WEBVTT 00:00:21.039 --> 00:00:23.839 Hey everybody, welcome back to Shecky's Jam Band, 00:00:23.980 --> 00:00:26.699 the show where we dive deep into the world of 00:00:26.699 --> 00:00:30.579 improvisation, groove, and mind -bending musicianship. 00:00:31.280 --> 00:00:34.340 I'm your host Shecky and today we're stepping 00:00:34.340 --> 00:00:37.299 into the world where math rock precision meets 00:00:37.299 --> 00:00:41.179 psychedelic funk mayhem. Yep, we're talking about 00:00:41.179 --> 00:00:46.979 Dopopod. Dopopod's story starts back in 2008 00:00:46.979 --> 00:00:51.049 at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. a 00:00:51.049 --> 00:00:53.630 place that's basically a breeding ground for 00:00:53.630 --> 00:00:57.609 musical prodigies. The founding lineup came together 00:00:57.609 --> 00:01:01.590 around shared love of genre -bending jams and 00:01:01.590 --> 00:01:05.870 unorthodox song structures. The original members 00:01:05.870 --> 00:01:11.769 Eli Winderman on keyboards and vocals, Rob Compa 00:01:11.769 --> 00:01:16.629 on guitar, Chuck Jones on bass, and Neil Fro 00:01:16.629 --> 00:01:21.950 Evans on drums crafted a sound that fused prog 00:01:21.950 --> 00:01:26.510 rock, funk, jazz, and electronic textures. If 00:01:26.510 --> 00:01:30.590 Frank Zappa and Fish had a love child who took 00:01:30.590 --> 00:01:35.209 physics classes on the side, that would be Dopopod. 00:01:36.709 --> 00:01:41.030 So, the name Dopopod. It's basically a palindrome. 00:01:41.530 --> 00:01:43.950 You can read it the same forwards and backwards, 00:01:44.329 --> 00:01:47.989 just like the word race car. And that symmetry 00:01:47.989 --> 00:01:51.489 actually reflects their music perfectly. It's 00:01:51.489 --> 00:01:54.909 balanced chaos. Complex but always centered. 00:01:55.549 --> 00:02:01.290 Some fans even say the name ties into the neurotransmitter 00:02:01.290 --> 00:02:04.730 dopamine. You know, that hit of pleasure your 00:02:04.730 --> 00:02:08.629 brain gets when you're deep in the groove. Whether 00:02:08.629 --> 00:02:11.150 it's true or not, the name feels right for the 00:02:11.150 --> 00:02:15.189 band whose music literally rewires your brain 00:02:15.319 --> 00:02:18.680 on the dance floor. If you're new to Dopopod, 00:02:19.300 --> 00:02:22.400 here's a starter kit. Songs that show off their 00:02:22.400 --> 00:02:25.280 range and personality. The first one you should 00:02:25.280 --> 00:02:29.500 check out is called Nerds. It's playful, frantic, 00:02:29.560 --> 00:02:33.360 and it's like Rush meets the meters in a sci 00:02:33.360 --> 00:02:37.500 -fi convention. Another one is Mucho, a bass 00:02:37.500 --> 00:02:41.219 heavy jam vehicle that absolutely slays live, 00:02:41.719 --> 00:02:45.560 hypnotic and evolving. Lastly, Definitely check 00:02:45.560 --> 00:02:50.199 out 8 Years Ended, a proggy cinematic journey 00:02:50.199 --> 00:02:53.139 that showcases their more experimental side. 00:02:53.740 --> 00:02:56.080 Each of these tracks reveals a different layer, 00:02:56.620 --> 00:03:00.419 from tight funk grooves to sprawling exploratory 00:03:00.419 --> 00:03:04.719 improvisations. Doppapod isn't just known for 00:03:04.719 --> 00:03:08.180 their music. They've got this quirky self -aware 00:03:08.180 --> 00:03:11.080 humor about everything they do. Every one of 00:03:11.080 --> 00:03:15.099 their studio album titles is also a a palindrome, 00:03:15.620 --> 00:03:19.900 just like the band name. Check it out. Red divider, 00:03:20.139 --> 00:03:24.120 drawn onward, never odd or even. The creativity 00:03:24.120 --> 00:03:28.120 never stops. They even took a hiatus in 2018, 00:03:28.699 --> 00:03:31.400 right at the height of their momentum, just to 00:03:31.400 --> 00:03:35.759 recharge. Most bands fear stepping away. Dopopod 00:03:35.759 --> 00:03:39.680 used it as a way to evolve. When they came back 00:03:39.680 --> 00:03:44.960 in 2021, They were tighter, more inspired, and 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:48.460 ready to blow minds again. Alright, let's talk 00:03:48.460 --> 00:03:52.360 jams because that's where Doppapod shines. Here's 00:03:52.360 --> 00:03:54.439 a few jams you should check out. One is called 00:03:54.439 --> 00:03:57.280 Trickery, which was live at the Capitol Theater 00:03:57.280 --> 00:04:01.759 in 2019. It starts out as a funk workout, morphs 00:04:01.759 --> 00:04:05.539 into a polyrhythmic space odyssey, then snaps 00:04:05.539 --> 00:04:09.280 back into groove without losing a beat. Eli's 00:04:09.280 --> 00:04:12.719 synth solos and this one really feels like he's 00:04:12.719 --> 00:04:16.439 dueling with a spaceship. Faba, which is spelled 00:04:16.439 --> 00:04:21.819 F -A -B -A, up in the Catskill Chill 2015, this 00:04:21.819 --> 00:04:25.339 one's pure DopaPod weirdness. Think jazz fusion 00:04:25.339 --> 00:04:29.120 meets interdimensional funk. The jam goes from 00:04:29.120 --> 00:04:32.939 clean guitar tones to wild effects laid in chaos. 00:04:34.100 --> 00:04:36.519 It's tight, then loose, then somehow tighter 00:04:36.519 --> 00:04:39.949 again. Mucho at the Renaissance Music Festival 00:04:39.949 --> 00:04:44.430 in 2022, if you want to hear what telepathic 00:04:44.430 --> 00:04:47.709 jamming sounds like, this is it. You can tell 00:04:47.709 --> 00:04:51.209 these guys listen as hard as they play. The transitions 00:04:51.209 --> 00:04:54.189 are seamless and the crowd energy feeds right 00:04:54.189 --> 00:04:57.069 back into the music. The last jam you should 00:04:57.069 --> 00:05:00.670 definitely look at or listen to is Fright Train 00:05:00.670 --> 00:05:05.290 Fills with Dynamite, their 2023 tour. This lives 00:05:05.290 --> 00:05:08.290 up to the name. It's an absolute freight train 00:05:08.290 --> 00:05:11.649 of sound, hard -hitting, dynamic, and cinematic. 00:05:12.649 --> 00:05:15.889 Dopopod jams aren't just about stretching a song. 00:05:16.670 --> 00:05:19.970 They're about sculpting sound in real time. There's 00:05:19.970 --> 00:05:23.970 structure inside the chaos. They use themes, 00:05:24.230 --> 00:05:27.470 callbacks, and motifs in ways that feel almost 00:05:27.470 --> 00:05:30.810 orchestral. What makes Dopopod so fascinating 00:05:30.810 --> 00:05:35.040 is that they think like a prog band but move 00:05:35.040 --> 00:05:39.040 like a funk band. Their musicianship is razor 00:05:39.040 --> 00:05:43.240 sharp, they never lose the fun. Whether it's 00:05:43.240 --> 00:05:46.540 a small club or a festival, they bring an intensity 00:05:46.540 --> 00:05:50.319 that feels both cerebral and primal. They've 00:05:50.319 --> 00:05:52.980 carved out their own lane in the jam scene. Not 00:05:52.980 --> 00:05:56.759 quite Fish, not quite Umphers McGee, not quite 00:05:56.759 --> 00:05:59.839 anyone else. They're Dopopod, and that's plenty. 00:06:00.959 --> 00:06:05.509 So there you have it, Dopopod. the palindromic 00:06:05.509 --> 00:06:09.209 masters of cosmic funk and controlled chaos. 00:06:10.149 --> 00:06:13.009 If you've never seen them live, make that your 00:06:13.009 --> 00:06:16.750 next musical pilgrimage. This has been Shecky's 00:06:16.750 --> 00:06:19.009 Jam Bands. Don't forget to subscribe, share, 00:06:19.110 --> 00:06:21.850 and tell your friends about the jams that bend 00:06:21.850 --> 00:06:25.069 space and time. Until next time, keep your ears 00:06:25.069 --> 00:06:28.329 open, your mind loose, and remember, music's 00:06:28.329 --> 00:06:30.290 better when it gets a little weird.