Philadelphia based rock band Dr. Dog was at the Town Ballroom last week in the midst of a lengthy winter tour that will take them right through February and eventually into much warmer climes.
For now they are supplying the warmth, in the form of a tropical stage setting (a vibrantly colored flamingo backdrop, a few stage-side palms, and some multi-colored bungalow lights hanging from the ceiling) and an energetic rock exploration to get the blood going. Their set was somewhere in the range of two hours and in attendance was a room full of twenty-something, fired-up hipsters.
Dr. Dog should be seen live to be fully appreciated. They have an energetic stage presence that is contagious, they delve in instrumentally more so than on their albums, and impressively they trade off on instruments seamlessly. You look away for a second and the bass and guitar have traded hands or the guitar player is sitting at the keyboards and vise-versa. Plus, electric guitars are just better live and loud.
“Old Black Hole” the guitar heavy ripper for the second song kicked things into high gear, and “Heavy Light” was just as impressive yet slower paced and jammed out mid-set. All off the songs have thought provoking lyrics, so it is easy to stay involved even when the music slows. Also, this band is great at building layers and rhythms, breaking them down and then building them back up in waves.
A few more notables: Architecture in Helsinki’s, “Heart it Races,” which they do a great job with, also fan favorites, “Lonesome” and “Shadow People,” the later of which was the finale in a four song encore.
The opening verse of “Shadow People” was sung by a fan in the crowd, after lead guitarist, Scott McMicken heard him singing and handed off the mic. The kid actually did a great job and the crowd responded with an eruption, sending the energy through the roof for the last few minutes.
If you are not familiar with Dr. Dog, check out their new live release, Live at a Flamingo Hotel, get familiar and go see them next time…