Watch: Dave Matthews Debuts New Song “Kill the Monster” in Houston
Photo: Sean O’Brien
On Friday, May 2, Dave Matthews offered a solo performance at Houston’s White Oak Music Hall as part of the Wells Fargo Autograph Card Holder series. During the Seattle-based musician’s intimate concert at the 1,000-capacity location, he added a new number to his live arsenal. Matthews debuted a track listed as “Kill The Monster” on Dave Matthews Band’s official Instagram account and dmbalmanac.com.
Before the live debut, Matthews used his initial stage time to nod to Texas troubadour Willie Nelson by covering “Funny How Time Slips Away.” The placement of Nelson’s original represented the first time Matthews had opened a concert with the song above since April 11, 2020. Matthews followed up with a blast through DMB material, “Crush,” “Walk Around the Moon,” and “Bartender,” before the first solo take on “The Ocean and the Butterfly” since Jan. 24, 2023.
Matthews referred to his only solo studio LP on “Save Me.” The move started a trend, and the ensuing concert arrival of five additional tracks off Some Devil, interspersed with nods to his main gig with his namesake ensemble.
Inevitably, all roads led to the night’s debut. “Kill The Monster” was delivered on an acoustic guitar. The track’s lyrics seemed to refer to a larger enemy at play against the human race, and the notion that we must eradicate evil to obtain peace. Read the lyrics below:
I know you want peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster first
oh, you want to find peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster first
everybody wants peace on Earth
everybody wants peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster
The monster
the monster
bone-tired all this time
beat-up pickup truck
the monster is a farmhand
trying to make a buck
I know you want peace on earth
but we got to kill the monster first
The monster drives a taxi
it’s a cart pulled by a mule
the monster hears the war planes
got a pebble in his shoe
the monster’s in the market
he’s trying to find some bread
the monster’s underneath the rubble
he’s crying for the dead
I know you want peace on Earth
but you got to kill the monster first
yeah, you want to find peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster first
everybody wants peace on Earth
everybody wants peace on Earth
but what about the monster?
Yeah, the monster finds a flower
while she’s playing in the dirt
the monster smiles ’cause it looks just like
the flowers on her skirt
the monster hears a drone
thinks of dreaming ’bout the bird’s song, bird
the monster used to go to school
the monster used to be a little girl
I know you want peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster first
oh, everybody want peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster first
everybody wants peace on Earth
everybody wants peace on Earth
but what about the monsters?
The monster is a doctor
the monster is a nurse
the monster is the gambling man
just trying to break the curse
the monster is a baby
baby, don’t be fooled
the monster is your teacher
trying to teach you the golden rule, but
I know we want peace on Earth
but we got to kill the monster first
everybody wants peace on Earth
everybody wants peace on Earth
but what about the monsters?
oh, everybody wants peace on Earth
everybody wants peace on Earth
but what about the monsters?
everybody wants peace on Earth
everybody wants peace on Earth
but what about the monsters?
Matthews’ follow-up, “Grey Street,” seemed to strike a similar sentiment, harkening to the notion of powerlessness, before bowing off the stage after the main 21-track frame.
The musician returned for an encore of four numbers: “Old Dirt Hill (Bring That Beat Back),” “Dancing Nancies,” the final ode to his solo set on the title track “Some Devil,” and “Two Step,” which emerged as a first-time concert closer.
Dave Matthews Band returns to the road on May 24 at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, N.Y. For more information on the band’s impending live performances and to purchase tickets, visit davematthewsband.com/tour.
Scroll down to view video of Matthews’ debut and more content related to the Houston concert.
Dave Matthews
White Oak Music Hall – Houston
May 2, 2025
Set: Funny How Time Slips Away, Crush, Walk Around the Moon, Bartender, The Ocean and the Butterfly, Save Me, Here on Out, Grace Is Gone, When the World Ends, Oh, Ants Marching, Rye Whiskey, Don’t Drink the Water, So Damn Lucky, #41, A Pirate Looks at Forty, Madman’s, Eyes, Gravedigger, Stay or Leave, Kill The Monster+, Grey Street
Enc.: Old Dirt Hill (Bring That Beat Back), Dancing Nancies, Some Devil, Two Step
Notes:
+ Debut, first time performed live
