Category: Reviews

Phish Sci-fi Soldiers Through Halloween
Phish let it all hang out in the final night of their four-run night run in Las Vegas, which served as the final stop of their 2021 Fall Tour. The customary three-set performance featured a mix of old fashioned originals blended with a brand new gimmick of assuming a different band’s identity.

The first set opened with “Buried Alive” and only picked up from there. A highlight of the entire show was the mammoth “Ghost” played in the first set which seemed to contain about four to five distinctly different jams within. A first set “Wolfman’s Brother” also had a little extra meat on its bones as well. The first set later closed with an awkward-starting but ferociously-ending “David Bowie.”

For the musical costume set, Phish took the stage as Sci-Fi Soldier, a band “from the year 4680,” a number that had been thrown around by the band all weekend. Adorned in spacesuit-like costumes that each reflected a different color pattern ,the band “teleported” to the stage and proceeded to drop almost two hours of new intergalactic space rock that no one had ever heard before.

With the occasional nod to 2018’s costume of Kasvot Voxt, song titles included “The Ninth Cube” and the opening “Knuckle Bone Broth Avenue’ was accompanied by more in depth choreography from Trey Anastasio and Mike Gordon at the front of the stage. Another song called “The Howling” seems ripe to be paired with a “2001” at a show in the near future. Instead of the traditional Phishbill this year, a comic book detailing the four characters and their back story was handed out before the show, which contained all the song names for the set as well.

The band was hard pressed to follow up such a spectacle of a second set but began the third set with a powerful “Carini” that somehow made its way into the mellow, laid back “Lonely Trip.” “Soul Planet” got the MGM Grand Arena up and rocking but the emotional contrasts continued throughout the final set with a fairly mellow “Twist” and a “Drift While You’re Sleeping.” Finally, “Harry Hood” served as the encore, which was more than a proper song for the entire venue to let out some emotion in a big way for the final time in this epic four-night Vegas run.

Setlist via Phish.net

Set 1: Buried Alive, Roses Are Free > Ghost, Wolfman’s Brother, Kill Devil Falls > Free, David Bowie

Set 2: Knuckle Bone Broth Avenue^[1], Get More Down^[1], Egg in a Hole^[1], Thanksgiving^[1], Clear Your Mind^[1] > The 9th Cube^[1], The Inner Reaches of Outer^[1], Don’t Doubt Me^[1], The Unwinding^[1], Something Living Here^[1], The Howling^[1], I Am in Miami^[1]

Set 3: Carini > Lonely Trip, Soul Planet > Death Don’t Hurt Very Long > Twist, Drift While You’re Sleeping

Encore: Harry Hood
[1] Debut

For the second set, the band’s “musical costume” was all debuted originals, performed as the invented band Sci-Fi Soldier (a 14-page comic book distributed upon entry detailed the group’s adventure to save the planet). For that set, the band performed in elaborate costumes (helmets and all), with alternate instruments (Trey on a BCR Mockingbird), each playing within a flashing/glowing shape (two circles and two squares), after descending (in the form of holograms) from the ceiling in cylinders of colored light. Knuckle Bone Broth Avenue included extended choreography by Trey and Mike. During Get More Down, matching upright geometric shapes danced around behind the band, reducing to the two circles overlapped by Egg in a Hole, which featured pyrotechnics. Before Clear Your Mind, Trey introduced the band as from the year 4680 (the total of the October 28, 2021 songs as noted during that night’s encore-ending Grind). During The 9th Cube, there were projections of donuts and turtles on a cube above the band. Fireworks rained down on the stage during The Inner Reaches of Outer. For I Am in Miami, Trey switched to an acoustic guitar and the band stood together at stage front with the four-mic a cappella setup. After the set, the band departed as holograms back up the colored tubes. The start of Harry Hood included alternate lyrics (Holy Blankenstein). Soul Planet contained Knuckle Bone Broth Avenue and Don’t Doubt Me quotes.
November 4, 2021
Gojira brings Fortitude tour to Rochester in epic fashion
Grammy-nominated metal band Gojira brought their fall U.S. headlining tour to the Main Street Armory in Rochester. The tour featuring special guests Alien Weaponry and Knocked Loose is in support of the bands most recent album release Fortitude

Alien Weaponry, the first band of the evening is a three piece “Te Reo” metal band hailing from Waipu, New Zealand and formed in Auckland in 2010 consisting of brothers Henry and Lewis de Jong, as well as Turanga Morgan-Edmonds. With a dark stage and subtle green lighting, the band takes the stage as a steady drum beat blasts through the armory with a giant Alien Weaponry banner draped behind them. The trio waste no time getting into their first song “Titokowaru,” which immediately shows the bands thrash metal roots.

Alien Weaponry performs many of their songs in the Māori language, which helps separate them from the many other bands in the genre. Each song they perform feels like a breath of fresh air, and is foreshadowing of many great things to come for this band. While only having a 6 song set list, Alien Weaponry gave a fantastic opening performance, and fit very well on the bill with Gojira. The only thing that would of made this set better is if they simply had more time, and were not the openers in my opinion.

Knocked Loose, the second act on the bill which is American hardcore punk based out of Kentucky didn’t quite hit the nail like Alien Weaponry did. The band performed 10 songs in total, with each one of them seeming like the entire song was a breakdown. While I respect the band as musicians, it just didn’t seem to fit right with this lineup. Performing songs “Where Light Divides the Holler,” “Oblivion’s Peak,” “Guided by the Moon,” and “Mistakes Like Fractures” certainly had the mosh pit moving.

After Knocked Loose finished their set, a drape covers the stage with symbols from Gojira’s Fortitude album while a blended mix of the song “Fortitude” plays subtle in the background. The anticipation alone with a countdown had the crowd already getting ready to be rocked by one of the best metal bands currently touring.

As the countdown hit 0, the band goes right into “Born For One Thing” and the drape drops sending the crowd into a frenzy. Unlike Gojira’s past US tours where they had little production, this tour set the bar high. With Co2 canisters, lasers, fog, and overhead strobes this was Gojira at their best. Some bands almost need the extra production to kind of help carry them, though with Gojira it’s more like icing on a cake. This was absolutely amazing and beautiful to witness with the pure power of their music, as well as the crowd singing along.

Going from Born for One Thing > Backbone > Stranded > Flying Whales was one of the best possible openings for a Gojira show. Each one of these songs are super popular among fans, and extremely heavy hitting. One highlight from their 16 song set were during “Flying Whales” when fans “release whales back into the wild” by launching inflatable whales into the crowd. Overall Gojia’s setlist was extremely well rounded, with roughly half the song being new material and the other half a good mix from their previous albums.

Closing out their set with L’enfant sauvage, the crowd screaming “Gojira” over and over almost demanding them come back, which they obviously do for an amazing 4 song encore. Starting the encore off with “Amazonia” off their latest album sent the crowd into a roar again. Leading then into “Toxic Garbage Island” followed by “The Chant” before finishing off with fan favorite “Vacuity” was the perfect choice of songs for an encore.

Gojira put on one of the best metal shows I have seen, and they show no signs of slowing down. Overall this tour is incredible and is definitely worth seeing if you have the opportunity to do so.

Setlist: Born for One thing > Backbone > Stranded > Flying Whales > The Cell > Love/Remembrance > Hold On > Grind > Silvera > Sphinx > Another World > L’enfant sauvage

Encore: Amazonia > Toxic Garbage Island > The Chant > Vacuity

Gojira
Alien Weaponry
Knocked Loose
November 3, 2021
Hearing Aide: “All Souls Day” by The Forms

Queens duo, The Forms, known for their experimental indie sound, have returned with another new single, the eerie-sounding, “All Souls Day,” an ode to the celebratory day of remembrance of the same name.

The band released their first two albums with legendary producer Steve Albini, who had previously worked with lighting rods like, Nirvana and PJ Harvey. “All Souls Day,” is the third release from The Forms this year after over a decade without any new music. Their last full-length, The Forms, was released in 2007.

“All Souls Day” centers on a hypnotizing riff played on a bass steel pan. The echoey and percussive instrument, as played masterfully by Matt Walsh, creates an ominous sound. It’s perfect for their psychedelic brand of indie rock, as the steel pan feels otherworldly like a synth yet as painfully human as a banjo. Vocalist, Alex Tweens’, high and whispery vocals balance the instrument with an alien quality. Tweens described the track as

a strange dark meditative soundscape of a quiet apocalypse.

The music video for the track, shot in a remote field in The Catskills, is eerie and sensory. Cattails brush up against the camera lens, and pollen disperses like gold flecks in the wind. When night falls and a thick mist settles over the set, you can almost feel the chill. The atmospheric video matches the track so perfectly the creeping plants even flutter in time with Tweens’ delicate tack piano.

As Tweens also pointed out, the track is a “wild mood swing” from their other recent releases. Their exultant comeback single, “Southern Ocean,” made apathy sound fun over a bouncy, summery beat. Their latest release “Head Underwater” leans hard into the coveted late 2000s indie-pop formula of classic 90s riffs plus synths. Tween described the track as

the most purely joyful song The Forms have ever done.

The fun, upbeat nature of both records is a far cry from the barren soundscape of “All Souls Day.” But, then again, summer is over and existentialism no longer feels like a beach game.

All Souls Day, celebrated annually on November 2nd, is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed, observed mainly by Roman Catholics and other Christian denominations.

On the song, Tweens sings of spending the day floating in a river:

Now I’ve come here/ In a state of mind/ One I’ll never forget.

The meditative lyrics over the ever-echoing steel pan transport you right to that floating, questioning state. The effect is sonically beautiful and emotionally resonant, letting you know that this will be an All Souls Day you won’t forget anytime soon.

November 2, 2021
Hearing Aide: ”Right Now” and “Psycho Summer” by Hunter Blair Ambrose

New-York based pop & alt R&B singer Hunter Blair Ambrose has shared two new singles ahead of her upcoming album Scorpio Season. After graduating from Boston’s Berklee College of Music in 2019, Ambrose released her debut EP, Scorpio Rising, in April 2020. Luxuriating in the melancholy approach of “cuffing season,” the latest singles “Right Now” and “Psycho Summer” fit the chilly moment perfectly.

Right Now

“Right Now,” released on October 22, 2021 is a true dance banger. The luxe percussion on “Right Now” may overpower another artist, but Ambrose’s powerful soul vocals anchor the music. Though at times the production on the vocals dims their shine, Ambrose’s raw vocal talent is clear. One can’t help but wonder how she’d sound on a less synthy track.

The lyrics find Ambrose looking for love; or maybe just a good time? Either way, she just wants to spend the present moment with her lover, no matter what tomorrow may look like. She sings: “Right now it’s just you and me/ No other place I’d rather be/ Maybe it’s not meant to be/ Hard to care with your hands on me.” Though the rhyme scheme begs for some variety, Ambrose’s emotion comes through. After all, sometimes love and lust take the words right out of your mouth.

Psycho Summer

Ambrose sounds uncannily like The-Fame-Monster-era Lady Gaga on “Psycho Summer,” the standout of the two tracks. Gaga is a clear inspiration to Ambrose; on her track “November,” she even repurposed the hummed hook from Gaga’s 2010 single “Alejandro.”

Released on October 29, 2021, “Psycho Summer” could be the next chapter in the heady, lustful love story of “Right Now.” Now that summer’s over and her lover has disappeared, Ambrose feels crazy; was the passion they shared even real? A sparer, more streamlined beat allows her voice to stand out, and the eerie production evokes the end of summer perfectly.

With mainstream pop music growing more experimental each day, it can be hard for a more traditional track to gain traction. However, Ambrose’s tracks paired together reflect an emotional candor in her work that draws you in. She’s no stranger to lust, and no stranger to loneliness; the duality bridges the songs perfectly. Listeners can only hope her upcoming album, slated for release on November 5, 2021 will further dive into bad romance; if anything, she’d make Gaga proud.

Listen to “Right Now” and “Psycho Summer” below.

November 2, 2021
Wavves Crashes Into Bowery Ballroom for One Wild Night

Wavves played a killer set for hardcore fans last week (Sunday October 24, 2021) at Bowery Ballroom with support from 95 Bulls and Harmless. A crowded venue moshed, screamed, and raged as each band increased the frenetic energy in the room.

Wavves at Bowery Ballroom, Photographed by David Reichmann

95 Bulls opened up the show with a selection of hard-hitting rock/metal bangers. Having formed during summer 2020 in lockdown, you would never have known the band was so new. The five band members all come from their own bands (Ashjesus, The Mystery Lights, Smock, Bipolar, and Jelly Kelly), so it’s no wonder that they were able to perform with such obvious chemisty. Their debut album is scheduled for release later this year. You can listen to their catalog here.

95 Bulls at Bowery Ballroom, Photographed by David Reichmann

Next up, Harmless brought a more soulful and mellow atmosphere to their performance. Between songs, the lead singer Nacho Cano helped return a few lost phones back to their owners, each time to big applause and laughter. The drummer drenched himself with his water bottle onstage to the pleased cheers of the crowd. Their latest single “Nacho’s” is available on streaming services now.

Harmless at Bowery Ballroom, Photographed by David Reichmann

Wavves took the stage to an already-wild audience, practically chomping at the bit to hear them begin their set. They wasted no time at all playing hit after hit from their catalog, including a few tracks from their newest album, “Hideaway.” In the middle of their set, lead singer Nathan Williams invited the crowd to open the center of the dance floor briefly to allow for a mosh pit. By the end of the night everyone including the band was wearing a thick sheen of sweat and a wide smile. You can listen to Wavves’ latest record here and follow their continuing North American tour here.

November 2, 2021
Jukebox The Ghost Celebrate HalloQueen at Brooklyn Steel
Jukebox The Ghost brought their HalloQueen special to Bushwick’s Brooklyn Steel on Saturday October 30, 2021 for the bands largest headlining show to date. The show featured a Halloween costume competition, musical standup comedy, a full Jukebox The Ghost set, as well as a full set of 14 Queen cover songs. Jukebox has been around since the college indie boom of the mid 2000s, but vocalist Ben Thornewill thanked the crowd multiple times for making it the bands biggest show of their career.

Jukebox The Ghost at Brooklyn Steel, 10/30/2021. Photo by BuscarPhoto

Opening the show was former SNL cast member Luke Null, who delivered a set of musical stand up comedy dressed as a French Mime, complete with Gene Simmons face paint. Strapped with an acoustic guitar, Null engaged with the crowd while singing and telling mildly inappropriate short stories. He made another appearance after Jukebox’s main set to officiate the costume competition. Members of the band’s crew handed out vouchers to the best dressed fans around the venue, allowing them on stage during the set break. Crowd reaction was the metric for the competition, who settled on the Jurassic Park themed Nedry and dinosaur costume as the winner.

Luke Null, officiating the costume competition. Photo by BuscarPhoto

Jukebox The Ghost took the stage again after the costume competition, all dressed as members of the band Queen. The HalloQueen celebration commenced, and would continue for a 14 song set of Queen cover songs, all performed superbly true to form. Thornewill fully embraced the role of Freddie Mercury, mimicking the body language and posture perfectly, and there was even an handkerchief hanging from the neck of Brian May’s guitar. The crowd fully embraced the moment, belting out a rendition of “Bohemian Rhapsody” which culminated in an epic balloon drop.

Jukebox The Ghost at Brooklyn Steel, 10/30/2021. Photo by BuscarPhoto

The show at Brooklyn Steel was the last on the tour for Jukebox The Ghost, who have no more dates scheduled at the moment. The band played their latest single “Cheers!” as well as one other new song, so be on the lookout for new music in the future.
November 2, 2021
Bad Religion, Alkaline Trio and War On Women at Hammerstein Ballroom
Legendary punk rockers Bad Religion stopped by the Hammerstein Ballroom Friday October 29, 2021 as part of their 40th Anniversary tour. The tour was originally scheduled for last year but was postponed due to Covid-19. The supporting acts include co-headliners Alkaline Trio and openers War On Women.

War On Women is a feminist harcore-punk band from Baltimore. After being inspired by the riot grrl bands that started in the nineties, Shawna Potter and Brooks Harlan formed War On Women in 2010. Their debut album was a six-song EP titled Improvised Weapons released in 2012. Their newest album Wonderful Hell was released last year on Bridge Nine Records. The bands current lineup includes Shawna Potter (lead vocals), Brooks Harlan (guitar), Jennifer Vito (guitar), Suzanne Werner (bass) and Dave Cavalier (drums).

Alkaline Trio has been described as pop punk, punk rock, emo and harcore punk. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Matt Skiba (vocals, guitar), Dan Andriano (vocals, bass) and Derek Grant (drums, vocals). They started their eighteen song set Friday night with “Private Eye” from their 2011 album From Here to Infirmary. The crowd was amped as the trio got into some even older songs like “We’ve Had Enough” and “Nose Over Tail.” They also did a few songs from their newest album Is This Thing Cursed? released in 2018. The set ended with “Radio” from their second album Maybe I’ll Catch Fire released in 2000. The crowd was now well primed for the anticipated headliners.

Bad Religion came out and played a 22 song set that spanned their entire 40 year career from their first LP How Could Hell Be Any Worse? all the way to their latest album Age of Unreason. They started with “New Dark Ages” but quickly got into older classics like “Modern Man” and “Recipe For Hate”. As soon as they started playing I felt like it was twenty years ago and I was back at Roseland Ballroom. They sound exactly the same as did then and the mosh pit was just as rough as I remember it. You can definitely feel more energy during certain songs, especially the older ones like “I Want To Conquer The World,” and “Better Off Dead” which was the first time they played it live. I was very excited to finally see BR post covid and they did not disappoint. The band is the same, Greg Graffin (lead vocals), Jay Bentley (bass), Brian Baker (guitar), Mike Dimkich (guitar), and Jamie Miller (drums). This tour ends on November 27th in Hollywood, CA. You can see the rest of the dates here.

War On Women Setlist: YDTMHTL, Divisive Shit, White Lies, Lone Wolves, Big Words, Aqua Tofana, Predator In Chief, Silence Is the Gift, The Ash Is Not the End

Alkaline Trio Setlist: Private Eye, We’ve Had Enough, Blackbird, Is This Thing Cursed?, I Wanna Be Warhol, Nose Over Tail, Every Thug Needs A Lady, Cringe, Clavicle, Armageddon, Mercy Me, Emma, In Vein, Continental, Warbrain, Fine, This Could Be Love, Radio

Bad Religion Setlist: New Dark Ages, Modern Man, Recipe For Hate, Los Angeles Is Burning, Fuck You, Chaos From Within, Epiphany, I Want To Conquer The World, 21st Century (Digital Boy), Damned To Be Free, Man With A Mission, Murder, Better Off Dead, Candidate, Do What You Want, No Control, Generator, You, Infected, Sorrow, American Jesus Encore: We’re Only Gonna Die
November 1, 2021
Yves Tumor Plays Two Sold-Out Shows At Webster Hall
Yves Tumor and It’s Band performed in New York City this past week for two sold-out shows at Webster Hall. Fresh off the heels of a new EP, The Asymptotical World, the band brought along 4 openers for both shows, presenting musical styles ranging from industrial techno to future pop. Opening artists included the enigmatic future-pop star ECCO2K, industrial and deep house duos Deli Girls and Club Eat and experimental electronic artist, No Bra.

Yves Tumor at Webster Hall, 10/28/2021. Photo by BuscarPhoto

Yves Tumor debuted in 2015 with the highly experimental and self-released album, When Man Fails You. The record is a kaleidoscopic journey through different passages of distorted, ambient electronics and bits of futuristic pop. The sophomore release, Serpent Music, saw Yves Tumor starting to mix in soul and Motown elements into the distorted haze of electronic elements. This style became a launching point for the band’s two major label releases on Warp Records: the breakthrough, Safe In The Hands of Love, in 2018 followed by, Heaven To A Tortured Mind in 2020.

Yves Tumor at Webster Hall, 10/28/2021. Photo by BuscarPhoto

Apart from the varying musical styles, The setup for the performance was also one-of-a-kind. The drummer and keyboardist were on very high elevated platforms in the back corners of the stage, situated right in line with the house lights in the rafters, creating interesting shadowy silhouettes that stood out within the light. Yves Tumor, along with guitarist Chris Greatti graced the front of the stage, as their energy and engagement with the fans remain unmatched. Venue personnel also added several platforms within the security pit, allowing Tumor and Greatti to maneuver in and out of the crowd, since Tumor spent a portion of each song singing along with the crowd, rather than singing to them from the stage. At one point, Greatti even made his way to the VIP balcony and played a guitar solo while hanging over the railing.

Yves Tumor at Webster Hall, 10/28/2021. Photo by BuscarPhoto

The setlist for both nights were similar, but featured essential tracks “Kerosene!” and “Dream Palette” from Heaven To A Tortured Mind, “Noid” and “Licking an Orchid” from Safe In The Hands Of Love, and “Jackie” and “Crushed Velvet” from the recent EP The Asymptotical World.

Yves Tumor at Webster Hall, 10/28/2021. Photo by BuscarPhoto

Yves Tumor will continue touring, with west coast dates scheduled throughout November and a European leg kicking off in February. This live show is not to be missed; with well written albums, intoxicating music and dedicated performers, as the band feeds off of the crowd’s energy.
October 31, 2021
Phish Travel Backwards Down the Number Line in Las Vegas Opener
Rolling into Las Vegas on a tour chock full of surprises and jaw-dropping jams, Phish took a stroll “Backwards Down the Number Line,” playing a series of numerical songs throughout the night.

Opening with “2001” (Strauss’ “Also Sprach Zarathustra”) for a spacy intro to the night, and the first such opening slot for “2001” since 1999, appropriately segued into Prince’s “1999.” Two songs in, both with numbers, might not give away the gag, but when “555” and “46 Days” followed, it became apparant to some what was unfolding on night one of Phish’s four night run.

An additional bustout of “Strawberry Letter 23” by Shuggie Otis followed, with “Twenty Years Later” wrapping up the set with an exclamation point. With setbreak upon the crowd, discussion revolved around “Seven Below” and “Character Zero” which ended up bookending the set – the songs in between were remarkable in their choice and execution.

Hendrix’s “If 6 Was 9” featured Trey Anastasio strapping on a Koa2 guitar, and as one Twitter user pointed out, detuned his guitar, in pure Hendrix style. If a spacy psychedelic bustout wasn’t enough, David Bowie’s “Five Years” followed, performed for only the second time, the first being performed in the same room, five years prior (almost to the day).

A jammed out “Two Versions of Me” fell into “NO2,” with its trippy dentist chair narration from Mike Gordon. A handful of “1” songs followed, with “Army of One,” “My Sweet One” and “First Tube,” followed by the expected and regular set closer, “Character Zero.”

To cap the set off, “Backwards Down the Number Line” was properly played, with Phish walking to stage right to sing a capella to sing “Grind,” but instead of adding up their age in days, they added up the song numbers, leading to the sum 4680. A mysterious tweet from Phish followed, leading fans to speculate what it means, if anything, leading into Sunday’s Halloween show, where speculation is both a trick and a treat.

Setlist via Phish.net

Phish – MGM Grand Garden Arena – Las Vegas, NV 10/28/21

Set 1: Also Sprach Zarathustra, 1999 > 555 > 46 Days, Strawberry Letter 23 > Twenty Years Later

Set 2: Seven Below > If 6 Was 9 > Five Years > Two Versions of Me->NO2, Army Of One, My Sweet One, First Tube > Character Zero

Encore: Backwards Down The Number Line, Grind
October 30, 2021
Dopapod Brings Heavy Jams and Energy to Buffalo
The room at Buffalo Iron Works filled in quickly and the energy was high for a mid-week stop for Dopapod on their 2021 Fall Tour. There was chatter and excitement from previous performances, with fans draped in the band’s merch and a general feeling that this tour felt special. The jams were unique, went harder, longer, with the Boston-bred jam-band utterly locked in. There’s been a sense of renewed energy in the jam scene after a long period of stagnation with many feeling like it’s a good time to be a jam fan.

After the intro music and the pink floyd-esque light show that have become standard to any Dopapod concert, the band walked on stage to a welcoming applause. Guitarist, Rob Compa, greeted the crowd, Keyboardist, Eli Winderman, commented on how beautiful the crowd looked, and bass player, Chuck Jones, sarcastically pointed out that “there were in fact people there.” After more amusing banter, the band kicked off the set with “Braindead.” Heads were banging, bodies were moving as fans sang along.

Aside from the pleasing aesthetics, the strobing lights are used to shift the mood as they went from dark to light, shifting to a more delicate records like “Mucho” and “Turnin’ Knobs,” as fans serenaded along. The emotion in the room could be summed up in a few images of everyone smiling. Some had their eyes closed, while others sang along with the band.

The concert ebbed and flowed, with each soaring high followed by another as the band followed with “Weird Charlie” into “Please Haalp”. The first set closed out with a sit in from Michelangelo Carubba, of Turkuaz. There was a smile on every band member’s face as Michelangelo provided a strong backbone to a rip-roaring “Freight Train.” As an older gentleman exclaimed “That was incredible! I really liked that a lot,” a seasoned younger veteran warned, “Just wait.”

A fat chunk of the second set was spent in one big jam over the other sandwiches of the show. The band flowed seamlessly from their dissonant, but catchy “Vol. 3 #86,” into “PLSS” and back and didn’t stop to let anyone pick their faces up off the floor.

It is worth noting that there were teases of “Kitty Chaser” by Aqueous, another legendary jam band that hails from Buffalo. Dopapod led the audience from the spark and zest of the moment into “Psycho Nature,” as the audience went from brooding to jazzy.

By this point, the audience had been going strong for a while, but the occasional exclamation of astonishment and amazement could be heard. The dynamic jam of “Psycho Nature” moved into an upbeat “8 Years Ended” which included “Wipeout” and “Johnny B. Good” teases. The sustained joy of this segment resulted in an uproar of cheers as the band returned to finished off “Psycho Nature”. After a short bit of banter, Dopapod cleanly finished the second set with the cerebral “Velcro” into fan favorite, “Nerds.”

Like any Dopapod show, the music featured varied sounds, rhythms and genres, as Eli spun beautiful tales from the piano or blasted the audience with sonic bliss from his synths and Rob twisted from a jazzy clean sound to a heavily distorted rock tone. Ever present at every Dopapod show is a respectful, fun-loving crowd that is even better to be around when the band plays with this kind of vigor.

Before signing off, the band came out for an encore and played their cover of Billy Eillish’s “Bad guy.” After ripping through the song, Eli commented on the audience and how great they had been. Hence, Buffalo was treated to ten more minutes of blistering beauty with “Bubble Brain.” The house lights came up and everyone was all smiles as they exited the venue.

Setlist – Dopapod – Buffalo Iron Works – Wednesday October 27, 2021

Set 1: Braindead, Mucho ->Turnin Knobs -> Mucho, Weird Charlie > Plaese Haalp, Freight Train*

Set 2: Vol. 3#86 -> PLSS^ -> Vol. 3 #86 > Psycho Nature -> 8 Years Ended% -> Psycho Nature, Velcro+ -> Nerds

Encore: Bad Guy=, Bubble Brain

*W/ Michelangelo Carubba from Turkuaz on drums

^contained teases of Kitty Chaser by Aqueous

%contained Wipeout and Johnny B Goode teases

+unfinished; contained 23 Forever teases

=Billie Eillish cover
October 29, 2021