The Mill and the Mine is no bigger than a floor of HSS. The walls are embellished with soft light bulbs and aged brick. Scattered along the wooden floor are concertgoers, eagerly awaiting Papadosio and Higher Learning, Friday night’s performers. When the lights fade, everything else seems to go away.
Papadosio, self-described as “Falling somewhere between rock, jazz and electronic mayhem”, headlined the show with opening act, Higher Learning, a musical group from Atlanta, Georgia.
Higher Learning took the stage first, adorned with soft lights shifting from purple to blue. Their sound was ethereal and experimental, similar to how they classify their sound online: “An instrumental hybrid of electronica and post-rock… drawing from jazz, jam, hip-hop, and film score elements.” A consistent presence of percussion accompanied the fading in and out of a plucky bass line and deep synth sounds.
The members of the band give each other subtle head nods to indicate a change in the direction of their elongated songs. The change in direction of the songs was just as unnoticeable as the nods.
The lead singer was a confident woman dressed in black who swayed with the music and the vibrations of the deep bass. Standing along the metal barricade in the front, the audience could feel the entire floor quaking beneath them. The crowd also moved with the music. Sun salutations, head nods and the irrepressible urge to sway were just as captivating as the band on stage.
After a short break, it became apparent that Papadosio was about to hit the stage. The crowd pushed towards the barricade as the lighting on stage transformed. Makeshift canvases along the back wall of the stage lit up with mandalas and changing shapes.
Papadosio walked onto the stage to a massive applause from the eager audience. The band was appreciative and appeared to be drawing energy from the crowd as they began performing. A deep, prominent percussion and funk intro guided them into their set before the band acknowledged the adoring crowd.
“How are we doing tonight, Knoxville?” was called out at least three times by different members of the band, much to the delight of the concert hall. These were the only words spoken for nearly twenty minutes until the first lyric was delivered.
Much of the band demonstrated their talent by playing two instruments at once. The transitions between guitar and synth keyboards were subtle and never impacted the sound. The “jam band” sound was impressive and uninterrupted.
Having never heard music by Papadosio, I was surprised to see almost every member of the crowd emulating drum solos and passionately singing along to the occasional lyrics. The crowd made itself just as entertaining as the stage.
Turning back to hundreds of people illuminated by the soft changing lights, I could see a community. Everyone in the room was dancing, most of them using their entire bodies. The front row leaned eagerly against the railing, but the rest of the floor was evenly spaced so that concertgoers could express themselves fully. Some dances appeared choreographed, others spontaneous.
Most of the crowd had their eyes closed for the majority of the show. It was obvious that the crowd was feeling every note. When the floor would shake, the elusive dancers smiled with sheer delight. In between songs, people would hold each other in long embraces and share smiles with everyone around them.
As the set went on, the experience became more intimate. Even I found myself unable to resist swaying to the deeply peaceful songs. Time felt immeasurable as the songs simply flowed into one another with no perceivable reason.
Papadosio left the stage and the crowd immediately shifted from closed eyes to impatiently pleading for their return. People became anxiously excited for the songs they were hoping to hear from the encore.
“One more song” became the agreed upon chant.
The band returned to the stage and agreed to play a couple more songs for the crowd. Fans of Papadosio were thrilled and delighted to be able to dance with one another for an extra amount of time.
Following the encore, band members reached out and shook hands with fans. They exchanged words of kindness and gratitude. The drummer threw out his drumsticks and everyone scattered to grab one. The paper setlist was folded into an airplane and thrown out into the audience, landing right by my feet.
When I picked up the setlist, I realized that the constant enjambment of experimental sounds was separated into ten distinct songs. Papadosio is a band that I could listen to for hours and never know how much time has passed.
Maybe it’s time for me to add them to my morning playlist.
Higher Learning opened for Papadosio at the Mill and Mine on August 31, 2018.
