From Muzic.com "Matchbox 20 Honor Their Elders"

MB20: They hope

Soul Asylum will

light their fire.

When Florida's own Matchbox 20 gets its

headlines above water, the story usually has

something to do with lead singer Rob Thomas's

brief stint on the couch circuit, one that's

often been translated into his being homeless.

Well, now that band is all flush with the

money from its multiplatinum debut album.

Yourself Or Someone Like You, drummer Paul

Doucette said they wanted to find an opening

act that would push them to play better than

they usually do.

"Most bands pick openers to make them look

good," Doucette said by phone from the wilds

of Birmingham, Ala. "We wanted someone who

would really make us work."

So, who did the platinum rookies pick for

their first half of their so-called "Big Rock

Show" tour? Why, Soul Asylum, who are achingly

familiar with this hammock slot (Soul Asylum

plays second on these shows -- Semisonic kicks

things off). They played in the middle of the

MTV Alternative Nation tour back when they

were riding high with Grave Dancer's Union and

did very well. This time around, it's a

slightly different story for Soul Asylum, with

their latest disc, Candy From A Stranger,

hovering well below 50,000 in units moved.

Notwithstanding all that, the 26-year-old

Doucette gushed that Soul Asylum "are a great

live band. I loved them and I'm excited to be

playing with them." Matchbox 20 have also

borrowed Soul Asylum's keyboard man, Joey

Huffman, for touring purposes in the past. No

word if he's going to do double duty on this

trek.

-Rae Gosling