From the Vault: Dave Matthews Band Stand Up

As the song All Along the Watchtower goes, "No reason to get excited."

After the disaster that was everyday, DMB’s decision to completely change the way in which they approach their music couldn’t have come to much of a surprise to anyone who had been following them. What perhaps was a surprise, however, was that the band would look to acclaimed R&B/Hip-Hop producer Mark Batson to be the man overlooking the project. Batson’s influence, for better or for worse, are immediately apparent on the albums general feel, as this is probably the first time ever that a DMB album could in fact cause the windows of your car stereo to shake, let alone cause any more than a hum to come from the subwoofer. This harder edge to their sound likens the album in some ways to Before These Crowded Streets, although the overall writing and general quality falls, unsurprisingly quite short of that album. The album is very easy to pass judgment on, as most of the depth that is in the album is not readily or immediately apparent, but something that can only be appreciated on multiple listens all the way through. The opening song of “Dreamgirl” while undeniably sweet, becomes slightly cliché in it’s approach, and the first five seconds will have you believing that you’re listening to The Lion King soundtrack rather than an actual Dave CD. The airy jam of “Old Dirt Hill (Bring That Beat Back)” is almost too catchy to deny, and though repetitive, it is an awful lot of fun to listen to, and probably demonstrates the best example of Batson’s influence through it’s looped violin-picked riff. By far the best songs on this album are “Hello Again” and “Louisiana Bayou,” which are both incredibly gritty, albeit somewhat grim and funky songs, and really shows why the DMB-Batson combination should work really well in the next upcoming album. Another very impressive song is “Stolen Away on 55th & 3rd” which is very heartfelt through it’s sparse arrangement, and is probably one of the few examples where DMB actually tried using a simple approach to their sound. Something else worth mentioning, if possible, be sure to check out some of DMB’s unreleased tracks, particularly “Trouble With You,” which like “Stolen Away” is very sparse in it’s arrangement, only being spiced up by it’s unusual rhythmic pattern, it sounds more like a B-side by the Police (and I mean that in a good way) than anything else. While Dave Matthews Band’s direction is even more uncertain now than it was before, this album should bring fans a lot of hope. Unlike Everyday, Stand Up is a full-band effort, putting other members into the forefront, particularly unheralded pianist/unofficial “sixth member” Butch Taylor. No, Dave Matthews Band isn’t the fun-loving jam band that many Daveheads are missing, and probably never will be, but this is a relatively solid effort, that ridiculously outshines Everyday and even does well against their make-up album, Busted Stuff.

★★★¾