Papadosio kicked off their final year of touring before an indefinite hiatus last weekend in Covington, Kentucky. The Friday and Saturday night shows marked their return to The Madison Theater for the first time since March 2019, and they were also the first shows since the band made their recent announcement that they would be done touring after 2025. The announcement promised that they would continue working in the studio and making music in the future, but indicated that live shows would be ending after this year.
Papadosio’s roots run deep through Ohio and the nearby Covington, Kentucky, having formed nearly two decades ago in Athens, Ohio. In total, Papadosio has played 14 concerts at The Madison Theater, and even more in the Cincinnati area.
Over the course of the two nights, the band delivered four sets of their signature jamtronic sound with a heavy emphasis on improvisation. The production they brought with them is not to be understated, either, with an impressively large screen taking up a large portion of the stage behind them. Throughout the evenings, artwork and images from their catalog of music were projected behind the five-piece as they took their fans through a journey into their continually growing catalog.
The setlists included tracks from eight of their nine studio albums, with Pattern Integrities being the only one without representation.
Friday night attendees arrived to the chill electronic music of Papadosio’s fellow Asheville resident Somatoast. As his music warmed up the crowd, the multiple tiers of the venue began filling up with fans. By the time Papadosio took the stage around 9:30, the crowd had gotten their drinks and found their dancing spots.
The set began with the title track of their first album, Magreenery, which was received with cheers of acceptance and eagerness. Using the song as a catalyst to lock in with one another, each band member began loosening up and tossing in their own flavor to the music, which eventually morphed into an extra-long version of Skipswitch.
Up next was a more recent song from their latest album, “To Live a Making.” Not Just a Word is a synth-heavy vocal track that carries a positive message that aligns with many of the band’s other lyrics. “Love's not just a word you know, water seeds and watch them grow, full of patience take it slow.”
A very moody jam during Fanfare for the Rain People challenged every other live version I’ve seen and mellowed the crowd out before bringing the energy back up and blasting off to Kicksville with a lengthy and energetic version of Curve to close out the first set.
The opening notes of We are Water began ringing out throughout the theater, and drummer Mike Healy, whose drums sat elevated in the center of the stage, took a moment to show off his abilities. As the music crashed and rocked through the venue like waves crashing around you, images of water were projected behind the band.
The second set continued along with Oracle Theme, Zoom Out, and Lion’s Mane, eventually culminating in a glitchy-sounding version of Bypass Default, which had the audience grooving and smiling ear to ear. Rather than finishing the song, they transitioned back into the final section of Magreenery that had yet to be played at the beginning of the first set. The crowd seemed pleased with the Magreenery sandwich they had just been served, and the evening came to a conclusion.
Friday, January 24
Set 1
Magreenery ][
Skipswitch XL ][
Not Just a Word XL >
Fanfare >
Curve
Set 2
We are Water XL ][
Oracle Theme XL >
Zoom Out XL
Lion’s Mane
Bypass Default ][
Magreenery
There were two notable differences between the crowds on Friday and Saturday night. Not only was the crowd size substantially larger the second night, but a large majority of the attendees arrived early enough to catch the opening act Mind at Large. The three-piece band is local to the Cincinnati area and made their debut on the Madison’s stage during their show.
Midway through their set, the crowd took advantage of a tuning break to break out into a chorus of Happy Birthday. Eli Matthews, Mind at Large’s guitarist, was celebrating his 30th birthday that day.
The crowd had been properly warmed up by the time Papadosio took the stage on Saturday. They began their set with an instrumental Psypoly jam that led into a beautifully bass-heavy version of Fly Agaric. Rob McConnel’s throbbing bass lines rattled the crowd and guided the music into new territories.
Out of Hiding came next with its dreamy melody combined with impactful lyrics, eventually climaxing in a psychedelic improvisation that had everyone cheering for more.
Right out of the gate, the band seemed more locked in with each other’s musicality compared to the night before. From the masterful looping and guitar shredding from Anthony Thogmartin to the commanding soundscapes brought out by the pianos and synths of brothers Billy and Sam Brouse, everything was aligning perfectly.
For the next song, the amorphous Snorkle culminated in its signature breakdown with rainbow lights and lasers flashing throughout the venue after nearly 10 minutes of musical development and escalation.
The End of the World, a euphoric sounding track that utilizes a vocoder for its lyrics, was up next, and while it was one of the shorter songs they performed over the weekend, it was still very well received.
The final song of the second set, The Bionic Man Meets His Past, is an instrumental track from their TETIOS album that notoriously crescendos into the audience collectively yelling “oh yeah!” in unison as the musical climax is reached.
The second set began with a heavy version of Write, Sing, Play, Mix, before transitioning into an all out dance party for New Love.
Versicolor gave the audience another moment to wind down as the improvised section was not as heavy and melodic, but more downtempo and reflective. Things quickly escalated again though, as the night pushed on.
A very bouncy version of Everyone is Cool came next, and each member of the band took their turn leading the music and showcasing their unique talents. After nearly 10 minutes, as the song began to wind down, they seamlessly transitioned the music into the opening notes of Method of Control. As images of burning money and symbols of world power flashed across the screen, the band delivered their final song of the night before thanking the crowd for an incredible 2 nights.
Saturday, January 25
Set 1
Psypoly >
Fly Agaric XL ][
Out of Hiding XL
Snorkle
End of the World
Bionic Man Meets His Past
Set 2
Write, Sing, Play, Mix >
New Love >
Versicolor ][
Everyone is Cool >