Dogs in a Pile play at TACAW

Courtesy photo
Dogs in a Pile’s eclectic quintet delivers a funky blend of jazz, rock, and psychedelia. Through their modern sound, they also pay homage to past icons.
It all began in Asbury Park, New Jersey, in 2018 with high school friends — drummer Joey Babick, guitarist Jimmy Law, and bassist Sam Lucid — meeting guitarist Brian Murray and keyboardist Jeremy Kaplan at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Each brings a plethora of musical influences, including Phish, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Grateful Dead, Steely Dan, Frank Zappa, Disco Biscuits, and a host of EDM, classic, and indie rock bands, as well as bluegrass and folk.
“We’re kind of all over the place, which I think makes for an interesting band,” Lucid said. “We have the old soul in our music because a lot of our influences are older bands; but with that being said, I like to implement a modern flavor with hints of classic rock.”
“It really is dogs in a pile, with all of these different influences,” said publicist Kevin Negron. “It’s a true, improvisational art, so you never know what you’re going to get. It can be super electronica, heavy blues, or classic rock.”
They construct the setlist right before the show, based on the vibe of the town and the crowd, and they’ve been known to change it up during the break or even on stage.
When the band turns to improv, Lucid particularly likes to “encapsulate the Phil Lesh energy, where he’s just free-flowing, creating melodic lines on the bass,” he said. “In a jam band, I get to be melodic and have more freedom than if I were playing in another band.”
While the Dogs produced its first album on its own, they turned to veteran Nashville producer Chris Pappas to complete arrangements on songs for its second album, “Bloom.”
“He went for a very modern (sound), in-between a pop-y kind of vibe. He took a right-to-the-point approach, which is not what you’d expect from a typical jam band,” Lucid said. “It made a different kind of piece of art than our live shows where we jam.”
Lucid and Murray act as the chief songwriters, while the other “dogs” typically complete the songs musically. They’re constantly coming up with new music, debuting 22 songs on stage and online last year.
They’re currently working on a new album to be released this year. It blends the best of both of their last two albums: the first being self-produced with extended jams, the second being more heavily produced — and this one being more stripped down in terms of production.
“They’re going back to their roots,” Negron said. “I would expect jazzy, funky, and maybe more extended tracks.”
Last year, they spent time in playing along the Front Range and hitting ski towns, building a solid fan base, and selling out their last few shows at the Bluebird in Denver. They did the same in Los Angeles since it’s a strategy that seems to be working, Negron said.
“They’re definitely more in synch now than I’ve ever seen them. They practice, practice, practice so much, and it shows,” he said. “You can just tell they’re super connected to each other, (with) clean transitions (in jams), and they’re more mature lyrically with more space for their improvs.”
The band loves playing in Colorado, due to its “great music scene,” Lucid said.
“Colorado is one of the capitals of jam band and EDM music, so it’s been really good to us,” he said.
As far as what The Arts Campus at Willits audiences can expect, every Dogs’ show is unique, but the one constant revolves around the energy they put out.
“It’s going to be super-charged,” Negron said. “It’s going to be chaotic — but in the best possible way.”
What: Dogs in a Pile
When: 8 p.m. Jan. 29
Where: TACAW
Tickets: $25 for members; $30 in advance; $40 day of (standing room show for 21 and older)
More info: tacaw.org