Dave Matthews Band - Concert Review

Randall's Island, NY
7/31/05

Billed as the "Island Getaway" at Randall's Island, Sunday's Dave Matthews Band show fulfilled its promise of escapism with musical virtuosity and a selection of radio hits, live favorites and offerings from the band's latest album, "Stand Up."

The group played with the tightness of an ensemble that has jammed together for 14 years. The grass-roots-minded superstars shared and traded improvisational spaces, navigated mood-changing tempos and explored grooves with spontaneity and excitement.

The band opened with "Every Day," on which singer-guitarist Dave Matthews broke away from his acoustic guitar and gravelly voice to raise his fist and squeak his falsetto for emphasis, singing, "All you need is love."

With the tone set, the socially conscious performers reeled off a series of highlights, including "What Would You Say," which hails back to the band's 1994 debut album, "Under the Table and Dreaming."

Classically trained Boyd Tinsley ripped his bow back and forth across his violin strings, dreads flying as he swirled, absorbed in rhythm. Tinsley grabbed the spotlight again during "Ants Marching" with the distinctive riff that helped catapult the tune to commercial success. Matching Tinsley's hillbilly funkiness was the gusty saxophone playing of LeRoi Moore.

Drummer Carter Beauford, Moore's onetime neighborhood jazz cat in Durham, N.C., tiptoed busily on his kit. Beauford is not a power drummer, but he is a "powerful" drummer. His fusion background and open style offered him a range of melodic sounding beats and rhythms. Dave Matthews Band's signature jumpy, slick bop comes courtesy of Beauford's choices from the band's co-pilot seat. Beauford smiled as he divided sixteenth notes, calmly blowing bubbles with his chewing gum amid the pulses.

On "When the World Ends," Matthews clutched his frets, eyes squeezed tight as he succumbed to that musical tic he gets in his legs; pivoting on the right foot, he alternately shakes the left -- a truly enviable approach to time-keeping. During "Dream Girl," Matthews' animated style continued as he arched an eyebrow, marking select lyrics with heightened emotional importance.

The new album's title track was accompanied by steel guitarist Robert Randolph, whose Family Band performed earlier in the day. Looking for an audience ready to testify, Randolph entered into an extended version of the song and then launched into a fiery version of "All Along the Watchtower." Overpowered by sound, Randolph kneeled to play, while Matthews and bass protege Stefan Lessard surrounded their guest with complex, uplifting, percussive riffs.

Originally published in The Hollywood Reporter 8/2/05.