Dilly Dally

For twelve years Katie Monks and Liz Ball have been connected through music. A sister-like bond that requires no words. The two Toronto-based musicians met in high school over a common love of legendary bands like The Pixies, scrawling lyrics and poetry to mimic their heroes. Both self-taught guitarists, Ball and Monks also idolized the lackadaisical sorrow of Kurt Cobain, Christopher Owens and Pete Doherty, slowly manifesting that admiration into their own band they called Dilly Dally.

“We started a band because we believed in ourselves,” says Monks, “and we believed in Music—almost like it was a religion.” .

That whole-hearted, delusional blind faith is what brings any musician to a point of both contention and success: you do not care, but you care so much it hurts. The reality of today’s industry is long-cycle touring, frivolous press duties, tweets by the handful that paint life wealthier than it is and a mouth of Ramen, but what differs today is that those who pursue a band do it because they really, really need to. There’s no promise of an easy, stress-free future. The feeling is intrinsic, an obsession that cannot be traded in for a bigger bankroll. In the last six years of “being drenched in the Toronto music scene,” Dilly Dally found inspiration while doing the early 20’s struggle of “working shit jobs, being in debt, partying too much and hustling in a band.” When you rely on music for anything but love, it spits you out like poison and Dilly Dally are aware of this. .