Dr. Dog kicks off Philly Music Fest with deep cuts and Wawa hoagies

The term “underplay” is used in the music industry to describe when a band performs at small venues with capacities significantly lower than their regular concert performances. Such was the case last night at Ardmore Music Hall, which provided a rare opportunity to see a band like Philly’s Dr. Dog play the 600-person venue for the first of a two-night stand to kick off the week-long Philly Music Fest.

Night one was any super Dr. Dog fan’s dream. Given the specialness of the venue, Dr. Dog took full advantage of it, playing some of the “hits,” along with the deep tracks, spanning their now extensive catalogue of album releases from their 20-plus years together. They underscored this point immediately with their set opener, the deep track “The ABC’s” from their 2002 debut, Toothbrush, and went right into one of their more popular songs, “Take Me Into Town,” from their 2010 album, Shame, Shame.

There were numerous highlights throughout the course of the 23-song set including “White Dove,” “Exit For Sale,” “The Rabbit, The Bat, & The Reindeer,” “Can She Dance,” and “Warrior Man.” Eric Slick came out from behind the kit to sing “Tell Your Friends,” from the band’s recent self-titled album. To further underscore the fun and intimacy, McMicken brought a box of Wawa shortie hoagies out of the green room and began tossing them to fans in the audience during the encore.

Dr. Dog’s two co-lead singers and songwriters, Scott McMicken and Toby Leaman, have always been fun front persons and last night, given the specialness of the show, they did their jobs proudly without exception. With an equal mix of the “Scott” sung songs and the “Toby” sung songs, the set list reflected what fans love most about the band: their harmonies (supported by guitarist Frank McElroy), the brilliant lead guitar exchanges of Scott and Frank, Eric Slick’s completely in-the-pocket drum playing and locked-in rhythm playing with Toby on bass, and keyboardist Zach Miller who paints both fine details and colorful backing sounds. Multi-instrumentalist Dom Billett and a joyous and energetic vocal harmony trio complemented the lineup. Pure joy flowed off the stage for a little over two hours.

Opening the show was guitarist Pat Finnerty & The Full Band. An amazing guitarist and host of the popular YouTube series “What Makes This Song Stink,” Finnerty takes his rock and roll as seriously as the comedy and humor he brings to his shows. He’s an instant crowd-pleaser and can cover pretty much any song that’s requested of him. He knows how to work the audience—even if he pays them. In fact, he gave a 20-dollar bill away to an audience member who immediately recognized a guitar riff he played, promising more cash if the audience paid close attention to him. And yes, there were covers: “Can’t Hardly Wait” by The Replacements, an audience participation of “I Want My MTV” by Dire Straits, “Closer” by Nine Inch Nails, and Eric Slick came out to sing Everclear’s “Santa Monica.” Four songs, lots of jokes, and lots of fun. It was the perfect warmup for a special evening.

Dr. Dog play again tonight (10/14) at Ardmore Music Hall. The show is sold out. Tickets to the Philly Music Fest shows can be purchased here.