There were a crowd of passionate fans, four seasoned crowd-pleasers on stage and even an impossibly impromptu interlude about meatballs and Afghan food — and it was good.
The Guster concert Tuesday night at the Orpheum was everything a concert headlined by the even-better-live quartet should be — and then some. The band delivered all the classic hits, some classics that aren't hits at all and some new rockers that served to spice the whole production up like chipotle salsa on Naan. And all the while, the band provided awesome repartee worth every cent of the Ticketmaster surcharge.
It all started with the long-time fan-favorite "Happier" followed by a quick rendition of "Great Escape." With two fast-paced, enthralling songs under the belt, Ryan Miller, the band's lead vocalist and most outspoken member, announced a new song was on its way.
"One-Man Wrecking Machine" followed, proving a melodic, catchy tune on par with the band's fan-approved repertoire. The song's chorus is intoxicating, and the band seemed more than well practiced with the new material — even though, as Miller put it, it was the song's "Wisconsin debut."
Following two tracks from their last studio album, which included a lovely harmonica solo and Latin-influenced rumba fade-out, Miller continued with classic Guster-style crowd banter by providing an anecdote about eating Afghan food on State Street.
"Don't be scared of Afghani food … just because it's from a far away place," Miller said. The anecdote quickly gained rhythm and tone, and before long the entire band was engaged in an interlude about foreign eateries and crushing fans' heads like meatballs between fingers.
A microsecond segue brought meatballs to "You're My Satellite" — a euphonious tune that appeared on recent tours' set lists and will most likely grace the band's forthcoming album. Again, "Satellite" delivers an unrivaled chorus that will, undoubtedly, be screamed overpoweringly by fans far and wide at future concerts.
"I Spy" triumphantly followed, building up to a crescendo in a manner reminiscent of Guster's usual concert-topping "Fa Fa." With the band going nuts and fans responding in a manner characteristic of an enormous crowd of "The Price Is Right" grand-prize winners, the band continued with a short foray into the unknown realm of alien-inspired twangs and eerie noises. An explosion into "Barrel of a Gun" ensued.
Several Guster classics later, the foursome decided to send the crowd another curve ball in the form of another new track. In an e-mail interview with The Badger Herald earlier this month, part-lead guitarist and part-lead vocalist Adam Gardner said Guster would rock harder than ever with the newest release; and "Beginning of the End" certainly proved his statement.
The song sounds almost metallic, with much harsher guitar, edgier tones and unpleasant lyrics. "We're just oil-filled machines / trying to escape before we're seen," Miller bellowed. "This is the beginning of the end."
Albeit certainly a departure from previous work, the song is nevertheless enticing, certainly upbeat and delightfully different for a band whose sound is so well defined.
To contrast the new track, the band brought "Two Points for Honesty" out of storage and prepared the audience for yet another new venture afterward — "Captain."
"Captain" seems country-inspired, with a very full, bigger-band sound and banjoesque guitar provided by Joe Pisapia, the band's newest member. As the show's last piece of new material, "Captain" was definitely well received by the crowd and will certainly prove a worthy addition to Guster's bag of concert-rocking tricks.
After several more tracks from all over the band's last three albums, Miller said the band would play a song concertgoers haven't heard in quite some time.
"We play this song [about] once every two years," he said. And he wasn't kidding — "Rainy Day" hasn't appeared on a Guster set list since 2003.
Though "Rainy Day" is quieter than some of the band's more common concert material, the band delivered it beautifully, and the audience accompanied Miller in delivering the song's heartfelt lyrics.
After an impressive-as-always rendition of "Demons," the quartet hustled off stage. A stagehand gave away the upcoming treat by bringing out a banjo as the crowd chanted "we want more."
Guster returned. Pisapia picked up the banjo, Miller and Gardner donned acoustic guitars, and Brian Rosenworcel, the band's percussionist-slash-bongoist, found a tambourine. Miller urged the crowd to gather around and remain quiet as the band played an unplugged version of "Jesus on the Radio."
Overall, Guster delivered an awesome show. The band's newest album, as yet unnamed and incomplete, should arrive on shelves in upcoming months — and after a concert teeming with intriguing new tunes like those, it's sure to impress.
