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Mike Myrdal loves Dave Matthews. More specifically, he said he enjoys the stylistically challenging types of music that Dave Matthews Band plays.
"Not many bands have the violin as one of their main instruments," Myrdal said, clarifying one reason for the evolution of Stepping Feet, a San Diego cover band dedicated to the unique sounds of Dave Matthews Band.
The other reason is a little more self-evident: The music brought in the crowds. Stepping Feet has been entertaining audiences in San Diego for the past three and a half years.
Billed as "The Dave Matthews Band Experience," it's fronted by lead singer Myrdal, who started listening to Dave Matthews when the group released its "Crash" album.
"I remember how funky and heavy it was," Myrdal said of the single "So Much to Say," which he credits with drawing him into the Dave Matthews world.
Though Stepping Feet is a local band, the members are all transplants. Myrdal is from Massachusetts, bass player Sam Johnson hails from Maine and drummer Kevin Dooley and keyboardist Jeremy Miller both escaped from Orange County, Calif., and settled in San Diego.
Only the violin player, Jennifer Ann Spingola, dwells elsewhere. She recently moved to Los Angeles, where she frequently plays with Dee Snyder's Van Helsing's Curse.
Although the band is sometimes short a member, it comes together often enough to garner a following. But Myrdal said the band tries to ensure it doesn't fall victim to overexposure by making certain to take adequate time off.
"We don't want to overplay San Diego because then people won't come out to see us as much," Myrdal said.
As such, Stepping Feet spaces its shows apart so audiences know its members will come ready to rock at specific performances.
"If they see us at Canes (Bar and Grill), they know it's going to be a full-out Dave Matthews tribute show," Myrdal said. "If they see us at (RT's Longboard Grill), they know to expect a lot of Dave Matthews, but we'll also play a variety of cover songs and originals."
Such variety often includes covers of songs by Rusted Root, Pearl Jam and Sublime.
With a fairly active schedule, there is one venue Myrdal believes the band is missing.
"How do we get on campus to play a show?" he asked, referring to San Diego State. "We play 21-plus shows all the time, and we can't get the younger students out to see us play unless we play on campus."
Myrdal said the Dave Matthews Band's ' successful campus performances is inspiration for Stepping Feet to play at a school.
"If he was successful because of his grassroots efforts, then that's something we need to do as well," Myrdal said.
- Daily Aztec - San Diego
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Stepping Feet is one of the premiere Dave Matthews Tribute Bands in the country. They've been voted as the "Best Band" by 20,000 runners at the San Diego Rock-n-Roll Marathon, travelled to Hawaii for back to back shows, and consistently perform throughout Southern California drawing out large numbers of Dave Matthews fans.
Stepping Feet consisitently wins over fans who weren't necessarily DMB fans. Their passion and energy on stage is on par with seeing a Dave Matthews Band performance. Having a six-piece band including a keyboard player gives Stepping Feet that true DMB sound that fans are looking for. Typical comments usually sound something like "when I close my eyes I really feel like I am listening to the Dave Matthews Band".
Stepping Feet is influenced by all music from jazz to rock, to funk, soul, metal, punk, and so on. As one fan put it " These guys (and gal) are each perfect matches for their DMB counterparts, from the signature guitar riffs, to show stealing solos. Unlike some tribute bands, Stepping Feet is perfect for everyone from the obsessed DMB fan (like myself) to the casual listener, to the completely uninitiated. I hardly ever miss a chance to come out to see Stepping Feet, and I’m never disappointed."
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