On February 16th and 17th, Asheville, North Carolina’s premier dynamic rock band, Papadosio, closed out the first leg of their winter 2018 tour with a two-night run at The Sinclair in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For the majority of these past February dates, the band was joined by the Buffalo rockers of Aqueous, opening the door for some standout collaborations. For the final night of their run at The Sinclair, Papadosio welcomed out Aqueous guitarist Mike Gantzer for a take on the band’s older fan favorite “Utopiate”, off their 2007 debut album Magreenery, to end their set.
For this rendition stellar of “Utopiate”, the band’s percussive opening section was particularly jazzy and syncopated, making for a fiery start to the tune as the ensemble expertly balanced electronic effects and tones with cascading, lyrical keys. As “Utopiate” opened up to become more light and spacious, Gantzer began teasing the iconic guitar riff from Dr. Dre’s “Xxplosive” off his hit album, 2001, as he’s been known to do with Aqueous. However, this portion dissipated as the song dramatically dropped into an initially sparse transition ahead of a triumphant build to the meat of the jam. After an extended segment with a nostalgic feel, highlights of the ending jam came via a parallel guitar and synth duet as well as a longer piano solo that led to the song’s ending.
You can listen to Live For Live Music‘s premiere of Papadosio and Mike Gantzer’s take on “Utopiate” below from The Sinclair in Cambridge, Massachusetts on February 17th below. For more information about Papadosio’s upcoming shows, you can head to their website here.
Setlist: Papadosio | The Sinclair | Cambridge, MA | 2/17/18
Set 1: The Plug, Therian, Frequence, Cushion, Moon Entendre, You and Yourself> All I Knew, Snorkle, Utopiate*
Encore: The Eyes Have Eyes
*with Mike Gantzer (guitar, of Aqueous)