Dave
This was my tenth show for dave and my fourth at the target center. Fist off the show was great. The guys played the crap out of each song. pig was great, dancing nancies is never a let down and bartender was the best I have heard. Dreamgirl was great as well as Bayou. Now for what I didn't care for. The target center is just a horriable place for a show. The sound is bad.

Peace
I think that this was definately an average dave show. I have been to around 20 shows in the last five years and this one was definately average. I know that the Target Center sucks for sound but had like third row tickets. I think that almost every show that I have ever seen have included OSW, Nancies, and WWYS. I was very let down that he played Crash because I hate that some. They played it at Bonnaroo too and I hated it there two. It is such a poppy song that screaming little girls know and scream along with. I loved to new jams and new songs. They did some great expirementing and Butch had an awesome show.

I just like to see a varied setlist when I go to a show. Not just a dave show but any show. I little variety is good.

OZMAN
For starters, the Target Center is quite pathetic for sound. THe Xcel Center is much better acoustically. Gavin Degraw, please. DMB has had much better openers than this vanilla crapload.

I heard on the radio that Brian Oak of Cities 97 interviewed Dave the day of the show adn he said Dave was super hungover. That may explain the mediocrity of the show.

As for the show itself, I give it a 6 out of 10. The setlist was good. I always love hearing Nancies and Granny. Boyd, by the way really cooked on Nancies. My biggest observation of this tour which includes the San Fran shows I saw, is that the band starts off rockin' and then gets real mellow in the middle before cranking it back up again. I think this bores the crowd some. Especially the casual listener. Maybe it has to do with some of the new songs. I think they are less jam driven and more "pop-ish." I like that the band trys to expand and grow, yet I have been to lots of shows starting back in '94 and they used to "jam" more, like on Nancies at the Target Center.

Overall, the band delivered to those in the lower level, but if you were up top, it was not worth the ticket price.

Jimithing76
This was show # 19 or 20, lost count. It was decent. I thought they'd be more amped up being the first show of the tour. Maybe they were a little rusty?? The target center just sucks for sound, absolutely horrible. I'm convinced that they have some kind of contract with the target center, which is why they haven't played excel yet which has far better sound. I had good seats, 2 rows off floor on boyds side stage level. Great view, not so great sound. The setlist was great, pig, nancies, i love hunger for the great light. Dave forgot the words to tripping billies and the mic was off during butch's scat in one of the other tunes, i was so pumped to hear that too. I guess i'm spoiled from seeing them at alpine every year and at the red rocks benefit show in september. This was the worst old dirt hill i've heard. Sounded much better last summer at alpine and red rocks. Hopefully next time they come they will be at excel.

Rick H.
OK

The beginning of the show was great with a wide variety of new/old jams and short and sweet songs. The middle was filled with average musical diversity. Obviously trying to promote the new album which had been out for too long already. My first show was in 95 and it was beyond me. Dont get me wrong, i do like the new album (somewhat) but to put on an incredible show, you need at least a 100 song list to fulfill the needs of the fans. That is where i think dmb lacks and he needs to realize that if he wants to put on a great show, he needs to write and cover more songs. i study music especially live music and festivals in the music industry, and this show just wasn't up to par.

sorry to all who think that its the target center's fault. yes, the sound sucks bhut that doesnt make or break a show. dylan played many times where the sound was awful but that didnt matter, it was all about the feel and character of the show. Dave forgot the words of Trippin' which is fine if you are jamming or if you have put on an amazing show. But this show wasn't incredible and he forgot them after playing way too many songs off of the new album to promote it. I love dave and i think he has some great stuff in store for the public, but this show was not one of them strictly based on the setlist and the opening act. Gavin is awful and that is a fact. I loved when Yonder Mountain opened for them and gave them a level too fulfil and go over for the show. Gavin does nothing for anyone but teenage girls and even a bar act could out do the attitude and soul to the show. gnight im tired, but it was a fun show at least like every live music event is

Eric
This show was incredible. My friends and I weren't really sure what to expect as this was our first winter tour show. This show absolutely blew our minds. WWYS, Granny, OSW, and Nancies were an amazing opening four songs. Dreamgirl sounded great live. Then they kicked it into high gear and played an amazing version of Pig and Bartender. Leroi's pennywhistle jam at the end of Bartender was just awesome. American Baby Intro was so intense. And of course Jimi Thing rocked. A highlight for me was their version of Louisiana Bayou. First time I've heard it live and it definitely rocked. I think a lot of people were expecting a Christmas Song encore (myself included) but were not disappointed to find Old Dirt Hill and Tripping Billies in the encore. This show was definitely a great one and I'm looking forward to next summer! Cheers.

Heather
The Minneapolis show ROCKED!!!! Was so happy to hear Bartender! it blew my mind! The songs off the new album were fantastic especially Old Dirt Hill, which was one of the encore songs. I don't really care for that song in general....but after hearing it live I've changed my mind totally about it! The energy in the room was electric, and I think that transferred to the band as well! They played thier hearts out! Always nice to hear Granny, Dancing Nancies, and Jimi Thing, although I have to admit I didn't care too much for Crash. All in all, a Fantastic show!

Adam
This was a magical show last night! This was my 5th show, third at Target Center, and by far the best of those three shows. This isn't the greatest venue for Dave or any other band (Why not go to Excel in St. Paul?) but this time the energy was SO up and the crowd was great. Dave was the most playful and happy I've ever seen. The highlights for me were Bartender and Jimi Thing. Dave was almost exasperated trying to get Butch to take his solo....he brought up the house lights and pointed at Butch with both hands, imploring him to take over...then after his mesmerizing 5 minutes, Dave unsuccessfully tried to get him to do ANOTHER solo. When Butch balked, Dave took it himself to do a scat solo complete with air guitar. It was a sight to behold. The other surprise highlight for me was the trumpet work of Rashawn Ross. What a force he was, and he played up there like he's been with the band for 10 years. The crowd went nuts for his solo during Jimi Thing. The band played for almost 2 hours and 45 minutes....Just incredible!

Richard N.
The show was amazing!!!!!! Bartender was awesome exspecially at the end when they jammed with it!!!! Pig , Jimi Thing and Dancing Nancies were always good to hear. Boyd was on fire the whole concert and his Dancing Nancie solo was incredible!!!!!!!!!! I went to Alpine this year and never though i could see a better concert but the one at the Target Center is up there

Jaymes
Great opening 7 songs or so. Then the stand up stuff came in and I wasn't thrilled about that. Hated the encore. ODH is such a terrible song and Billies just doesn't really do it for me. Was hoping to see some 2 step or Watchtower. The crowd seemed lackluster at times, but the band was AMAZING. Fresh off a few month break they were ready to to come in on fire. This show started so good, I just wished the middle and encore could have been just as solid. The last 3 songs of the main set were amazing as well. (Bayou is the only Stand Up song I like)

Eric
I have to say that this show was great and had a very nice mix of songs. I do have to say that the acoustics in the target center are horrible though. Dave was able to pull it off but they just didn't seem to flow so much. I guess alpine vally last summer spoiled me rotten. I look forward to alpine next year and maybe hopefully the guys can come play at Xcel next time. all in all a great show!! thanks guys

RUDEE
This was my second time seeing the band at the Target Center and a far better experience. Anyone who arrived at the venue early (before Gavin DeGraw came on), got a nice little treat when Dave came out and did a little "davespeak" for about 5 minutes, funny stuff. To speak on Gavin DeGraw, I think he rocks, but his sound just isn't for me.

Now on to the band. The show started off really decent with WWYS, not necessarily a song I care for, but a high energetic song that really gets the crowd going. They followed that with 3 old favs. Granny, OWS, and Nancies (all of which were good, especially Nancies). Dreamgirl was an OK filler after 4 rocking songs; the band then followed with versions of pig and bartender that were both fantastic. At this point the show went a bit south for me, with 4 of the next 5, coming from Stand Up, with a funked out Jimi Thing in the middle. Crash is always a fan favorite and it was good to hear as I havent heard it at a show in several years now. I very much enjoyed Bayou, didn't really care for it on the CD, but the song rocks live. Too Much was good, though I feel that the band plays it too often (or maybe I just hear it too often). Encore was very good Old Dirt Hill was good, and Trippin Billies was a good rocker to end the night.

Ryan
the concert was AMAZING. my favorites were jimi thing and dancing nancies...but bartender sounded great live as well. other good songs were granny, pig, wwys, trippin billies, dreamgirl, and osw. the band just sounded great despite how crappy the target center is. my one complaint was wit the encore, however. i say they shouldve scrapped old dirt hill and made it 1. american baby and 2. two step. i wouldve cried. trippin billies was good tho dont get me wrong! overall an amazing concert.

Sarah
I didn't think that I could love Dave any more. but low and be hold. The concert was incredible. It was a great mix of old and new. by far the most fun I have had at a DMB concert. Old dirt hill I don't know what it is I just can't get into that song. But Tripping Billies made up for it. I love the variety of song styles. Boyd was on fire last night. It was clear that the band was having a great time playing and I had a great time listening. Louisiana Bayou was fantastic. Hunger for the great light rocked. I never get sick of listeninging to that song. Audio cds don't do DMB justice, the shows are so much better.

Dave N.
I enjoyed the show, it was well performed, but the set list overall let me down: too much of the new stuff. Great first half an hour or so with One Sweet World, Granny and Dancing Nancies. I also appreciated Billies in the Encore. Jimi Thing and Pig were great too.

I just haven't warmed up to the new album yet, and I think that playing too much of it took the steam out of the concert. A ending that had one or two more of the old staples, or even some popular deep cuts that play well live would have really rewarded a crowd that was supportive and alive throughout, despite some apparent lulls during the new material. My advice to the band is to cap the new songs to no more than a couple per concert: it's time to come to the realization, however uncomfortable, that the latest album is subpar concert material.

One-word-plastics
This was my first DMB concert and first concert @ the Target Center. The show was great but it was like listening to a concert in the grand canyon. The sound sucked. I was sitting at a 45 degree angle to the stage (upper deck) and there was NO direct sound. Everything was reflective. It was unfortunate because I could tell the sound was good elsewhere.

Joe
At times during the course of the show there were no words to describe the music last night. Many people told me to be wary of the target center so I wasn't really expecting the unreal performance that we received. The set list was right on, and the new songs are proven to be just as intense as the old ones due to the bands love for music. Overall, you can tell the band was loving every minute of the show, and the crowd responded favorably creating an ear-popping, ass-kicking atmosphere.Magnificent!!

Nick
What a great show. This was my first time seeing the band as a whole (I saw Dave & Tim, Dave & Friends) and it was great. Louisiana Bayou was my favorite song, which I certainly didn't expect. I do wish they would've played Warehouse and Ants Marching, but I enjoyed the show either way. The crowd seemed to be really into the show, so hopefully they'll make a stop here on their next tour. I can't wait to see the band again.

Bjorn P.
first off, gavin degraw was a TERRIBLE opener. all the people sitting by me didnt think highly of him either... ON TO DAVE this was my 6th dave show, and it would be number 3 or 4 on my list. a solid set list, but i told my buddy that the show would go 1 of 2 ways. it would either rock hard, or we'd be able to tell it was their opening nite. unfortunately, we could tell that it was the latter of the 2. ALTHOUGH, it was still an amazing show. Butch stole the show for sure as he jammed hardcore on jimi thing and bartender. Carter broke his snarehead at the beginning of HFTGL and had it replaced without anyone barely noticing. amazing communicition between him and his drum tech. it sounded as though dave forgot some of the lyrics on PIG, but in his defense, the target center DOES have crappy sound. low point of the show was old dirt hill. just sounded like a DMB cover band was doing it... but all in all fun night, and a night of all mosts... its gonna be exciting to see what they pull out on this tour... happy holidays

Adam
First of all, I wasnt a huge fan of Gavin Degraw as an opening band, but I have been spoiled with some great openings for the last few DMB shows I have seen. I think that you could definately tell that this was their opening show to the tour. The set started out good with a ton of classic tunes including a personal favoritie in Pig. Hunger for the Great light was also a great tune, but im really getting sick of hearing the intro to american baby, and not american baby. this is the second time this year that I it has happened to me (the saturday show at alpine included). Jimi thing had a great jam, and boyd was jumping around like crazy all night. I also wish they would have given the guy on the trumpet some more solos, cause he played like crazy when they let him loose. the encore was alright, although I would have liked to see something higher energy then old dirt hill. Also wished I would have seen a watchtower or a warehouse. Overall, a good show (when arent they) but not the best I have seen. I would say to to Alpine Valley if you really want an amazing dave show. The sound and the atmosphere there would have made this setlist 10 times better.

Jay J.
Well...this is the first live DMB show I've seen and I have to say I was a little disappointed. The acoustics at the Target Center are really pretty bad. Dave's voice seemed off, not because it WAS off but it sounded more like a technical problem than anything. The levels weren't as good as they should have been from where I was seated. Knowing all the words to the songs helps when the sound is crappy. The sound was so bad that If you didn't know the music you could NOT understand any of the lyrics...so it's a good thing almost everyone there knew all the lyrics to all the songs.

When the set started the music sounded good, but the band's presence was weak. They weren't into it at the beginning. Boyd seemed to be the most fired up all night. The band finally started to gel and seemed to enjoy the show during and after Bartender (which I thought was terrific). That was when Dave finally started to get into the performance. All during the first few songs he seemed to be just going through the motions.

Jimi Thing was great and Rashawn Ross had the performance of the night during his solo.

We were denied a nice bass solo this time around which would have been a fun addition. I was really looking forward to seeing the Master, Carter Beauford, got crazy. Though he was incredible as always we were denied a great drum solo...just a few short solo injections...though just watching him perform the normal set is truly awesome to see. He is such an incredible percussionist and enriches their music to such a degree they'd be lost without him.

The band's mo-jo was off so many times, but they're so good it makes up for the lack of enthusiasm, and when that enthusiasm kick in...it's a sight to behold. There were too many long breaks between songs, it just didn't seem they were all on the same page, but that may be how they are in concert. At one point Dave was pointing to Butch to solo, but Butch didn't seem to get it. And as for butch, when he solos it's so good and he's so talented, but I'm always waiting for him to really open it up and really go. During his solos he always seems to be leading up to the big jam which really never comes...we're aching for his talent to really shine...but that's just his style I guess.

When the main set was done we, of course, were waiting for the encore. Waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting. They must have had their dinner and a few more drinks before coming back. Way troo long. The encore was pretty weak. Old Dirt Hill totally sucked. Few people were moving or singing along...everyone was respectfully waiting to see what the other song would be...Lots of folks near me were really wanting Two-Step or Watchtower...and Billies ended up making for a good last tune.

I give it a DMB six out of a DMB 10.

Alpine A.
Not so good of a show, anyone who has seen dave more than 3 times could tell you this, or anyone who has seen dave at least once outside. their sound was weak, and their energy was far below par. dave forgot the lyrics 3 times during the show, and had to have his teleprompter moved more toward the center of the stage so he could read it during Pig (i was sitting in the 5th row center). he came in late on the vocals in 2 parts in other songs. butch' microphone wasn't on when he started scatting during his jam, and the didn't give RR any solos. stephan, leroy, and carter just blended into the backround, and might as well not have been there. Old dirt hill needs to take a long walk off a short pier. Sound quality was pretty good from where i was (5th row center). energy was low, and the majority of Stand Up songs took the wind out of the already docile crowd. very dissapointing crowd. must all have been 1st timers. American Baby intro was very powerful. Weak encore. In all, worst DMB show i have been to yet.

Alysia
I thought the DMB performance on Saturday night was outstanding. The sound in the Target Center could have been better, but I was happy enough just being there. My six year old son, who accompanied me to the show, was absolutely fascinated with the entire experience. He begged me to bring him to see Dave, and I couldn't say no. It was his first concert and he was so excited that the first song DMB played was his favorite. Thanks to Dave Matthews Band for putting a huge smile on my son's face.

Marissa
This was my sixth DMB show this year and I have to say it was also the worst!! The acoustics in the Target Center are HORRIBLE and I didn't feel as if the band was really into it. I was listening to a local sports radio show this morning and some guy called in that apparently had interviewed Dave before the show. He said that Dave told him he had partied way too much the night before and that may have affected his performance. But in my opinion, Dave and Boyd seemed somewhat into it, and the others just didn't. Hopefully, tomorrow in Madison will be much better!

Ben J.
This was my 5th time seeing the band and my best seats ever, 4th row almost in the middle. The show sucked and i was disapointed. The setlist didn't seem to have any pace and for a few of the songs I was just waiting for them to end. Dave missed lyrics several times and twice during jimi thing. Old dirt hill as the first encore was a horrible choice and on billies dave decided not to use the nature intro. unfortunately, I believe that the band has evolved into something other than the music that i fell in love with and they are going to cram their new material down your throat. That's fine i guess, its their right but i really miss music like under the table and crash.

Scott
This was my 21st show and 3rd at the target center. Going in i didn't expect too much cause i was expecting a lot of stand up material. The show started off great with alot of the old tunes. Nancies, jimi, pig, and bartender are always treats but other than that the show was average at best. Hearing too much without SMTS > ASTB is always rough to take too, i like too much but ASTB takes the song to a whole new level. Crash and old dirt hill were definitely the low points of the show. I think that was probably the worst encore i've seen in all my shows. Was really hoping for xmas song and instead got what is now my least favorite song to hear live. old dirt hill was terrible in my opinion, monotonous and boring. Billies is always full of energy but was hard to get back into the show after fending off sleep from the previous song. I've never been to a dmb show where i could ever say it was 'bad' but when comparing to shows i've seen previously i'd have to rate it as one of the worst i've seen. It had it moments as every show does, but there was nothing special about the show to make it stand out. i'd give it a 5/10 or 6/10.

Andrew
Well, there has been a lot of talk about the sound at Target Center and I must say that it does depend on where you sit, which, I admit, sucks to have to say. But I was straight ahead from the stage in the lower level and the sound there was actually pretty good. I have been in the upper level and on the sides of the lower level before and I will admit it can be pretty disappointing.

This is my 10th concert overall (I try to make once a year somewhere), and as far as the setlist is concerned, this is middle of the pack. The new CD does not seem to have, when you listen to it, a lot of songs that would work live, but Hunger for the Great Light was an extremely surprising exception and the American Baby intro was great! I really loved the jams (although some may say they were "slow", I thought they were excellent) and if there was a disappointing point to the show, it was by far playing Old Dirt Hill as an encore. It is a good track on the disc, but it is too "quiet" live, especially for an encore. But Tripping Billies will always and forever be a great closer.

Overall, like I said, it was a middle of the road show when I compare it to the shows I've been to. I agree, move the concerts to Xcel in St. Paul for the sound's sake, but DMB will never disappoint. Go Roi!

Chet S.
By far the worst of the four DMB shows I've seen. The first seven songs were good until the Stand Up disc was unleashed and played live.I didn't understand why they would play the american baby intro without playing american baby.For what it's worth (the closing of jimi thing) was the best part of the show hands down. The target center is like a machine shed when it comes to concerts. I couldn't even hear roi or rashawn. The encore was horrible. Old dirt hill is not a encore song and tripping billies was closed with a slight jam which is dissappointing. I definately didn't get my money's worth. I would have paid $60 to go see damien marley at first ave instead of DMB.