This year as part of the thank-you package for renewing my membership in the Dave Matthews Band fan club they thoughtfully included a copy of the latest release in the band’s Live Trax series. Volume Twenty is a recording of a concert from 8/19/1993 at the Wetlands Preserve in New York City. This makes it the earliest official release of concert material from the band, and as such is extremely exciting.
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Several weeks back the guys at NPR music asked a simple question. “What song is the one you’ve listened to most often?” It’s really a simple question, iTunes even automatically maintains a playlist called Top 25 Songs Played. However, I was driven to look deeper. Continue reading »
With the year rapidly coming to a close it seemed a good idea to do some best of lists. First on the docket, top five albums of 2009. Continue reading »
I can’t say I would ever put Tom Morello on the same stage as Dave Matthews Band…and yet…
Live Trax Volume 14 arrived in the mail yesterday. It’s a nondescript show from last summer, so why does it get the Live Trax treatment?
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Some guy named DJ Moondance mashed up DMB and Jay-Z. The result is…surprisingly good. This is going onto the iPhone, word up.
I got an email from Dave Matthews Band today about their new tour — with no dates in the Midwest :/ — but what struck me the most was the picture of the band they used.
LeRoi really is gone. 🙁
As screwed up as it might sound from the outset. Dave Matthews Band played the night LeRoi died. The result is the single most powerful moment I have ever heard from this band. Other people have documented the day and the concert far more eloquently than I can, but each time I listen to another song the raw emotion hits me like a sledgehammer. Part of it comes from the context the listener has, but I truly believe it mostly is a group of supremely talented musicians grieving the only way they know how, through their music. This is a show that is an instant, albeit tragic, classic in the band’s history. While it might be hyperbole or the moment talking, I think it is safe to say that we will look back and say the definitive performances of many songs were played that night. I challenge anyone to find another instance of Bartender with such ferocity, or a Dreamingtree as haunting and urgent. On a night they had every right to crawl into a bottle, Dave Matthews Band stepped up and belted a home run. It’s a remarkable performance to listen to, and a part of me hopes the band offers the show up as a volume in their Live Trax series.
Awful news about LeRoi Moore. It just does not feel real to me, and probably won’t until I next see the band. I’ll need some time to think this one through that’s for sure.
Entering my second day at Rothbury I had one main objective, tape DMB, anything was gravy. Was I able to tame the beast?
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