Averi, Guster, Barenaked Ladies Perform

On Wednesday, April 7, Averi, Guster and the Barenaked Ladies played a benefit concert for the Massachusetts 9/11 Fund at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts. With nearly eighty percent of the concert profits going to the fund, including ticket sales and t-shirts, the fund will help Massachusetts families that lost a loved one in the September 11 attacks. A special section was reserved in the audience for family members and many met the bands before the show, presenting the band members with T-shirts, signed by the family members, and a commemorative clock for their efforts. Each band expressed their gratitude at the chance to play for such a worthy cause.Boston-based band Averi, an up and coming band that jumped on the chance to play a larger venue, kicked off the concert with a five song set. They have played a variety of places on the east coast from New York to Maine, usually at smaller venues of coffee houses and colleges. Playing at the benefit concert gave the band the chance to share their music with a larger audience and many people waited in line after the show to meet them, get their autographs, and buy their CD’s. Averi has performed together for five years and has previously recorded two CD’s. Their 2001 album, Direction of Motion, received a lot of recognition from their live acts and promotion by fans. The five members of the group include Chad Perrone, vocals and guitar; Mike Currier, saxophone and percussion; Matt Lydon, drums; Chris Tilden, bass; and Stu Berk, guitar. Perrone writes the band’s songs with occasional help and the band creates a sound that envies Third Eye Blind, but the combination of catchy rhythms, solid lyrics and saxophone puts Averi in a category all their own. Guster played a slightly longer set of twelve songs, including their newest song “Careful.” The band is currently promoting their newest CD, Keep it Together, and they included many new songs from the album, as well as old favorites like “Fa Fa Fa” and “Barrel of a Gun.” The band also treated the audience to their version of “Chariots of Fire,” and during their song, “Homecoming King,” one particular lyric, ‘back to Massachusetts,’ wildly riled up the audience because of the venue they were playing in, though lead singer Ryan Miller expressed that he wasn’t quite sure why audiences in Massachusetts got that excited over the lyric.Guster’s set was the more mellow of the night, which was a perfect lead in to the Barenaked Ladies set, and the audience sang and swayed along to Miller’s soothing voice backed up by Adam Gardner. Brian Rosenworcel, drummer, enthusiastically banged on the bongo style drum set with his bare hands and repeatedly leapt from his seat throughout the concert.Headliners The Barenaked Ladies were the most anticipated band of the night. Known for their silly antics and outbursts on stage, band members Steven Page and Jim Creeggan battled back and forth throughout the night by making up ludicrous rhymes about each other. After their song “If I Had a Million Dollars,” which contains lyrics about bacon and sausage, they polled the audience on their favorite lunch meat. They also included the audience in their personal version of the “Chicken Dance.” BNL played many of their well known songs including “One Week,” “Pinch Me,” “Old Apartment,” and “It’s All Been Done.” After their set, BNL encored by playing “Brian Wilson” and “Call and Answer,” two of their more mellow tunes. They welcomed Averi and Guster back on stage to play an ensemble version of Neil Young’s “Keep on Rockin’ in the Free World, ” a song that complemented the huge American flag that served as a backdrop behind the stage. All three bands appeared to have great chemistry on stage, despite the fact that Guster’s Miller didn’t know some of the words to the famous Young tune. Overall, it was a great night of music, support, and artists working together for a great cause.