Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Mellow Folka-Pop Concertini
I REALLY need to catch up on these posts… now I’m two weeks behind.
One song encore.
Am I hating on them? No, but I feel like they played me.
Guster, Saturday, October 29th. It feels like it took longer to type that than it took for the show…
Maybe I’m being harsh… let’s rewind
(Wayne and Garth doddodo, doo doododoo)
We roll into the North Side to The Riv, pay $20 for parking (worth every mother truckin’ cent, tell you whut.), and head for the line. Except, I detour for some greasy spoon while V gets our spot in line. Two hot dogs, a 1/2 lb. cheeseburger later, and two pipin’ hot orders of french fries later, we were sated, and ready for the show.
Lucky us, we were within the first 100 people in line, with about 90 of the people in front of us definitely gunning for the stage. Being general admission show with no seats, and being old (me, not TLEMK) we decided to aim for the balconey. When they started to let people in, they split the lines for boys and girls. Owing to the fact that Guster is enjoyed MUCH MUCH more by the ladies (and me), I was in the Riv in about 2 minutes flat.
I dashed up the stairs, and exulted as I reached the front row of the balconey, in the middle. V came in a little later, and we did a happy little Guster dance, because we had front row balconey seats. Then we looked around.
Obviously, we landed in the Chaperone section, for we were the youngest people in our row, unless of course you count the ten-year-old, who was with her parents. Below us, the teenager/college kids crammed up to the stage, and the Old Man in me whispered, “Thank God you’re not down there. Now sit down before your knees give out.”
We happened to run into the parents of one of the opening band’s players. We got the inside scoop on Matt Pond, PA, which apparently has had songs included on The OC soundtrack. We chatted with the family for awhile, and then felt obligated to clap during their son’s mediocre set. Just like The Fringe (The Fray…) at the Ben Folds concert, they didn’t do much for me. They also had an uncessary awkward cello player. It would have been much better if the cello player contributed to the songs, and didn’t have such a bright sound to clash with the
depressing songs of Matt Pond.
Once they were done, and talked again with the parents of the Pond guitar player (”Wow, they rock! Stick around for Guster!”) we got ready for a rocking good time with Guster.
They rock. They have a new album coming out early next spring, and they played 3 or 4 songs from the album. I was expecting high energy, and for the most part, they delivered. It was their first sold-out show, so I was really expecting A LOT MORE energy.
I got to hear my fave songs, including Aiport Song, and Careful.
And then they were done.
Then they came out and did ONE song for their encore. It was cool because they unplugged everything and came and sang four-part harmony on the front of the stage. And then they left. And didn’t come back.
To sum up: Good band, good seats, but short set. I want to see them again, and then I want them to play for two hours, not an hour and change. (Secretly, the Old Man was happy, because it wasn’t too late, and I could drive home early.)
Love you Guster. Hate your short set, Guster.
RSS Trackback URL 11. November 2005 (19:32)Filed under: General, Music and Movies, Entertainment Tonight