Guster

I went with a good friend to a Guster concert at the Minnesota Zoo's amphitheatre last night and, as it was my second time seeing them, had a rockin' good time. We got 2 of the last 4 tickets that were left an hour before showtime and, by some friggin' miracle, we got front row center. The lady at the ticket counter was really apologetic because we were going to have to be prepared to "stand and dance for the entire concert." Yeah, I'm pretty sure she's never been to a real rock show because being 10 feet away on the same level as the band (they weren't on a stage) is just sweet all around any way you swing it.

Here's a blurry action pic to illustrate how close we were.














It was drummer Brian Rosenworcel's birthday. Apparently, Guster celebrates by parading one of their roadies out in a giant chicken suit with a birthday cake.














Later on in their set the opening act, Ben Kweller, joined them for a few tunes. I've run into his music before when he released The Bens EP with Ben Lee and Ben Folds (it was fantastic!) but this was the first time I've ever seen him live solo. I'm totally glad I did because he was amazing. He threw down a great set that included a blues tune I'd never heard before with him screaming away on a Zeppelin-meets-Cream solo to the heavens. The guitar gods smiled...














It also seems that everyone in Guster plays at least 3 instruments really, really well. Each of the 3 guys down front played bass and lead at some point (amongst other things) but, near the end of the concert, Adam Gardner whipped out a trumpet and played a sweet solo that didn't sound easy.

The big news today is that I've been swept out of my writing space. I went to school to hole up in a practice room and hitch myself to an acoustic piano only to find that all the furniture (including the pianos) has been temporarily moved out of the rooms for cleaning. I guess it's back to the crappy old keyboard from college.