Dopapod to exhibit ‘sound’ style at Canopy Club

By Rachel Bass Contributing writer

The pressure to define a band may be felt in the musical industry today, especially with the growing amount of genres.

But in the midst of the need for definition, some artists are solely interested in providing the sound and music that their fans strive for, one such band is Dopapod.

Dopapod, a quartet that prides itself on a lack of definition, will bring its new perspective on the music world to campus at The Canopy Club on Sunday at 9 p.m. Tickets are $10 at the door, and the band will be opened by Tauk, a New-York based band that describes itself as “heavy instrumental rock fusion,” on its website

The band, which originated as a duo in 2007, has experienced a few versions of group members since its beginnings, including a five person group in 2009.

But now, the current four-member group is comprised of Eli Winderman (keyboard), Chuck Jones (bass), Scotty Zwang (drums) and Rob Compa (guitar). Studying at the Berklee College of Music in Boston together, the members quickly became familiar with one another and each others music.

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Eventually, Winderman brought them together and suggested the formation of an actual band.

“He’s the main creative force behind it,” Jones said of Winderman.

Yet the band has continued to create music in different ways since its beginnings.

Though the group’s music has been described as electronic, metal and funk, its members do not brand it officially as anything besides a “sound” band, Dave Weissman, the band’s publicist from Musical Earth, said. 

Jones said the music they produce is a mash-up of the styles they feel comfortable playing based on what they grew up listening to and what they’ve spent time learning, and that he takes pride in the band’s open-mindedness and creativity.

“It’s what’s inside of us individually,” he said. “It’s not a specific funk band because everything is allowed for the most part. We want to make sure what we’re putting out is good, but everything is allowed in the creative process.”

This openness to ideas and hard work has taken the band across the nation, from festivals such as Catskill Chill Music Festival in New York and Burning Man in Nevada.

Now, Dopapod is on a two month tour that began on September 25. Jones said he estimates the band’s largest crowd they have performed in front of has been between 40,000 and 50,000 people.

With the band’s tour and sizeable performances, Dopapod took a relatively unexpected turn with its third album, “Redivider.” Released in 2012, the album is the first for the ‘sound’ band that includes vocals.

“We wanted to do something new,” Jones said. “Everyone grows up listening to vocal music. It was kind of meant to be more instrumental, but as we progressed we wanted to connect with people. Everybody relates so well to lyrics and words.”

Jones said Dopapod intends to keep going from here. The band will release a new album on November 11, which he describes as “the most fun, creative and professional yet.”

As the band continues to prepare for the upcoming album and festival season, Weissman said, “I am totally enthusiastic because this band melts faces.”

Rachel can be reached at [email protected].