speed of dark

Guster at the Pacific Amphitheater

"We've never played a county fair before," leered Guster's lead singer Ryan Miller to last Wednesday night's crowd at Orange County's Pacific Amphitheater. "And I have just one word: churros. They are a magical treat."

For the unitiated, churros are a cinnamon-y, deep-fried, doughy treat of Spanish origin which is now a Mexican staple dessert; and they are commonly sold as fast food at California county fairs. I bought one at our county fair when my grandson He Might Be Giant was about two years old. The baby took one bite and then snatched the thing away from me and ate it all. Read more about churros here.

The Orange County Fair, unlike its small-town cousins, is not the last resort of washed-up bands. Every summer there are weeks of performances by established and respected artists. This July's line-up included Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson, so it was hardly a step down for Guster.

My partner for this show was my husband Mr. Folkie, who I thought would be able to tolerate Guster, and he actually enjoyed the performance. He was especially impressed with Guster's thundergod drummer, Brian Rosenworcel.

This date was also the maiden concert for our new Olympus camera, and WOWZA! While I still have to perfect focusing the thing, for the first time I was able to capture the eye-popping colors of the stage lights without losing any detail. Its only drawback is its size--it is too big to be smuggled inside a shirt.

Ryan Miller (lead vocals, guitar, harmonica, piano)

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Adam Gardner (vocals, guitar, keyboard, trumpet, cowbell, handclaps)

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Joe Pisapia (backing vocals, guitar, bass, keyboard)

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It was Joe's 28th birthday! I've been to shows before where it was a band member's birthday, but I've never heard an entire arena sing Happy Birthday. It was amazing! A woman popped out briefly from backstage to show Joe his cake. How sweet!

Brian Rosenworcel (drums, percussion)

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It's no mystery why Guster's fans call Brian Rosenworcel the Thundergod. The man moves at the speed of light. I probably took a hundred shots of him, trying to capture his flying hands, with limited success.

Mr. Folkie, who does not normally go to rock concerts, was fascintated with Rosenworcel. Here are the words he wrote to a friend of ours the next day:

"Guster had an out-of-control drummer. [Alt-gramma] tells me that all rock drummers are out of control, but this one was out of control in a particular way. He had an array of bongos, congas, and miscellaneous drummage surrounding him, and he flogged them mercilessly with his bare hands. A million years ago I knew something about bongos and congas, and I recognized some of the patterns he was using. However, he was using them in nearly impossible ways, weaving them into larger patterns and dividing and subdividing the underlying rhythm into almost unimaginable complexity. It was nuts."

I'm not going to analyze this performance more deeply. Those who have seen Guster's performances know that they turn out a mighty good show. Those who haven't, and I was one, have been missing out on a good thing. I have seriously neglected Guster in my playlists, and I won't continue to make that mistake. They are dynamite professional showmen, completely at ease and in their element onstage. Their songs were tight and executed with brilliance and emotion without a single glitch. That's what makes a truly satisfying live performance.

Setlist:

1. The Captain
2. Barrel of a Gun (live in Portland, ME)

3. One Man Wrecking Machine
4. Brazil (live 7-08-07)

5. Happier (live in Portland, ME)

6. Hang On

7. Come Downstairs and Say Hello

8. Demons (live in Birmingham, AL, 3-3-04)

9. Manifest Destiny

10. G Major

11. Ruby Falls

12. Ramona

13. Amsterdam

14. Fa Fa

Encore:
15. Satellite from Satellite EP (2007)
16. Airport Song

MySpace | Tour Dates: Website | Label: Reprise | Lyrics
Buy lots of live songs at iTunes and albums at Amazon.com

Coming soon: the opening act, Toad the Wet Sprocket