Photos by Joe Janiak:
Though it was absolutely freezing in downtown Buffalo on Monday night, Dr.Dog came to the Ballroom and they brought some heat along with a nearly full house. The slow moving line getting in kept fans standing out in the sub-zero wind of the city streets for at least fifteen minutes, which was about all a person could bear. Once inside, people were finding happiness in the simplicity of warmth, and excitement began to set in.
From the front row screams of, “I love you, I love you, specifically!” and just plain piercing shrills were coming from the younger girls, who may have been a bit tipsy from their beer or two. The room was filled all the way to the back wall where the concert “veterans” were chilln’ with plenty of room to dance and nobody spilling beer on them.
The stage setup had a tripped-out retro feel, and a sign off to the side gave props to Mohawk Place, which they’ve played a couple times in the past and were clearly fond of.
If you don’t know Dr. Dog, they are a punky, indie-type rock band with great vocal harmonies, a sixties feel and wordy songs; wordy in a good way, as the lyrics are crafty and require some thought to figure out. Take, “That Old Black Hole,” the second song of the night and one filled with imagery –
“There’s an elephant in my head
And I tiptoe around it,”
or
“These are tears of joy cried the weeping willow”
Alongside the images the song points out contradictions of the human struggle, always striving to live the right way, and also understanding that we don’t really know what the right way is, we can only guess – “I got my eye on the prize, but it looks just like a mystery.” The chorus is about twenty percent of the overall lyrics rather than the opposite so it might take a dozen listens before you notice all of the great writing.
They started the night off with “Distant,” a song from B-Room, their newest album, released just a few months ago in October, and they played several more from that album evenly spaced throughout their hour and fifteen minute set and five song encore. What filled in the sandwich was a solid mix of songs reaching all the way back to their second album Easy Beat with, “Oh No” for the very last tune of the night and up through their newer albums with, “The Rabbit, The bat, and The Reindeer,” “Shadow People” and “Lonesome” to name a few.
All of the hearty souls that came out on a cold, cold January night in Buffalo were rewarded with a somewhat short but solid rock show by Dr. Dog and by far the best thing happening on a Monday night.
Band
Toby Leaman – vocals, bass, guitar
Scott McMicken – vocals, lead guitar, bass, piano, banjo, keyboards, Omnichord
Frank McElroy – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, Omnichord
Zach Miller – keyboards, piano, organ, guitar, banjo, backing vocals, accordion
Eric Slick – drums, percussion, backing vocals, guitar
Dimitri Manos – percussion, electronics, effects, guitar, Meatball Palace, bass, Omnichord, Optigan