Members of Canadian death metal heavyweights Tomb Mold continue to explore a very different side of their musical personalities with Daydream Plus, who have unveiled their latest single, More Time Alone, taken from their forthcoming debut album Second Last Day Of Summer, due for release on 10th July.
Daydream Plus
While Tomb Mold have built a reputation on crushing riffs and progressive death metal intensity, Daydream Plus occupy an entirely different sonic universe. The Toronto trio channel shimmering city pop, intricate math rock, jazz fusion and video game soundtrack nostalgia into a sound that feels tailor-made for long summer evenings and wistful memories.
New single More Time Alone perfectly captures that atmosphere. Built around bright melodies, intricate musicianship and a warm, laid-back groove, the track leans heavily into the band’s city pop influences. A standout saxophone performance from Joseph Shabason adds another layer of sophistication, elevating the song into a breezy yet emotionally resonant soundtrack for the fading days of summer.
Led by Tomb Mold guitarist Payson Power alongside bandmates Max Klebanoff and Kevin Sia, Daydream Plus began life in 2020 as a creative outlet far removed from the aggression of their main project. Across a pair of EP releases, the trio steadily refined a unique blend of melodic instrumental music, drawing influence from anime soundtracks, Japanese city pop, jazz, progressive rock and classic video game scores.
That evolution reaches its fullest expression on Second Last Day Of Summer. Recorded with engineer Darren McGill and mixed and mastered by renowned producer Arthur Rizk, the album expands the project’s colourful musical palette while maintaining the technical precision fans might expect from its creators. Rather than using virtuosity to overwhelm, however, Daydream Plus employ their impressive musicianship in service of melody, atmosphere and storytelling.
Power describes the album as a celebration of a very specific feeling: the freedom and possibility found on the second-to-last day of summer before reality inevitably returns. That bittersweet theme runs throughout the record’s twelve tracks, which flow together like chapters in an imagined world, complete with cinematic interludes that feel inspired by classic RPG cutscenes and retro gaming adventures.
The album also boasts an impressive cast of collaborators, including Steve Lamos of American Football, Joseph Shabason and Japanese jazz pianist Ryo Kishimoto, further enriching the record’s lush and detailed sonic landscape.
In keeping with the band’s deep love of gaming culture, Daydream Plus have also created an alternate chiptune version of the album titled Extended Forecast. Produced in collaboration with Batlab Electronics, the release will be available on a limited-edition NES-compatible cartridge, offering fans a fully playable retro gaming-inspired companion to the album.
With More Time Alone, Daydream Plus continue to prove that this is far more than a side project. It is a fully realised creative world of its own—one that trades death metal’s darkness for sun-soaked nostalgia, while retaining the ambition and attention to detail that has made its members such respected musicians.
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