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Volume CXXXIII, Number 4 |
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Guster rocks Bates
SETH GUITERMAN
STAFF WRITER
Formed in the early 90s while classmates at Tufts University, Ryan Miller (vocals, guitar, bass), Adam Gardner (vocals, guitar), and Brian Rosenworcel (percussionist), have gathered a strong, dedicated following throughout the country with their incessant touring and catchy melodies. Since the June release of their most recent album, Keep It Together, the band has spent the last three months touring, showing fans both old and new that they are stronger than ever.
The show attracted a nearly sold-out crowd to Bates's Gray Cage Gymnasium, and the band failed to disappoint. With the addition of friend and talented musician, Joe Pisapia (banjo, guitar, keyboards, and lap steel), Guster's new material sounded fantastic, and his presence added something new to much of the band's catalog. The set list included a good mixture of songs from the latest record, as well as plenty of older material.
The show began with the band's latest variation of "I Spy," from the record Lost & Gone Forever, and had a great balance of faster, pop-ier tunes as well as slower, more melodic songs. The guys were clearly enjoying themselves as Miller, lead vocalist on much of the new material, rocked out on top of the speakers during their latest single "Amsterdam," almost missing his vocal entrance for the second verse.
The band's versatility was clearly present in its cover of Talking Heads's "(Nothing But) Flowers," utilizing the strong vocals of Miller, Gardner, and Pisapia, as well as the impressive percussive talents of Rosenworcel, who had chosen to play virtually everything with his bare palms before opting to pick up drumsticks for the new album. Ending their set with a completely unplugged, acoustic version of the song "Jesus on the Radio," co-written by Pisapia, the crowd seemed to leave with a collective sense of euphoria.
Guster will be playing at the University of New Hampshire on October
30. Tickets are on sale now.
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