Another Day Dawns

It might not ring true to say that Another Day Dawns is an overnight success, having formed the band about six years ago, but that's not wrong either.

After having played gigs throughout the area over the years, and opening for some big names such as Sammy Hagar, Trapt and Fuel, Another Day Dawns is about to take it to the next level when they hit the road later this summer.

The band, which includes frontman and lead vocalist Dakota McGeehan, 22; lead guitarist Tyler Ritter, 19; drummer Nick McGeehan (no relation to Dakota), 19; and the newest member, Livi Dillon, 18, bassist; has recently signed with the M7 Agency, a national booking agent.

The band will be touring the East Coast and as far west as Ohio this summer with Mother, a southern rock/hard rock band out of New York City.

And when they open for Fuel at Penn's Peak on Saturday, it will be by special request.

"Fuel's management requested us," says Dakota, "because we brought so many fans with us the last time."

The Lehighton-based band opened for Fuel in December 2015 at Penn's Peak and amassed an estimated 300 fans of their own, helping to pack the place.

Even as the opener, they nearly brought the house down when they kicked off their set with a tribute to rocker Scott Weiland, who had played the Peak just a week before he died on Dec. 3.

While the band hasn't exactly been hanging back over the past six years, the members are definitely stepping up their game.

"We didn't take it seriously," says Tyler of the first few years. At the tender age of 12, he was one of the founding members of the band, along with Nick and his brother, Matt McGeehan, who left the band after a short time.

Despite their young ages, talent won out and Another Day Dawns found themselves with plenty of work playing classic rock covers, but they knew if they were going to keep performing and be happy doing it, they would have to focus on playing their original music and get serious.

"We make good money for covers," says Nick, "but we'd rather play our originals."

They had "the talk" about a year ago, and they haven't looked back. In fact, it's not uncommon at gigs these days to hear their fans singing along with their songs.

"We have at least 150 to 200 fans coming out to a show," says Dakota. "It feels really cool."

While the band continues to build on its following, they still mix it up a bit.

"We'll do three sets, and a whole original set is in the middle," says Nick.

In January, the band released one of its original tunes, "Love She's After." Masterfully produced by David Ivory (Halestorm, Silvertide, the Roots) and released on Ivory's Flextone Records, "Love She's After" is a hard-driving mix of everything epic about rock 'n' roll, from Dakota's powerful whiskey vocals, to Tyler's blistering lead work, to Nick's pounding rhythms.

Tyler, Dakota and Nick have all contributed to the songwriting process. Livi, whose first official gig with the band will be the Fuel opener on Saturday, also writes music and lyrics, and recently graduated from a school for the performing arts in the Midwest, where she majored in songwriting.

Then July 15, the band opens for Puddle of Mudd at One Center Square in Easton.

Tickets for either show can be purchased from any of the band members or by stopping at RPM engine shop on Route 443 in Lehighton.

After that, the band will be touring until mid-August.

To keep up with the band and to see where they're playing locally, follow Another Day Dawns on Facebook.

To listen to "Love She's After" go to Spotify. The song is also available on iTunes.