Dave Matthews Band

For Dave Matthews Band fans, the 1990s was the golden age.  

The band released arguably its three most influential albums, catapulting DMB into cultish fame that still lives today.

Steven Lillywhite, famed producer of the Big Three albums in the mid-90s, returned to help produce the band’s latest record, “Away From the World.”

You can tell.

Tracks such as “Drunken Soldier” and “The Riff” sound like tracks off 1998’s “Before These Crowded Streets.” Tying these iconic DMB sounds to the pop that dominated DMB albums in the early 2000s is a welcome move.

AFTW bridges the gap between the two eras.

The politically-charged “Mercy” marries the light, cautious rhythms of the 2000s with the insightful, probing growl of the ‘90s.

“Belly Belly Nice” is a sex-fueled romp reminiscent of the anything-but-shy “Crash” (1996) mixed with the noisy fun of “Big Whiskey & the GrooGrux King” (2009).

For the band and fans alike, on AFTW, what was old is new again.

By Bridget Ameche