“As recent high school graduates, Ivory Daze has the self-awareness to know that they have to work twice as hard to be taken seriously. When listening to their debut EP, Doing Just Great, well, you kind of have to.

The band issued its first release in 2021 with the aptly named A Mixed Bag EP, but it was more akin to a rapper’s mixtape than a fleshed-out project. Nearly two years later, Doing Just Great is the first statement of the band’s intent and sonic identity. Hanging over the EP’s six tracks is an unmistakable Puget Sound haze, and in 2023, ‘90s angst is as relevant — and as justified — as ever.

But like their grungy progenitors — particularly Cobain and Co. — Ivory Daze aren’t afraid to stretch into multiple veins of downcast alternative rock. “Violet” is tender, with Harms’s vocals that cascade in cathedral reverb and guitars that bloom like the best of Duster and Hum. Two songs later, “Parasite” drips in nu-metal nihilism with a downtuned riff nasty enough to make you make that stank face for three-and-a-half minutes. Lead single “Drowner” comes with a drop-D riff from heaven and Nelson’s innate grasp of groove (try not to nod your head to the chorus).

By next year, you will have heard of Ivory Daze, and its members will barely be of drinking age. The scary thing is — the band is only going to get better.”

Sam Crisler | Hear Nebraska FM