Written By: Cam Elkins
Photography By: PhatRob O’Brien
Spiritual guidance comes in all shapes and sizes. It doesn’t always have to be in the form of a pastor or a burning bush… It can come from anything – your brother, your sister, your dog… It can from the guy working at the coffee shop, or from the lunch lady in the cafeteria. Nature speaks to us and through us, constantly. The ability to listen is one of the greatest things in the world… An even greater ability is the ability to get others to listen.
If you’re reading this, I’m sure you can relate to that moment of being blasted by realization – of being smacked by the raw power of psychedelic truth. That is the spirit of nature knocking on the door, saying, “Wake up, sleepyhead!”
Sometimes this comes in the form of a good friend, other times this comes in the form of Papadosio.
Playing in the home turf of Essential Productions in Covington, Kentucky, Papadosio picked up right where they left off at Resonance with two magical nights at the Madison Theatre. Just like Resonance, Papadosio and Essential Productions totally overdelivered with this two day lineup they put together.
Funk You, from Augusta, Georgia, came out bursting with energy to start the weekend off. Next up was Cycles. A power trio like none other, Cycles is one of those groups that leaves you saying, “hoooollllly f*ckin shit!”, every single time. With Tucker McClung, the bass destroyer, Patrick Harvey on guitar (throwing down in his hometown of Covington), and Michael Wood on the drums, the dynamic between these guys is incredible. Through blending genres, live-looping, deep grooves, and screaming peaks, Cycles is a band that is way, way too awesome for their own good. Fans here were spoiled to get them as one of the openers on this bill.
Next up, the time everyone had been waiting for… Papadosio time. Papadosio is not playin’ around at all.
“Content Coma is a commentary on the phenomenon of our affinity to technology. Social Media keeps us apart and brings us together in ways we couldn’t have imagined…” – Papadosio
Content Coma spring tour is here, and I absolutely loved the way the guys came out and opened the set with “TV Song.”
“I don’t know,
What to do,
Everything,
Is blue.
I think that,
they just want,
my mind,
numb.
HAAAABIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTT!”
Furiously yelling, crying out, calling us out as a society for being addicted to screens… I love it. The magic of life is all around us, existing only in the “here and now”. How loud does Life have to scream for you to finally put away your phone and actually listen to the beauty around you?
Everyone was loving the energy Papadosio came out with and the Madison Theatre was in full-on rage mode. Papadosio fans dance like some of the coolest maniacs you’ll ever meet. It’s almost as if Papadosio activates some sort of archaic energy lying dormant inside us all. The child inside, dancing around the campfire, in the time before time, reminding us that that part of us has never really gone away.
Through connecting moments of ultra funky electronic dance grooves with roaring fires of progressive rock peaks, Papadosio wakes up every single cell in your body, and then they imbue you with straight up divine wisdom. Opening with “TV Song,” into “The Eyes Have Eyes,” and then into “Pool of Stars”… It was almost like we danced our asses off to the point where we lost track of time, and right at that moment, they take the vibe all the way up to ferocity, getting the energy BOILING…
… And it boils HOT…
Then suddenly…
The smoke clears, the dust settles, and the spotlight shines down. All that’s left is a heavenly beautiful ambience, filled only with lyrics of spiritual poetry – the most serene moment… (As Sam sings, “All the weightlessness is so surreal my mind is floating…”)
We danced the night way, celebrating life’s miraculousness, climbing through tiers of euphoria and surfing down sand dunes of being a complete spiritual badass. After the encore, Brether (featuring Sam and Billy Brouse of Papadosio) let it all drip down with some super awesome, bass-heavy experimental grooves. (Definitely be sure to check out Brether if you get the chance.)
The vibes going into Saturday were at their peak, and Papadosio was going to have to do something very special to top their performance from last night. With this perhaps being the last time we may see them until Resonance, I knew they were going to deliver a performance we’d never forget.
Following Near Earth Objects and Afterfunk, Papadosio came out to a room filled with the deepest blue lights, and got right down to business. I was immediately overtaken by Mike Healy on the drum kit (hollly shhhhh*t Mike plays some of the sickest drum beats I’ve ever heard.) They’ve got us all dancing, listening intently with our whole bodies, as Anthony starts to sing, “Change is everythingggg.”
Going from “Ear to Ear,” into “pHDeez,” then into “Fanfare for the Rain People,” the lights were mainly revolving around deep blues, and it was clear the band was doing something distinct with night two. From “Fanfare for the Rain People,” they went into one of my all-time favorite songs, “Puddles for Oceans.”
“Doooon’t limit,
Emoooooootions…
Trade pudddddddles,
For the oceannnn.”
They then played “Skipswitch,” then into “Snorkle.” The lights still shades of blue, this was shaping up to be the classic Papadosio set of Atlantean Royalty 2019.
Of course, after “Snorkle,” Papadosio busted out one of their fan-favorites, “We Are Water.” I can not even begin to describe the awe and excitement that was dancing around the room. Water vibes and all, the boiling energy from last night really hadn’t cooled down at all.
Then, after “Write Sing Play Mix,” the band basically opened up heavens’ gates with “Find Your Cloud.” Judging by the reactions, it was obvious that “Find Your Cloud” is more than just a song to Papadosio fans.
To me, Papadosio is unlike anything else I’ve ever seen before. Never trying to be anything that they’re not, they do what they do perfectly. A lot of music out there seems to follow some sort of model. More than any other band that comes to mind, Papadosio is an absolutely unique and pure expression of creativity.
Papadosio is a musical bridge. Actually, more like a ladder. Nature itself, taking us all on this incredible experience through these five guys’ instruments. Tapped into the soul of the world- bringing fans all through something so deeply profound and intensely intimate that, honestly, it really can’t be put into words. Papadosio has taken what is thought of as a “concert”, and has transformed it into shamanic ceremony of spirit dancing.
The emotions felt this weekend were unlike any other. Combining insane dance beats with electronic pandemonium, sky-rocketing jams, and boundless breakthroughs, the Papadosio experience is one-of-a-kind. We are super excited for four nights back-to-back-to-back-to-back this year at Resonance Music and Arts Festival’s new venue – Cooper’s Lake.
Before I left Madison Theatre, I had to stop over at Madison Live to catch Anthony Thogmartin perform as Earthcry. SHEEEEESH! Earthcry is f*cking incredible. It’s like if Beyonce and Tipper were to have a baby, hire a genie as the nanny, and then give that baby a modular synth and spiritual wisdom – they’d end up with something probably pretty similar to Earthcry. Gettin’ down inside Madison Live to some “Transdimensional Camel Ride” was the perfect way to end the weekend.
Papadosio is nothing other than the heart of life screaming out- Earth crying out for us simply to realize. To realize who we truly are and to realize how special this thing called “life” is. We live in a world characterized by widespread technological addiction – A world where people are disconnected from themselves, dragged along by the proverbial “carrot on a stick” of external gratification. Their message is clear- all the magic and beauty of life- it’s not romanticized – it’s real, and it’s here – now. Like Papadosio says, “we are water.” Dancing around, inhabiting these fluid spiritual vessels… it’s really unbelievable that any of this was even created in the first place. Whatever is the source of creative energy… words can’t describe it, but its what what Papadosio is, its what I am, and its what you are…
See you at Resonance!
Night 1:
TV Song > The Eyes Have Eyes > Pool of Stars
Oracle Theme > Advocate of Change
Liminal Daybreak > Fuse >Now That You Know
Fire Rite >Anima Mundi > The Eyes have Eyes
Encore: New Love
Night 2:
Ear to Ear 2 > pH Deez
Fanfare for the Rain People > Puddles for Oceans
Skipswitch
Snorkle
We are Water > Write Sing Play Mix > Find Your Cloud
Encore: Drift > Improbability Blotter