Over the weekend, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong played a three-night run at Boston’s Paradise Rock Club, selling out two of their three shows at the beloved Beantown venue. The quartet welcomed guitarists Robbie Wulfsohn and Tomo Fujita, rocked their hilarious previously mentioned tribute to New England Patriots’ tight end/notorious partier Rob Gronkowski, and busted out “This Is That” for the first time since October of 2015.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong opened up their three-night run on Thursday with “Too Long”, before offering up funky takes on fan-favorites “Penguins”, “Somethin’ For Ya”, and “Burning Up My Time”. Following “Offshoot”, PPPP invited up Ripe guitarist Robbie Wulfsohn to assist on vocals for a take on The Lion King’s “Just Can’t Wait To Be King”, before bringing the first set to a close with “Su Casa”.

On Thursday, PPPP opened up the second set with “Live Life”, with guitarist Jeremy Schon putting on a show, dazzling the crowd with his quick-witted guitar solos. The band then sandwiched “Hurtle Castle” in between “Upfunk”, before working through noteworthy takes on “Kiwi” and “Julia”. The band brought their second set on Thursday to a close with “Porcupine”, and offered up “Fun In Funk” as the night-one encore.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong were back at it on Friday, as they opened up the first set with “Funk E. Zekiel”, allowing Schon and Greg Ormont to quickly settle in a bubbly, feel-good groove. “Walk Outside” and “Bad For You” were next, before PPPP worked through an impressive take on Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “By The Way”. The four-piece harnessed their improvisational expertise during “Havana” and “Melting Lights”, before bringing the first set on Friday to a close with “Doc”.

On Friday, Pigeons opened up the second set with “Whoopie”, as bassist Ben Carrey and drummer Alex Petropulos locked into a fierce rhythmic pocket. With Ormont laying down a psychedelic guitar riff, Schon took charge, tearing up an impressive solo on his beautiful PRS guitar. Following “King Kong”, PPPP worked through a silky smooth segue of “Sunny Day” > “The Hop” > “F.U.”, before bringing the second set to a close with the recently debuted “Yo Soy Fiesta”. For those who are unaware, “Yo Soy Fiesta” translates to “I Am Party”, and originates from a 2012 postgame interview between New England Patriots tight end/notorious partier Rob Gronkowski and a reporter from ESPN Deportes. While the band invited Gronkowski to join them on stage during their weekend run, their prayers went unanswered. Pigeons Playing Ping Pong played “Dawn A New Day” in the encore slot Friday, as the sold-out Boston venue bounced in unison with the funkadelic quartet.

On Saturday, the Pigeons Playing Ping Pong’s third and final night of their Boston run, the band opened up the first set with “Henrietta”, as the sold-out crowd quickly settled into the Paradise Rock Club. “Time To Ride” and “Poseidon” followed, before the band invited up guitarist Tomo Fujita up to jam on a 20-minute rendition of “Lightning”. Fujita is an associate professor at Boston’s Berklee College of Music, and former students include John Mayer and Eric Krasno. Schon and Fujita put on quite the guitar clinic, impressively playing off of each other, especially considering the two powerhouses met not more than an hour before the show. A cover of Michael Jackson‘s “Can’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” was up next, before wrapping up their first set with “Schwanthem”.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong ft. Tomo Fujita – “Lightning”

[Video: Pigeons Playing Ping Pong]

For the final set of the weekend, Pigeons opened up the second set with “Pop Off”, followed by “The Liquid” and “Indiglo”. PPPP worked through a breezy take on “Horizon”, before busting out “This Is That” for the first time since 10/7/2015, an impressive gap in the band’s extensive repertoire. An unfinished take on “Zydeko” was next, before the band sandwiched a take on The Beatles’ “Elenor Rigby” in between “Skipjack”. The four-piece laid down “Cliffs” to bring the second set to a close on Saturday night, before offering up “Ocean Flows” in the encore slot.

Luckily, photographer Vic Brazen was at the shows on Friday and Saturday, and you can view his beautiful photos in the galleries below.

Next up for Pigeons Playing Ping Pong is an appearance at Holidaze in Puerto Morelos, Mexico, before their highly anticipated four-night New Year’s Eve run. For a full list of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong’s upcoming tour dates and ticketing information, head to the band’s website here.

Setlist: Pigeons Playing Ping Pong | Paradise Rock Club | Boston, MA | 11/29/2018

Set One: Too Long, Penguins > Funkijam > Somethin’ For Ya > Stay > Burning Up My Time > Offshoot, Just Can’t Wait To Be King*, Su Casa

Set Two: Live Life > Upfunk > Hurtle Castle > Upfunk, Kiwi > Sail On, Julia > Rugrats > Doug > Julia, Snake Eyes, Porcupine

Encore: Fun In Funk

* w/ Robbie Wulfsohn (Ripe) on vocals

Setlist: Pigeons Playing Ping Pong | Paradise Rock Club | Boston, MA | 11/30/2018

Set One: Funk E Zekiel, Walk Outside, Bad For You, By The Way > Havana > Melting Lights > Live It Up, Fortress, Doc

Set Two: Whoopie, King Kong, Sunny Day > The Hop > F.U., Fade Fast, Yo Soy Fiesta

Encore: Dawn A New Day

Setlist: Pigeons Playing Ping Pong | Paradise Rock Club | Boston, MA | 12/1/2018

Set One: Henrietta, Time To Ride, Poseidon, Lightning*, Where Are We Going, Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough > Schwanthem

Set Two: Pop Off, The Liquid, Indiglo > Horizon, This Is That%, Zydeko^ > E-Funk, Skipjack > Eleanor Rigby > Skipjack, Cliffs

Encore: Ocean Flows

* w/ Tomo Fujita on guitar
% Last time played 10/07/15
^ Unfinished