Dogpark rocks UMW community with an electrifying performance in the Underground

by NORAH WALSH

Editor-in-chief

On Thursday, Oct. 19, an illuminated entryway to the Underground attracted students to join in the bustling and energetic show inside where the band Dogpark, who had driven up from Richmond, Va., belted cult classics like “Valerie” by Amy Winehouse. Their performance was especially important, as midnight marked the release of their first single, “Now It’s Over,” off of their upcoming EP. 

Being in the Underground was a strange experience for me, as my introduction to the space during the pandemic was as a dimly lit environment where I was able to get sushi from Hissho Sushi, surrounded by reminiscing upperclassmen who relayed memories about good times spent playing bingo or hanging out in the space before the pandemic hit. But this night was different because as I got closer to the doors, I found myself on the precipice of making one of these memories that I had only heard about. 

Hosted by WMWC Campus Radio, a growing organization that seeks to bring live music to campus, a true concert experience unfolded as pizza and soft drinks were distributed to students as they entered the venue and made their way to the area in front of the stage where other students were dancing to Dogpark’s setlist that was full of popular hits.

Formed at the University of Richmond, Dogpark has grown in their fame both through playing at parties at the University, as well as on TikTok, where they have amassed 198,200 followers. Back in January, I came across them on the app when their second video on their page went viral. In the video, they covered “Kilby Girl” by The Backseat Lovers, so I was familiar with the band and excited to see them perform live.

“We started playing a lot of frat parties at [the University of] Richmond, and from there grew to other campuses,” said Eamon Moore, the lead singer in the band who graduated from the University of Richmond with a music degree.

The band’s informal ringleader is Will Harford, who plays bass for Dogpark and graduated from the University of Richmond with a degree in music. He spoke with me about how the band came about.

“I came to college wanting to start a band the whole time,” he said. “Pretty much the only reason I went to college was to start a band, and my junior year I got back to school and I realized suddenly that I knew the pieces, basically, to put it together and make it happen.”

Moore elaborated on the creation of the band, commenting on the changes in members. Currently, the band is made up of five members: Eamon Moore on vocals, Billy Apostolou on guitar, Chris Conte on drums, Will Harford on guitar and Declan Harris on bass. 

“Last school year, we added Declan [Harris] to the group because the two drummers graduated and they weren’t going to stick with us,” he said.

The band’s collective love of music, in addition to Harford’s influence and encouragement to pursue this passion, altered their academic careers, as most of them switched from their original majors, such as business, to music. 

Billy Apostolou, however, stuck with his biochemistry major and is currently in his senior year. He spoke on the difficulties of balancing his commitment to the band, as well as his plans for the future, which have drastically changed from the initial goal of going to medical school after graduating. 

“Balancing school and this is obviously tough,” he said before commenting on the band’s dynamic that has grown over the past two years of playing together. According to Apostolou, their chemistry allows them to be able to rehearse separately when they can’t all get together, yet due to their rapport, it doesn’t show on stage.

As for the future, Apostolou said, “Going forward, I’m going to stick with this. The plan going into college was med school, but this really seems promising, and it’s what I love.”

The collaboration and collective effort came to fruition this past summer when Dogpark flew out to Los Angeles, Calif. to record their music. After their original plans were a bust, they connected with John Samuels, a mutual who they met with the help of their social media connections. 

“We got [to Los Angeles] and our original plan completely fell through,” said Harford. “We had poured a bunch of our own money into this AirBnB and flights out there, and we had nothing.” 

But, hope was not lost as the band members looked through TikTok and Instagram direct messages, where they found the connection with Samuels. 

“We were in the studio two days later and it ended up being a perfect fit on the first day,” said Harford. 

That first day, they recorded the song “Dive Bar,” which Harford projects to be the second single the band will release from their EP following “Now It’s Over.” 

The songs on their upcoming EP are influenced by a variety of well-known bands, such as The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and Cheap Trick, according to Declan Harris, a senior music major who plays lead guitar in the band. 

Their first single, “Now It’s Over” contains several elements that represent the talent and direction of the band, which is why the band chose it as their first release. Harris commented on the release and the elements that made the song unique.

“We chose it because it has a lot of moving parts to it,” said Harris. “It’s got a really cool bridge and it’s got instrumental parts that show off our strengths on a technical side but also what I would consider to be one of the catchier hooks on our EP, and I think it really represents the direction we want to go in. Which is sort of like a rock direction but with some different influences.” 

He continued, “It sounds like a unique song that is really us … It’s got some attitude, but it’s not over the top and it’s not trying to be anything it’s not.”

Chris Conte, the drummer in the band who graduated from the University of Richmond with a degree in music, likes playing their originals the most. 

“I think [the originals] are the best to play because we’ve never played them before, and it’s just new for us and exciting to see how people react to them,” said Conte. 

The show concluded with an energetic cover of “Everybody Talks” by Neon Trees during which the whole crowd was effervescent while singing along to the chorus. 

After the lights came up and the band stepped off stage, crowd members congregated for photos with the band. The band reminded us of their first single, which was released at midnight, as well as their upcoming show on Dec. 4 at the Mercury Lounge in New York City. 

The band has real spunk, attitude and charisma, and their chemistry, along with their collective love for music, allows these characteristics to show in their performances. 

“We’re in a constant state of changing our minds,” said Conte. “So we’re never really, truly aligned on anything besides [the fact that] we love to play music. The goal is just to play as many shows as we can to as many people as we can, and how we get there is still a mystery, but we want to write a lot of music and play a lot of shows, and that’s pretty much it.”