Veteran Alternative Rock band Guster — who broke through in the ’90s and have maintained a loyal fanbase ever since — are embarking on their first acoustic tour in eight years. The "An Evening of Acoustic Music and Improv" tour will bring the band to Over-the-Rhine's Memorial Hall for two shows in March.
Tickets ($30-$50) for the March 14 concerts — taking place at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. — are on sale now via memorialhallotr.com.
Guster is being joined by a string section for the tour and they will be pulling out some songs they don't usually play during their electric shows. They'll also have some funny special guests, as the title of the tour suggests. Connor Ratliff from the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theatre will head up a comedy segment at each show, featuring a rotating cast of comedians and comedic actors.
"We can't wait to mix up our Guster shows to create something new out of something old with you all," the band wrote on social media and on their website about the tour.
Guster formed in Boston under the name "Gus" in the early ’90s, releasing albums independently and cultivating a big following on the road and via college radio. They signed to major label Sire Records in 1998, which expanded their reach, and they've maintained a fairly steady release schedule ever since, with albums coming out via labels like Aware and Nettwerk Records. The group's last two full-lengths — 2015's Richard Swift-produced Evermotion and 2019's Look Alive — both cracked the top 50 of Billboard's album charts; Look Alive reach No. 1 on Billboard's Independent Albums chart.
The comedy angle of Guster's tour shouldn't be too much surprise for fans of the group. Known for their witty stage banter and antics, crowd engagement and fun covers (including the Cheers theme song and "Total Eclipse of the Heart"), they've also done a comedy webseries (Joe's Place) and last year they made their improv debut at Upright Citizens Brigade's theater in New York City.
