Article Contributed by Gratefulweb
Published on 2026-08-12
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong at Domefest 2026 at ACE Adventure Resort in New River Gorge, WV. Photo by Alex Culbreth.
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong returned to West Virginia’s New River Gorge this past weekend for Domefest 2026, bringing The Flock back to ACE Adventure Resort for three days of music, collaboration, outdoor adventure, and plenty of surprises.
Now in its second year at the West Virginia property, the band’s independently curated festival continues to settle comfortably into its new home, where waterpark hangs and mountain adventures have become as much a part of the weekend as the music itself.
Across more than six sets of music, Pigeons treated Domefest as a playground for new ideas and old favorites alike. The band unveiled two new originals, debuting “Lava” on Thursday and “Lane Change” on Friday, while also working a stack of first-time covers into the weekend, including Seal’s “Crazy,” Ace of Base’s “Beautiful Life,” The Verve’s “Bitter Sweet Symphony,” and Cher’s “Believe.”
Each night carried its own theme and personality. Thursday’s “Almost Heaven / Hell Yeah” kickoff tipped its cap to West Virginia with a dancey instrumental “Take Me Home, Country Roads” tucked into the encore. Saturday’s “Anything But Human” night featured thematic cover debuts including Miike Snow’s “Animal,” while Friday’s “I Love The ’90s” show leaned fully into nostalgia.
A weather delay interrupted the “Rugrats Theme” mid-song Friday night, only for Pigeons to pick up where they left off when the music resumed. The band eventually worked through “Doug Theme” and back into “Julia” to kick off its longest and latest-running set of the weekend.
Friday’s encore also delivered perhaps the weekend’s deepest excavation. Pigeons Playing Ping Pong lighting designer Manny Newman stepped out from behind the rig to handle lead vocals on “The Bad Touch,” marking his first time singing with the band. PPPP had not performed the song since December 31, 2013, making its return after more than 12 years the longest bust-out in the band’s history.
The surprises continued Saturday during fan-favorite “Horizon,” when the band turned its attention to keyboardist Jon Brady. After spending much of 2026 as a regular presence onstage with Pigeons, Brady was met with a playful mid-song “proposal” asking him to officially join Pigeons Playing Ping Pong.
He said yes.
“Domefest is always my favorite weekend of the year. Between playing 6+ sets of music and seeing The Flock come together for our annual celebration, our cups are full and we’re charged up for what’s to come!” said guitarist Jeremy Schon.
Collaboration remained at the heart of the weekend, with Big Blitz horns joining PPPP for “Hell Yeah,” “Feed The Fire,” “Fantasy,” and “F.U.” before the festival’s extended musical family converged for the return of the Domefest All-Stars.
The seven-song All-Stars set brought together members of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, TAUK, Kendall Street Company, Squeaky Feet, Elf Machine, Puremotion, Seven Teller, and Big Blitz in an ever-changing series of configurations.
The collective worked through “Hollywood Swinging,” “Battle Without Honor or Humanity,” “Scarlet Begonias,” “Life During Wartime,” “Wolfman’s Brother,” and “Down By The River,” along with a particularly Domefest-appropriate rendition of “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road,” rewritten for the occasion as “Why don’t we do it in the dome.”
The set embodied the freewheeling spirit that has long separated Domefest from a traditional festival weekend: artists moving between bands, friends jumping onstage, unexpected songs materializing in real time, and The Flock along for every left turn.
“Domefest isn’t just a festival, it’s a full blown vacation. Between all the jams, waterpark fun, and hanging with the flock all weekend, we’re feeling fully inspired to take the fall by storm,” said guitarist Greg Ormont.
That feeling has become increasingly intertwined with Domefest’s home at ACE Adventure Resort. Following a successful first year at the site in 2025, the festival returned with the same mix of camping, cabins, on-site amenities, waterpark access, and opportunities for rafting, zip lining, and exploring the New River Gorge that helped establish the location as a natural fit for the event.
With Domefest 2026 in the rearview, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong now turns its attention to an expansive fall schedule, including festival appearances at Secret Dreams and The Moonshiner’s Ball, a coast-to-coast run this October and November, three nights at Brooklyn Bowl, a newly announced three-night Washington, D.C. stand at The Atlantis and 9:30 Club, and a two-night New Year’s celebration in Boston.
PIGEONS PLAYING PING PONG 2026 TOUR DATES
9/4-9/6 - Marengo, OH - Secret Dreams Festival
10/8-10/11 - Livingston, KY - The Moonshiner’s Ball
10/9 - Black Mountain, NC - Pisgah Brewing Co $
10/11 - Chattanooga, TN - Barrelhouse Ballroom
10/23 - Seattle, WA - The Showbox +
10/24 - Portland, OR - Revolution Hall +
10/25 - Boise, ID - Treefort Music Hall +
10/27 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Commonwealth Room ^
10/29 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre ^
10/30 - Los Angeles, CA - Teragram Ballroom ^
10/31 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory ^
11/1 - Berkeley, CA - The UC Theatre ^
11/3 - Fort Collins, CO - Washington’s ^
11/4 - Des Moines, IA - Wooly’s ^
11/5 - Chicago, IL - The Vic Theatre ^
11/6 - Grand Rapids, MI - Elevation ^
11/7 - Cleveland, OH - House of Blues %
11/19 - Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Bowl
11/20 - Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Bowl
11/21 - Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Bowl
12/3 - Washington, DC - The Atlantis (An Evening With)
12/4 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club *
12/5 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club ^
12/30 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall &
12/31 - Boston, MA - House of Blues @
$ Hustle Souls | + Sqwerv | ^ Dizgo | % Kendall Street Company
* Fireside Collective | & Big Blitz | @ TAUK
DOMEFEST 2026 SETLISTS
August 6, 2026 — Domefest Night 1: “Almost Heaven / Hell Yeah” — New River Gorge, WV
Set I: Underworld, Walk Outside, Melting Lights > Lost In Line, Right Track, Hell Yeah > Run Like Hell > Hell Yeah, Lava, Fun In Funk
Set II: Overrun, Bad For You, Psycho Killer > Fox And Toad, Feed The Fire, The Liquid
Encore: My Own Way > Take Me Home, Country Roads > My Own Way
Notes: “Right Track” featured a “Heaven” tease [Los Lonely Boys]; first time played. “Hell Yeah” and “Feed The Fire” featured Big Blitz horns. “Lava” original debut. “Overrun” last played 1/19/24. “The Liquid” jammed for the first time. “Country Roads” instrumental; last played 8/7/25.
August 7, 2026 — Domefest Night 2: “I Love The ’90s” — New River Gorge, WV
Set I: Show Me, Hit The Ground Runnin’ > Time To Ride, Lane Change > Julia > Rugrats Theme
Set II: Rugrats Theme > Doug Theme > Julia, Fantasy, Ocean Flows > Beautiful Life > Ocean Flows, Sunny Day > Bitter Sweet Symphony > Sunny Day, High Wire > Poseidon > Believe > Poseidon, Break Stuff > Miyagi, Schwanthem > Colors of the Wind > Schwanthem
Encore: Go With It > The Bad Touch > Go With It
Notes: “Show Me” featured a “No Diggity” tease [Blackstreet]; first time played. “Lane Change” original debut. “Rugrats Theme” was unfinished due to a weather delay and continued to open Set II; last played 4/15/21. “Doug Theme” last played 2/13/19. “Julia” continued from Set I. “Fantasy” featured Big Blitz horns. “Beautiful Life” [Ace Of Base], “Bitter Sweet Symphony” [The Verve], and “Believe” [Cher] were first-time plays. “Break Stuff” intro fake-out; first time played. “Colors of the Wind” last played 12/5/24. “The Bad Touch” featured PPPP lighting designer Manny Newman on lead vocals; last played 12/31/13.
August 8, 2026 — Domefest Night 3: “Anything But Human” — New River Gorge, WV
Set: Funk E Zekiel > Cantina Band > Funk E Zekiel, Move Like That > Offshoot > Crazy > Offshoot, Bloodshot Rose, X-Files > The Hop > F.U., High As Five > Animal > High As Five, The Labyrinth > Horizon
Encore: Lightning > Zydeko > Jurassic Park > Zydeko
Notes: “Crazy” [Seal] and “Animal” [Miike Snow] were first-time plays. “X-Files” last played 10/25/24. “F.U.” featured Big Blitz horns. “Horizon” featured the band’s proposal to Jon Brady to officially join PPPP. “Lightning” intro fake-out.
DOMEFEST ALL-STARS — August 8, 2026
Set: Hollywood Swinging, Battle Without Honor or Humanity, Why Don’t We Do It In The Road, Scarlet Begonias, Life During Wartime, Wolfman’s Brother, Down By The River
