Hard Rock Calling 2009 - Day 3

They put on a great live show

Performers aren't only as good as their albums, they also have to know how to perform to be truly successful. DMB's live shows are full of passionate performances and intimate moments. Obviously they're doing something right, because even now they're selling out arenas for their live performances. (Photo by Fergus McDonald/Getty Images)

2010 NFL Opening Kickoff Presented By EA SPORTS - Show

They let their fans contribute

DMB asked fans in 2006 via their website to send in the names of their favorite DMB songs in order to compile a greatest hits album.  It was released in November of 2006, and it consisted of 2 discs; one of tracks of the band's choosing, and one of live tracks voted on by the fans. (Photo by Lee Celano/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They play covers you wouldn't expect.

Pop bands can add variety to their live shows by playing covers of other songs in the sam style, but DMB sometimes does it a little differently.  They cover songs by Neil Young and Bob Dylan, sure, but would you expect them to cover Talking Heads, Bob Marley or Peter Gabriel? Probably not.
  (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Performs In Senegal For VH1 Performance

They collaborate

DMB has collaborated live and in the studio with the likes of Emmylou Harris, Carlos Santana, Alanis Morrissette, and countless others with results that have pleased fans time and time again.  The DMB Caravan will be the ultimate artist collaboration, bringing an entire weekend's worth of artists together. (Photo by Seyllou/AFP/Getty Images for VH1)

Dave Matthews Band in Concert

They have a loyal fan base

DMB fans got into their music for their own reasons, and it's their own reasons and their undying loyalty that make them stay.  The band has scores of fans that would buy whatever they put out, and still be hungry for more. (Photo by Robert Mora/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band, Ben & Jerry's and SaveOurEnvironment.org Presents

They're philanthropic

DMB has their own charity, the BAMA Works Fund, which puts money and effort towards many different need organizations around the world.  They have helped victims of tsunamis in Sri Lanka, provided funds for education benefits, and contributed to the Haiti relief effort.  This shows their dedication to not only their fans but people everywhere in need. (Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images)

Dave Mathews Band Plays Rothbury Music Festival

Their shows are interesting to see as well as hear

DMB not only puts on a memorable sounding performance, they also amplify it with elaborate light shows and video screens that keep the audience talking well after the concert is over; talking not only about what they heard, but what they saw. (Photo by C Flanigan/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They love what they do, and it shows

DMB was formed by a group of people who love music getting together and creating, and it has stayed that way ever since.  They write music they are proud of, and their passion and effort shines through in their performances. (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

AOL Music LIVE! Presents Dave Matthews Band

They bring other artists and their fans together

Shows like Woodstock '99 and the upcoming Dave Matthews Band Caravan spotlight artists with similar musical styles and influences to DMB, and it not only brings together the variety of musical talent, it also brings together the fans of these talents into one big pot.  The people in that audience are then exposed to hundreds of other artists similar to the ones they love, broadening their musical spectrum by a longshot. (Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images)

44th Annual Grammy Awards - Show

They adapt with the times

DMB's previous releases, starting with 1994's Under the Table and Dreaming and 1996's Crash, and later with 2001's Everyday and 2002's Busted Stuff, have all generated radio hits, but all followed a pretty similar song structure and formula.  Later on, as the demand for more unique, creative songwriting and performance grew, they adapted and came up with 2009's Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King, which shows a great maturity and adaptive quality to their musical and creative style. (photo by Dave Hogan/Getty Images)

AOL Music LIVE! Presents Dave Matthews Band

They let fans tape and share their music

Audio recording is allowed, shockingly, at most DMB concerts so audience members can trade and stream their own recordings of the band for their own personal use and for their friends.  This widens their potential fan base to nearly worldwide, as anyone who has access to a computer can easily get their music and listen to it. (Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band, Ben & Jerry's and SaveOurEnvironment.org Presents

They support

Not only does DMB pay tribute to their fallen brother, LeRoi Moore, at their live shows, they play tribute concerts for any reason to remember something or someone.  They've played concerts in memory of the Virginia Tech shooting victims, to support Barack Obama's campaign efforts, and benefits to support cancer cure research, among many others. (Photo by Scott Gries/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Play Melbourne

They just want people to hear them

DMB is known for giving free concerts, giving their music away for free on websites and on iTunes, and finding new ways to reach out to fans who can't or don't pay for music.  Of course they care about making money, but they have displayed more care in making sure their music reaches fans any way it can. (Photo by Simon Fergusson/Getty Images)

The 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards - Arrivals

They've got award cred

DMB has one Grammy award under their belt, a win for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "So Much To Say" in 1997, as well as 13 other nominations throughout their career.  They've also been nominated several times for MTV Video Music Awards and American Music Awards, and have won 4 My VH1 Music Awards and the NAACP Image Award in 2004. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They can be successful solo

Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds have embarked on solo projects, and have had success.  The shows tended to be more intimate than DMB shows, and the style of music greatly differed; it tended towards the avant-garde and steered very clear of the formulaic DMB writing style. (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They play covers you wouldn't expect

Pop bands can add variety to their live shows by playing covers of other songs in the sam style, but DMB sometimes does it a little differently.  They cover songs by Neil Young and Bob Dylan, sure, but would you expect them to cover Talking Heads, Bob Marley or Peter Gabriel? Probably not.
 
(Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They've been around for a lot of their fans' entire lives

DMB laid down their first studio recording in 1991.  Yes, they do have fans older than 20, but a large number of DMB fans have grown up with their music, and it has stayed relevant to them and kept them going through all phases of their young lives. (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They keep it intimate (when they want to)

DMB has spent years playing huge stadiums and festivals, with giant stages and massive crowds.  But they occasionally play the smaller venue, whether it be Dave Matthews Band as a whole, or just Dave and Tim Reynolds doing one of their intimate shows together.  They can consistently please huge crowds or a small venue, and no matter where they are there will be devoted fans to support them.
(Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They keep it positive

DMB have had some setbacks, their biggest one by far being when their saxophone player from their inception, LeRoi Moore, died from complications of an ATV accident in 2008.  Many thought the band wouldn't continue, or wouldn't have the same success without Moore.  However, they rolled right back from their grief and continue to honor Moore's contribution to the band at their shows, along with their new saxophonist, Jeff Coffin. (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

They have a wide variety of influences.

DMB's music over the years has been influenced by many cultures, artists, and sounds.  They range from folk music to rock and roll to mellow pop, to even a little stint in hip-hop and R&B.  This musical diversity and changes in style has kept fans on their toes since the nineties when they started out. (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

Dave Matthews Band Performs At Madison Square Garden

The lead singer isn't the face of the band

Yes, he dominates the name of the band, but Dave Matthews is only a piece of what makes the band great.  Their backing musicians get as much credit and spotlight as the frontman does, and they deserve it due to the fact that they are all immensely talented musicians. (Photo by Rob Loud/Getty Images)

2009 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Presented By Shell - Day 3

They play everywhere

The tours DMB has embarked on in their years of performing and releasing albums are staggering.  They have graced nearly every city on the map in music festivals, tribute concerts, and their own personal performances, exposing themselves to loyal and potential fans across the country and the world.
(Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images)

2009 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Presented By Shell - Day 3

They know how to break the pop song mold (when they want to)

Most pop songs consist of the classic 4/4 time, drum backbeat on every 2, formulaic sound, and they're generally pretty successful.  DMB follows this pattern pretty consistently, but when they deviate from it ever so much and go in a different creative direction, they can come up with really interesting pop songs.
 (Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images)

Hard Rock Calling 2009 - Day 3

They know how to have fun

On stage, when DMB plays an upbeat song that is just fun, they have no trouble showing that they're having as much fun performing it as the audience is having listening to it.  They'll dance around, or just yell emotively into their microphones trying to get the audience as animated as they are. (Photo by Fergus McDonald/Getty Images)

2010 NFL Opening Kickoff Presented By EA SPORTS - Show

They're a jam band

Jam bands, who play extended versions of their songs, improvising on them and playing whatever they feel on the base of the track are more and more popular these days.  DMB fits that bill perfectly, able to tack on several minutes to their hit songs by just letting loose on whatever instrument is being spotlighted and keeping the audience into the song the whole way through. (Photo by Lee Celano/Getty Images)

The 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards - Arrivals

They make the audience feel something

Solo singer/songwriters and songwriting bands have one thing on the top of their agenda: making the audience feel.  Joyful, frustrated, contemplative, anything reflecting the mood of the song, the Band makes the audience feel.  It's greatly influenced by their live performance and the intensity of the emotion that's displayed. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS)

davelast