Pigeons Playing Ping Pong Harness The Funk For 2 Sold-Out Philadelphia Shows [Recap/Photo/Video]

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong returned to Philadelphia last Friday and Saturday for two sold-out shows at The City of Brotherly Love’s Theatre of Living Arts. Consisting of guitarists Jeremy Schon and Greg Ormont, bassist Ben Carrey, and drummer Alex Petropulos, PPPP brought the funk all weekend, dazzling Philly with their entertaining theatrics and high-octane jams. With Pigeons’ dedicated fanbase, “The Flock,” showing up strong, it’s logical that Pigeons Playing Ping Pong will move onto Philadelphia’s The Fillmore the next time they return to town.

On Friday night, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong kicked off their first set with “Too Long” and “Somethin’ For Ya” before working through a jam-heavy sandwich of “Time To Ride”/”Kiwi” sandwich. Schon and Ormont flexed some impressive interplay on their PRS guitars, buoyed by Carrey and Pretropulos holding down the steady rhythm section. The four-piece then worked their way through “Overrun”, followed by an impressive cocktail of “Melting Lights”, “Havana” and “Ghostbusters”. “Doc” brought the first set to a close, with Schon firing off on all cylinders.

Following a brief set break, Pigeons came back out to open up the second set with “Porcupine” before charging head-first into “Burning Up My Time”. Ormont does an amazing job at captivating his crowd, regardless of the size or venue, and he shined brightly on lead vocals all weekend long. PPPP continued to push forward, offering up a hefty take on “Condenser”, “Su Casa”, back into “Condenser”, with the latter left unfinished. Following “The Hop”, “F.U.”, and “Drunk People”, PPPP invited up vocalist Haley Jane to lend a helping hand on “Love Fool” before moving back into “Drunk People”. Fan-favorite “Penguins” followed, before Pigeons brought the second set to a close with “Funkijam”, “Upfunk”, and “The Liquid”. “Avalanche” served as Friday night’s encore, with Pigeons asserting that there was plenty of gas left in the tank for Saturday night.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong – 11/16/2018

With a rowdy crowd begging for more, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong opened up their Saturday show with “Totally” before moving into fan-favorites ” Bad For You”, “Julia”, and “Whoopie”. “Snake Eyes” was next, before PPPP dove into Lion King classic “Just Can’t Wait To Be King”, from their Disney-themed New Year’s Eve show last year. The quartet delivered a serious take on “Lightning” next, before bringing the first set to a close with “Ocean Flows”.

Pigeons came back out to open up their second set with “Walk Outside”, before delivering a noteworthy rendition of “Henrietta”. With Petropulos laying down the foundation behind the kit, Schon took off with a scorching guitar solo as Ormont followed closely with the perfect rhythmic riff. An improv-heavy take on “Offshoot” into “Around The World” followed, before the band worked their way into “Funk E Zekiel” paired with “Drums”. Alex “Gator” Petropulos has been crushing the game ever since joining Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, and on Saturday night he ripped up his drum solo, with the faithful “Flock” cheering him on. The band reemerged for “Dawn A New Day” before bringing the second set to a close with “Horizon” into “King Kong”. “Shwanthem” served as Saturday night’s encore, as Pigeons showered their crowd with their psychedelic funk one last time.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong – 11/17/2018

Below, you can check out a beautiful gallery of photos from the shows courtesy of photographer Brady Cooling.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong head to their hometown of Baltimore, MD this weekend for a two-night run at Rams Head Live!. Tickets are still available here for Pigeons’ Friday show, and here for tickets to their Saturday show.

For more information on Pigeons Playing Ping Pong’s upcoming tour dates and ticketing information, head to their website here.

Setlist: Pigeons Playing Ping Pong | Theatre of Living Arts | Philadelphia, PA | 11/16/2018

Set One: Too Long, Somethin’ For Ya > Time To Ride > Kiwi > Time To Ride, Overrun, Melting Lights > Havana > Ghostbusters, Doc