Remember the days when you and your high school buddies made the annual trip to the Campbells' Field parking lot for the Dave Matthews Band concert? Remember when in the middle of every pilgrimage you got so drunk that you threw up on the walk over to the Tweeter Center? Remember when you saw one of your friends get so drunk that he ran head first into one of those speaker poles, throw up on a couple on a blanket, and then fall down a flight of stairs? Remember when that made you feel a hell of a lot better about your drunken situation? But, do you remember any of the music that night? Probably not. In my experience with the Dave Matthews Band, it's never really been about the music. Instead, it's more about the sheer thrill of what the music represents: getting too drunk and getting away with it. I guess that's one of the reasons why Dave tried to create more diverse, heavier music. If anything, it will help the under-aged shake themselves out of their drunken stupor because they pause to ask themselves if they have stumbled to a Pearl Jam concert by accident.The simple fact is that Big Whiskey is some of the heaviest stuff DMB has ever produced. One of the causes for this experimentation is the death of beloved saxophone player LeRoi Moore, who died in an ATV accident in June of last year during the pre-production of the album. Moore's sudden death deeply shook the band, who must now carry on without a friend and founding member of the group. Big Whiskey serves in part to pay tribute to this extraordinary musician whose presence was previously felt in nearly every song by DMB so far. In the title, the band immortalizes Moore's "Seussical" nickname, "GrooGrux King." Moore's ghost haunts the listener in the first track, "Grux," an instrumental saxophone solo, as well as in a hidden riff track on loop in "You & Me." For the rest of the album, Moore is replaced by Jeff Coffin. The band also added trumpet player Rashawn Ross and guitarist Tim Reynolds (a frequent collaborator with Matthews) to the its personnel. With the loss of Moore, the band needed to adapt to the strengths of the other musicians. In reality, Reynolds fills the void left by Moore with his electric guitar riffs.
The rest of the album acts as a departure from the conventional acoustic jams, mostly due to a greater influence from Tim Reynolds' expertise on guitar. "Shake Me Like a Monkey" does more than add to Dave Matthews' penchant to use the word "monkey" in his songs (wink wink Dave heads?). It's a refreshing change to the repertoire. Matthews shows the versatility of his voice in "Time Bomb," where critics more credible than myself have compared his voice to that of Eddie Vedder. Seems like an oxymoron, but I guess Dave Matthews can rock after all.
The two singles, "Funny the Way It Is," and "Why I Am," although flawed, have their moments. The music is friendly to the ears, but the lyrics seemed forced. "Funny the Way It Is" seems like it wasn't written by the band at all, but by the new lyricist team of Alanis Morisette and SNL's Debbie Downer. There's nothing like putting contrasting yet equally negative scenarios together to make me try and feel bad to make me laugh hysterically. "Funny the way it is, if you think about it / One kid walks 10 miles to school, another’s dropping out / Funny the way it is, not right or wrong / On a soldier’s last breath his baby’s being born." Wah wah ... Moving on. "Why I Am" also suffers from some uninspiring lyrics. This is the song that serves mostly as a direct tribute to Moore, but put together with a misplaced misanthropic commentary on human nature. In the song, humans are merely monkeys that came down from the trees to kill and enslave each other. The transition from denouncing humanity to eulogizing Moore is impossible to follow, so I'll spare you the lyrics.
But if you're looking for the DMB of old, there are plenty of tracks to meet your needs. In fact, one of the best tracks on the album is "You & Me," is a throwback to the pleasing acoustics you've come to know from Dave Matthews. Matthews sings in an inspiring serenade, "You and I, we're not tied to the ground / Not falling but rising like rolling around ... / Our arms wide as the sky / We gonna ride the blue all the way to the end of the world," as Boyd Tinsley's violin strings accompany acoustic guitars. Unfortunately, there are the monotonous songs that fit the past motif. "Spaceman" is a song that just goes nowhere in the style of "Proudest Monkey." True fans of the band would probably enjoy it, but to everyone else, it is predictable and bland. If you're looking for something novel, try listening to "Alligator Pie," the album's banjo track. It's cooler than it sounds, trust me.
For it's faults, particularly in its lyrics, Big Whiskey remains a solid album worth your time. It will be interesting to hear which tracks Dave decides to play on tour and if the kids are going to notice. But this is a major departure for Dave, and you need to decide if you like it or if it's too different for you. So if you plan on going to the concert at the beautiful Camden Waterfront this year, don't get too drunk. You may miss something if you get shitfaced beyond all recognition.
3.5/5
For Your Consideration: "Shake Me Like a Monkey," "Alligator Pie," "You & Me"
For Next Time: The E.N.D. - The Black Eyed Peas
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