CONCERT REVIEW: PIGEONS PLAYING PING PONG AT THE STRAND BALLROOM & THEATRE

Joanna Gleason
15 minutes ago
3 min read

Baltimore funk jam band Pigeons Playing Ping Pong performed on Saturday December 13, 2025, a sold out "Goosemas after Party" in Providence, RI. Fans from all kinds of music spheres were present at the Strand to the late-night music concert that started at midnight.

Known for having a very fluid structure, playing long sets of music which often cross genre boundaries, varying their setlists, and segueing from one song into another without a break, the group was terrific. As a jam band, they played several variations of pre-existing songs, - Underworld, Bad for You, Blue Light - extending them to improvise over chord patterns or rhythmic grooves.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong is formed by singer and guitarist Greg "Scrambled Greg" Ormont, bassist Ben Carrey, guitarist Jeremy Schon, and drummer Alex Petropulos. With this talented lineup of musicians, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong played an incredibly exciting show in Rhode Island.

The set started with "Time to Ride", a song that gave Pigeons’ fans a microdose of positivity. Then, the funk band continued with different other songs such as Skipjack, Medicated Goo, Melting Lights…

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong's high-energy set and impressive jams earned enthusiastic praise from fans familiar with the Maryland quartet. The incredible music flowed from one riff or another and only the band knew where it would end up.

Lead guitarist Jeremy Schon put all his effort over each song, with every tune in the set building on the last. Gator also had an exceptional night on the drum. The slap-bass from Carrey makes him a focal point that would inspire players to go practice their chops. Greg Ormont, the front man for Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, was the most emblematic figure on stage.

With no curfew on this exceptional Sunday, the party went far until 2:30 a.m. Although a night of snow, a freezing temperature, the shooting that night at Brown University, almost two thousands of fans were present at the venue. These fans had developed a sense of community and loyalty. They were there in costume singing, dancing, drinking, and having one thing on their mind: Enjoying as much as possible the exceptional concert.

As is tradition for their frequent late-night excursions, which include after-parties for heavy hitters like Goose and Phish, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong gave an extraordinary performance at the Strand in Providence. The success of the performance was not so much about the magnitude of individual songs, but it was about the whole. Everyone’s emotions are high, and you can shut your eyes and be consumed by the music.

In front of an adoring audience, the group played the late concert that I participated in as a photographer of live music. The enthusiasm from the crowd, where people called for as much as an additional set, proved why the group is so successful and it has so many fans who want to stay late to listen to them.