Am I right side up or upside down?

CONCERT REVIEW: DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
Post-Gazette Pavilion, Pittsburgh: August 10, 2007

After 15 years, the Dave Matthews Band is still sounding as good as ever. This was my 15th DMB show, and it ranks as the 3rd or 4th best. The band was very tight, Boyd Tinsley got several incredible violin solos, including one at the end of "Louisiana Bayou" that seemed like it would never end. That song was a particular highlight - it may be the band's most underrated track. Another major high point was "Sweet Up and Down," a song I love from the unreleased Lillywhite Sessions that is rarely performed live. Dave played four new songs, and "Cornbread" really stood out as a playful up-tempo track with a country vibe.

Dave's voice sounded as good as I've ever heard it. He was letting loose on some lines that he previously could only sing in falsetto.

The best moment of this concert for me came during "Crush," a song I'm still loving more and more every time I hear it. During the final chorus, when the lyrics change to "We'll be facing/My love!/By love!/We'll beat back the pain we've found," a large percentage of the crowd sang along loudly. I was really surprised to hear that, as it's an older song and (I thought) a fairly obscure lyric. Over the years, it seems the DMB fanbase has included more and more bandwagon jumpers, so I never expected so many people to know that line, let along sing along with it. It put a huge smile on my face and it was one of those moments that reminded me why I still go to see this band.

Blast from the past: The "Crush" music video. This is a cool video - the martini bar setting fits the mood of the song perfectly.