Dopapod has released their latest single, “November,” a brooding prog-rock number that builds to a heavy finish. The release follows days of speculation following the band posting the single artwork with only the caption “11.11.” The video below shows the in-studio recording of the song, which includes a four-piece string section, at Mountain Star Studios in Black Hawk, CO.
“November” is available on all major streaming platforms and can be downloaded through Bandcamp via the “name your price” option. 100% of proceeds will go to Trees, Water & People, a non-profit organization that helps fight climate change by aiding communities to protect, conserve, and manage their natural resources.
Vocalist and guitarist Rob Compa dives into the story of the track:
“November is written from the point of view of a time traveler who arrives in November of our present day, and notices how much different the weather is from when he is from, and is creeped out and unsettled to discover how much the environment has devolved in the future.”
Vocalist and keyboardist Eli Winderman added:
“We felt it was fitting to release the song on the palindromic date of 11.11 and to use it as a vehicle to make a positive impact. Planting trees is one of the easiest and most effective ways we can help fight climate change. ‘Trees, Water & People’ is a non-profit company that will be planting trees in North and South America, among many other services. They also run the Positive Legacy program on Jam Cruise. Every dollar will equal one tree planted, so we hope the song not only entertains our fans but also helps our planet overcome this serious challenge we face.”
Dopapod’s Emit Time Tour continues this month in Philadelphia at Theatre of Living Arts and rolls into the new year with dates on the west coast. See below for a full list of the band’s upcoming tour dates. For more information and to buy “November” head to the Dopapod website.
Dopapod tour dates
11/23 – Philadelphia, PA – TLA 12/06 – Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge 12/07 – Covington, KY – Madison Theater 12/13 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club 12/14 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club 12/27 – Asheville, NC – Salvage Station 12/28 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse 1/17 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent 1/18 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom 1/24 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom 1/25 – Seattle, WA – Nectar Lounge
Following their return to the music festival circuit this summer, Dopapod has announced additional dates on the Emit Time Tour, which kicked off in Denver at the Ogden Theatre, October 4-5.
The tour picks up in Philadelphia just before Thanksgiving, then makes stops in the Midwest, Northeast and Southeast before heading to the West Coast. Dopapod is making the rounds late this fall, bringing with them impressive support acts, with Organ Freeman and Cycles joining already announced bands Ghost-Note, Jojo Mayer / NERVE, paris_monster, and DOMi & JD Beck.
Dopapod Emit Time Tour dates
Nov. 23 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of Living Arts* Dec. 6 – Chicago, IL -Bottom Lounge^ Dec. 7 – Covington, KY – Madison Theatre^ Dec. 13 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club# Dec. 14 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club# Dec. 27 – Asheville, NC – Salvage Station& Dec. 28 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse& Jan. 17 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent@ Jan. 18 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom@ Jan. 24 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom% Jan. 25 – Seattle, WA – Nectar Lounge%
* with Domi & JD Beck ^ with Paris_Monster % with JoJo Mayer/Nerve & with Ghost-Note @ with Organ Freeman % with Cycles
The Peach Music Fest returned to Montage Mountain in Scranton, PA for its eighth year over July 24-27, 2019 and from the buzz of the crowd it seems that this year was the best yet. Everywhere you turned there was good people and good music, all thanks to the incredibly stacked lineup the festival runners put together. The weather was nearly perfect, aside from a storm on Sunday night that cut some of the first Phil and Friends set short, but fans raged on and powered through it. All of the main stage sets were livestreamed by nugs.net, all of those streams can be found here.
Thursday was kicked off by Buffalo groove rockers Aqueous, playing the main Peach Stage for their first time and opening up the weekend with their upbeat tune “Random Company,” which set the mood for the rest of the weekend. The group played a set of all originals, omitting their usual cover placed somewhere in the set, and blew the tent off the Peach Stage with stellar versions of “Kitty Chaser (Explosions)” and “Skyway,” as well as some new tunes like “Going Nowhere” and “Be The Same.” Aqueous was followed by Billy Strings, a hot new act on the bluegrass scene that mixes a classic bluegrass sound with psychedelic rock and improvisation. Strings and Co. (Jarrod Walker, Billy Winning, and Royal Masat) kicked off the set with “Dust in a Baggie,” a tale of spending the next years of your life in prison for some dust in a baggie. The group performed extended versions of “All Fall Down” and “Meet Me at the Creek,” showing off a bit of their jamming chops to Peach’s jam friendly crowd, and were met with warm reception, creating a lot of new fans by the end of their set.
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong followed with their first set of the night, graduating from one main stage set last year to two sets this year, one of them being of the late night variety. During Pigeons’ first set, the group stuck with mostly old school tunes, aside from the recently debuted “Water,” played for the first time at their festival Domefest. The group brought Billy Strings out for a heated version of “Burning up my Time” and sandwiched an inverted “Psycho Killer” by the Talking Heads in the middle of another aquatic song, “Poseidon.” Between Pigeons’ two sets, the String Cheese Incident performed their first of the three sets of the weekend. The group performed an impressive set, featuring a 30-minute segment of “Shine” > “Sirens” that had a mini jam on the theme from The Office before transitioning fully into “Sirens,” as well as an extended version of “45th of November,” a song keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth wrote with Grateful Dead collaborator and Jerry Garcia songwriter Robert Hunter. A highlight was Herbie Hancock’s classic “Chameleon” sandwiched in the middle of a tale of mushrooms and mystery, “Miss Brown’s Teahouse.” For Pigeons’ second set, the group mixed old and new with segments such as “Somethin’ For Ya” > “Distant Times” surrounded by “Upfunk” > “Drums” > “Upfunk” and “Horizon.” A dance driven version of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” really got the crowd moving and during the set closing “Ocean Blows” the bliss was tangible in the air.
Friday was kicked off by Andy Franco & the U.N. on the Mushroom Stage, a much talked about set of the weekend and for good reason as the man himself was feeling good about his Peach set. Among his usual stage banter, he instructed the crowd to “skullf*ck the wave pool” as a seemingly inspirational message about grabbing hold of life. Joe Hertler & the Rainbow Seekers performed on the Live for Live Music Stage, bringing their upbeat tunes and positive outlook on life to Montage Mountain’s smallest stage. While Cory Wong funked up the water park, Upstate was on the Live for Live Music Stage, sharing their beautiful vocal harmonies and Americana tales with the patrons of Peach. Despite the 90+ degree weather, the three lead singers of the band, Allison Olender, Mary Kenney, and Melanie Glenn, rocked powerful jumpsuits that displayed their badassery both as people and on the mics. The group’s set was a mix of new and old, including “No Slack” off the group’s first record A Remedy.
Blues Traveler performed on the Peach Stage before moe., continuing the show set up of the groups’ co-headlining All Roads Runaround tour that’s happening right now. The group performed their usual hits “Run-Around” and “Hook,” while pulling out an interesting Radiohead cover, “Creep,” followed by “Accelerated Nation” (written about PA’s own I-81) and a version of “But Anyway,” before bringing out Chuck Garvey of moe. for a song. moe. opened their set strong with “Seat of my Pants,” a song that quite literally flies by the seat of its pants in how quickly it jumps from section to section and genre to genre. Following SOMP came “Sensory Deprivation Bank” with a no huddle segue into “Along for the Ride.” “Bearsong” came next, giving the moe.rons in the crowd flashbacks to the Saranac bears flying through the air during this song at past Saranac Brewery runs. “Bearsong” drop segued into “LL3,” a recently penned Rob Derhak tune about the train he’d take to his chemotherapy treatments. Later on in the set, the group performed an emotionally hefty “Kyle’s Song” > “Silver Sun” segment that was the highlight of the set jam-wise. Both songs took time to breathe, especially “Silver Sun” which always lends itself to notable jams.
Over on the Mushroom Stage, Dopapod returned to Peach for their third show since ending their hiatus this past April. The group has played Peach Fest numerous times over the years, including a special Dopapod Orchestra performance in 2017 that featured the Turkuaz horns and Kung Fu’s Adrian Tramontano on percussion. Highlights of their set include a water park-shaking rendition of “Freight Train,” the debut of bassist Chuck Jones’ party anthem “23 Forever,” which had to be restarted due to some sound issues, a segment of “Turnin’ Knobs” > “8 Years Ended” that took the crowd on an interesting journey, and a set ending “FABA” that was the ending note for the group’s sunset performance. BIG Something took the Mushroom Stage next, opening their set with the appropriate “Waves,” and playing a few other water-related tunes throughout the set, including the funky, electronic “Megalodon” and “The Flood.” Following a hefty “Song For Us” > “Tumbleweed,” the group debuted a new tune called “Dangerous” which was a heavy, riff and synth driven ride. Towards the end of the set, the band brought Andy Frasco out to conduct them in a version of their tune “My Volcano” that ended up being the longest jam of the set.
Over on the Peach Stage, the String Cheese Incident performed a full two-set show with the second set being the highlight of the night for most fans. During the group’s first set, they brought out the Infamous Stringdusters’ Andy Hall on dobro for “My One and Only” and “Lonesome Fiddle Blues,” and guitarist Scott Sharrard of the Gregg Allman Band for “Outside and Inside” > “Southbound,” with both sit-ins blowing the crowd out of their seats. The second set didn’t feature any sit-ins, but “Song in my Head” > “Beautiful” and “Let’s Go Outside” > “Land’s End” > “Glory Chords” > “Southbound” were both segments that left fans with their jaws on the floor. Closing out the Peach Stage was Lotus in the late night slot. Lotus got a two hour set and kept the crowd moving in the night with their groovy tunes and dance-focused improv. Highlights of the set included “Wooly Mammoth,” “MacGuffin” featuring Eli Winderman of Dopapod and Octave Cat, “Bellwether” > “Spaghetti” > “Bellwether,” and the set closing “Umbilical Moonrise.” Of all the late night sets, Lotus was one of the most fun and people bounced between the pavilion and the Live for Live Music Stage where the Magic Beans were playing their late night. The Beans threw a real party, playing to a decently sized crowd, most likely gained after their two-set late night party last year. The entire set was pretty good, with the highlights being a cover of Sturgill Simpson’s “Long White Line” and a set closing “Mission” > “Here On Out.”
Star Kitchen kicked off Saturday on the Peach Stage, bringing out guitarist Jeremy Schon of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong to make the set extra funky. This was the group’s first time playing the Peach Music Festival and they were well received by the crowd as their funk stylings got everyone up and moving for the start of the day. Over on the Mushroom Stage, Ghost Light returned to the Peach for their second year, as guitarist Raina Mullen celebrated her 26th birthday. The group opened the set with Mullen’s own anthem “Diamond Eyes,” before masterfully working their way into “Streets of Brooklyn” and “Synth Driver.” The highlight of the set was the closing segment of “Old Fashioned” > Radiohead’s “Black Star” > “Simple Gift Of Man” > the ending of “Best Kept Secret,” in which guitarist Tom Hamilton took the lead and broke into his signature effects-driven guitar scratching. Lettuce took the Peach Stage for a mid afternoon set, opening with the jazzy “Larimar” before jumping into the soulful “Krewe.” The whole pavilion was up and moving for the entire set, as the beats coming from bassist Jesus Coomes and drummer Adam Deitch were too good not to dance to. The set also featured an especially stellar version of “Phyllis,” a hip hop-infused cover of Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule The World,” and a tight rendition of “Purple Cabbage.”
Goose debuted at the festival on the Live for Live Music Stage, having been heavily requested by fans during the festival’s survey after last year. The band had a lot of hype following their name the entire weekend, with many attendees sporting Goose merch and moustaches. Goose opened the set with “Madhuvan” and took it off to the races, before playing two recently released singles “Time to Flee” and a slow version of “All I Need.” The set included the band’s versions of “Mississippi Half Step Uptown Toodeloo” by the Grateful Dead and “The Way It Is” by Bruce Hornsby. They closed the set with “Hot Tea” and had the whole L4LM Stage area packed to the brim, which is a rare thing to see at Peach. Greensky Bluegrass performed on the Peach Stage before the big act of the night, Trey Anastasio Band, paying tribute to the Allman Brothers with a cover of “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” as well as some standards including “Living Over,” “Leap Year,” and “Demons.”
Trey Anastasio Band took the stage for a full two sets of music following Greensky, pulling from all aspects of Trey’s musical career as TAB sets usually do. The group opened with “Set Your Soul Free,” part of a suite of songs that have to do with the guitarist’s “Soul Planet” concept. Following SYSF came some Trey classics, “Alive Again,” “Cayman Review” and “Money, Love and Change.” The group also played numerous Phish songs that have been part of the TAB repertoire for a while, including “Gotta Jibboo,” “Sand,” and “First Tube,” which were all jammed out in their usual fashion. Second set highlights include “Mozambique,” “Rise/Come Together,” and “A Life Beyond a Dream.”
During Trey’s second set, Chicago progressive rock band Mungion took the Live for Live Music Stage for their second ever Peach set, gathering a pretty good sized crowd for playing at the same time as Trey. The group opened their set with the always odd “Myrtle,” letting the song breathe and expand as they explored the jam section. Mungion brought a handful of new tunes with them including a new character, “Fludias Wozalenbill,” as well as “Better Half” and “Hideaway,” where they brought out Dopapod guitarist Rob Compa for the tune which led to he and guitarist Justin Reckamp having a prodigious guitar battle. The group closed the set with the anthemic and jazzy “Beneath the Shallows,” a fan-favorite composition from the group’s first record Scary Blankets.
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead closed out the night on the Peach Stage, featuring two drummers that weren’t Joe Russo, as the namesake of the band had just had a baby with his wife a few days prior. (Congrats Joe!) In his place were his drum tech, 19 year old Evan Roque, and Ben Porowsky, who is in BOYFRIENDS with Russo. The pair did an impressive job taking on Russo’s difficult role while also paying homage to the Dead’s two drummer setup. The setlist was filled to the brim with Dead classics, opening with the disco-infused “Shakedown Street,” before taking the crowd out west for a rowdy “Me and My Uncle” and “Eyes of the World.” Guitarist Tom Hamilton led the group in an emotional take on “Althea” before breaking into the madness of “Drums” > “The Other One” > “Viola Lee Blues,” which was the highlight of the set. JRAD closed out the show with an “I Know You Rider,” sans “China Cat,” and encored with the classic singalong “Not Fade Away.”
Sunday’s music mainly took place on the Peach Stage, with a lineup of heavy hitters of both veteran and new acts. The inaugural Guitar Pull set was among the many highlights of the day, bringing together some of the jam scene’s favorite guitar players together for a set of mind blowing guitar mashups. From a relaxed version of the Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood” led by Steve Kimock and joined by Rob Compa, to Umphrey’s McGee’s “Booth Love” led by Jake Cinninger and joined by Brandon “Taz” Niederauer, to Stanley Jordan leading an inspiring cover of Hendrix’s “Red House,” this set satisfied the guitar nerds in the audience with matchups they could never dream of. Marcus King Band followed the Guitar Pull, bringing their new age blues sound fueled by the guitar stylings of the 25 year old prodigy. King’s set was soulful, performing songs straight from his heart including emotional versions of “Goodbye Carolina” and “8 a.m.” off of the group’s recent release Carolina Confessions, as well as songs showcasing the group’s signature gritty blues, including “Fraudulent Waffle,” “Plant Your Corn Early,” and “What’s Right.”
Following King came a duo acoustic set from music legends Warren Haynes and Grace Potter. The set was comprised of mostly covers, aside from a few originals by each artist, including Haynes’ “Is It Me or You” and Gov’t Mule’s “Captured” and Potter’s “Stars” and “Shout it Out,” a new song performed for the first time at this duo set. Surrounding the duo’s original music included Fleetwood Mac’s “Gold Dust Woman,” Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released,” Etta James’ “I’d Rather Go Blind,” and Joan Baez’s “Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You,” all performed with the entirety of each artist’s heart and soul fully invested into the music. Phil Lesh & Friends closed out the main stage with two sets, the roster included Elliot Peck on vocals, Holly Bowling on keys, Warren Haynes, John Scofield, and Grahame Lesh on guitar, and John Molo on drums. The sets featured many classic Grateful Dead songs and a handful of covers led by various members of the band, including a Lesh-led “Broken Arrow,” and “Sunshine of Your Love” and “All Along the Watchtower” led by Haynes. The group performed stellar versions of Dead classics, especially “Bird Song,” “St. Stephen” and “Morning Dew.” The first set got cut slightly short due to inclement weather on the mountain, but the band and crowd powered through it and Grahame Lesh led the group in “Playing in the Band” to open the second set.
Check out the photo gallery below for a look into what the Peach Music Festival was like this year. This weekend was full of great music and rarely ever had a lull in things to do. Spirits were high and the weather was great until the yearly rain on Sunday night. Peach is an event not to miss, so make it a point to go next year! Check back with NYSMusic for future coverage of the Peach.
This upcoming weekend, from Thursday, June 6 to Sunday, June 9, the 9th annual Disc Jam Music Festival will once again take place at Gardner’s Farm in Stephentown, NY. The festival is a melting pot of art, music, and disc golf, cooking up relaxed vibes and nonstop good music until 3 in the morning every day. Disc Jam’s dual main stage setup makes catching the next set as easy as can be, only having to shift a couple feet left or right to move to the next stage.
Thursday’s music kicks off on the Tent Stage with Space Junk is Forever, a jazz fusion duo out of Boston, MA that recently formed and recorded their debut album. The Tent Stage has sets going on all day, every day for the whole weekend. Other notable bands on Thursday to check out are Eggy, Of Clocks and Clouds, and Circles Around the Sun’s late night set. On the dual main stages, Dopapod bassist Chuck Jones and drummer Neal Evans’ side project Mom and Dad kicks off the action on Main Stage A (Live For Live Music Stage), followed by Litz and two sets of Aqueous. Main Stage B (Grassroots Stage) features the Connecticut-based group One Time Weekend, Horizon Wireless, Dynohunter, and the musical lovechild of Primus and Nine Inch Nails, lespecial.
Friday’s music starts a little earlier, with Wurliday and Funk Dawgz Brass Band opening up the Main Stages B and A, respectively. Following Wurliday, old school prog rockers The Breakfast will be melting faces, before West End Blend feeds everyone’s souls with the sweet, soothing voice of Erica T. Bryan and the no nonsense funk band behind her. The live electronic band Sunsquabi brings their 3-piece grooves to Stage B, with Ripe closing the stage out with an hour and a half long set. Over on Stage A, The Elovaters follows the Funky Dawgz; the Boston-based group will be bringing laid back vibes to the fest with their reggae sound and fresh new tunes from their recent release Defy Gravity. lespecial plays their second set of the weekend after the Elovaters, followed by saxophone duo Moon Hooch, and closed out by the recently returned prog rockers Dopapod, for their second performance of the year. On the tent stage, performances to keep an eye on are Muscle Tough, Formula 5 for one of their last ever performances, Catullus, and Consider the Source.
Saturday’s lineup kicks off with Audiodacity on the Main Stage B, followed by Paris Monster and Sam Kinninger Band. Root Shock opens up the Main Stage A, followed by Tweed, with Kung Fu chopping up funk grooves for an hour and a half after that. The four big performances on Saturday are Ghost Light, Papadosio, John K’s West Philly Fadeaway, and Lotus ft. Jon “Barber” Gutwillig. Ghost Light is Philly legend Tom Hamilton’s new project, featuring keyboardist Holly Bowling, drummer Scotty Zwang, guitarist Raina Mullen, and recent addition, bassist Dan Africano. The band blends indie-esque songwriting with intricate, weaving setlists and gets deep into improv during their live shows. Papadosio is a jamtronica band from Asheville, NC that uses a lot of electronic aspects in their music. Their shows seem to put out a very strong vibe, through the combination of the music and lights, of just being present in the moment, and experiencing the music as it happens.
John K’s West Philly Fadeaway hasn’t happened before, so there’s not much that can be said about it, other than the fact that it’s the OG Disco Biscuits with John K playing Dead tunes, which should be incredible. Then, finally, closing out the main sets of the night, is Lotus w/ Barber. Fans didn’t and still don’t know what to expect when this was announced, but from what bassist Jesse Miller has said, expect songs where the guitar is relatively clean so they can experiment with the effects. It should also be noted that Barber has played a number of shows with drummer Mike Greenfield and has stated that he’s a fan of Greenfield’s technique and textures, so there’s already a musical bond formed with arguably the most important part of the music. The Tent Stage on Saturday is chock full of awesome bands, though you’re gonna want to check out Timbre Coup, returning to the stage for the second time this year, Strange Machines, Space Bacon, and Chachuba, as well as the Doom Flamingo and CIA & Friends late night sets which will presumably feature some of drummer Allen Aucoin’s Disco Biscuits counterparts.
Sunday is a little lighter than the two days preceding it, with music ending at 8 p.m. instead of 3 a.m. Boston’s Dewpoint opens up Main Stage A, followed by Cape Cod jams rockers The New Motif, and Snarky Puppy side project Ghost Note, featuring MonoNeon and Nate Werth. Closing out Stage A is Pink Talking Fish, a cover act blending Pink Floyd, Talking Heads, and Phish together, who also recently gained a new guitarist, Cal Kehoe. Over on Stage B, Eastbound Jesus will open up the stage, followed by Disco Biscuits drummer Allen Aucoin’s solo project Dr. Fameus. Closing the B Stage out is Star Kitchen, Disco Biscuit bassist Marc Brownstein’s new funk side project that features guitarist Danny Meyer. The Tent Stage lineup for Sunday is all heavy hitters, with Baltimore’s Band Of Tomorrow, Upstate NY’s Space Carnival for their first show back since the hiatus, Brooklyn’s Escaper, and the Capital Region’s hard rockers Wild Adriatic all prominently featured. It would be worth it to check all of those bands out.
For the attendees that purchased a VIP ticket, the VIP lounge will be hosting several special solo piano sets, including Ben Carrey of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Aron Magner of the Disco Biscuits, Jonathan Grusauskas of lespecial, and Ryan Dempsey of Twiddle. VIP ticket holders will also receive an exclusive merch package that includes pins, cups, prints and shirts, access to a complimentary craft beer garden, and access to a VIP camping area that includes bathrooms and showers.
For any FAQs or tickets, head over to the festival website. Check in with NYSMusic on Instagram durign the weekend for updates from the festival, and stay tuned next week for full coverage and a photo gallery from the weekend!
Some say that time is an illusion, a human construct, a shimmer in the otherwise bright light of life. The passage of time, however, is a certainty, leaving its trace strewn throughout the landscape and in between the years as they come and go. After a one-year hiatus, preceded by a decade of non-stop creativity, the jam scene powerhouse quartet Dopapod has set May 24 as the day to unveil to the world their interpretation of this concept, ironically immortalized via their latest album, Emit Time.
Dopapod has always had a knack for tricking time. Odd time signatures, overlapping melodic content, and live improvisation that extends the length of their songs beyond their studio counterparts mark the bulk of their compositions. Their palindromic album titles wink to the infinite nature of time and they’ve broken the rules in the past by performing intricate works in reverse. This new collection is a true emission of time, containing never-before-heard songs among others that have been in the live rotation for a few years. As many creative people will tell you, true artists must have the ability and see the necessity to keep pushing forward, to embrace the inevitability of growth and change. This band has taken strands of their DNA and weaved them into works that feel fresh. They are unfamiliar in their display yet familiar to the Dopapod formula of rock solid rhythms,
The album opens with a lone pulsating organ that bursts wide open into a deep-pocket funk beat with a chomping guitar riff. “Numbers Need Humans” is a testament to the “live in the moment” attitude that energizes so much of the progressive jam scene. As was proven with the first song in the second set at the band’s recent Capitol Theatre reunion gig, this track is a great opener, prepping listeners by reminding them, “Time is all we have / So let’s have a good time.” Placed before a tightly executed guitar solo, the lyrics operate as a thematic entrance for the topic at hand through the rest of the album. “Tick tock, hands move around the clock / On the dot, that’s when time stops.”
Following in the order of when it was released as a single, “Test of Time” comes second. This 7-minute, multi-section, progressive number is evidence that the layers time has piled onto this group are beginning to show signs of evolution. Guitarist Rob Compa leads the way, singing through a “gateway to another time.” Next to a familiar synth hook, sure to cue Eli’s signature head-bop, there is a rocking chorus and expressive singing, something that has made more and more of an appearance in Dopapod music on the last few albums and certainly on this one.
“23 Forever” gives bassist Chuck Jones a turn on lead vocals, bringing his sense of humor to a memorable and extremely catchy chorus. This song feels like the band is revisiting a funny memory and having a good laugh about it. Another new song, “Live In The Dream” offers a consistent mid-tempo groove that gets progressively aggressive leading up to its guitar solo crescendo. A descending vocal round, “..live in the dream, live in the dream, live in the dream,” leads the song down to a decisive close.
For the most part, this collection of songs is the most thematic that Dopapod has released as an album. As mentioned by Eli in the bands press release for Emit Time, “Interestingly, we had been developing a semi-concept album about time and time travel before the hiatus.” In combination with the feelings from that hiatus, a new album about time and time travel feels pretty appropriate.
Still leaving room for some road tested material, “Superbowl” and “Weedie” give the album a taste of the past. “Superbowl,” a song debuted in 2016, slows up the pace but is a well-crafted atmospheric blend of synthesizer, orchestral strings, and resounding guitar. From there, “Weedie” hits with a guitar-heavy rock riff. Again, the lyrical content refers to the mindful present-living ethos, “We have our ups and downs / But life is lived in the now.”
“Landmines” is another debut that starts to bring the album down on its two-song final descent. The bulk of this song is based on a down-tempo 16th note groove, accentuated by a tinge of spy-guitar reminiscent of something to be found in a classic James Bond film. The mid-section, however, creates a distinct change with a straightforward rock progression and brief organ solo. As it peaks, the main theme is called back as Rob plays passionately with a slide. The final track, “Whale (I Am),” is a beautifully executed landing that pairs a drifting and uncluttered tone with delicate keyboard lines and airy vocals.
Though the album seems short in length at 8 songs, it clocks in around 45 minutes in total. It does unload a powerful punch with its production and covers a lot of ground, but it still feels like there is room to tag on one or two more tracks. “Superbowl” begins to feel a tad drawn out at the end and the album’s finale might benefit from a more energetic closing jam. Dopapod fans are a hungry bunch and when you’re as creative as these guys, new songs are always welcomed.
Dopapod has executed their return well. They have managed to keep their fan base interested and committed for an entire year, without playing a single show, just by promising to come back. They made good on that promise, they have fresh material to present, and are keeping their appearances this summer to a unique minimum. The focus on ideas relating to time make this a relatable and inspiring listen. The band does a great job of exploring creative opportunities here, testing the potential of their inventive approach to music by applying it in new ways, taking them in new directions.
Key Tracks: “Numbers Need Humans,” “Live In The Dream” and “Weedie.”
This past Saturday, Dopapod returned from their hiatus at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY. Fans flocked from all over the country for the show, which should say something about how anticipated this day has been over the last year. The weather was perfect, spirits inside the Cap were high, and fans were ready to rage. Dopapod was nearly back.
The show started just as any Dopapod show starts: lighting designer, Luke Stratton, playing mysterious-sounding keys from the front of house to set the mood. As the lights came up and the band walked out onstage, the entire crowd erupted in applause. Keyboardist, Eli Winderman, sat down and got right into it, starting into the opening riff of the quintessential “Vol 3 #86,” which had the entire crowd freaking-out from the first note. Right off the bat, the band was very visibly happy to be back onstage playing this music together and they were absolutely locked in with each other. (Stream Matt Moricle’s recording below or download here)
After playing through the main composition of “Vol. 3 #86,” Winderman took the helm with his Moog and the band was off into uncharted territory. The jam in “Vol 3” was very patient and allowed for Winderman and guitarist, Rob Compa, to explore different melodic ideas before locking in on a driving, synth groove that led the group into a mini peak, before dropping back into the “Vol 3” ending, hard. Bassist, Chuck Jones, immediately started into the heavy intro riff of “Nuggy Jawson,” an instrumental that’s very riff-centric and progressive. Following “Nuggy Jawson” came “Mucho,” the mysterious funky jam that provides an optimistic outlook on life. The crowd was getting down and singing along to every word, including the chorus, which is completely in Spanish. Winderman led the group on his Moog. The jam was fairly short and the band sang the last round of lyrics before having some fun with the clapping part, as the song ended.
Compa finally broke the silence and addressed the crowd with a “Welcome back!,” before starting the opening notes of “French Bowling,” a jazzy tune that features a lot of intense melodic lines. “Bowling” would fit perfectly in a spy movie, the vibe is almost Pink Panther-esque in the way it slinks around and leaves the listener wondering where it’s going next. At this point in the show, the entire theater was grooving and cheering at nearly every section change.
The jam in “Bowling” was dark and mystifying, led by Compa with a remarkable solo weaving through each chord change expertly. The group crushed the dubby outro of the song and used the energy to transition into the heavy rocker, “Braindead.” It didn’t feature a jam, but “Braindead” allowed room to breathe, making for an experimental, but tight version of the song. The slower “My Elephant vs. Your Elephant,” was a testament to Winderman’s ability to draw the sweetest melodies out of his synth. The composed section was tight and led the band into a groovy, bouncy jam led by Winderman on his Moog and organ. The jam never reached a peak.
To close out the set, the band dusted off fan-favorite “Trapper Keeper,” with Jones introducing the song as such. “Trapper Keeper” was one of the highlights, featuring the most exploratory jam that tapped into the use of space and ambience to create a wonderfully mystical atmosphere. Towards the end of the jam, Compa took an absolutely beautiful slide solo that seemed to be him pouring out emotions built up over the hiatus. After a powerful ending, the band left the stage and the fans were speechless. In-house set-break entertainment was provided as Stratton projected the movie Shrek the Third onto the walls of the theater.
To kick off the second set, the group broke into their recently released “Numbers Need Humans,” a funkier tune that’s never been played live before. The song translated to the live setting easily and the band was obviously enjoying it. Following “Numbers” came “FABA,” which is arguably the group’s greatest song. The crowd was ecstatic from the opening melody. “FABA” was another one of the night’s highlights; it was absolutely perfect front to back and by the looks on the members’ faces, they thought so as well. The jam explored a bit different territory, with the band locking in on a funk groove before getting into this rising, atmospheric groove that built up perfectly into the crescendo of the jam.
Winderman wasted no time post-“FABA” and started right into “Onionhead,” which was an excellent follow up to the 17 minutes of goodness that preceded it. The intro was extended and stripped down, before the band dropped heavily into the recorded intro and started into the song’s driving, bass groove. Winderman led the jam on piano, working around the grooves that Jones and Evans were laying down. Before starting the next song, Jones addressed the crowd saying: “Luke gets paid way more to light this song,” as the band broke into “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” by the Smashing Pumpkins, who Stratton has been working for during the hiatus. Apparently the group tricked him by putting a Dopapod song in this spot on the setlist, so Stratton had to light the song on the fly.
Winderman started the opening of “Superbowl,” laying down heavy synth bass notes that literally shook the venue. The jam in “Superbowl” was sweet and succinct, not going far outside the realms of the song. The upbeat “Roid Rage” came next, a fusion-esque tune that quickly got into a jam, which featured an incredibly impressive metal section before Compa took the helm and soloed masterfully through the quick changes. Up next was “Plaese Haalp,” off of the group’s 2017 release Megagem, played uptempo which gave it a funkier feel. “Haalp” didn’t feature a jam section, but featured yet another impressive guitar solo from Compa. Evans started into the groove of “Cloud World.” The song’s jazzy sound served as a nice follow up to “Haalp”’s harder rock sound. The jam section in “Cloud World” was very spacey and had elements of reggae, before the band started rising the groove back into the ending of the song.
Winderman thanked the crowd and introduced his and Compa’s parents, telling the crowd that they decided to play a song they were going to save for the VIP set: “Never Odd or Even,” the secret track off of the 2014 album of the same name. This was the live debut of the song, and it was a very emotional moment for a lot of lifelong fans. There were some heavy emotions flowing out of this performance, and it was the most beautiful part of the show. To close out the second set, the group kicked off “Bubble Brain,” another fan favorite and one of the band’s best compositions. The jam section of “Bubble Brain” carried some of the emotion from the previous song “NOOE,” as Winderman led the charge with an emotional organ solo that was a shining example of why he’s one of the best organ users on the scene right now.
The band took a very quick encore break before returning to the stage, and Jones started introducing the members of the band, asking if “you wanna hear ‘Trapper Keeper’ again? Absolutely not! Shame on you!” Winderman opened with the synth notes of “Freight Train Filled With Dynamite,” a powerhouse of a song that sounds like a freight train barreling down the tracks. Freight Train’s jam section had an overall jamtronica sound, with collaborative electronic grooves. The band masterfully transitioned back into the head of the tune.
This show was incredible. Dopapod was locked in with one another, the jams were fresh and explored really interesting territory and the setlist was phenomenal front to back. Luke Stratton also put on one of the most astounding light shows the crowd had ever seen, seemingly never repeating a single move. It’s hard to put into words the emotions the band conveyed musically, but one thing is very clear: all four of them really enjoyed performing that show and are happy to be back.
Dopapod, April 27, 2019 – The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
Set 1: Vol. 3 #86 > Nuggy Jawson, Mucho, French Bowling (1) > Braindead, My Elephant vs. Your Elephant, Trapper Keeper
Set 2: Numbers Need Humans, FABA, Onionhead, Bullet With Butterfly Wings (2,3), Super Bowl, Roid Rage, Plaese Haalp, Cloud World, Never Odd Or Even (2) > Bubble Brain
This upcoming Saturday, April 27, Northeast rockers Dopapod are returning to the stage at the Capitol Theatre after a nearly 16 month hiatus. The show will be the band’s first at the prestigious theater, making their comeback that much more special. The following Sunday afternoon, a VIP storyteller set (including brunch) will take place at the Cap’s smaller venue, Garcia’s, which should make for an extremely special experience for the small group of fans that got tickets.
For those unfamiliar with the band, Dopapod is a progressive rock group that formed at Berklee College of Music in 2008 and started touring consistently in 2010. From 2010 to 2017, the band gained traction nationally by touring, performing at least 100 (usually more) shows a year. The group announced in September of 2017 that they’d be taking a year off to focus on themselves and relieve the stress pent up from 7 straight years of touring nonstop, which was thankfully understood by the fans.
2018 saw very little in the Dopapod realm; they put out a video for “Mucho,” Rob and Eli did a couple of “OG Dopapod” gigs with Turkuaz’ Mikey Carubba, and the members sat in with each other’s side projects from time to time. But, after a year of patiently waiting, fans got an announcement: Dopapod is coming back, and at the Capitol Theatre nonetheless! The return of Dopapod is finally here. That should get you up to speed!
The group has also announced a new album due out May 25 entitled Emit Time, which is a palindrome just like the band’s previous album titles. Two singles have already been released on all streaming platforms and YouTube, “Numbers Need Humans” and “Test of Time.” The album is said to contain material both old and new, some of it being left over from the sessions for the pre-hiatus release MEGAGEM. The band recorded 2 albums worth of material but ultimately decided against a double album since they were focusing on vinyl, saving half of the tracks for future use.
The comeback show this Saturday and VIP set on Sunday should be an amazing experience for everyone going. Dopapod is an extremely talented band that will hopefully continue playing music in the future. Check back with NYSMusic for coverage of both the show and the VIP set!
