The Moss — a freewheeling, fun-loving quartet based out of Salt Lake City, Utah — put their new EP, Insomnia, in the spotlight in their recent performance at The Atlantis, and the audience went wild for it.

Mind you, the audience was composed largely of young women who swooned over The Moss frontman Tyke James (vocals/guitar), a nature-loving vegetarian who loves to talk and dance. He is blond, muscular, and carefree, and he poured those qualities into a show full of hippie vibes at The Atlantis in DC on Nov. 29.

The Atlantis show was the first date on a fall tour for The Moss, and Tyke told the sold-out room that he just drove across the country solo from Big Sur, California, a place he truly loves, stopping along the way to seek out vegan Pad Thai or to admire a beautiful river on his route.

The four songs from the Insomnia EP, released last January, clearly have invigorated The Moss, which spread four songs from the album around their set. They opened with “The Place That Makes Me Happy,” a sunny upbeat tune with catchy rhythms, and closed with the title track, a pounding surf rock track worth the wait. And they added a one-song encore of “Dog Valley,” a 2020 single.

Watch the official music video for “The Place That Makes Me Happy” by The Moss on YouTube:

Prior to Insomnia, The Moss released two full-length albums: their 2019 debut record, Bryology, and 2021’s Kentucky Derby. From Bryology, The Moss presented only “Celebrate,” a song about being lonely that would fit well next to early songs by the Counting Crows. The Moss performed several more songs from horse-themed album Kentucky Derby, although the songs actually have little to do with equestrian matters. During “Secretariat,” performed early in the set, Tyke sang of longing and a gulf between himself and the object of his affection.

Toward the end of their set, The Moss covered “Harvest Moon” by Neil Young, a song that clearly affects them.

The Moss perform in Atlanta tonight and Nashville on Dec. 8, bringing their fall tour to a close. But The Moss already have plans to hit the road in the winter for a tour of West coast and Midwest USA cities. They are clearly blowing up in a big way right now, and the guys undoubtedly will return to DC to headline 9:30 Club in the near future. That show too will surely be packed with screaming female fans, elevating The Moss to rockstar status.

Here are some photos of The Moss performing at The Atlantis in DC on Nov. 29, 2023. All pictures by Mickey McCarter.