I’m speed-walking to the show in five-degree weather, muttering shit shit shit to myself as I check the time on my phone. I was already five minutes late for earth 2 tiffany’s opening set, having missed Aggie Miller’s set entirely, my train into the city delayed, the L train not running, and the bus behind schedule. The Holy Trinity of transit problems. 

I finally arrive at Elsewhere to find a staggering line of kids (well, young adults) mostly dressed to rave, huddled in the -15°F windchill. Definitely not the Daffo vibe I was expecting. After asking around, I realized the crowd was queueing for EsDeeKid, the British rapper that the internet suspects is actually Timothée Chalamet. I had passed up the entrance for Zone One, a nondescript doorway where three people were waiting to enter. 

As I entered Zone One, I was relieved to find a smaller crowd, reverently watching earth 2 tiffany as they performed on stage, standing alone as they strummed their guitar. They wore a crewneck sweater with the sleeves rolled up, skirt atop a pair of jeans. The intimate room was a sea of winter coats and scarves, blistering cold floating inside through the venue door cracked open. “This is my first tour,” the Toronto-native shared.

Daffo took the stage promptly at 8:30, frontperson Gabi Gamberg flanked by Matt Schuessler on bass, Wyatt Kirschner on guitar, and Nick Wilkerson on drums. For the New York City-based band, tonight’s performance was a homecoming show, and the final night of the current tour run. The room had grown in density, full of friends and fans alike, buzzing with excitement for the headlining band.

The four-piece kicked off the night with “Get a Life,” the opening track of their 2025 album Where the Earth Bends, before playing through a setlist of songs pulled from the September release and their 2023 EP Pest. A long-time listener of Daffo, it struck me as they played how perfectly simple their songs are. Naturalistic and evocative, Gamberg’s unassuming lyrics provide a fitting landscape for their earnest vocal tone. 

Halfway through the set, Gamberg introduced the next song by asking if anyone in the audience had seen the music video for “Quick Fix,” and provided the crowd with an update: Taylor Swift had just released a music video that ripped off their music video. “It’s all I’ve been thinking about for the past couple of days,” Gamberg joked. (Not having seen either music video, I decided to do my own research. I’ll let the screenshots below speak for themselves.)

View the earth 2 tiffany / Daffo gallery, shot by Victoria Conway, below: