Dave Matthews Band lead a 3Arena party

Despite Dave Matthews Band’s global success being eclipsed by only a handful of acts, they still remain relatively under the radar on these shores. They released their first studio album, Under The Table and Dreaming, in 1994 and have had a string of No.1 LPs Stateside ever since. Today, the band is as tight as ever. The heartbeat, Carter Beauford, still commands the band's musicality with skill and dynamism. Stefan Lessard's thick bass lines are always in the right place, while Boyd Tinsley’s violin spirals brilliantly over the arrangements. And all the time, captain Dave steers his ship with soaring vocals, inspiring guitars riffs and the funkiest dance from the coolest middle-aged rocker on the planet.

Amid the litany of today's massive stage productions, DMB have remained true to their humble ‘jam-band’ beginnings, letting the music take centre stage. They open with ‘Big Eyed Fish’, which whispers in with Dave’s guitar only to be powered forward by a band ready to rock-out on the last night of their six-week European Tour. If Dave’s vocals sound a little raspy tonight it might be due to the gruelling tour schedule – or the "Guinness followed by Irish Whiskey followed by more Guinness" as he jokes to the crowd between songs. He’s clearly delighting at being back in Ireland, while the audience is only too delighted to have him on our shores.

After a few fan favourites, ‘Granny’ and ‘So Damn Lucky’, the band play their first new song of the evening, the haunting piano driven ballad ‘Death On The High Seas’, in which Dave swaps strings for keys. Then it’s back to business with a rendition of ‘Minarets’ followed by the first major jam of the evening on #41. The band are in their stride and having the time of their lives on stage. And why wouldn’t they? If DMB were to suddenly arrive on today’s musical scene, one would have to think that label and promoters would be slow to take them on; But this is the band’s exactly biggest strength – they’ve never conformed to industry norms and the fans acknowledge just that.

The band still sorely miss their founding band member and brother, the late Leroi Moore, his instrumentation instrumental in developing their original sound and arrangements. The now permanent new arrivals - Jeff Coffin on sax and Rashawn Ross on trumpet - do pay an outstanding tribute to Moore on the funked-up outro of ‘Jimi Thing’. They trade solos that soar into the rafters of the arena, as Dave dances blissfully on the other side of the stage. Classic show-stopper ‘Two Step’ provides the encore before the lights come up. Young bands looking for inspiration, look no further than DMB the next time this live spectacle rolls into town.