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Post by strumntheguitar on Aug 12, 2007 22:58:53 GMT -5
Went to see Dave Matthews tear it up in Bristow, Virginia last night at the magnificent Nissan Pavilion. Here's my take on it....
Toots and the Maytals opened up for him, and the music was fantastic opening. Unfortunately, nobody else seemed to show up for them to play. Looking around I think there might have been 1,000-2,000 people there if that, which is very small for the amount the pavilion holds. Two thumbs up for Toots, though. They really played their hearts out despite the lacking crowd and sweltering heat. A+
Then Dave came out....
Suddenly, as the riffs to One Sweet World came about, thousands of people came flocking down the hill, filling the seats and covering the lawn at the pavilion. I don't know how many people were there, but if I had to estimate I'd say anywhere between 20,000-40,000. It was absolutely crammed shoulder to shoulder as far as I could see. Dave seemed relatively coherent during his performance which was good to see, and he kept his infamous drunken babbling to a minimum, which I also was happy with since I can hardly understand him when he does ramble... (altho his stories usually are hilarious)
I don't have the complete setlist yet, but one thing I noticed and also enjoyed is that he didn't stick to his blockbuster hits from years ago. There was no Crash or Ants Marching, much to my surprise... but he portrayed his true talents which was a nice surprise. Overall, the music I think was a solid A... could've been better and longer jams and maybe a few more songs played (really wanted to hear #41 or Jimi Thing.... but to no avail...)
The crowd, however...
At $10 a can, I didn't think belligerent drunks would've been an issue. Man was I mistaken... I got there early to get a good seat on the lawn, and by the time Dave came on I was surrounded by 5 teenage girls who kept flirting with this douchebag guy in his mid 20's who kept lying off his arse to the girls trying to get some, while the girls kept flaunting to try and get him to buy them beer. After their constant jabber got on my nerves I moved somewhere else, shortly after which I was interrupted by this horribly drunk couple trying to swing dance, while succeeding in bumping into everyone around them and tripping over lawn chairs and people sitting down in the process. The crowd seemed to be there more for the party than the music, which was discouraging... It wasn't quite enough to ruin the show for me, but it came damn near close... :-\
It was my first time seeing Dave, and I must say... while the music was outstanding I don't think I could deal with the crowd full of drunks pouring beer on their head while shouting "PLAY SOMETHING WE KNOW!" during a classic such as Warehouse again... If I see Dave again, it will either be with Tim Reynolds or at some festival where hopefully it won't be full of jerks like it was here.
Did anyone else go to the show last night and have similar thoughts?? I'm curious to know if I just had crap luck with my position amongst the crowd...
man im sorry to hear u had a bad crowd experience.. im going to the tampa show and although its full of your average drunks i seem to enjoy myself and meet nice people.. where u on the lawn or in a reserved seat, usually that can make a huge difference.. anyways lets hope for another dave show at bonnaroo next year..
Post by trippindaisy on Aug 13, 2007 22:13:52 GMT -5
That makes me so sad.
I saw my first DMB show at Nissan - it was when their first cd came out and no one knew who they were. It was one of the most amazing shows I had seen and I saw many more there as they became bigger and bigger. And as they became bigger so did the crowds, along with the obnoxious asses that are there for the "party" and have no clue how talented the band are - and they don't really care.
But at least you got to see them! Living in Nashville, the only chance I get is if they play Roo again....... No matter what anyone says, I still think they are an amazing live band.
Ive been to 20 DMB shows since 2000 and I will gladly put up with the drunken assholes as long as I get that feeling that only a Dave Matthews Band song can give me, Its the only live band that has brought me to tears on numerous occasions.
