Where Did That Come From?
by Joe Leverone
Like some of you, I made the trip to SPAC last weekend. I was only able to to make it to the second of the two nights this year, but it turned out to work out perfectly. Located in the beautiful town of Saratoga Springs, NY, SPAC is undoubtedly my favorite venue to see Dave Matthews Band. Not only does the energy of the crowd surpass what I've seen from fans at other venues, but DMB generally plays outstanding setlists at SPAC--these shows are always shows to remember.
After Night 1, I wasn't quite sure what to think. The setlist was flawless, and had the looks of a Night 2 show. I had my doubts about what the second show could bring. I was dreading the thought of seeing Out Of My Hands, You Might Die Trying, Where Are You Going, SpaceBread, and Crash all making appearances at a Night 2 show. Oh, how wrong I was.
I don't need to preach to the choir here. You all know how special the show was. 6 tour debuts; 1 song debut; the most well rounded encore we've seen in years. This setlist came out of nowhere. Nowhere! The band I was watching on stage hardly seemed like the same band I saw at Darien Lake just a few weeks before. I was so shocked at the setlist after leaving the show that it hardly mattered that my tent was soaked, I was out of food, and I had no dry clothes.
The show did give me a bit of an uneasy feeling however. Don't get me wrong, it was probably the best show I've seen the band play, but how can one not wonder where the creativity has been for the entire tour? Shake Me opener? Typical Situation? The Stone? Halloween? Halloween wasn't even on the set, mind you, they played it because the crowd was chanting it. How often does that happen?
There is no doubt that the band loves Saratoga. Saratoga loves DMB right back. But I'm also on your side, you, the fan who can't make it to Saratoga, the fan who makes it to one, maybe two, shows a year at the same venues that aren't part of the "Big 3 Venues." Where do you fit into the mix? Where is your Halloween? Or your 6 debuts in one show? You deserve it just as much as the next fan does. We're all fans here. We all have a passion for Dave Matthews Band that overcomes the passion of fans for any other band. We all deserve a SPAC Night 2 somewhere along the line, eh?
I've been reading the boards, and I understand all of the arguments; especially the one that says that DMB simply can't play shows like that every night, because then the songs just won't be as special, but when Halloween had its run last year wasn't that special to the fans that were there? It's all about the opportunity. We all should have the oppertunity. I'm just for seeing a few random venues get the nod from DMB a couple times a year.
With that being said, it will be interesting to see what the rest of the tour brings. The new songs will evolve, and the shows will be special. There is so much to come, and it's going to all fly by right in front of us, so let's enjoy what we have now. Just think about it, though.
Enjoy the rest of the tour folks, I'll see you all at SPAC next year.
Joe Leverone is a Content Editor at Weekly Davespeak. You can contact him at Joe@WeeklyDavespeak.com
