I have been meaning to write about my past weekend in Noblesville, IN to watch my favorite band of all time – Dave Matthews Band. I traveled to Deer Creek with my two brother in laws and my college buddy. My brother in law, Adam, my college buddy, Tommy, and my friend, James, who I have been friends with since we were 4 months old have traveled each summer watching Dave for at least the past 5 years. This two shows put me over seeing Dave 15 times. I have been to quite a few shows, but nothing in comparison to other fans who are in the 100’s.
I don’t know how to describe the experience. Dave has an energy that the crowd just feeds off of. I have been to too many concerts to count, but Dave is one of the very few that just puts you in a trance with his music and the crowd. You become part of something much larger than yourself. You never know what song you are getting next and with a two night stand you love the fact that both shows will be completely different.
We headed out Thursday night around 5 which is 6 Indiana time. It is about an 5.5 hour drive. About 3 hours into the drive we stopped at a McDonalds for some grub and it was here that I realized I did not pack my wallet. No wallet means I did not have the credit card for the hotel and did not have my drivers license to show for ticket pickup for will call and also for getting into the pubs around town that have music both before and after the shows. Friday morning Amanda was nice enough to send my identification via UPS overnight with a 9:30 am guarantee. That was a nice $80 price tag, but worth every penny.
Thursday night we made it to my buddy’s house who lives in Indy. We stayed up until about 4:30 playing ping pong and old Mario Cart. It does not take much to entertain us!
Friday morning we headed out to the hotel and for some lunch. We got things figured out and headed to the venue around 4 for some Dave tailgating which is such a great time listening to music, talking with other fans, and playing bags. Friday night we had upper pavilion seats and got in to see Gary Clark Jr. open up. He put on a great show. To the left is our seats during the opener. We had to ask people to switch seats so all 5 of us could be together. People are so awesome that nobody even gave it a second thought.
Just as the sun was setting I snapped a picture of the crowd behind us. I love this venue. It might be my favorite venue of all I have been too. There is not a bad seat in the venue.
Here is the setlist for N1
Typical Situation was the highlight. It has not been played by the full band since 9.10.09 which knocked it off the liberation list. I loved Watchtower with Gary Clark Jr. on guitar midset. Nobody saw that coming. I honestly thought this was a rocking show. I loved it. I sang my heart out and I had proof as the next day my stomach muscles and chest were super sore from yelling and singing. Many people we talked with thought the show was mellow, but I dug it big time. Little did I know that N2 was going to be epic by many standards. The new songs sounded great and it won’t be long until the crowd joins in the sing alongs with Gaucho. It is just too new and I remember Big Whiskey songs feeling the same way a few years back and now the crowd just sings their hearts out. I can’t wait for the new album.
Friday night we were back in our hotel around 3 am. It was late by the time we gathered everyone as some of us never made it back to the van. We have a one hour rule and if you are not back by one hour after the show we leave you behind. This sounds mean, but our hotel is less than a mile away and it is probably faster to walk than drive with the way they route the cars.
Saturday morning I was up and ready to get going. All of a sudden we realized this was our last night to our weekend. Around 11:30 we headed over to the venue (well, those of use that were awake). Box office opened at noon and we were told we could get our tickets. My UPS package had arrived and off we went. Unfortunately, all tickets could be picked up except PIT tickets. Yes, we had Pit tickets for N2. We hung out a bit and came back around 3:30 for the 4:00 pick up time. We started tailgating super early and just enjoyed the sunshine, people, and music again. I stood in line, grabbed my ticket and made another ticket exchange for two more pits. We were waiting our last two pit tickets, but we were stood up by a fellow WH member. Luckily, I found two more tickets for my friends so they could see the show.
I made my way to the pit and just was blown away. I have never been so close and I just absorbed it all. I loved watching the interactions and the nonverbal communication of the band. It was so cool. On top of it all the setlist is one that is going to be hard to beat. I later learned Minarets was supposed to start the encore, but for some reason it was scratched. Had they played that it would have been a miracle setlist.
The Dancing Nancies into Warehouse made it for me. I love Warehouse. This song just gets the crowd so into it and this has always been a favorite of mine. If Only is going to be one of my favorites I can tell. I love the vibe of this song. Two Step was mind blowing as always and they completely jammed out hard to end the mainset. Boyd was able to let loose several times during this show and I just love watching him go crazy. Pig was epic. The stuff animals of pigs in the Pit and the excitement this song brings. It just has all the highs and lows that make Dave music so great. You are chill one minute, and singing on top of your lungs the next.
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| I was dead center and about 15 feet back from Dave |
A 20 minute Jimi Thing with a sing along to start, Dave scat(my favorite part of any show), nice jam was just unheard of. Then the crowd started singing Thank You. Dave caught on with Rashawn and next thing you know they are singing Sexy MF along with the crowd. It was just too cool to put into words.
I had no idea what to expect during the encore. I prayed for Halloween. I know it has been in rotation lately, but I have never heard it live and always plead and beg for it. It is one of my all time favorites that I have always wanted live. I got it!!!!!! It was spectacular. I recorded the entire encore, but for some reason the audio cuts out and I can’t hear anything. My phone is all messed up. It started acting up during the weekend where it would just go crazy. It works, but nothing is very easy. It was one of those weekends with not bringing my wallet, phone going crazy, and ticket issues of being screwed out of two VIP Pit tickets. However, it was all worth it due to the amazing shows the band provided.
Below is the setlist. I have listened to this show at least three times since this weekend. I feel so blessed to have been part of this show. You must listen to this show if you are a Dave fan. It will capture you for sure. Head to DMBsteam.com and listen to it. It will make you eargasm.
Thank you DMB for giving me probably my best Dave weekend ever and one of the best shows of all time. I cannot put this show into words anymore. You had to live it, breathe it, and be there to understand how amazing it was.
Yes, I think I am almost back to being recovered from three night of being up until 5 am. This body does not do that anymore as usually by 5 am I am working out not going to bed.
Here is the link to my YouTube channel where I put the videos up that actually worked: http://www.youtube.com/user/aarmau/videos
Here is the N2 setlist
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