UP CLOSE & PERSONAL WITH THIS BREAKOUT BAND
Story & photos by Kate Kilgour
Playing to an undeservedly sparse crowd at the Drake Underground, Half Moon Run was infectious. Just as on stage, Devon Dunn-Portielje (lead vocals, guitars, drums), Conner Molander (guitars, synth, percussion, backup vocals) and Dylan Phillips (synth, drums, backup vocals) are unassuming. They praised their label, Montreal’s Indica, who offered them a ‘too-good-to-be-true deal’, and proved their true devotion to their craft.
“When we’re at home, chilling, we feel like we shouldn’t be. We should be working, writing lyrics, working on our sound,” they admit. When asked how they came together in Montréal, Molander and Phillips hailing from British Columbia and Dunn from Ottawa, it all boiled down to the true intention of playing music. They joke about their Craigslist introduction, saying “You know those ‘Men Seeking Men’ ads? ‘Men Seeking Men To Play Casual Music.” Amid laughter, they assure us this didn’t actually go down in the personals. Let’s thank the platform for bringing these individually talented sweethearts together, though.
With multi-instrumental interludes, including a little taste of organ, Half Moon Run has serious staying power thanks to their musical prowess. Their set was insanely tight, their flow fitting, and above all they kept it interesting with some on-stage grooving.
