Concert Review: Guster puts on great, eco-friendly concert at Lupo's in Providence

03/06/07 - Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel has never been cleaner. Not physically speaking of course, but Friday night, Guster managed to "green" up the place. Guster guitarist and vocalist Adam Gardner founded an environmental organization with his wife, Lauren Sullivan that's been "greening" up tours and venues all over the United States.Reverb is a nonprofit organization that is seeking to raise awareness and support for the environment by building upon the powerful relationship between musicians and their fans. Guster was selling Reverb stickers at the merchandise table during the show for $5.

Pricey for a sticker, right? Well, the money goes directly to the foundation, and it is used to offset the buyer's carbon emissions that were released during their commute to the show.

Guster uses bio-diesel in its tour buses and donates enough money to the foundation to offset the emissions used by the venue to run its electricity and heat for the night. All of the above makes a Guster show just about the greenest concert around.

The Dave Matthews Band, Alanis Morissette, Jack Johnson, Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies, Bonnie Raitt and O.A.R. are artists that have also supported the foundation.

Aside from the great music, that's something that stood out during the show and I thought I'd share it with everyone. Environmental consciousness is something that should be highly revered during our generation. But enough about that, and onto the music:

Guster never disappoints, and its nearly two-hour set Friday night didn't either. Guster perfectly balanced old classics with hits from its latest album, Ganging Up On The Sun.

A surprising yet perfectly coordinated event after its 1998 hit, "Airport Song," amazed even the band. The original track from Goldfly has fading music at its end while the bouncing of ping-pong balls fill the listener's ears (don't ask me why).

Unbeknownst to me, it's a tradition at a Guster show to throw ping-pong balls at the band when the song is over. When this happened Friday night, it resulted in a literal onslaught of about 500 tiny plastic balls. Guster seemed to appreciate the bombardment.

Guster made light of the traditional encore procedures that seem prevalent at every rock show these days. Normally, a band plays its "last song," says, "Thank you! Goodnight!" and heads off stage, only to be called back moments later by a rampant crowd, eager for more.

Well, Guster asked the crowd whether they wanted them to play straight through the traditional break or allow the ritual to continue. After an enthusiastic reaction from the crowd, Guster insisted that the crowd sing the lyrics, "Na na na na, hey hey hey, goodbye" when they disappeared, and that they'd come back on stage shortly after.

The actions were carried out, and after what felt like a 60-second hiatus, Guster retook the stage and played a fantastic three-song encore that included "Happier" and ended with "Keep It Together."

Guster tends to play locally often when touring, appreciative of the fact that all of New England played an integral part in the Boston-based band's success. Tickets are usually affordable and always worth every penny. So if you missed Guster this month, don't let it happen again!