by photojournalist Jeffrey Moellering
With two of the biggest jam bands in the country on one billing, you’re surely in for an evening of bombastic booty shaking, and that’s exactly what both bands delivered to a packed house of revelers in a rainy downtown St. Petersburg, on Saturday, March 7th
While I’ve seen both bands several times, I don’t profess to be intimately familiar with the intricacies of their respective catalogs. However, I don’t think that’s it’s necessarily required, because with these acts, the message is IN the music and in celebrating the magic of the moment. You know what you’re going to get in terms of great musicianship, an upbeat atmosphere, smiling faces and a groovy good time. Their entire vibe is about offering a welcoming environment, and they’re happy to bring along anybody for the ride who’s open-minded and believes that the journey is in fact the destination.
The evening’s forecast called for a 30% chance of rain, which evidently became ground zero in St. Petersburg, as waves of showers descended upon an area starving for moisture during the past drought-filled year. Despite this, the fans were prepared with their ponchos or simply enjoying the cooling relief dispensed from the heavens above.
The historic confines of the Jannus Live concert venue are indeed billed as a “rain or shine” facility, and as such, the hardworking crew was duly prepared, showtime ensuing without a hitch shortly after the advertised 8 pm kickoff.
Lotus got right into rocking, delivering their signature seamless fusion of electronic music, jam-band improvisation, and funk-infused grooves. The St. Pete attendees’ energy mirrored the band’s own intensity, creating a shared experience that was reciprocated from start to finish.
The Lotus set wound through a labyrinth of slow-building grooves and crescendo-filled dynamics, that layered shimmering synth textures, crisp percussion, and hypnotic guitar lines, alternating from techno-like passages to rock infused instrumental segments, providing a trance-like immersive and engaging experience. You didn’t have to know the song to know a good time when you heard it!
I’m always fascinated by watching such bands, to notice their subtle cues in shifting between sequences, which is something born through hours of intimate sessions and an unspoken understanding of the aural organism being spontaneously constructed. Lotus provides a bit of fun for everyone, regardless of what type of music one favors.
The impressive lighting design also plays a significant role in the performance of both bands. Waves of color and shifting patterns synced with the music, turning the outdoor Jannus venue into a makeshift open-air discotheque. They really know how to read the audience and adapt their approach to suit the evolving mood – always an eclectic and exciting experience!
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong emerged and heartily thanked Lotus for masterfully introducing the evening’s opening festivities, a perfect segue indeed. PPPP is a band more firmly rooted in rock, funk, and reggae-infused traditions, blended into an upbeat and optimistic product. The Baltimore-based quartet has built a reputation for high-energy shows that feel less like a concert of recited rote material and more like full-on dance parties. This tour comes on the heels of their 2025 album release, “Feed the Fire”, with a clever logo of a flying pigeon clutching matchsticks, emblazoned on the drum head.
While Pigeons Playing Ping Pong operate squarely in the jam-band tradition, they distinguish themselves from their peer acts due to their bright, playful funk sound. Frontman “Scrambled” Greg Ormont delivers animated vocals and a joyously charismatic stage presence, navigating through songs that often stretch well beyond their studio version counterparts. Tracks often begin with tight funk riffs and catchy hooks before spiraling into improvisational jams that highlight the band’s musical chemistry.
Band members Ben Carrey on bass, Alex “Gator” Petropulos on drums, and Jeremy Schon on guitar keep things lively with punchy grooves and playful transitions between styles. Danceable rhythms, psychedelic guitar tones, and bursts of jam-band experimentation are often featured all in the space of a single song. Their seemingly endless touring continues to expand their audience into now festival circuit darlings and a devoted fanatical fanbase. I encountered fans at the St. Pete show visiting from all around the country. Many jam bands share this unique element with their followers, dating back to the Grateful Dead days with Deadheads accompanying the band as they bounced from city to city.
Bands like the Pigeons truly shine on stage; that’s the essential point of their attraction, the mutually shared experience of the positive vibe and energy. Their shows are colorful, communal, and relentlessly upbeat. “Scrambled Greg” has a permanent smile affixed to his face. The band thrives on improvisation and crowd interaction, making each performance feel unique. Fans often describe their concerts as providing feel-good funk therapy, and it’s the kind of music that practically animates you to dance, however awkward that may be! You can tell that the band really believes in what they are doing, and you’ll never see a look on their faces other than pure ebullient joy. When you witness a performance with that kind of genuine authenticity and good nature, you can’t help but feel the same way.
Light shows, extended jams, and enthusiastic audiences create a festival-like atmosphere even in the smaller venues like Jannus. If you enjoy jam bands like Phish or The Disco Biscuits, you’ll certainly appreciate Pigeons’ twist on the genre, so get on out to one of their upcoming shows! Fortunately, their relentless touring schedule provides plenty of opportunities.
Quite simply put, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong represent pure joy in musical form. In their world, bad days do not occur. We might live in a crazy, confusing and mixed-up world but in the snow globe self-contained universe of the Pigeons’ own design, nothing is wrong or can go wrong, and the goal of life is to be grateful, spread the love and make it a beautiful thing, which must begin inside yourself. When you do that, such exuberance naturally radiates outwardly from a core belief in the ultimate purity of all things. Their mix of funk, psychedelia, and jam-band spontaneity makes them easy to love, especially in a live setting. While their studio albums connote the vibe, the band’s real magic happens when they stretch songs into unpredictable, groove-heavy journeys on stage, organically flowing with a sincerity, easy confidence and appreciation in the miracle and grace of being. Behold the gift and pass along the good word to the neighbor beside you – there’s no time like the present to have the best time of your life!
