3 minute read
Tomorrow Daily
from February 2022
who, what, wear
TOMORROW DAILY
Athens based band brings back live alternative music
BY HANNAH CAMPBELL | PHOTOS BY PROVIDED
Every band dreams of making it big in the music business, hoping to change their concert venue from a garage to a real stage. For Tomorrow Daily, that dream is becoming a reality.
Jake Waffen, one of the band’s guitarists and vocalists, started the band in Athens by simply writing songs. He said he did not want to be a songwriter, but realized it was an important part of the creative process.
“I wrote a four-song EP because I was really interested in recording, not necessarily songwriting,” Jake said. “And then, obviously, you can’t really do one without the other, I feel like, if you’re doing it all by yourself.”
Avery Waffen, younger sister to Jake, has been taking vocal lessons since she was younger. Her brother asked her to sing backup for the band and she later became a main vocalist. Avery, who is a junior studying design, utilizes her graphic design skills by creating T-shirts and designs for the band. Cole Maddux, the band’s bassist, grew up in Cleveland with Jake and Avery. While he plays the cello at Ohio University’s School of Music, he recently joined the band and additionally plays guitar and the keyboard.
Maddux has played both the cello and guitar his entire life and said he has always had a passion for both.
“As long as I have been playing the cello, I have been playing the guitar,” Maddux said. “I have never just been one or the other. It is really rewarding to be able to go from one and then just … enjoy something along the same lines but totally different.”
Jake graduated last year from OHIO as an engineering major. He currently lives in Columbus with the band’s drummer, Lorenzo Fava, while Mason Barnett, lead guitarist, lives in Cleveland. With the band living in different parts of the state and having such hectic schedules, Avery said it is hard to arrange practices and gigs.
AVERY WAFFEN
The band describes its sound as “Ohio attic rock,” although the band takes inspiration from artists such as The Strokes, Peach Pit, and Foo Fighters. Their selfproclaimed genre describes a completely original sound that the band created. “We felt that indie rock did not exactly describe what we were doing,” Avery said. “It had a little extra added to it. And we were also rehearsing in Jake’s attic for the … first two years of the band, so that’s kind of where the name came [from].”
The band also said the Athens local music scene influenced their sound. Maddux said he had never played rock music live before joining Tomorrow Daily but loved attending local rock shows in Athens.
“Going to house shows was one of my favorite things to do as [a] freshman and most of my sophomore year … but that was something I have missed and look forward to getting back to doing,” Maddux said. Tomorrow Daily released its first self-titled album in February 2020, which the band recorded and released independently. Jake said having that experience in college was amazing, but that it also took hard work and dedication.
“We were recording up in the attic … and that was really fun,” Jake said. “We would just take a Saturday and Sunday and we’d all go up there and just grind for however long it took. That was a really cool experience for sure.”
Tomorrow Daily released its newest song, “Out of View,” on Feb. 4 on streaming platforms, although the live music video has been out since November
2020. The band also played the Happy Dog bar in Cleveland on Feb. 4. Now, the band hopes to focus on creating more music instead of playing shows.
The band emphasized how welcoming the Athens local music scene is and encouraged anyone who is interested in music to get involved.
MADDUX
“And it really makes it easy because I haven’t had a lot of turnaround time here with Tomorrow Daily, but it has been so easy because everybody there is welcoming.”
Music from Tomorrow Daily can be found on major streaming platforms and on its Youtube channel, Tomorrow Daily Music.
