How Post Covid made Daphne a great musician?
Daphne was born out of a series of unfortunate events. AKA the Covid 19 Pandemic. In 2018 four longtime friends decided to get together and play some covers of their favourite bands. They built up a solid set and began playing at bars, breweries and house parties in the Seattle area. At that time, they were called “Hi Fi Sci Fi”. The group had ambitious plans to continue playing cover shows and building their rep in the Seattle area.
That all changed in 2020. All of a sudden, the world shut down. No more live music resulted in no more parties, no more shows. At that moment, “Hi Fi Sci-Fi” died, and the group decided to pursue original music.
The bassist and lead singer (Luke Swenson) came to the group with a folder full of song ideas. They were an instant fit for the group, and they began working through what these ideas could be. They took their time diving into each song idea, and each member brought their ideas to their instruments. Early on, the songs felt sporadic and a bit inconsistent. The group was writing songs that spanned multiple genres ranging from alternative/indie to pop/punk. The group began to work through and refine their sound with each track.
Listen to their music here.
Truth or Dare
Six months later, the group decided to self-record and produced their first track, “Truth or Dare”, six months later. The group needed a new name, conveying the contemporary musical expression. It needed to feel angsty but with a soft side. The group landed on Daphne. Guitarist Phil Cerna was happy with this as a current horticulture student. Truth or Dare dropped and was met with a ton of positive feedback. Comments like “this reminds me of my favourite bands from the 2000s” were common. Daphne was on to something.
There was a new mission for Daphne. Write and record their first EP by 2022. They began meeting in person and working through more song ideas. Sometimes in a garage, bedroom, shed or rented rehearsal space. The band had to get creative when covid numbers got high, switching to zoom recording sessions for weeks at a time. It wasn’t ideal, but they had to make it work like many other artists. The project began to feel almost like a modern-day Postal Service creation story with members recording parts independently and sending them back and forth online.
Going into a real studio was not an option for Daphne when they started the EP. Their drummer Caleb Kruse dove into audio production, investing in gear and software to track and produce the songs. The band worked very closely with Aaron Sternke to Mix and Master the pieces after each track was thoroughly followed with a rough first mix.
Daphne released their first three singles in 2021. Their song track, Restless, brought more emotion and a soft side in Truth or Dare. After that, Empty. Empty pushed creative boundaries for the group as they began experimenting with loops and electric beats, transitioning and crescendoing into their full Daphne sound. They began building momentum for their EP release. The band started establishing their presence on social media and reaching out to the local community to schedule shows and develop its network. Like most bands, this began with close friends and family. Their following has now grown to surpass the member’s close network, with fans coming in from worldwide.
By December 2021, Daphne had a fully mastered EP titled “Fingers Crossed”. The artwork was drawn by lead singer Luke Swenson and designed by his wife, Madison Swenson. From the time of writing this, three weeks have passed since release. The EP has received excellent feedback, with multiple tracks making it into the top 50 charts on submithub.com.
Everyone in Daphne has a full-time job. This project has been a pure passion project for the members. Getting together and creating is good for the soul. The group does not have ambitions to make a ton of money from music (although they would accept it). They want to share what they have poured their creative energy into with the world. “If a song that I wrote could actually mean something to someone, that’s all I could ever ask for” – Songwriter Luke Swenson.
So what’s next for the band Daphne? Live shows! The band can not wait to get their music out in front of people. The band’s energy is meant to be experienced in a live setting. Many members have performed in prior groups and cannot wait to experience the thrill and intimacy of sharing their craft with a live audience. Daphne has a few performances for 2022 and hopes to continue filling their calendar.
Musical creation will continue as the band already has ten new songs they are working on. Daphne hopes to follow up their EP with a single early in 2022 and eventually release a second EP. Plans for a music video are in place. Daphne will continue to create and produce new and exciting content this year!
