Posted December 23, 2018 by Blake Yard Concert Reviews & Galleries

Shortly – The Loving Touch – 12/14/18

Shortly, Dogleg, Formerly Bodies, Ness Lake, Sunbleached
The Loving Touch – Ferndale, MI – 12/14/18
Photographer: Blake Yard

The Loving Touch opened its door up to a talent-packed local show on December 14th. Headling the show was Shortly fresh off a tour with The Wonder Years. Opening for Shortly was Sunbleached, Ness Lake, Formerly Bodies and Dogleg.

Sunbleached started playing shortly after I arrived, I had heard of these guys prior to this show and they didn’t disappoint. They have a heavy shoegaze influence in their sound. Unfortunately, Sunbleached announced this would be their last show. They ended their set with “Detached.”

Formerly Bodies took the stage promptly after them and captivated the crowd in a much mellower fashion. Hannah Weir’s quaint, delicate voice captivated the room.

Ness Lake is based out of Ypsilanti and claims the title of being delay driven diary rock. They put on a very emotional and strong set, playing songs off of their most recent album, Kicking. The sings flowed together very easily, sticking true to the band’s genre, leaving the crowd feeling like they were actually listening to a diary.

Dogleg is a name I’ve heard come up a few times over the last five to six months and I fully understand why; they put on a high energy full crowd engagement show. Honestly, they performed better than most bigger acts I’ve seen over the last 5 years. Their set included fan favorite “Star 67.”

Shortly ended the night and rightfully so, her sets are always so powerful no matter what crowd she’s playing too. Her set included plenty of songs off her new EP Richmond and even a sneak peek at a song off an upcoming album. Alex Maniak mesmerized the crowd with songs such as “Finders Keepers” and “Spare Time”. She ended her set by playing a solo that was met with roaring applause once finished.

This was one of the best full local line-ups I have seen in a long time hope to see more local shows like this in 2019.

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