Concert Recap: Dr. Dog

The best thing about going to a live show is hearing a band play that one song you thought they picked just for you. Dr. Dog did just that for me several times at Headliners in Louisville, Ky. Their set list consisted of many great tunes from their discography, past and present, and it felt like they knew what songs I personally wanted to hear.

My friends and I were fortunate to purchase our tickets beforehand, as tickets sold out 30 minutes before the opening band even started (a surefire sign Dr. Dog is becoming quite popular). The opening band, Purling Hiss, was not the kind of band I was expecting to open for Dr. Dog. They were talented musicians, however, I was not impressed by the genre. The lyrics were poorly written and relied too much on heavy, shredding guitars in each of their songs. I was releived when they were done and people started setting up the stage for Dr. Dog, which was a pretty interesting setup.

The crew rolled out a stage setup that reminded me of a high school play: a bedroom wall with interesting posters, a fake Siberian tiger head, and a window with stars and a waning crescent moon in it. I loved the setup from the moment I saw it and the crowd began to get excited about what was soon to come. I knew then that it was going to be a great show. 

Dr. Dog started the show off with a fantastic song, "That Old Black Hole", from their new album, Be The Void. However, they only played new songs occasionally, going back to their older albums and pulling out great songs like, "The Breeze", "The Rabbit, The Bat & The Reindeer", "Shadow People", "From", and "I Only Wear Blue". While I wish they would have gone back a bit further and played songs like "Ain't It Strage" or "The World May Never Know", it was great to hear the songs they chose. They also picked great new songs such as, "These Days", "Heavy Lights", and "Do The Trick". However, my favorite song ("How Long Must I Wait") off of Be The Void was not played, leaving a small void in my concert experience.

Although they didn't play "How Long Must I Wait", I consider the show a great success and I left feeling very satisfied. Dr. Dog has such great songs to sing and dance to live that anyone who sees them live will have a great time. I met up with a friend of mine who had only heard their new album, however, he loved listening to all their songs and he danced along with me, enjoying their old tunes as much as me. So, next time you have a chance to see Dr. Dog live, take anyone who enjoys good live music and loves to dance--you will not be disappointed. They will be back in Louisville at Forecastle Music Festival in July!