The Flock Gets Ready to FUNK Things Up at City Bisco

Are you ready to get funky?  Slap on your dancing shoes and head over to The Mann Center in Philadelphia on Saturday September 28^th to catch the Pigeons FUNK shit up at City Bisco!  The Flock will be electrifying the crowd at City Bisco with their animated stage performance as they share the night with Space Jesus, Pimps of Joytime, Lee Foss, Gigamesh, Emancipator and Shpongle.  Best of all, these performances will lead up to the main attraction as the headlining act and host, The Disco Biscuits, take the stage to throw down in their hometown!  Pigeons lead vocalist exclaims, “We are so excited and proud to be part of this year’s City Bisco lineup! We’ve been listening to tDB for years, and this is our first time sharing a bill, so we’re going to bring our A-game. We’re stoked!!”

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong is one of todays up and coming funk bands that draws inspiration from musicians such as Trey Anastasio of Phish, David Byrne of the Talking Heads, Garret Sayers of The Motet and Chad Sexton of 311.   The Pigeon’s music is eclectic, incorporating a variety of elements from different genres.  As a result, it cannot be easily categorized.  The band calls their music, “high-energy psychedelic funk” and claim, “we always try to take the energy to the brink, to the point where you can see it in the air, and I think that translates a lot in our music and even more so in our live performance.”

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong recently signed with Hoplite Booking Agency, joining the ranks of bands such as Dopapod, Zach Deputy, Big Something, The Mantras, Jimkata, Spiritual Rez, Turkuaz and Turbine.  The Pigeons are currently working on their second studio album and gave the following update on their progress, “we’re finishing up in the studio and it’s sounding funktastic! Juggling extensive touring and studio time takes some finesse, but we’re getting it done and can not wait to get this one pressed and distributed to our friends and fans!!”  The band has toured vigorously throughout the year, hitting more than 40 cities and performing over 150 shows.  Pigeons formed with the hopes of someday opening for the likes of Lotus, Umphrey’s McGee, The Disco Biscuits,Galactic, Reggie Watts, and, of course, Phish-but as we all know, Phish doesn’t have openers.  This Saturday, however, we will get to witness Pigeons experience one of their musical aspirations as they open for the Biscuits live in Philadelphia!

Some believe that it was pure fate that brought the band together, as the band members all met while they were attending college at the University of Maryland.  The band consists of Greg Ormont on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Jeremy Schon on lead guitar and backup vocals, Ben Carrey on bass and backup vocals, and Dan Schwartz on the drums, samples and backup vocals.  When asked how they felt about the growth of the flock, which has now surpassed 7,000 funky fliers, Pigeons exclaimed, “Someone just got a Pigeons tattoo… how would you feel?”

I recently had a chance to chat with Pigeons Playing Ping Pong for The Music Vibes.  We talked about the summer tour, their upcoming plans and their excitement about playing at City Bisco:

Rebecca: What was your favorite state/venue that you played in during your summer tour?

Pigeons: Cosmic Campout at Quail Ridge Lake in Aldie, VA was beautiful in every way. The stage sat on a gorgeous lake, we had a headlining set, and the crowd was full of energy. Definitely a summer highlight!

R: Any particularly funny/crazy/inspirational stories from the summer tour that you would like to share?

P: Mud wrestling with our booking agent at Strange Creek Festival…

R: Any hints on what the theme will be for your Halloween show at the 8×10? 

What has been Pigeons favorite theme thus far?

P: (Hey, who said we’re playing at The 8×10 for Halloween?) There are a ton of awesome Halloween theme ideas floating around the van these days. Maybe we’ll just do them all…

All of the themed shows have been really fun and unique, but if we had to pick a favorite, our Beatles-themed Halloween show in 2012 definitely comes to mind. We rocked in Sgt. Peppers outfits, meshed Beatles songs in-and-out of our originals, and celebrated with our hometown crowd at The 8×10 in Baltimore… it was epic.

R: Any favorite costumes in particular? (Individual band members’ favorite costumes)

Greg: “The Wizard of Oz” costumes were awesome. I never get to wear my ruby red slippers anymore…

Ben: Lion.

Dan: Tin Man.

Jeremy: Lion. It gets around…

R: Can you tell us a little more about the band’s history/relationship with the 8×10?

P: The 8×10 is our home. The owners and staff are like family, the atmosphere is so fun and intimate, and we love playing our hometown shows there. We started out playing opening gigs on weekdays a few years ago, and eventually built a strong enough following to headline the last two New Year’s Eve and Halloween shows there. The 8×10 is a great spot for bands to develop their sound and fan base… it’s been a treat growing up as a band there.

R: What are your aspirations as a band?

P: JamCruise. Rest. Repeat.

R: So Greg, having attended several of your concerts outside of the 8×10, I couldn’t help but notice that your usual garb is pajama pants and a t-shirt.  Is there a particular reason you choose to play in this outfit?

G: Comfort above everything else!! Write that down.

R: What are your favorite songs to cover?

G: “Psycho Killer” by Talking Heads. Or “Ghostbusters.”

J: Probably “Down With Disease” by Phish.

D: “Chameleon” by Herbie Hancock.

B: “Four on Six” by Wes Montgomery.

R: How do you write the lyrics to your songs?  Do you work on the lyrics together, or does each member bring a different song to the nest?

G: I write the majority of our lyrics, usually after the music is written; however, the other guys often help me fine-tune and re-work my initial ideas. They also come up with some awesome lines and melodies of their own that we occasionally use.

Do not miss this chance to get down with your funky self to the groovy music of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong at City Bisco next Saturday the 28^th.  What better way is there to spend a Saturday night than with some Pigeons opening up for the Biscuits?  Your feet will be stomping and the rest of your body will be boogying all night long!

Review written by Rebecca Wolfe

Promotional Photography by Jordan August Photography

Concert Photography by Rebecca Wolfe

Check out Pigeons Playing Ping Pong’s FUNK EP 

Check out The Music Vibes: The Migration to the Dome: Live Review of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong at The Blockley

Check out The Music Vibes Review: FUNK Flying South for the Winter: Pigeons Playing Ping Pong Migrate North  to the Brooklyn Bowl

Check out The Music Vibes Review: Dop-A-Pong Double Header . . . The Blockley Goes Psycho