From frat parties to music festivals: Dogpark reflects on journey to new EP

It was never originally Dogpark. 

The indie-rock band, known for its founding roots at the University of Richmond, was originally known as ‘Egdol,’ backward for ‘lodge,’ as in fraternity lodge. The origins of the unique band name, however, remain unknown.

“We can’t disclose that information,” guitar and bass player Billy Apostolou, ‘24, said. “Technically, it's a secret, we're not just pulling your leg. Nobody gets to know that.” 

It was in Apostolou’s sophomore year that he first joined ‘Egdol,’ alongside drummer Chris Conte, ‘23, lead vocalist Eamon Moore, ‘23 and vocalist and guitarist Will Harford, ‘24. When two senior members graduated, the group was in search of a new member, Declan Harris, ‘24, the lead guitarist, and a new name; Dogpark. 

College was not the first encounter with music for the bandmates. Harris began playing guitar at 11 years old after seeing his dad’s impressive guitar and, like many kids learning instruments, dropped the practice for a bit. It was after one summer, when he was instructed by “an old hippie teacher” he said, that he felt inspired to pursue it. Moore, however, started singing as a child and has yet to stop. 

“I used to sing ‘Bye Bye Bye’ by NSYNC when I was like a little kid, and the Foxwoods Connecticut casino theme song,” Moore said. 

It wasn’t until his teenage years, however, that he began pursuing music. 

“I started playing piano and [playing] the songs I liked, I really wanted to be able to make songs like that and give people the same feeling I was getting,” he said. 

When Dogpark began to move through the levels of stardom, from playing at parties across the University campus, to gaining TikTok fame, to record label companies and managers reaching out, its next move was inevitable: Los Angeles.

Although what appeared to be inevitable for the band, incited some different reactions among the band members’ parents. Harris, who never outright told his family about the decision to pursue Dogpark full-time, said his family saw their first public and sold-out show in New York and were impressed enough to see what the future held. Apostolou, originally a Biochemistry major with a minor in Physics, experienced a slightly different reaction. 

“My parents were, you know, disappointed when I said I wasn't going to be taking the MCAT for a little bit, but they're very supportive, and they love me,” he said. 

Reminiscent of the classic rock star tall tale, the band’s plans for LA took a few twists. Although they arrived with plans to write with various artists, they struggled with the back-and-forth between prospective managers. Dogpark soon twisted onto a new path; one that resulted in the recording of its first EP, “Breaking in Brooklyn”. 

“At the time, like really, we were just going and getting into whatever rooms we could. And it was fortuitous that we happened to stumble upon J.S., who was very talented and able to execute song ideas very quickly and [in a] polished way, ” Moore said, crediting producer John Samuel for leading the collaborative work. 

The band walked into the first session with almost nothing and after a day wrote “A Dive Bar Named Nirvana” from scratch and sent it around its inner circles as an initial test; it was an immediate success. 

As the band matured, so did the writing process, and it is one that Moore said differs on a song-to-song basis. Unless a member comes into the studio with a fully fleshed-out idea that they’d collaboratively pick at until satisfied, the band begins with instrumentals, then the lyrics, which Moore writes. 

“I've pretty much been writing the lyrics because I like to sing my own lyrics. It feels more true to myself when I'm singing,” he said. 

The duty of writing lyrics doesn’t fall solely on the songwriter, however, as Harris explained. The instrumental often can shape what the lyrics become. 

“The tonality and the tempo of the instrumental and the, you know, the brazenness of it or the softness of it, that'll sort of steer Eamon's lyrical direction,” Harris said. 

With five members in the band, it is inevitable to run into disagreements or discussions concerning songwriting, a trait that Harris believes is healthy and often necessary. 

“Oftentimes the ideas that are the most resonant or the most unique aren't immediately apparent or evident on a first listen. So when someone has something that they think is profound and can enhance the song a certain way, other people might not hear it right away,” he said. 

Their purpose as artists, according to Moore, is to do something new. They work under an unspoken standard to steer clear of songwriting tropes and search for innovative and original writing. Each member prefers different music styles, from punk rock to funk, so their natural musical inclinations vary when writing. 

“The way those different influences challenge each other naturally is where you find the unique parts of the band,” Harris said. 

The band, whose chemistry is palpable,  also occasionally challenges each other when playing. 

“I strive daily to reach Declan’s level of playing, and he really does motivate me to be a better guitarist,” Apostolou said. 

Harris quickly denied any difference in level of skill. 

After the success of “Breaking in Brooklyn,” the band sold out shows across the country during its tour, “Breaking In America,” and are set to play at the Governors Ball Music Festival in New York this upcoming June. With nearly 150,000 in attendance at last year’s festival, this performance is set to be one of Dopark’s biggest, alongside notable headliners such as Tyler, the Creator. 

Although most of the band’s members embraced the opportunity to demonstrate their potential, and felt prepared after performing at the Iron Blossom Music Festival this past fall, Harris held a slightly different perspective. 

“I was shaking in my boots before Iron Blossom,” Harris said. “So I am more nervous about knowing I will be nervous right before we go on.”

Before GovBall however, the band will return to its roots, playing at Richmond Music Hall on March 4, to debut its new EP, “Until the Tunnel Vision Melts.”

Listeners should prepare themselves to take a journey through an anthology of different sounds and settings, where each song musically contradicts the last, Moore said. If it were the soundtrack of a film, the band said the EP would score movies like Inception and Back to the Future, traveling through what Moore called a pastiche of different vibes. 

For Harris, who, alongside the band, has been waiting over a year for the EP to go public, the release is both literal and metaphorical. The EP allowed the band to freely experiment with stylistically diverse forms of music, he said, and get it out of their system. 

“To me, [the EP] feels like a thought that has been pent-up and you haven’t been able to say it,” he said.

The title, “Until the Tunnel Vision Melts”, features an unfinished opening lyric written by Moore from a song on the EP. 

“I was indulging myself in a delusion, [it is] the idea of indulging yourself in a fantasy so much that it becomes your reality,” Moore said. 

As Dogpark continues to ascend, transforming its fantasies into reality, the band members find themselves growing not just as musical artists but as professionals as they work to maneuver the dynamic performance industry. For Harris, that means keeping a level head while managing the fluid, ever-changing lifestyle. For Apostolou, it means appreciating the surprising chemistry and flow that exists among the five band members and their team. For Moore, it is embracing the understanding that the industry is unpredictable. 

And for Conte, it is accepting that “It is expensive!” he said. 

Despite charting through the whirlwind of professional growth, the essence of Dogpark remains unchanged. Although born in Richmond, its sound encapsulates an experience that traverses all borders: youth.  

Contact features editor Isabella Corona at bella.corona@richmond.edu