Joe and I got tickets to see Guster at the Wiltern this past Friday. I was so excited. First of all, Guster is one of my all-time favorite bands. Secondly, it was my first time at the Wiltern…I’m slowly making my rounds to Southern Calfornia venues.

What a gorgeous building! Located on the corner of Wilshire and Western, the Wiltern is a Los Angeles landmark and a tribute to years gone by. The Art Decco style made me long to have been there during it’s hey-day…and I instantly wished that I had brought a better camera than my cell phone.

Joe drove us there and we parked in the garage next door. Then walked to grab some grub before the show. I was both excited and surprised to hear that Nada Surf was opening up for Guster. They are a band that I’ve been meaning to look into and just never did. There are about 5 songs of theirs that I’ve heard and loved…figure that’s good enough to buy some albums. Seeing them live was such a great experience. The lead singer/guitar player was wearing old skool checkerboard vans and slim fitting jeans and the way he danced around the stage reminded me of an 80’s rocker. Straight legged jolting action…it’s the best way I can describe it. They rocked the house with great pop energy!

Guster did not disappoint, as expected. They played a handful of songs off of the new album including The Captain (which they opened up with), Lightning Rod (which I like to call Home and now have Joe calling it that too), Satellite, Manifest Destiny, One Man Wrecking Machine, Ruby Falls, C’Mon, and I think Dear Valentine (Joe can you confirm?). Second song in they played my favorite, Demons. Off of older albums, we also heard Fa Fa, Barrel of Gun, What You Wish For, Come Downstairs and Say Hello, Keep it Together, I Spy, Airport Song…others I’m not remembering right now.

I left the show on a high…not from the herb that people around us were smoking…but from the energy of the live show. I was yelling and singing and dancing in my chair and loved every minute of it. When you can, support live music.