Stand Up Details Released

By Waldo Jaquith

At a private release party in Charlottesville this evening, Dave Matthews Band made known a number of details about the forthcoming album, now known to be titled Stand Up.

The album, due in May, marks a return to the band's past style, lost somewhat in the shift to the rock stylings of Everyday and the more jazz-based Busted Stuff. Stand Up is laced with a funky beat that's reminiscent of the sound of the band's earliest days in Trax and Floodzone, and has the same upbeat, happy feel that made Under the Table and Dreaming ("What Would You Say," "Ants Marching") and Crash ("So Much To Say," "Two Step") so popular. In the realm of music on the whole, the album represents no huge departure from Dave Matthews Band's sound, but to those who follow the band closely (which is to say, you), Stand Up represents a major evolutionary step in the band's sound. In stark contrast to the process of creating Everyday (which relegated the rest of the band to the role of "the band," rather than members on equal footing with Dave), the process for Stand Up is being described as entirely collaborative, with all members contributing to song writing.

The design of the album cover is now known, too. It will be, simply, the firedancer symbol, rendered in silver rather than flame, on a black background. It's the result of an artistic collaboration between long-time DMB designer Thane Kerner and Stefan Lessard.

The first single -- "American Baby" -- is slated for release in less than two weeks, and should hit the airwaves on Friday the 25th. The song was written the day after Election Day, though the content is quite a bit more cheerful than could have been produced by a band that is known for their strong support of Democratic values.

Finally, all members of the band sing on the album, and one track even features Dave on piano, and has no guitar. DMB is said to be very happy with their collaboration with Mark Batson, having selected him over candidates like The Neptunes and Dr. Dre, and intend to continue to work with him.

Presumably, this information will be released through the media and through Dave Matthews Band's website in a more formalized manner in the coming days.