During the day, The Coffee Stand in Boulder is a quaint coffee shop. Rustic wood panels, mismatched vintage furniture and plants make it the perfect place for a chill study session. However, once the sun sets, the serene shop morphs into something completely different.
The two-car garage located through the back doors of the shop is a destination for the punk lovers of Colorado. Warm mood lights are replaced with colorful LEDs and furniture is moved to the side, making room for a set of instruments and a makeshift dance floor.
Last Friday, the five members of When the Sun Explodes traveled to Boulder to play at The Coffee Stand. They opened for Moonpussy, alongside fellow bands Exhaler and Chairbomb.
When the Sun Explodes is a DU band that plays a form of shoegaze rock. With guitar creating a sort of hypotonic effect through reverb, special effects and distortions all mixing with the explosive beats of the drums contributing to their intense and loud soundscape. Ava Weiss, the band’s lead singer, brings the noise together with her dreamy vocals.
Saturday’s show was the band’s second performance of the fall quarter.
“I didn’t play as much music as I wanted to over the summer,” guitarist Aidan Donnellan said. “It will be cool to get back into it.”
The group has played countless sets in the past, none though have been located outside Denver.
“It’s exciting,” Weiss said. “Every time we step a little further out into the scene more people get to hear us.”
They opened the set with “Question Mark.” The heavy beats and loud thumps of the song put fans in a trance-like state. Powerless to the sound that guided their heads up and down.
I carved a hole just for you
I welcome you to crawl inside
A worm in an apple you see in my eye
I never thought the stars aligned
“It is about love in the romantic sense, but also about love in the friend sense,” Dylan Battersea, a guitarist and vocalist, said.
The overall volume of the band was enough to keep energy levels high, but Weiss took it one step further. Plunging herself into the crowd halfway through the set, creating a mosh pit with fans.
They finished with, “He Say, She Say.” The final chord was met with intense cheers from a breathless crowd.
You would think with the on-stage chemistry and overall effortlessness of the performance they’d been playing together for years, but the show was just drummer Jack Billeaud’s second with the band.
Prior, Billeaud was tasked to learn the entire set after the band’s former drummer went abroad. The daunting challenge was made easier with the help of his fellow bandmates. Through recordings, a set list and practices twice a week, it’s easy to see how Billeaud has been able to thrive.
“They’ve been really communicative and have given me what I need,” Billeaud said.
Playing outside Denver is a big first step for the band but it’s just the beginning.
“We want more shows, more songs, more things,” bassist Tim Crean said.
With an album on the way, new songs in the works and a number of shows lined up, When The Sun Explodes isn’t stopping anytime soon.
