Does it ever feel like you’re doing the same damn thing? Well find solace in the rock musings of Rob Compa‘s Birthday Hang thrown at Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom!
Celebrating a birthday at Cervantes is always a solid decision, especially if you can get a bunch of your friends to come along for the party. Lucky for us in Denver, when Rob Compa decides to have his birthday party at Cervantes and invite a bunch of his friends, those friends include some of the best musicians the scene has to offer. Not to mention 50% of Dopapod, so for those keeping score, that’s 75% Dopapod. Not bad!
But this night wasn’t about Dopapod, this was about celebrating Rob and the music that inspires him. The opening cover of Ween’s “It’s Gonna Be A Long Night” wasn’t kidding. The set clocks in at two hours and forty-six minutes but it never felt that way. The set list was extremely well-crafted which helped pace the show and consistently keep it engaging. The dynamics were constantly changing- swaying from the brown-rock of Ween to a elongated rendition of a level from the original Nintendo’s Battletoads game (“Turbo Tunnel”) without the audience ever faltering. The video game segment of the set immediately took me aback. The generation that grew up on videogames would be amiss if they were to deny the influence popular video game music had on their concepts of melody and song structure. But frankly, at it’s core, an 11+ minute take on the third level of the original Battletoads game is just awesome. A synth driven odyssey that emotes a sound I always refer to as “Rainbow Road”. Those spacey-synth jams that make you feel like you’re playing any of the Mario Kart “Rainbow Road” tracks. As the song dies out we are treated to a solo from Eric Luba that teases both the intro to the original Mario theme as well as the first “Underwater” level theme music. It was a stoic moment that seemed as if it may die out quickly but instead the band launched into the “Overworld Theme” which is the first level of the second Mario Brothers game for the original NES. This rendition made me see the song as I had never seen it before, as a jazz tune. Beautifully executed solos by both Eric and Rob help further the inspired take to transcend the 8bit genre.
After the dive into 8bit nostalgia, Rob treated us to an original. The first was “Same Damn Thing” – a song which critiques the culture of the very scene he’s in. It’s brilliantly self aware, from the lyrics cynically describing the formula to “becoming a big star” by “put[ting] this costume on play and guitar through a wah-wah to a disco beat”. Or “How would you like to sell-out a theater?” well “All you gotta do is play a one-song set that has words about being funky.” All this over a cliche two-chord vamp. There is even a line making fun of chromatic progressions which then rattles off a solid example. The song is certainly tongue-in-cheek but does make a good point in some of its fun. Innovation is hard, imitation is easier and its easy to let the scene become over-saturated with band’s that are just a good time. The whole set in a weird way kind of channels that energy. Rob’s generation grew up listening to the Grateful Dead and Phish, sure, but they also grew up with video games. With nu metal. With Scofield’s “A Go Go” album. The influence from all these genres are clear as day in this set and in Rob’s sound. It’s a lesson on being true to yourself and letting what inspires you, inspire your sound.
The set continues on with a cover of the Ween tune “Transdermal Celebration”, a true-to-form cover that paid proper tribute to the band’s patented brown-sound and attitude. What came next was a whirlwind of guitar work that put on display not only Rob’s incredible talents but the talent’s of some of the best guitarists in the scene. First up was a massive take on The Beatles’ “Come Together” which featured Marcus Rezak. The song was played instrumental with Eric Luba covering the vocal melody while Rob and Marcus added color. When it came time for them to exchange licks the room was on fire. At times it becomes hard to tell who is playing but then you realize it doesn’t even matter. Both players put each other on the top of their game backed with the incredible rhythm section, this proved one of the best jams of the evening.
Speaking again to the pacing, after the smoking “Come Together” and an equally fiery take on John Scofield’s “Offspring”, the band performed Phish’s “Punch You In The Eye”. It was a spot-on cover that caused the band afterwards to mention it was their birthday present to Rob to learn the whole thing also commenting that it’s a “workout” to play. The phish phans in the crowd (and there were many) were delighted. The delight was then shifted to the Dopapod fans as the band performed “Off The Cuff” off their 2009 record “Radar”. While Dopapod is currently on hiatus their was no lack of dopafam at the show, eager to see the bandmates playing together even if not complete. They would not be dissapointed either as Eric Luba is one of Denver’s premier keys players and filled his role humbly and powerfully.
Next up the band got into the jazz portion of the set, inviting up Nicholas S. Gerlach (Turbo Suit) to play some saxophone on two beautiful renditions of “Scapegoat Blues” by Jimmy Herring and “Little Walter Rides Again” by John Scofield. They’re bold songs to learn by two legendary guitarists but the band nailed each one especially Rob executing each line with polished precision. The set maintained an incredible loose feel while also incorporating very technical compositions that showed a band who had clearly practiced these tunes a bit.
The night seemed as if it was almost over but then we were treated to a reprise of guitar mastery int he form of a sit-in from DJ Williams of Shots Fired. He also sat-in for a Beatles tune, this time an interpretation of “Get Back”. Once again we were treated to absolute master’s course on guitar improvisation. As Rob and DJ traded licks, the band followed intelligently, providing the perfect back-drop for the two guitarsmiths to craft their solos. Before DJ left, they played one more tune together, “Kickin’ Back” by The Derek Trucks Band. While Derek Trucks wasn’t there that evening, the two guitarists certainly made up for his absence, as they one more time showed off their ability to improvise seemingly endless lines of engaging licks and riffs that kept the audience more engaged than I had seen in a long time.
The last bit of the show were just pure fun. While I didn’t see the next cover coming, the moment the riff started I immediately recognized it as “Privilege” the opening song to Incubus’ 1999 third album “Make Yourself”. I don’t know if this was a formative album for Rob, but it definitely was for me and was more than welcomed. I have to say, I raged that one pretty hard. But still not as hard as the encore…another tribute to the great A Go-Go album, Rob invited up DJ again for a take on “Chank”. This turned into another 15+ minute voyage into the depths of what the song could be. It eventually melted into a “Smells Like Teen Spirit” jam that, when it emerged from the ether, took the entire room by the throat and pulled them up to start jumping. The set closing “You Oughta Know” was a staple at the Dopapod live show for a while and was a fitting way to leave the crowd. I don’t think there was a single person in that room not singing that chorus.
Rob put on one hell of a party. The vibe in the room was something else. The incredible amount of talent on-stage and their understanding of the music they were playing was beyond impressive and left me with the feeling that I had seen one of the best nights of music I’d see in 2018.
Rob Compa’s Birthday Hang | 2018-10-12 | Cervantes’ Other Side, Denver, CO
-= One Set =-
01. (Intro)
02. It’s Gonna Be A Long Night (Ween cover)[1]
03. (Band Introductions)
04. Turbo Tunnel (David Wise cover) >
05. Underwater (Koji Kondo cover) >
06. Overworld Theme (Koji Kondo cover)
07. Same Damn Thing
08. (Banter)
09. Transdermal Celebration (Ween cover)[1]
10. Come Together (The Beatles cover)[2]
11. Offspring (John Scofield cover)[3]
12. Punch You In The Eye (Phish cover)
13. Off The Cuff (Dopapod cover)
14. Scapegoat Blues (Jimmy Herring cover)[4]
15. Little Walter Rides Again (John Scofield cover)[4]
16. Root Down
17. Get Back (The Beatles cover)[5]
18. Kickin’ Back (The Derek Trucks Band cover)[5]
19. Privilege (Incubus cover)
-= Encore =-
20. (Encore Break)
21. Chank (John Scofield cover)[5]
22. You Oughta Know (Alanis Morisette cover)[6]
-= Lineup =-
Rob Compa (Dopapod) on guitar/vocals
Neal “Fro” Evans (Dopapod) on drums
Dan Africano (John Brown’s Body) on bass
Eric Luba (Analog Son) on keys
Show Notes: This was billed as Rob Compa’s Birthday Hang in celebration of Rob Compa’s birthday. Envy Alo and KingFriday The 13th opened the show.
[1] “It’s Gonna Be A Long Night” & “Transdermal Celebration” featured Chuck Jones (Dopapod) on bass and Ben King on guitar and vocals.
[2] “Come Together” featured Chuck Jones (Dopapod) on bass and Marcus Rezak (Supernatural Beings) on guitar.
[3] “Offspring” featured Marcus Rezak (Supernatural Beings) on guitar.
[4] “Scapegoat Blues” & “Little Walter Rides Again” featured Nick Gerlach (Turbo Suit) on saxophone.
[5] “Get Back”, “Kick’ Back” & “Chank” featured DJ Williams (Shots Fired/Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe) on guitar. “Kickin’ Back” contained “Pure Imagination” (Willy Wonka) and “Stash” (Phish) teases. “Chank” contained a “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (Nirvana) jam.
[6] “You Oughta Know” featured Chuck Jones (Dopapod) on bass, Marcus Rezak (Super Natural Beings) on guitar, Ben King on guitar, DJ Williams (Shots/Fired Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe) on guitar and Nick Gerlach (Turbo Suit) on saxophone.
Thanks to Rob Compa and Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom for being cool with taping/sharing shows. Go see live music and tip your bartenders! #spacetapes
LINK: https://archive.org/…/RobCompaBirthdayHang2018-10-12.AKG.P1…
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