Dave Matthews Plays New Song "Round and Round," Talks Guitar Technique: Exclusive Video

When Dave Matthews stopped by the Rolling Stone offices on Tuesday (en route to two gigs at West Point to reward the winners of a pep-rally competition), he took a few minutes to chat about his guitar-playing technique and how he deals with forgotten lyrics onstage. Then he broke into a hypnotic riff and started to sing along. Click above to check out footage of Matthews playing that new track, "Round and Round," which he debuted onstage in New Jersey Tuesday night.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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