Photos and review by: Jason Robey

CHARLOTTE, NC — New Jersey quintet Dogs In a Pile have cemented themselves as one of the top up-and-comers in the jam band scene over the past couple years. They proved that status to a packed room at the Visulite Theatre in Charlotte on Thursday, as excited fans filled the room well before show time for their first headlining show in the city in three years. Over the course of two and a half hours, they more than delivered for the audience, taking them on a genre-bending musical journey.

The group wasted no time getting into the meaty jams, opening with a fifteen-minute “Go Set” that gave just a taste of what was to come. Towing the lines of rock, jazz, funk, and whatever else crosses their minds, they tore through the original “Crazy” and a raucous cover of Ben Folds’ “Song for the Dumped,” before settling back into jam-land with extended, improvisation-heavy versions of “Today” and “Way to Be.” The band operated as one cohesive unit throughout the show, with each member getting their chance to showcase their individual skills while never feeling forced or even planned. The set closing “G Song” was the perfect illustration of the unspoken communication that allowed improvisation to move smoothly through impressively dynamic changes.

The band’s second set took them even deeper into the depths of psychedelia, warming up with a relatively short “Stevie Lew” before jumping into a monster run of fan-favorite “Craig and Pat” with a seamless transition into “Writing On the Wall” that altogether spanned over thirty minutes. A mesmerizing light show washed over the crowd through the changing moods, from dark and atonal to groove heavy, poppy and bouncy to subdued and introspective. After taking just a few seconds to breathe, they moved into another two-song behemoth, going even longer and musically deeper with “Thomas Duncan, Pt. 2” transitioning perfectly into “Four More Days.” 

It was easy to see throughout the show that the members of the band were enjoying themselves as much as those in the crowd, adding a level of connection between the stage and the floor. Guitarist Jimmy Law in particular with his animated facial expressions while playing. Dogs In a Pile entered the homestretch for the night with the poppy bounce of “6 Little Lies,” filling the room with a feeling of refreshing release, dialing up the intensity one final time, transitioning into a short snippet of “Bubble” to end the show. The band has a packed tour schedule through the next several months, check their website for upcoming dates and make sure to catch this group’s live show.