THE Tripping Billies

While the idea of having The Dave Matthews Band play at Boston College is a little more than ridiculous, the University came as close as it could last Thursday. At 8 p.m. in the Rat, the usual time and place for the UGBC Pub Series, BC hosted Tripping Billies, the most authentic DMB cover band playing today.

Originally from Rochester, NY, Tripping Billies have played together for over five years and continue to tour the Eastern United States. Renowned for their musical talent, Tripping Billies play original DMB songs, DMB covers from other artists, as well as a couple original songs.

Not only does the band sound like DMB, but lead guitarist and singer Brandon DePaul seems a lot like Dave Matthews, and not for a lack of trying. DePaul mimics Matthews’ voice inflections and his demeanor right down to the dance moves, and does it so convincingly that it could be easy for audience members to confuse DePaul for Matthews. But more importantly, DePaul also shares Matthews’ passion for music, as do the other four band members, and this is what really inspires their work.
Tripping Billies opened their set with “Rapunzel.” The crowd was immediately shocked at how similar the band sounded to DMB.

Midway through “Recently,” DePaul jumped off stage and pulled the seated fans off their chairs, encouraging them to enjoy the jam session. No one could really blame the fans for staying seated; the set-up in the Rat was not conducive to the type of concert experience Tripping Billies aims for. Tables and chairs cluttered the area where an open dance floor should have been and the overhead lights remained on throughout the show, inhibiting dancers from letting loose.

DePaul’s flight from stage got the point across, and the crowd was on its feet. The band then launched into a string of DMB’s most popular songs, highlighted by “Everyday,” “Crash Into Me,” and “Satellite.” Tripping Billies closed with the song that inspired their name, and an incredible rendition of “Two Step.”

All in all, the UGBC Pub Series couldn’t have asked for a better headliner.

For more information on Tripping Billies, check out the band’s Web site, trippingbillies.NET. Any DMB fans that couldn’t get tickets to the FleetCenter concerts this weekend can catch the next best thing and see Tripping Billies at Harper’s Ferry on May 2 and 3 at 8 p.m.
- Boston College Newspaper

"Let's celebrate some of Dave Matthews Band's music!" said Brandon DePaul, Tripping Billies lead singer, when I was talking to the fans at the Newport Music Hall.

"This is my chance to see Dave Matthews Band (DMB) up close," said Brian Turnbull of Columbus. Brian was just one of the many others that made it out on Friday night to see the Tripping Billies, a Dave Matthews Tribute Band.

What were people expecting from Tripping Billies?
"I expect that the background sounds will be dead on," said Nikole Gongaware. "But it's the vocals and energy that I am interested to see if they can match."

Not only did they combine what people were expecting and hoping to see, but they blew people away the fans with their accurate portrayal of a DMB concert. From the opening number until they left the stage, the energy was high and the tribute was exact.

For fans this was a chance to see DMB a few months early. DMB, who is coming to Columbus' Polaris Amphitheater on August 5th and 6th, is one of the most followed bands in the nation. Fans come out to show after show and every fan I talked to at the Newport had their tickets for one or both of the shows DMB will be putting on later this year.

The Tripping Billies for one night though, in Columbus, brought DMB's fans together and jammed. One thing that the Tripping Billies talked about in a previous interview is that they look to give all the respect to DMB and their music. As a fan and as a critic I can honestly say that they go above and beyond showing respect to DMB.

"It is an unbelievable comparison," said Turnbull. "This is the best. It is so close it might be better than Dave just because I am so close and it is the exact representation."

"I can't believe they are this good," said Gongaware.

The key to the success of the Tripping Billies is one of being close to their fans and also being fans of DMB music with them. "We are as big of fans of DMB as anyone," said DePaul. "That is what makes this so easy and so much fun at the same time."

This fun comes with some rough roads though. It turns out the band was in Georgia the previous night and had to travel to Columbus overnight to play at the Newport. Lack of rest might limit the energy of most bands, but this was not the case. I had hard time realizing I was not watching DMB.

"From the sound to the vocals to the energy to the style and looks," said Nick Dlouhy. "Tripping Billies succeeded in giving Columbus DMB fans a show that they would walk home stunned by the exact representation."

As a critic I couldn't put it any better in describing the performance of the Tripping Billies. If you had a chance to see them at the Newport you know what I am talking about. If not next time they come to Columbus get a ticket and enjoy.


- Columbus Wired

With the summer Dave Matthews Band tour
suddenly upon us, excitement for the TRIPPING BILLIES' recreation of the
live DMB experience is rapidly intensifying.

Following a spring trek that drew critical raves and played before packed crowds in East Coast clubs, TRIPPING BILLIES is extending its tour into the summer to meet fan demand and soothe those widespread yearnings for the band's heralded recreation of the vintage Dave Matthews live vibe in a manner in which it hasn't been experienced since the DMB's pre-stadium days.


Highlights include a series of festivals, major vacation destinations, the Boy Scouts National Convention and a string of dates with The Samples. TRIPPING BILLIES will also be seen this summer performing on "Sound Check," a new TV series picked up by NBC.


The DMB tribute band for which Dave himself has the utmost respect earned similar media regard from the media during its 2002 spring jaunt. The Cleveland Plain Dealer called TRIPPING BILLIES "one of the top DMB tribute bands in the land" and the Buffalo News viewed the Rochester, N.Y., outfit as "the model of a successful DMB tribute band." Columbus Wired said TRIPPING BILLIES is simply "the best DMB tribute band in the nation." Clearly, TRIPPING BILLIES is the next best thing to being there. Not only is TRIPPING BILLIES the most popular Dave Matthews Band tribute in the United States, it's the most authentic DMB tribute in the world.


And for Dave fans especially, there is simply no better bang for the concert buck: "The closest experience to a Dave Matthews show they can get," noted the Wilmington (NC) Star, "without paying $46.50 for a ticket." Understanding that mere replication is not enough, TRIPPING BILLIES adds a secret ingredient that sets it apart from all the other DMB wannabes out there -- the incomparable insistence upon adding its own original, intricate jams into the music of the Dave Matthews Band to create live improvisational
> moments that truly live and breathe in the concert setting. "Their incredible improvisational skills solidified the feeling of an actual DMB concert," wrote a reviewer for The Heights, the Boston College newspaper, following a TRIPPING BILLIES spring performance there.

"We try and emulate the show," says Brandon "Dave" DePaul. "We listen to the record to get a base to work from, but we go after the live sound. We try to capture the energy and the spirit."

Indeed, TRIPPING BILLIES gives audiences a full Dave Matthews-style show -- 2 ½ hours of music complete with the characteristic encore. You'll get to hear a lot of the old DMB concert faves that Dave doesn't play live anymore, as well as new material from the DMB's upcoming album.

It's that kind of attention to authenticity and originality that has been causing TRIPPING BILLIES' popularity to skyrocket. Playing to packed houses has lately become the rule rather than the exception.


In his new Pocket Books biography, DMB: Music For the People, Nevin Martell writes that "once the music starts, the audience is at a virtual DMB concert."

The look, the feel, the sound, is pure Dave Matthew Band. The reality is pure TRIPPING BILLIES.


- Cleveland Paper [unsure of date]

The Tripping Billies work with a PR agency that is national in scope, with the ability to place full and spotlight articles in EVERY major periodical. The benefit to the club or promoter is an increase in attendance. In cities where the Tripping Billie’s have never played, a single article in a minor paper has generated a sell-out. Radio station ‘tie-ins’ and in-studio appearances are easily arranged and welcomed by program directors. - THE Tripping Billies