Guster to perform at fall Convo show tonight
UPB brings popular bands together under the same roof for an anticipated concert event
By Jacob Wilson, contributing writer
Posted on October 9, 2006

“Fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa…Never be the same again.”

Those eloquent lyrics by Guster can sum up how UPB hopes JMU students will feel after seeing the band perform tonight at this year’s fall Convocation show.

Center Stage, the UPB committee in charge of bringing large-scale entertainment to JMU, is organizing the event, which also features openers Copeland and JMU’s own Eddie Cain Irvin.

“The fall Convo show has always been a big event for everyone on campus and this year should be no different,” said Chris Beach, Center Stage committee head. “I hope that JMU students are willing to open up and try something new.”

If UPB’s opinion surveys are any indication, then Guster probably won’t be new to a lot of JMU students. But for those Dukes who haven’t heard the band’s acoustic guitars, hand-drum percussion and vocal harmonies, Beach’s hope is a good one. The band is definitely worth checking out, both for its poppy, fun music and its usually heartfelt lyrics.

Guster’s members met during freshman orientation at Tufts University in ‘91 and have been making music together ever since. This college origin may or may not have had something to do with the band’s college-rock label, but with the release of its latest album, Ganging Up On the Sun, the band has begun breaking out of that mold.

“With the band’s pop instincts craftier than ever, these songs might even reach past the keg party,” reported Spin in a July article, reflecting the band’s old stereotype. That may just be the case, with a New York Times review stating that, “Angst has rarely sounded sweeter than it does on Ganging Up on the Sun, which swirls with classic vocal harmonies, vintage organs and lightly strummed guitars.”

Not to give too much weight to professional reviewers, it’s good to know that JMU thinks the band is great too. In fact, the band has been one of the top five most popular bands in JMU opinion surveys for the last three years. With that kind of popularity, UPB expects the concert to draw about 2,500 people to the Convocation Center.

“They were great,” said senior Angela Johnson of another live performance she attended. “They had a lot of energy.”

“I’ve been following Guster’s music ever since Lost and Gone Forever came out, so I’m really excited about the show,” said freshman Danny Lampton. A musician himself, as well as a member of UPB’s 80 One Records, he said he’s also happy to be able to support opener Eddie Cain Irvin, the student-run record label’s newest signed artist.

The other opener, Copeland, should put on a good show too. Beach found and booked the band himself and describes them as “mellow indie rock.”

“I hope that JMU embraces this concert,” Beach said. “Besides, what else are you going to do on a Monday night?”

Tickets cost $22 with a JAC Card (limit 2) and $28 for the general public.