Though foliage may have occupied most of the stage, Dr. Dog still owned 9:30 Club last night.

Last night was my first time seeing Dr. Dog, and I was blown away. It was more than the stage deco (which seemed more appropriate for of Montreal or some other glam 80′s band); the band’s energy through the set was astounding.
As a relatively new fan, I didn’t know what to expect from the show, the crowd, or the band. All I knew was that 9:30 Club is a great venue, and if Dr. Dog was as talented as I hoped, the show would be monumental.

The band opened with “The Old Days”, a well-known crowd pleaser. That was one of the only older songs played during the show; most of the setlist came from the two newest albums, Fate and We All Belong.
The band played almost non-stop through the set, injecting the audience with the non-stop energy rock music today seems to lack. The most memorable songs were “The Ark”, “Ain’t It Strange”, and “Alaska”; those three brought the crowd to their peak, with everyone (even those who didn’t know the words – cough, me) singing along.
Dr. Dog’s relative youth and consistent energy was refreshing, and assuaged all of my Spin-inspired worries. Try and catch them the next time they’re in the US; they really aren’t a group to miss.

Setlist:

Courtesy of Eli's Personal Stash

Last night’s show was the end of the US tour; Dr. Dog’s last show of 2008 is December 30 at the Pyramid Rock Festival in Melbourne, AU.