Staff Editor on November 12th, 2021

0

Mating Ritual — brother duo Ryan Marshall Lawhon and Taylor Lawhon — sparkled brightly in their penultimate tour stop at Zebulon on Thursday night.

The celebratory show marked the late-August release of “Songs for the Morning and Evening Times” — Mating Ritual’s fifth album in five years, a feat not often accomplished in these times.

And the room was ready to celebrate with them: When the lights dimmed prior to the start of their set, the crowd knew it was time to cheer. The band took to the stage and kicked things off with the dance-rock song “Old Disco,” the lead song on the new album. Zebulon quickly turned into a dance hall, but was it a disco or country-and-western dance floor? Frontman Ryan Lawhon looked out into the audience with the observation, “I see more than one cowboy hat in the audience, which is strange considering where we are.”

The band evoked more than just dancing. The crowd sang their hearts out to songs such as “Voodoo” and “U.N.I.” And, honestly, just about every other song.

Many of the band’s songs explore relationships, such as “October Lover,” which has a catchy chorus, but at the same time questions the masks worn during a relationship. Yet, perhaps the most memorable moment of the night had nothing to do with the romantic relationship between two individuals, but with a love of the Los Angeles Lakers. After closing out the set, they headed for the green room for a celebratory whiskey shot — but they forgot the passcode.

So the cheers from the audience brought them back on stage for an encore much sooner than they anticipated. Their encore song was about Lakers legend “Magic Johnson.” To show their strong allegiance to the Los Angeles Lakers, they mimed doing fadeaway shots during the song. With the current Los Angeles Lakers suffering through the injury of LeBron James, maybe they have a chance at a 10-day contract?

PAPA — five years removed from the release of their last album, “Kick at the Dust,” and their last show — opened up the night with their own fan base front and center. In 2019, singer-drummer Darren Weiss said PAPA had “sailed off into the sunset,” but this year announced their comeback by releasing two new singles.

As before, Weiss was doing it all on stage. Left foot tapping the pedals to the cymbal. Right foot kicking the bass. Both hands holding the sticks and sometimes adding a shaker to the mix. Add on to that, vocal duties. His exertion required him to briefly stop the set so that he could tie his shoelaces. An appreciative fan was heard after the set telling Weiss, “I was at your final set five years ago and I’m here at your first set since then.”

Mating Ritual setlist: Old Disco, Feel Real, The Bungalow, Voodoo, King Of The Doves, U.N.I., It’s Open If I Fuckin’ Say It’s Open, Drunk, Falling Back, October Lover, Game, I Don’t Like Anybody But Me, I Wear Glasses. Encore: Magic Johnson

Photos and recap by Notes From Vivace