Spring Break
DMCB returning to Classic City
Contributed By TODD ZEIGLER
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With: Chris McCarty Band
When: Saturday, 9 p.m.
Where: Georgia Theatre
Admission: $10 in advance, $12 at the door
Football season is over. Students are home for Christmas.
Athens nights are far too quiet during breaks.
But on the first weekend of the new semester, a different kind of battle will take place: amps versus audience. A massive sing-along chorus will herald the return of the Dave Matthews Cover Band to the Georgia Theatre Saturday night.
The band can credit its popularity in Athens to more than its renditions of the pop-fusion superstars' extensive catalogue. The tribute act, in its own right, calls the Classic City home.
"We've played the Theatre at least 10 times," said drummer Lance Tilton. "It's great to know the hometown crowd digs what we're doing."
Guitarist and lead singer David Koon stresses the importance of a good performance, even when the crowd knows what to expect.
"Whenever we come back, we usually just hope it sounds better," he said.
The quintet deserves credit for more than simply recreating such Dave Matthews Band favorites as "Ants Marching" and "Too Much." The band infuses its own flavor into the material.
"Adding a personal touch is the easiest thing I think we can do, because it's natural," Tilton said. "None of us play exactly like anyone in the DMB, so we do our best."
Those personal touches are not lost on the jubilant audience members. Kevin Planowsky, a junior from Lawrenceville, said he particularly appreciates the band's improvisations.
"They're the parts I pay the most attention to," he said. "It's fun to sing along, but the jamming is their talent on display."
However, Koon said he is wary of overindulgence. The cover band tries not to mess with the original formula.
"The improv comes during the solos -- the instrumental parts of the songs. We keep the arrangements the same," he said.
The band's unique identity is surfacing more and more. Koon occasionally inserts an original song, performed solo, into the set.
"People come to hear the Dave Matthews Cover Band. But it's great when they come to hear an original," Koon said.
"If a song's good, hopefully they'll respond to the bare bones. (Maybe) it would be good for the whole band," he added.
Planowsky's response to the group's original material was less enthusiastic. He said he finds the transition tougher because of the context of the concert.
"It has a lot to do with expectation," he said. "It's like, when's the next Dave song?"
However, Planowsky said he is not totally opposed to an original song.
"The amount they have now is good," he said.
