Guster: Ganging Up on the Sun

Huh. Who would have thunk it? Guster grew up, and I like the adult they've become.

You, we docile listening masses, get the idea that this is going to a much more grown up place with the sampling we got off of One Man Wrecking Machine, the EP they dropped a few weeks back. I didn't realize how true that was until now.

Sun has a dark edge to it, musically. Singer/Guitarist Adam Gardner's vocals seem much more honed. Where, in the past, he went for loud and mostly in tune, he's quieted down (along with the tone of the album) and shown how beautiful a voice he actually has.

The album's production is of a much higher quality than any of their other's, which I feel is a mixed blessing. They get their fan base and energy from a certain unpolished edge, yet some of their greatest songs could do with a bit more polishing. For this collection, howevere, I think the production level is right on par with content: quite high.

Satellite is a funky tune with a great guitar sound; Manifest Destiny really reminds me of a Ben Folds tune with the use of piano; One Man Wrecking Machine is already the first radio single, and it's enjoyable, perhaps the most pop on the album; and Ruby Falls is, perhaps, their longest song to date, running just over 7 minutes, and it takes it's time to build beautifully.

In the End: This is Guster's most mature sounding, well-produced album to date. It's got more than enough to appease the long-time fans and bring in some new folks to the Guster fold.

On the Web: Learn all you can about Guster on Wikipedia. Also, archive.org is up to 228 Guster Bootlegs available, for legal, free download.

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