Papadosio was born in backyards in and around Ohio University in Southeast Ohio 19 years ago, so it was fitting that the band threw one more house party for its adopted Asheville, NC hometown before going on indefinite touring hiatus. Over the weekend, the livetronic staple brought its annual Summer Sequence back to the Asheville area for a backyard get-together at Pisgah Brewing Company in neighboring Black Mountain.
There was something instantly nostalgic about seeing Papadosio perform in a grassy field: whether you came up seeing the band in its early days playing house parties, moving up the ranks at Legend Valley where Dosio hosted Resonance for years, or at any of the myriad nationwide festivals where the band routinely played year after year. Choosing to host Summer Sequence outdoors with a multi-band lineup and local food, craft, and clothing vendors, rather than at an indoor venue, spoke to the communal element at the heart of the Papadosio ethos.
That commitment to community was seen throughout the undercard lineup. Local DJ Push/Pull was brought in at the last second as the Friday lead-in for Papadosio after Resonant Language couldn’t make it, while Asheville’s best-kept secret, The Snozzberries, brought Saturday to life with an explosive set of Frank Zappa-level musical intricacy meets Mastodon prog-metal heaviness.
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As fans filled the lush Pisgah backyard each day, long-lost festival friends reunited and new relationships formed among the disarmingly empathetic fanbase. It was the kind of festival where you’d see Papadosio drummer Mike Healy spinning his young daughters around on the lawn between openers.
In the decade-plus since Papadosio relocated to Asheville, around the recording of 2012’s T.E.T.I.O.S., the band has grown exponentially. While the lineup of Healey, guitarist Anthony Thogmartin, bassist Rob McConnell, and keyboard brothers Sam and Billy Brouse has remained constant, Papadosio’s personal and artistic maturity was found throughout Summer Sequence. The band members’ young children played gleefully among the crowd as fans exchanged fist bumps and high-fives with their fathers. Gone were the members’ dreadlocks, hemp necklaces, and long hair (save for a shaggy Sam Brouse), replaced by short haircuts and the sensible attire you would wear on a hike (and they probably do). But most notable was the band’s musical maturation.
Across four sets over two nights, Papadosio spanned its entire discography from 2007 debut Magreenery to its latest 2024 release of Ram Das-inspired improvisations and the traditional 2023 album that preceded it, To Live A Making. Through 17 years of studio releases, fans heard how the band’s sound has developed from an early heavy emphasis on electronic music to include hard prog-rock influences, world rhythms, synth-heavy minimalism, and much more. Throwbacks like the “Advocate of Change” that opened night two were a dose of nostalgia for longtime fans, while Healy’s internationally-influenced percussive showcase on “Xanadu” showed how the band continues evolving. Though Dosio will go on touring hiatus beginning in October, the band stated it will continue to write and record new music.
The “Psipoly” that opened Papadosio’s first night immediately dropped into a synth groove, opening with a purpose but laid back enough to revel in having the entire weekend ahead of us. Over the past decade, Papadosio’s live jamming has developed from a more ambient, atmospheric style that could meander at times into a more aggressive and forward-facing style of improvisation, one that brings the band’s heavier elements to the forefront, like on night one’s “Garden”.
Even within a song like “Method of Control”, the band could throttle its sounds from laid-back live trip-hop to a bass-thumping head-bang. Within the jams, fans could see Papadosio deconstruct its songs, reassemble the pieces during on-the-fly improv, and put them back together like the band did on “Polygons”. An intense ménage à trois of knobs and dials from Thogmartin and the Brouses took the jam to avante electronic, only to be yanked out of the ether into rave bliss before returning the jam-friendly guitar hook.
As Thogmartin reflected when the band closed out night one, “After that storm, every time we get together is a miracle.” That feeling pervaded as the crowds returned for night two—prepared to possibly see Papadosio for the last time—only to be greeted by handbills declaring that the band will perform twice at the free Boomtown Festival in downtown Asheville in late August. As if the band’s commitment to their community, friends, and fans wasn’t apparent enough, Sam Brouse took the stage on Saturday wearing a t-shirt for Dopapod—the band’s longtime scene compatriots who welcomed Sam for a sit-in on “Best Friends” on that very same stage over Memorial Day Weekend 2023.
From the opening “Advocate of Change” (a throwback to 2008’s sophomore release, By the Light of the Stars), Papadosio was dialed in for the last night of Summer Sequence. Throughout the weekend, it became apparent that Papadosio is one of those bands that’s really about this specific combination of musicians and what they can do together in this combination. Sam’s beautiful—and usually underutilized—vocals on “Pool of Stars”, Anthony’s understated guitar melodies on “Magreenery” or more powerful riffs on “Night Colors”, Rob and Mike’s shifting rhythmic foundations on “Cue”, and Billy’s lofty synths on “Mr. Turtles Cloud Kingdom” all came together throughout the show to underscore the singular nature of Papadosio.
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As the band readied to close out the weekend with a “Cubensis” encore, Thogmartin took a moment to reflect on all the inspiration that the Blue Ridge Mountains and Western North Carolina have given the band over the years. He urged all the people out there with a creative pursuit to follow it, absorbing the energy of the region just as Papadosio has done over the past decade-plus. When Papadosio plays its last shows for the foreseeable future in Ohio in October, the band will leave behind a legacy of encouraging creativity, fostering community, and creating music that will continue to do the same even after the band’s final bows.
Papadosio has a smattering of summer festival dates ahead, including spots at Beardfest, Secret Dreams, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong’s Domefest, Elements, its own Subterranea at The Caverns, and more. The band recently announced its final pre-hiatus shows will take place on October 10th in Cleveland and on the 11th in Cincinnati. Find tickets and tour dates on Papadosio’s website.
Check out some videos from Papadosio Summer Sequence below. If you’re a member of the band’s private Papadosio Family Facebook group, you can find more here: “Magreenery“, “Mr. Turtle’s Cloud Kingdom“, night one highlights, night two highlights.
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Setlist: Papadosio | Pisgah Brewing Company | Black Mountain, NC | 6/20/25
Set One: Psipoly > Frequence > Garden, Xanadu > Method of Control > Polygons
Set Two: Snorkle > Not Just A Word, New Love > Dare You, Skipswitch > Snokle
Setlist: Papadosio | Pisgah Brewing Company | Black Mountain, NC | 6/21/25
Set One: Advocate of Change > Boss Battle, Pool of Stars > People As Trees > Cue > Night Colors
Set Two: We Are Water > Versicolor > Mr. Turtle’s Cloud Kingdom > Magreenery
Encore: Cubensis