Before These Crowded Streets

I think this album has all the elements that make DMB's music so instantly recognizable. It showcases his ability to write catchy songs, incorporating different musical styles while making it sound effortless. Nice one!

DMB is a band I’ve known OF for years, but I’ve never actually listened to. I’ve always shied away from the “jam band” term, and I know it’s groovy-funky-music-nerd stuff. Boy I wish I hadn’t, lol. This is borderline fantastic. It IS super-pretentious conservatorium fodder, but it’s also got a sweet 90s groove that I really like. It’s a product of its time in a distinct way, like if Pearl Jam if Toto was the main influence rather than Aerosmith. This will definitely go in my “background music on long drives” playlist. 4/5.

Dave Matthews Band WAS Midwest US college music in the late 90s. Great addition to the list. Thanks for suggesting.

His real fans call him Dave. Liked this a lot more than I thought I would! Not ready to buy one of those dancer stickers and put it on my Suburu, though.

“On August 8, 2004, a tour bus belonging to the Dave Matthews Band dumped an estimated 800 pounds (360 kg) of human waste from the bus's blackwater tank through the Kinzie Street Bridge in Chicago onto an open top passenger sightseeing boat sailing in the Chicago River below.” Which means this album isn’t the only pile of shit that came from the DMB. 4/10

ca me rappelle tellement de bon souvenirs 4.95

Never heard of DMB before but very impressed!

If you liked Dave before you will like this, if you don’t like Dave you won’t like this

DMB is a group I have a very cursory experience with. I feel like they sort of get shit on by folks but I don’t find it that bad. If can see why some people really like it. Honestly it always sounds to me like a bunch of real good musicians that are having a blast playing together and I can always get behind that, although it personally doesn’t do much for me.

About as exciting and pleasurable a Dave Matthew's Band experience as those Chicago tourists got in 2004.

Surprisingly good, although I'd say it definitely is bloated. I can see why Dave Matthews live might be more interesting.

Rather toothless as fusion goes, the album certainly has a sense of humor about itself. The length feels less annoying and more silly. Before These Crowded Streets is worth considering and unlikely to convince.

I didn't get my driver's license until I was 27 years old. Because of this I had to depend on a lot of other people for rides anywhere/everywhere I went - a lot of people with a wide variety of music tastes. This was mostly when I was a teenager in the 90s, before I moved to smaller college towns where I could get around without a car. It goes without saying Dave Matthews was quite popular at that time, and I had many people giving me rides who were fans. By this point I was shuffling my way towards being a hipster, and shying away from most mainstream music on my own time. So, I never owned any Dave Matthews CDs or anything, but I ended up listening to him quite a bit. I'll tell you, most of those people who were fans, were some of the nicest, more generous people I knew at the time. I know Dave Matthews is the butt of many jokes for some reason, but I don't find his music any great pain to listen to. It's not the feel good jam band fluff the internet might have you believe. At least not on this album. In fact I'd say it's pretty out there, challenging even, for what was a multi-platinum Billboard chart topper. Just listen to "Halloween" for example - it's unhinged. Or, better yet, just to show you how much DMB I listened to back in the day, listen to the live version of "Halloween" from the "Recently" EP. Besides a handful of standout tracks, I can't say I love this, but I don't think it deserves the shit talking it gets from my hipster peers. This album certainly brings me right back to the CD era - secret tracks and all.

I haven't actually listened to much of this group, aside from the singles that hit true cultural saturation. I always felt the purist hate Matthew's sometimes attracted was unnecessary, though I will allow the particular affectation of his vocal style wears very thin for me at length. This went wierder and darker than Id have expected, both to its benefit.

3/10. Y'all's reviews got my hopes up. Disliked the singing, the lyricism was hit or miss (with a tendency towards miss), the instrumentals just felt a bit stiff and lifeless to me, and then it just takes itself so seriously with the long-running songs. And then the 70 minute runtime was gratuitous, but that's the 90s for ya. I thought the dreaming tree was okay, maybe because Stockholm syndrome had set in at that point, or maybe because my mind was wandering for the first half of it so it didn't feel as long.

After years and years of hearing about Dave Matthews Band while knowing NOTHING about them, finally time to take my first step! And... it's jazz fusion? Huh. Honestly wasn't expecting that. Good stuff though. Manages a very commercial jazz fusion/alt rock sound while still being very, VERY excellently played. Carter Beauford alone honestly brings this to 4 stars. Hold up they even got Bela Fleck in this? Wild.

Of all the Dave Matthews Band picks, why the third album? Whatever, I'm sure the user has their reasons. Dave's approach to jazzy alt-rock includes mostly jamming the fuck out of an idea until it reaches a fine terminating point, and then going another 3 minutes to waste your time. They're all fairly talented musicians but I struggle to find much worthwhile in these winding, unfinishable songs. My god, wrap it up. CONTENDER FOR THE LIST: If we're seriously considering DMB (which is debatable) then it should be one of the first two records, not this one.

A band I know by name and some hits, but I never heared an entire album of them. And it felt a little strange because I thought of Dave Matthews as an alternative guitarpop band, but this album is more than meets the eye with a lot of other musical influences. I got really into this.

I never have like Dave, however, his band is stellar and they jam out like none other.

Some intelligent pop for once. Mathews’s interesting voice makes listening to vocals tolerable. His voice is another instrument. The poetry is goofy but the musicianship is excellent. Three stars

I was kind of into Dave Matthews back in the day. I even saw them on their Under the Table and Dreaming tour. Listening to this album I can see why I liked them. They are clearly great musicians who play well together, and the songs and arrangements are strong. If I'm being honest though, it's just a bit bland, and it goes on too long. 3 stars.

II thought it was middling then it got a bit grating.

I hope this one was an actual troll because someone who chooses a 70 minute long Dave Matthew’s album that doesn’t even have any of his big hits on it deserves to be drawn and quartered. This was so boring and the more edgy heavy vibe does not work with Dave Matthew’s.

What’s the difference between the DMV and the DMB? Not too much as you spend way too much time on it and you come out of it feeling better than other people. To me the DMB was a late 90s cult of listening. It was the non-grunge intellectual music that people felt different listening too. In the late 90s that may have been pretty cool, but to me it just seems like a white dude taking styles from all over and saying check this out. Were different. But was it good? Not exactly. 5.2/10

I know they are big in the USA. Never understood why

Interesting sound but not my taste

Personally, the '90s to me makes me think of the Dave Matthews Band right away, so I was a little surprised that they didn't slip any albums into the 1001 list. This isn't the album of theirs that I know best, but it's one I've really been impressed with, enjoyed, and so glad to have heard today. Good stuff!

Never really think much about listening to an entire Dave Matthews Band album...just doesn't interest me that much. It was a good listen.

For some reason the Dave Matthews Band upsets some people, but I quite enjoyed them in the 90s. While Under The Table and Dreaming is still my favorite, this one was a pretty interesting evolution of the band’s sound that I enjoyed at the time. I didn’t follow the band much after this, my musical tastes wandered in other directions, but it was great to come back to this. The original 1001 list is deficient for not having a single album from Dave Matthews Band so I’ll be rounding this score up!

Oh DMB! Great submission! They were definitely overlooked by Dimry. You could also have put in Under the Table and Dreaming or Crash, both wonderful albums that represent the group perfectly as well. I love the drama of DMB, best expressed in songs like Crush. I also love the whimsy and playfulness. It’s the full package. Jazzy, funky, soulful, cool. It checks every box. Love it and grateful for the well thought out submission. Thanks rando generator pal!

Such a great album. The Stone, Rapunzel, and Pig are favorites for me.

Amazing! It should be in the 1001

Fantastic.

I've never been a huge DMB fan, but I will say this got me. Had some really solid intense parts. Seeing him at Oceans Calling in Sept so I'll be putting this on to get warmed up no doubt. Not a high 4, but this scratched an itch I didn't know I had for the time being.

I know DMB is not for everyone but I have always really liked them. Never listened to this full album but it has so many early hits on it that I have only listened to the live versions of. Was quite cool to hear the studios. I just get so sucked in with all of the different instruments that are played throughout the whole time.

Je reconnais l’album de la collection de CD de mon père, mais je pense pas qu’il l’a déjà fait jouer. Dommage, parce que c’est un baller d’album, beaucoup plus hard que j’appréhendais

When I was younger, I kinda wrote Dave Matthews Band off because they're kinda a jam band (their songs are typically 6 minutes plus), and I didn't have the appreciation or attention span to enjoy it. I've since developed my tolerance for it more and it's actually pretty solid. Lots of grit in his vocals (especially in the song Halloween where it sounds like he's sacrificing his vocal chords.... In a good way). Thanks to the OP for recommending this album and reintroducing me to Dave Matthews. Favourite songs: Halloween, Stay (Wasting Time), Crash, Rapunzel, The Last Stop, Don't Drink the Water Least favourite songs: The Stone 4/5

I've never listened to Dave Matthews Band before, which was kind of a surprise. I had assumed I would recognize a song or two, or at least the style. I really enjoyed this. I heard a lot of Sting in this album, although with a looser production style that I think goes well with Dave Matthew's vocals. It was a bit too seeped in 90s alt cheese for me to give it 5 stars, but I will probably seek out more Dave Matthews in the future.

A sprightly collection of world music rhythms that's cheerfully played and passionately sung. Another fine selection, most likely to get served at your hip neighbour's cocktail party.

Knew nothing about this, really rather enjoyed it.

This is a good album. It's familiar, enjoyable and well produced. Perhaps not their best album, but good all the same.

I was expecting that I really wouldn’t care about DMB. I primarily know them from the many, many jokes and stereotypes. But - if the rest of the discography is as progressive as Before These Crowded Streets, count me in! It might be too long, but I really enjoyed everything. I have a feeling that the rest of the discography might not be as good as this, but I will give it a try. Thank you for forcing me to listen to Dave Matthews Band.

Oh god, it turns out I actually really like the Dave Matthews Band. I’ve always heard about them in discussions about jam bands so was expecting something more like Phish or Grateful Dead but instead this was much funkier though always with quite grungy vocals - like if Eddie Vedder fronted Jamiroquai. A very interesting mix that I’m surprised works as well as it does, but the songwriting is just so damn good across this album. One of those rare hour-plus projects where the runtime feels warranted

The more I hear of Dave Matthews Band the more I like. I think it’s the name that puts me off, sounds stuffy.

Ok this may be insulting but I was surprised how interesting this album was. I've never listened to the DMB but they've always struck me as a dull US jam/groove band. I wad ready to give it a 3 but it's a solid 4. Thanks

Oh man, this is an easy band to make fun of, but I actually really liked this. Obligatory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Matthews_Band_bus_incident

Keep an eye on those hippies tho

I was really surprised by how much I liked this. I guess I had preconceptions about this band, that were ultimately wrong.

This album sounds so "normal" and consistent while the arrangements and rhythms are really crazy and complex. Outstanding performance and songwriting.

Seems that on a lot of these songs, Dave Matthews is grunting or screaming as if he needed some bran in his diet. He puts a lot of emotional effort into his music, sometimes unnecessarily. It's a good album that I'd listen to again.

I enjoyed the journey. The strings and woodwinds layered with a warm contemporary slower jazz has a great vibe to it that was able to keep me engaged. Though Crush and Don’t Drink the Water stand out the most for me, the rest of the album has does a pretty decent job of staying interesting. The arrangements are really the king here. Definitely fun!

I was really into DMB in high school so listening to this album was a fun blast from the past. This is their strongest album thematically and musically. It is much more brooding and builds its song over time resulting in huge emotional releases. I think the derision DMB gets is often overblown as this album shows their ability to make a great album.

Most either love them or hate them.... I'm indifferent. Standouts: Rapunzel, Crush 3.75

Do you think "Don't Drink The Water" is a reference to their future 2004 Chicago River incident

As a kid in the 90s I never understood the appeal of DMB. Mainly I outright rejected the singer for his Eddie Vedder-esq delivery (also was not a huge Pearl Jam fan). But listening to this album now as an adult I'm coming around on them. Call it nostalgia, but something in that bright 90s production sound with the slight twang that DMB bring to the equation hits just great. This album was definitely front loaded and I found myself losing interest in the back half, but The Stone was one that stood out for its jam potential. Don't Drink the Water was also really solid. For me this straddles the 3/4 divide. Good but not amazing. Great for the right mood.

Fun and carefree. Not really that great, but it's fun enough.

Dave takes himself just a bit too seriously

Dave strikes me as the type who studied a lot of different cultures, but refuses to let himself actually seep into their lifestyle. What he’s left with is the knowledge of practices that he can pick and choose from without going “too far”. To me, this just lends itself to songs that can never be fully realized. There’s aspects of styles from the Middle East, Americas, Africa, Europe, and South America (Asia? not sure I got anything from there. I definitely didn’t get anything from the great continent/country/island of Australia, so we know where Dave’s boundaries are). It’s not blended nicely, it’s muddled in a way that, I imagine, you can only enjoy stoned or on some other combination of drugs. Furthermore, the instrumentation is completely lackluster. Feels like they’re somehow playing in slow motion, It gives me a headache. Don’t fucking get me started on this guys voice. Holy shit. Perhaps I am missing something, but Dave Matthews feels pretentious to me. 3/5

Sucesión de buenas canciones, sin mucha intensidad, sí mucha instrumentalidad, buenas voces. En definitiva, un buen conjunto, pero faltándole algo más que hiciese que me gustase más. Se definiría como rock suave.

I know this from being a band US sitcoms mock. Literally from what you see on tv you’d think they’re imagine dragons. But… this is much (MUCH) better. They deserve an album on the list just because of notoriety. It’s not what I expected, like I knew it’d be jammy but it’s interesting, ‘the last stop’ is great. ‘Don’t drink the water’ rocks when Alanis Morissette comes in, before that I think it’s a drag. I lack an attention span honestly, it’s interesting some bits I dug but it either needs shorter songs or less songs 3/5

I’m familiar with some of their bigger hits and can appreciate and enjoy them, but I don’t seek them out. I think I’m very middle ground here, I think they are very talent musicians but I can’t get into this album. I don’t know if it’s the vocals/lyrics or what but something is stopping this from being a great album. As others have said, I’d probably pick a different DMB album if I had the choice.

I kind of liked a Dave Matthews Band album? My parents must never know...

Ganska schysst album.

I'm amazed this is from 1998 and not mid 80- it's so smooth. Great cover too. Very jazzy and acoustic - I even think I heard a flute in there? I guess this is what music is for- it's varied and there's plenty for everyone. Unfortunately this is not for me.

Certainly Dave Matthews belongs on the list for landmark and cultural reasons. So good share. My husband absolutely loved Dave back in the day, I was generally less enthusiastic, but did enjoy him live. This album is fine.

Alternative rock, jazz fusion, progressive rock. Ni fu ni fa.

Alternative rock, jazz fusion, progressive rock. Todo el rato igual.

I always had the impression that Dave Matthews Band was more of a joke (extensively mentioned in many sitcoms, btw), and maybe for this reason, I never gave it a try. Now that I have finished the album, I understand why people think about this band as a type of joke, due to the maximalism (and maybe magalomaniac) style of the songs; however, I cannot say that I disliked it. It's the opposite, I enjoyed most of my listening session of the album, even though I found it far from being perfect, and also the songs are too long.

DMB is very solid. Kept me interested through out

It was fine. Nothing bad. Nothing special.

Oh look, another way too long album from the 90s! Like so many of these albums, it is a tiring listen. My personal rating: 3/5 My rating relative to the list: 3/5 Should this have been included on the original list? Yes.

If you weren't around in the 90s you might think Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins were ubiquitous back then, but mostly it was DMB along with Collective Soul everywhere. Dave Matthews has never been my thing, but I can recognize he has some talent.

Pretty good, but prefer Under The Table and Dreaming

There were some good songs on here! Reminded me a bit of ancient Egypt music on The Last Stop.

There was a time I was into DMB. I remember rushing out with school friends the day this album dropped. Nostalgia is strong, and beyond that, the band is talented. These leans into world music/fusion stuff. But it is just so long.

Groan. Okay so Dave's music has a lot of baggage for me, so he is perpetually an artist that I just cannot for the life of me give a fair listen to. There is a lot of good texture sonically, I just cant take Dave's vocal delivery, texture, or really anything about it seriously. This is the guy that literally took a shit on Chicago. When he gets the orchestra involved on Halloween its overstuffed. The Stone is good. Its just this kitchen sink over the top instrumentation. See Crush. And also Dave its okay to make a song that's 5 minutes or less come on. Also multitracking your scatting is bullshit.

I think this is the first time listening to a whole record of his. It’s well done. Well recorded. Well produced. It just doesn’t grab me.

Like fusion but a little less cool

One of those bands that should have been on the original list, not a massive fan but can’t say this isn’t good music.

Bits and pieces i liked

Alternative rock, jazz fusion, progressive rock. Ni fu ni fa.

I've never particularly been a DMB fan, but they are one of those artists I absolutely expected to see on the original list because they deserve to be there. Thanks for sharing. I can't compare this to other albums in Dave Matthews' discography, but it was a really solid listen. Creative and well crafted, with rich instrumentation and thoughtful lyrics. Still not a fan of Matthews' vocal style, which is weirdly overwrought at times. Arrangements feel multilayered, loose and improvisational, sometimes to the point where it really just gets too busy. Enjoyed "Crush." Loved "Spoon" and "The Stone." Fave Songs: Spoon, The Stone, Crush, Stay (Wasting Time), Pig, The Dreaming Tree, Don't Drink the Water

Rating: 6/10

Sophisticated light rock with “rock” violin. Surprised DMB weren’t already on the list given their popularity with the USA students I met in the 1990s. It’s quite good, but doesn’t quite keep my interest.

3 surprisingly good!

Lots of energy. Bit over the top.

I just cant get into him

I lived though DMB fandom the first time, and I just can’t anymore.

I've always found Dave Matthews to be one of those bands that soccer moms with box wine predilections get all giddy over. He's got some good songs, but on the whole, kind of tedious and boring.

Never could get into this band. Not then, not now.

I really did not enjoy his vocals. 2.5.

As a European, I only know this band as a punchline on sitcoms. Although it's a bit less dumb than I expected, it doesn't do anything for me. I will not see this band as a joke though, so that's something.

I have never gotten into Dave Matthews Band and have actually been looking for an excuse to dive into the discography. I did not care for it. Too jazzy and soft-rocky for my tastes.

I've heard the name Dave Matthews Band, but only now am I learning that they're not a 60s band. Despite that, this sounds exactly how I imagined it would. Over-the-top jam band that doesn't know when to wrap a song up. Not great, not terrible. 2/5.

Before These Crowded Streets hasn't aged too well, it sounds very late 90s, like a mish-mash of genres to try to find a unique groove, and really it mostly ends up sounding amateurish. It's too long, the vocals are maybe the best part but they're hardly standout and sound derivative anyway, modelled on a bunch of early to mid 90s alt rock/grunge frontmen perhaps, I dunno, none of it worked and the back half of the album just faded into obscurity. 2/5, it's not crap, it's just incredibly boring.

Some songs sound like a washed out Pearl Jam copy, others like a Midwestern Kula Shaker, at least one sounds like James Blunt decided to try his hand at flute-based fusion. A band I previously only knew as a clichéd punch line, but turns out they are OK. I'm not sure why they went to all the bother to get Alanis to guest (on two tracks) but then (aside from half a verse) bury her in the mix - but it was nice to hear her anyway! There's got to be *something* played between the good songs on an 'alt-rock 90s college hits' radio station - it might as well be this. Better than I feared, but not as good as I had hoped.

And so, finally, I've listened to an album by the Dave Matthews Bands, which I've heard so much about. And truth be told... I understand why so many people are derisive about this act. At times, this record sounds as if Pearl Jam and Tool had been taken to the vet so as to be castrated. Given that I'm not a huge fan of Tool, and that I think that Pearl Jam are overrated and boring for the most part, you can probably guess my exact mileage on that sort of glossy "jam-rock". Same meandering, sometimes gratuitous, dirges, but without the "alternative" edge (and layers of partly hackneyed gloss instead). Plus, the lead vocals sound particularly grating and "forced" for no good reason in some of those tracks. And they can't help the sometimes linear, sometimes decent music shine as it should. About what I've written up there... You have to forgive me for the weird metaphor about taking nineties bands to the vet. I don't really know where that came from... But I now imagine naming my two cats "Pearl Jam" and "Tool" (or dogs if I had some). And that thought strikes me as kind of funny. That's it, not much else to say. I'll see myself out. ---------------> 1.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 2 6.5/10 for more general purposes (5 + 1.5). Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ---- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 5 Albums from the users list I *might* include in mine later on: 9 Albums from the users list I won't include in mine: 15 (including this one)

Sure, was there in the late 90s when this was apparently popular - but in a different country - but despite this, I just don't get it. Sure, they're mostly inoffensive, occasionally repetitive, but they fail to gripper me in a way that has me questioning the gripperedness of the people who love 'em. Sure, you do you I guess. Everyone is entitled to their opinion - I just can't help but feel like I'm looking in from outside at a cult.

I'd have given this a 1 but I'm actually moderately sure Dave Matthews feels the same way about his band as I do. There are touches on here of him seemingly pleading to do something other than this grunge/jam band pop and try something weirder, but it keeps getting squashed down. Somewhere in his mind, there's a really interesting album he's not being allowed to make. #FreeDaveMatthews

This music is a vehicle for beer pong and bong rips.