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Just your
"Everday" Dave
by Spencer
Ross
I have to
say, for all the hype about the new Dave Matthews Band album, Everyday,
I was pleasantly disappointed. Don't get me wrong, I like Dave
Matthews, I like this album, but there isn't really anything so
spectacular about it that it merits more than 3 1/2 stars. He
makes a valiant effort in switching to an electric or baritone
guitar on many of the songs on this album, but I don't think its
had too much of an effect on the style of his music at all. In
fact, Dave's traditional use of acoustic guitar is what used to
give his music a sense of innovativeness in the progressive-jam
rock genre. The Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds Live at Luther
College shows his adept technique at playing the acoustic
guitar in a way that many musicians do not do today. On this
album, he shys away from that. Gone are the extensive jams that
Dave is known for, but all the songs are trimmed to a tight,
radio friendly timing. To get the significance however, you have
to realize that this album comes at a time where Dave is
struggling to figure out what there is left to do as an artist.
With the music that everyone knows, Dave has amassed a fan base
in the hundreds of thousands, record sales in the millions, and
broken out the Billboard Music charts. Dave Matthews Band has
rivaled the success of bands such as the Grateful Dead. For a
band that's done everything one could do in the music industry,
what's left to do? On Everyday, Matthews hopes that he
can change his style by plugging in.
Everyday
opens with the first hints of Matthews' electric guitar on the
single, "I Did It." Musically, this is a very catchy
song, with a chorus and hook that sinks into your brain and
lyrically shows Matthews as reaching out to the world, as if he's
got something to prove with this album. That's what most of the
rest of the album is- proving that even the band with it all can
take their music in another direction. They continue doing that
on "When the World Ends," one of my favourite songs on
the album, where he sings of treasuring the last moments of
apocalyptic ending. As an artistic touch, the song ends in the
mid-climax in the middle of a word. On "The Space
Between," Matthews' lyrics are like much of the album,
discussing relationships, yet straying away from any clear cut
concept about what his point is. The music moves along well until
an awkward pause and then a chord change. The love song "So
Right," is lyrically reminiscent in a stylistic manner of
"Two Step," with Dave singing "Roll uptown to
midnight/Then roll on downtown till its light/Because tomorrow we
may die/Oh but tonight we're dancing in the late light." In
typical Matthews manner, his lyrics are very universal, which is
perhaps what gives them universal appeal.
On "If I
Had it All," Matthews is pulling into himself and bringing
out the darkness that had set the mood of the recording sessions-
pulling back from all the fame and self-assessing, "As if
nobody can even see me, like a ghost/I can't see myself
sometimes." Matthews makes it evident that this record is
out to prove to himself that he's still got it in him. "What
You Are" opens somewhat trance-like and then bursts into
full swing, with probably the first big show from violinist Boyd
Tinsley on the album. Tinsley's dark touch on this song accents
it and makes it rather pleasing. But this is where you start to
question where saxophonist LeRoi Moore has also been.
Unfortunately, Moore and Tinsley aren't used amply enough on this
album, which had disappointed me. In effect, Moore barely grazes
the entire album until the end. The potential for him to fill the
Pearl Jam-y song "Angel" is there, but is not used.
It's really not until "Fool to Think" that both Tinsley
and Moore get larger parts.
Even the song
"Mother Father" is rather subdued with a guest
appearance by Carlos Santana, who basically layers another
acoustic guitar track through the entire song (There is some of
his electric guitar in the chorus). The song works well, moving
down the scale and then up a key during the chorus. But Santana's
track is one of the few solos on the album. The highlight of the
song though isn't necessarily Santana's part, but Carter
Beauford's ability to keep up with the song as a drummer,
providing a latin beat during the verses. This definitely changes
the style of the album, which finally culminates in a few bars
gospel opening for the song "Everyday." On this song,
Dave goes back to his acoustic guitar. This song is definitely a
great ending for the CD, rather subdued, but very upbeat, even if
Matthews has to steal the phrase, "All you need is
love." "Pay no mind to taunts or advances/I'm gonna
take my chances everyday," sings Matthews. The song reminds
me of "Stay (Wasting Time)" only not as upbeat and more
mellow, rounding out a fairly decent album.
This album
has been available through fans on Napster for a while. But
unlike many other bands, Dave has not been concerned and record
sales will still show the fans' devotion to the band. (A
floormate of mine had burnt a full copy of the CD about two or
three weeks before its release and had still purchased a real
copy on its release date.) Real artists make music to make music
and even when they've exhausted themselves and made all the money
they want, they still keep at it. That's what Matthews has done
here. Real fans know that and will support listening to the new
style of an old band. Unfortunately, while Matthews new style
works on this album, he doesn't give the fans enough of what
they'd like. He probably knows that, and probably doesnt give a
shit. The fans know that when they see him step out on the stage,
that he'll give these songs the length they deserve, the jams
they deserve, and a little more prominent usage of the
instruments Dave Matthews Band skimps out on.
2/28/01
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