining tour is like catching the biggest wave in the set. But for Daugherty, the music has always been about something deeper. 

“We made the album in a year that was the best and hardest year of our lives,” he said of the upcoming release. “I think it marks what it’s like to be here in this human experience. I guess I’ve landed on it just represents an honest year lived. All you can do as an artist is try to live an honest life, and then the art reflects that.”

Donovan Roche is a longtime music writer and regular contributor to Times of San Diego.