our endless numbered days: ode to guster

Last night the girlfriend and I ventured to our second home -- the House of Blues in Boston. We are seemingly there every two weeks or so, and we've come to understand it's truly an intimate venue that, regardless of seating, provides the perfect platform for numerous styles of music. Last night's rendition featured Guster, a band we've both followed for years, seen live on previous occasions and collectively amass triple digits of songs on our respective iPods. That's a realistic figure since they have been together for 20 years or so. I would not use the word skeptical going into the show, but I was worried they changed; I suppose suggesting that their old sound transformed into something less appealing. Let me be the first to tell you: if you have not seen Guster in years, go see them again. And if you have never seen them, get yourself tickets. Their live show remains loud, catchy and filled with jam-band-type solos. They do a masterful job of mixing up old and new tracks, which is something not all artists do when trying to appeal to the audience. Most importantly, their flow of songs does not diminish tempo. They include better lighting for shows, which has certainly developed over the years as popularity increased and demand for tickets came at a premium.

I am not going to try to describe it all here. What I am going to do though is let you see the videos and photos I've posted to get a feel. Of course, it won't be the same sound as attending live, nor is it possible to capture the emotion and ambiance of a sold out show. The girlfriend was almost in tears seeing them again, nearly resembling one of those old Beatles videos where females practically combust and shake from seeing Paul McCartney grab a guitar. I will probably cry at Dispatch this summer, but I digress. Usually I post videos to Facebook and pictures to the blog, but these videos were worth the upload time as they are above par quality taken from the second row.

Enjoy the tunes, people! Maybe even share them with your mother for her day!