Waterband

"Better Than Good" is Waterband's follow up to their debut CD 'Good' released last year. I must say the first thing that hit me was Waterband's edgier / wackier side on some of their new tracks. The CD goes a bit off road from their debut but it's all cool because it shows that Waterband is growing and expanding. Imagine your kicked back jam band on a hi test homegrown frame of mind. Take a listen, you'll know what I'm talking about :) All of this surrounded by their signature 'folkedelicfunkpop' sound. It's obvious these guys are just plain having fun and are more than capable musicians who DO bring good vibes to the listener every time. Keep up the 'good/better than good' work gentlemen. - Proartist

Waterband's 'Better Than Good' Waterband has played over 400 shows all over God’s Green Acre since 2001. All the while the band has kept a positive attitude that has kept them from taking themselves too seriously. This is evident with track 15 on their new CD release “Better Than Good” entitled ‘Tree People Outtakes’. This song is one of my favorite on the disc simply due to the fact that multiple times during the song you can hear members of the band cracking up hysterically while the song is being recorded. Just when it seems that they all have gotten it together one last giggle brings the whole ship crashing down. Studios can make you lose it, and this track is full proof of this. “Better Than Good” is chocked full of varying tempo songs that jump genres from dub style island vibes like track 5 ‘Natural’ to straight up rockers like the CD’s opening track ‘Everyday’. Not often do you get a CD from a band that exceeds 10 tracks anymore. Well, the Waterband is out to prove that the songs are flowing out of them like the water flows from the sky during monsoon season. Seventeen tracks complete a disc that is all over the board yet keeps you interested all the while. Waterband is a trio. Not often will you find three musicians that can sound as full and complete as Waterband. Check out Waterband at their many upcoming shows http://dreadlockdave.com/shows.html - The Bus

Cynicism. It's tough not to see it nearly everywhere you turn these days. Politicians are in it for the power. Athletes are only in it for the money. Musicians aren't really there for the cause, but to merely stroke their egos. It's as though we've come to believing that sincerity (or at least the appearance of it) is not to be trusted (And remember, this review might be tainted because I've received free CD's, right?). Well, if you're suffering from that particular malady, get yourself a copy of Waterband. If 16 tunes full of rock, pop, reggae, funk and soul can't loosen your suspicion then maybe there's no hope (for you anyway). Waterband gets off on the right foot (or should I say "body part"?) by appealing to your butt's natural tendency to shake. That's right, the "back of your front" will be wantin' to move with the funk by way of Sly & the Family Stone that is "Come On". So Waterband is a funk group? Not so fast. The acoustic, heartfelt love song "Pictures of Me & U" follows. Somehow, I kept thinking it was going to turn into "Monkey Time" (the one with Fee Waybill). It doesn't. Thank you. As your cynicism begins to melt away, you may find yourself thinking that Waterband is tough to pin down in the 'ole category department...and you would be right. Add in reggae, pop, blues, jazz and full-on rock to the list. So. Where's the 'center'? My ear parts say it's "Dreadlock Dave" McDougald's consistently funky bass. From the poppin' opening track to the reggae by way of "Oh Bla Di Oh Bla Da" of "More Than Anything", the basslines are just plain happening. Oh, this doesn't mean that I'm snubbing guitarist Tom Denk or drummer Dave Keen. Far from it. Everyone in this band brings a goodly handful of chops to the scene without wavin' them around, busting the poor little tunes upside the head. Waterband reminds me of some of the jam bands of yore. The guys who built the foundations of the genre: the Dead, the Allmans, Little Feat. Groups where versatility was key. Right in the middle of all of this funkatude, Waterband tosses out "Wonderful". For a bit, my deja vu chamber kept sayin' "Hey, what was the name of that Mr. Big hit?"...but then the outro blows the thought away with guest vocalist Deb Lewin's snazzy "Great Gig In The Sky"-isms. I guess what I'm most taken with is the musical and lyrical exuberance. It's just pure, no-filler, no-ulterior motive joy. This liner note snippet says it all: This recording is for you, the friends & family of Waterband. Inspired by Love, Peace, Happiness, Hope, Friends, Music Art, Taste Of The Herbs, Fruit Of The Vine and All The Goodness Life Has To Offer. This may not be the summer of love, but if you close your eyes...
- Mark Saleski – Blog Critics

With late-60’s hippie style clothing the rage again, it won’t be hard to find something apt to wear to a Waterband gig. Those embroidered blouses, tie-dyes, beaded bracelets and peasant skirts go perfectly with gauzy sentiments such as “People we got to live in this world together / Share all the love with your sisters and your brothers / Love, respect and peace for one another” in “Come On” which kicks off it latest album – sentiments echoed on such tracks as “Peace & Love”, “Natural”, and “In Bed All Day”. The Rootsy, laidback funk / folk / country / gospel / pop blend on its latest CD (inspired, among other things, by “the goodness life has to offer”) vividly evokes the brief shinning hippie moment when the kids talked about going back to the land to live communally. The Trio’s casual, almost skeletal arrangements sound like they’re jamming in the commune’s barn.
- Anastasia Pantsios – Cleveland Free Times

Waterband - Cool and Refreshing
Hey, we all have a little hippie left in us, or at least we should: peace, love, personal integrity, respecting the earth, rejoicing in the simple pleasures make up an ethos that has come to be the object of knowing smirks in many quarters, but one, when actually lived rather than just invoked, is worthy of admiration and respect. Such is the case with David McDougald, from Waterband, an amazing and diciplined bass player and trained musician, who also happens to be my son's bass teacher. He's got some mighty impressive dreadlocks as well - very hemp.
None of this necessarily has much to do with the quality of the Waterband, which I was somewhat leery to check out because I HATE it when people I like put out somthing that I can't endorse with an open heart. I am deeply relieved and appreciative to say that the Waterband is excellent, inventive pop-leaning jam band music that is rhythmically vibrant, melodically memorable and good for the soul.
The songs on Good range through what they call a tour through "folkedelicfunkpop" - acoustic Americana, vibey world music rhythms, neo-soul, funky rock, reggae, jazzy improvs, all done with sharp musicianship, a sincere and sunny psychedelic ethos, and a firm grasp on somthing many jam bands miss: songs. By way of true perspective on this - because I love all kinds of music - my son, who at this point in his teen age life tends toward assultive music like aggro, nu-metal, post grunge, and punk, listens to the Waterband all the time, and especially appreciates the rhythmic groove and the funky fresh basslines David lays down. He and his friend, a girl his age who is into goth and punk, went to the release party for Good at The Matchouse in Twinsburg, and I couldn't tear them away from the wild sweating monkey dance show when I came to pick them up (I was babysitting the little ones that night, alas). The band's song "Live The Words" has been chosen for the compilation, produced by Jam Suites and Cleveland musicians to benefit the U.S. troops and Northeast Ohio's U.S.O.
And, they're patriotic too. Check them out
- as David says: peace and have a groovy day!
- Eric Olsen, Cleve-Blog, Cleveland.com - Eric Olsen

Proartist Review of Waterband's debut CD "Good"
Grab the ole tye-dye and don't look back! Take a trip down the river of "folkedelicfunkpop" with Waterband's debut CD release Good. Their 18 tracks of groovy multi-genre is music for your soul. Your "Dead dance" gyrations will evolve into the "Waterband dance". Just go with the flow honey and smile. Waterband is comprised of accomplished musicians who obviously had fun producing Good. It's no wonder they are received so well at their shows! Their lyrics are laid back, thought provoking, humorous, but always positive and the use of synthesizer, voicings, harmonica, sax, and flute enhance their guitar, bass and drum arrangements suggesting these guys are just getting started. Definitely be on the lookout for future recordings! A breath of fresh air for your collection, Good is a debut worth a listen.
www.proartist.cc - Proartist reviewer