Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Damn, I wonder what the “transitional” part meant? Like is everyone done so now it transitions to mixing/mastering or Dave and Carter are done and now it transitions to all the other band members to overdub?

I’m burned by the word “soon” so I hope we hear something about it by early next year.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Sex change prior to release for concept album

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Hopefully after the election we get a LT 54 announcement coupled with an album announcement. If they are releasing this session and its as ready as Dave makes it seem I could see a March 21 release.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

The way he’s been so openly talking about it makes me think this is accurate. Hoping so!

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I’m hoping for December.....

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That could be cool too but seems very quick since nothing official has been announced.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

They could release it digitally like Phish did Sigma Oasis back at the start of quarantine, and then release the physical copies and merch at a later date.

I highly doubt they’d choose to do that, but it’s a possibility.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Oh its absolutely possible to do it. The music should be released in digital or vinyl only. CD's are outdated and useless. Release digital files in December and ship the bundle extras at that time and then ship vinyl when its ready.

The wont do it because thats not what they do. But it could easily be done.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

are there any rumors regarding inclusion of unreleased older tunes beyond the reference to "retro" music? i don't know why i'm holding out for sugar will so hard. there is certainly no legitimate possibility it will live up to my hype.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Agreed. I wish they would do it that way :thumbsup

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I've kind of moved on from Sugar Will, don't care if it's on an album but if it is and others are excited that works

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Yeah, at a certain point it's just not worth hoping for a 16 year old song to show up on a new album.

I think a lot of its magic has disappeared since it came back and was underwhelming. At this point, they might be better off releasing more of it from 2004

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

id take sugar will on a solo album as a stripped down guitar only with no accompanying pieces. when it came back overseas in europe, always liked those performances.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Sugar will has been tweaked to oblivion and imo in its current state isn’t something I’d be keen to hear a studio version of - the pinnacle of it for me was in 2010, what was released on warehouse 10 vol 1. The way they’ve shortened and chopped it up since....not for me.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Sugar Will is one of my all time favorites. I was so bummed when it didn’t make Come Tomorrow, and I honestly think that was it’s last shot at making an album proper. I don’t see them recording it with a third producer for this record with Rob Evans. I think the only chance we get a Sugar Will studio track is as a bonus track with Stand Up or Come Tomorrow reissues down the road.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

This is how I feel. If it's not on the album, I wouldn't be disappointed...but if it is and they nail it, that would be cool

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Crazy to think that whatever they’ve been up to, they’ve wrapped up, per that happy hour thing a page back where Dave answered questions. That to me is wild, that they might just already be wrapped and finished and have an album in the can that just needs mixing and mastering. Of course, we’ve been down this road before and things can and do change, but cool to see hopefully a shorter gap between albums this time. Also, good on them keeping the whole thing quiet....we’ll see if it’s all new jams or new and old stuff, no one knows!

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

totally agree. i'm just thrilled they're still inspired to work together and write and create and release. long gone are the days i hang on every release but there hasn't been an album that i don't find something, whether a studio cut or the liver derivative of the studio cut that ultimately forms (ymdt, for example), that i don't find value in. There are a lot of individual songs of come tomorrow that i really like, like here on out, virginia in the rain, black and blue bird (though not the studio cut), and come on, come on... it's just that that the album itself feels compiled rather than a single cohesive statement. While i'd love bismark or sugar will, etc., maybe it's better if it's a tight group of songs that came about during COVID during a period of inspiration... i'd love to hear an album that sounds cohesive, even if i'm not in love with individual songs at first. not sure that makes sense.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

What won’t surprise me is if we don’t see anything until we know the fate of next summer.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That's kind of their m.o., no? If I recall correctly, the last time they gave us any insight into their studio work was in advance of BWGGK. Everything else comes from bits and pieces through leaks.

Edit: They did release some behind the scenes AFTW stuff, but my recollection is that they were published after the album was released.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjeITMzdoi4

Also, it's been discussed before but the conversation between Dave and Boyd is so awkward. Yikes.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Phish doesn't have a #1 album streak to protect

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Good point and that is another reason why I said they probably won’t do that.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

And therein lies one of the many difference between the 2 bands - Phish wouldn’t care about protecting a streak like that. They’d prefer to do something really special for their fans instead of worrying about that sort of thing. Especially given the current times. But I know this discussion point has been beaten into the ground around here over the years.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Agreed 100%. I love both bands and wish DMB did a lot more things like Phish, but we know that the streak will without a doubt factor in to how they choose to release the next album.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

They might care if they had a streak like that. It's impossible to know since they don't have such a streak. That isn't a knock on Phish or how they operate but you can't pretend to know what they would be like if they had the commercial success of DMB.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

While that is a valid point, Phish have consistently proven to not give one ounce of a care about commercial success. They have consistently done things the way they have wanted and the way they have seen as best for the music and for the fans.

I get what you're saying, but I also think it's fair to pretend when they have nearly 40 years of behavior to back up that point. They're different dudes.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

:lol Another thread with Phish comparisons... it's so weird that a pop/rock (sometimes prog) band with a huge amount of commercial success would operate differently from a jamband. :rolleyes

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

DMB has done the Drive In shows and Dave has done a lot of performances, now talking about bringing Carter in for similar performances and have an upcoming album. I don't know much about Phish but as a fan of DMB I've been happy with what they have given us this year. In comparison to other bands I'm a fan of they have done as much if not more for the fans this year.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

In the video posted Dave said everyone was there except for Fonz. I assume he was just adding his parts from home?

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I think the whole of human behavior disagrees with your take. Think about how you would change if you won the lottery. Everything about your life would change. A lot of good, a lot of bad, but it would change just about everything. You would be in situations you never have been before and you don't "know" how you would react.

If Phish's career had taken the same trajectory of DMB from a commercial success standpoint there is no telling what they would have done throughout their career or what they would be doing now. The same is true the other way around. We can't assume DMB would be DMB as we know them if their commercial success mirrored that of Phish.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Dave said everyone was there...Fonz flew in IN a hazmat suit was one of his jokes.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Yeah, the horns being last doesn't surprise me at all... Fonz placement is weird (after Tim/Buddy) and I'm not sure I like it. Seems like he was an afterthought. We'll see how things turn out. I do really like that he seems to have worked very closely with Carter throughout (first one in, last one to leave).

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I think we’re in for a very different album than we’ve heard before, given the two newer tunes we’ve heard. Dave seems to be getting more and more into softer singer/songwriter tunes, which is not a bad thing given the quality music and lyrics in both songs. That said, each year and each album seems to head in the direction of Dave Matthews, featuring the band. I actually liked Come Tomorrow minus the title track. I’ve accepted it’s not really DMB anymore and look forward to watching and listening to Dave as he progresses as a songwriter in the back half of his career. Of course I wish it was still the 2002-DMB, but those years are behind us.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

It has always been Dave Matthews' Band.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I'll never understand why people can't see that this is DMB, that there are many eras and lineups and changes throughout their history and this is current DMB, I'm clearly in the minority on it on Ants though.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Wow that's great that the album is done or close to being done. I'm glad that they used this year to make an album.

I saw on Instagram Stefan said yesterday: "You have no idea what goodness is going to be coming from this band soon. Patience is a virtue."

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I'm going to guess release window closer to CT. They'll announce the new album early next year (like "Happy New Year and new DMB coming soon!"), and release it early summer.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

<band surprise releases Everyday 20th anniversary vinyl>

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Totally agree. I love the band in its current form but people hoping for an addition to the Big 3 are just fooling themselves at this point.

That's not to say that Dave and the current lineup can't make something equally good. It just won't be anything similar to UTTAD, Crash, and BTCS.

And for what it's worth to the bolded, in 2002 people were wishing for 1998 DMB, and in '98 (until live performances of BTCS tunes came together on stage and won people over) people were wishing for '94 DMB.

We're all chasing that feeling the music that originally brought us to the band made us feel. I don't know that that's something that can ever possibly be recaptured. Obviously most of it is that the band and Dave's writing has changed -- but we've also changed as individuals. Part of it is on us. In my opinion, we have to realize this in order to let go of that hope to just hear a BTCS Part 2 or something, and appreciate the new way Dave Matthews and these musicians choose to make music. And maybe it's not your cup of tea, and that's okay, too.

I feel like whenever a new album is on the horizon this kinda stuff has to be reiterated haha.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I completely agree with this. My first love will always be the OG five, but I enjoy being able to bounce around to different eras and hear different styles and ways of playing the songs. I really love the Buddy era minus a few spots where I wish someone would play Boyd's melodies. But all in all, it's still DMB to me, just not the DMB I grew up with, which is fine.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

If you remember the clip of Fonz playing a bassline he created over the first clip of Dave playing Sing from the Windows (or whatever the final title is), I think:
1) he's been working on adding parts remotely,
2) it's not unlikely that Dave sent him stuff, possibly the stuff w/ Carter so he work on parts for the songs, and
3) that once things were settled musically Fonz came in to for the band to work together AND lay down finalized parts.

The idea of them working up stuff separately/remotely is part of we've been talking about over the summer and it sounds like it may be what they did (albeit quietly). Fonz had a musically busy summer too, so I think he's been ready to do whatever was needed whenever it was needed.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Yeah, but you're not alone.

It's their journey and while we're lucky enough to be able to go along for the ride, we aren't going to like everything...nor are we (as humans) able to not share our opinions.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That's awesome...'cuse me while I check the 'Gram...

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That would suck...in the worst sorta way...

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Wonderfully stated. My only "disagreement" is bolded...

I'm always looking for new/new-to-me music to enjoy. It can be from a band that I already know and love or someone I've either never heard of. Often, it's someone that I know of, but hadn't really "listened" to. So I get that feeling of joy of something "new" rather regularly. And as I stated ad nauseam, I LOVE listening to bands/artists evolve...even if I don't necessarily like all of the explorations.

DMB remains one of those loved bands that I'm eager to hear new stuff from. So, I'm looking forward to hearing this stuff if they choose to release it. While I hope I like it, it won't be a big deal if they release another album that doesn't speak to me.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

It'll be interesting to see how/when this album is released. A big part of the reason why CT debuted at 1 again is because it was included with tickets purchased for the 2018 summer tour. Since tickets for the 2021 tour have already gone on sale, the only way for them to utilize the strategy again is for them to add shows, do a fall/winter/spring tour and include it with tickets sold, or lastly, announce 2022 early and include it with those ticket sales.

Edit: Or perhaps they can announce some live stream dates and charge a couple dollars for access and include the album with those tickets purchased?

Double edit: Or could they retroactively offer to people who have purchased tickets for the 2021 tour the option of (a) a small refund; or (b) no refund but a copy of the album. Wonder if that would be a work around to get ticket sales to count towards the amount of sold albums.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

They really should do a low key release without all the radio and talk show stuff. Just release it and do a full band live stream show for like 5 or 10 bucks to access that gets donated to some cause and play the new album start to finish from Charlottesville live with every band member spaced out like Trey is doing every friday. They dont need any more money and should focus on their fan base cause at this point a new album really isnt going to get new fans.... its for the people who are looking for it

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That works for download codes redeemed but not for the physical copies given away with tickets. A straight physical media giveaway isnt counted in the #'s, the consumer has to make some sort of (minimal) effort. so if you check a box to add the CD to your ticket order, that likely counts. Or they include a DL code and you use it, that counts. Billboard rules are pretty straightforward and it sounds like they are looking to tighten them down even more next year.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Why would that suck? You wouldn’t have to buy it. I’m still looking for them to release Everyday, Busted Stuff and Stand Up on vinyl to fill out the catalog.

Also, Some Devil would amazing if done well

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Sorry to be this guy, but does anyone have a link to this interview? I saw someone said it was on the siriusxm website but still can't find it when i put in In Conversation-Dave Matthews. Thanks!

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

This is well said

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

It's definitely exciting to hear multiple band members say something along the lines of "this is going to be very different than what's expected".....but Stand Up and Everyday fit that bill as well :lol

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Assuming the 2021 summer tour goes on as planned, I would hope that any new album comes with a Fall/Winter 2021 tour. I'm excited for some new music, but I don't want the first tour back after a break like this to be an album tour.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I see your point but I disagree. Give me new DMB ASAP. I want the tour to happen as scheduled or as close to scheduled and normal as possible but if that doesn't happen I want something new from the band to experience. The Dtive In was great but it was nothing new. All the Dave solo stuff has been amazing and I'm grateful for it but it isn't the band. A new album, with or without a tour, would give us something new from the band and I'm all for that.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

:thumbsup Seems plausible that that's the way it went down. Hopefully we'll know more next week!

https://twitter.com/SLessard/status/1320760456005308416

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I agree with the bold - if 2021 summer tour doesn't happen as planned I want new material ASAP. If it does happen, I can wait until next fall.

My ideal scenario is a 2021 summer tour, 2021 fall album tour, and then back to a 2022 regular summer tour.

I'm also considering that 2021 is the band's 30th anniversary. I have no idea if that will actually affect the tour/setlists/whatever, but if the summer tour turns into an album tour that possibility is basically out the window.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

While I never listen to ED or SU and wouldn't buy them on vinyl, the main reason is the joke implied that the big exciting news would be a reissue of one of their least regarded albums.

Some Devil vinyl is some I'd buy...shoulda bought it way back when...

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

After talking with friends at Warner and Universal - you can no longer bundle albums with ticket sales to live shows. The rules are changing every single year. And they are also different for each country. Example: Germany's rules for this stuff are much different than the USA's.

You also can't do it with merch bundles, so if DMB sold a (new album design) shirt, you can't put a digital download of the album with it. That one literally just changed, since Taylor Swift was doing it all year before the rule change. The question came about because I was wondering why the Linkin Park Hybrid Theory 20th Anniversary merch didn't come with digital downloads when Taylor Swift's folklore album merch did.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That's a definite concern for me...these albums get ZERO play from me. I also don't care for hearing more than three songs from these albums live, and even then it's more like "...at least it's not TSB or Bayou..." and nothing close tp "Yay, I love this song".

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

No longer bundle albums? When did this start because I got tickets to James Taylor for next year and I got his new album with my tickets.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Artists can bundle all they want, but Billboard won't count it towards sales/streams/whatever-other-methods-they've-deemed-valid for determining the "success" of an album.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Literally like a month or two ago with Billboard.

Yeah. It just happened - you could do it all the way through the summer for Billboard to count it so I guess it changed sometime around September. They are constantly working on ways to shut this stuff down and promote REAL album sales, but of course it doesn't change anything in the past.

Check out the Billboard vs DJ Khaled lawsuit about the energy drink bundles.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Could not agree more on this. Improv with the horns, violin, keys used to be what I loved most about the band. Way too structured these days and not enough improv

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Apparently, if you vote for Biden, Stefan will share information about the album. He is an absolute tool.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Yeah politics aside, his twitter is insufferable. It's nothing to do about music or the band, and 100% bash trump, pushing Biden. I get he can have an opinion but holy shit it's just a feed clog at this point.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I normally agree that his twitter is not great, but I thought his actual comment in this case was funny and harmless.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

So I would think this definitely helps the chances of a new DMB album coming sooner rather than later since there is no incentive to wait until tickets go on sale for another tour.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

They wouldn't be publicly talking about an upcoming album if it were tied to a tour

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

As if I needed another incentive..

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

It has already been noted above that you can no longer link album sales to ticket purchases....so this is really a moot point, but I think it's likely that Dave is completely disconnected from the business side of things. So while he's excited and talking about the new music, there are tons of people on the business side of things that could have, in the future, said to him...we need to hold off until xyz because we'll get way more album sales then. In addition, the label likely has a big say in these types of things. Also, this is DMB...there's been so many sessions that we have heard about that in the end, turned into nothing. So while it definitely seems like an album is coming, it would not exactly be unheard of or even surprising for this session to be shelved.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

On an unrelated note, do people here want Singing From The Windows and The Ocean and The Butterfly to be included on the album? They are good songs but they were not written during these sessions.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Well yeah I completely agree it could be slowed down or put off for a lot of reasons, I'm just saying they wouldn't talk publicly about an album if it were tied to a tour. Talking about it implies something is likely close, there is no guarantee of a tour anytime in the foreseeable future. If hypothetically it were 5+ years until a normal size tour I don't think they completely stop releasing music just because they can't support it live.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I was saying that I think it's entirely possible that Dave has no idea that it should be tied to a tour...so I don't think that him talking about new music is indicative of anything. The whole thing is moot though.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Well, Dave had 11-12 songs written and ready for the band to come in, so I’m not sure we can say anything was “written during these sessions”. Idt we have a good enough definition for the timeline of this stuff yet. From the sounds of it, Dave decided to bring guys in after writing the “Walking Around the Moon” tune.

I’m not sure what we could categorize as being written during these sessions honestly...

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I wouldn't be surprised if they are but I'd prefer them not to be, Windows is nice but I view it more as a one off pandemic year thing, I don't really love the second song

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

What I had gathered from Dave's comments during these recent streams and interviews was that all the writing he had done with Rob Evans was relatively recent. Windows, as we know, was written at the beginning of the pandemic (and was copyrighted in March). TOATB was written at the absolute latest, in July (as that is when it was copyrighted). That's a pretty big gap, if we assume the sessions are relatively recent. Of course, they could have been tweaked, modified, re-written, etc. during these sessions.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I agree, although I think the pandemics influence may be unavoidable.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

The sessions just concluded, but Dave has been in Charlottesville for a good while now. Not sure when they started.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Also, do we have a timeline for when Dave started working with Rob and called Carter? There was quite a bit of time in the summer where he definitely slowed down the live stream performances. If they are legit done recording a full album, I’d think they would have been working through late summer right? I expect Ocean and Butterfly on the album either way.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I feel like they have to be... why else wouldn't they be releasing them now as stand alone / charity singles on iTunes like so many other artists have done this year. I feel like they will be included, at least maybe on a WH deluxe disc or something like Little Red Bird

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I get the feeling Ocean / Butterflies is part of these sessions. They already wrapped up the sessions as of October, that song was registered on July, that’s 3 months. Dave was in Charlottesville over the summer and there were rumors and talks about recording even back then. So I’d imagine the sessions probably ran from July-October 2020.

Now Singing form the Windows was written before at the beginning of the pandemic. He was still in Seattle when he started playing it. I personally wouldn’t want to see the song make the new album, I too think it should be left alone as a one off quarantine song.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I think the fate of what’s happening depends on covid.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Not sure of the full recording timeline, but the horns were in the studio no earlier than 10/11 and were out by 10/17.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

What's up Jeff!

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Lol I’m not Jeff, just sharing what I know anonymously.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Well what else do you know?

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

That’s all I know for now in all seriousness, and I don’t expect to find out much more, so don’t get too excited

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Can confirm what Sax just said.

Horns were last.

I do have more details on timeline but cannot share yet.

Pumped to see what Rob and Dave were able to come up with and how everything is going to come together with those two seemingly leading the charge.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Sounds like plenty of time for horns assuming the music they are playing over was finalized

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Timeline seems something like this -- July/August: Dave writing a lot of new stuff, Mid-September the latest: Dave working with Rob and recording stuff at HH, Late September: Call in Carter, Late September/Early October: Call in Buddy/Tim, Early/Mid October: Call in Stefan, 10/11-10/17 ish: Horns record, 10/22: Carter still recording some percussion

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Without giving away anything you shouldn't do you expect the music to be released in the near future?

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

My guess is that there are more horn players than we think on this album, for you to know that.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I don't know but I doubt that.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

I'm just hoping for Jeff to have a strong presence, forget two sax's the last album barely had one. As for additional instrumentation I would love Hamilton de Holanda or Bela put on here and there but obviously not expecting it.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Yeah, especially for Jeff. He's a straight up jazz musician and has recorded full albums of songs with his bands and as a sideman in a couple of days. We're talking from having NO music/seeing the music for the first time or doing last touches on music that he's written or already been exposed to and working on. Rashawn doesn't have that level of experience in the jazz world where you're expected to create and record parts live in single takes in the realtime of the length of the song...at least as far as has been shared with us. BUT, he's a first rate musician that can read, learn, and play parts simultaneously. Working with Roi and Jeff has undoubtedly upped his improv/creation game.

Really looking forward to hearing what the band's done. I'll buy it right away to support the band, I just hope I actually like it to. That said, I'm ready to hear something different that'll surprise us.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Any ideas on how many songs they have? Assuming 10-14ish for a full album

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Bruce, without being too specific..... can I expect this vinyl under my Christmas tree or in my Easter basket?

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Now that I have no idea on yet. Things aren’t finished

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

Over 10, under 14.

Re: New Album Coming Soon?
 

This skill set just blows my mind, I've been in the studio since late August and there's just no way my brain works like this haha