Article Contributed by Gratefulweb
Published on November 19, 2025
Fast-rising jam-fusion explorers Dogs In A Pile return with their third studio album, Distroid — a bold, intricately crafted collection that captures the band’s adventurous spirit, humor, and genre-defying musicianship. Known for their explosive shows and rapidly growing fanbase, the album gives the band a chance to present several live favorites as they’ve always envisioned them. As keyboardist Jeremy Kaplan puts it, “It’s like the live show plus extra bits we can’t replicate onstage because we don’t have five arms.”
Distroid features a compelling blend of tight, four-minute funk-jazz psych-rock burners and sprawling, longform compositions that highlight the Dogs’ melodic sophistication, rhythmic daring, and knack for unexpected turns. It is the band fully unleashed — fearless, playful, precise, and deeply musical.
“Go Set” kicks off the album with Tommy Emmanuel-style fingerpicking woven into a funk-rock setting, paired with lyrics painting the wild, ever-moving landscape of New York’s music scene. “Lucia’s Secret,” “Nicolette,” and “My Disguise” offer sleek, tuneful snapshots of the band’s melodic sensibilities, with the latter bolstered by a horn section from The Ocean Avenue Stompers.
“Thomas Duncan, Pt. 3” stands as one of the record’s centerpieces — an epic continuation of a musical storyline that began on the band’s debut. With interlocking motifs, dynamic shifts, and dazzling instrumental interplay, it’s a powerful display of the Dogs’ compositional ambition.
The band’s signature humor shines on “Por Que Pedro,” a joyous genre-hopping romp that moves with irreverent precision. Meanwhile, “Samba for Sam” is theatrically ambitious and structurally daring, built from melodic fragments gathered on the road over several years before finally being assembled into what Jeremy Kaplan calls “the greatest glue job ever.”
Engineered by Kyle Vandekerkhoff, Brian Masella, and Jeremy Kaplan
Basic tracks recorded at Galaxy Smith West
Grand piano recorded at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall
Piano tuned by Jonathan Cohen
Hammond B3 recorded at Brunswick Recording
Overdubs recorded at Dogs HQ
Mixed by Scoops Dardaris
Mastered by Sam Torres at Polymouth Mastering
Produced by Jeremy Kaplan
Associate Producer: Brian Masella
Cover photo by Jeremy Kaplan
Layout & design by Jeff Gilligan and Joe Winograd
Jeremy Kaplan – Grand & upright piano, Hammond B3, clavinet, pianet, synths, vocals, trumpet (“Por Que Pedro”), alto sax (“My Disguise”), tambourine (“Lucia’s Secret”)
Brian Murray – Electric & acoustic guitars, banjo, vocals
Jimmy Law – Electric guitar, vocals
Sam Lucid – Bass, vocals
Joe Babick – Drums, conga, shakers, cabasa, bells, chimes, flex-a-tone, rain stick, assorted percussion
Group Vocals & Claps – “Por Que Pedro,” “The Bag,” “Samba for Sam,” “Thomas Duncan, Pt. 3”
Horns on “My Disguise” by The Ocean Avenue Stompers led by Ian Gray (trombone), Wil Schade (tenor sax), Joe Gullace (trumpet)
Side 1
Go Set – 7:32
Lucia’s Secret – 4:39
My Disguise – 4:34
Nicolette – 5:29
Side 2
Shenanigans – 6:43
Thomas Duncan, Pt. 3 – 14:12
Side 3
The Bag – 7:41
Samba for Sam – 9:58
Side 4
Por Que Pedro – 4:57
Samba for Sam – 3:56
