\;
\n\nNot long before the making of their new album Ooh La La\, Guster celebrated three decades together as a band&mdash\;a journey that&rsquo\;s included landing a series of hits on the Billboard charts\, working with luminaries like Steve Lillywhite and Richard Swift\, launching their own music festival\, and amassing an ardent fanbase partly on the strength of their relentless touring and deeply communal live show. But despite reaching a milestone few musical acts ever come close to attaining\, Guster&rsquo\;s ninth studio LP reveals a band fully in touch with the voracious creative energy that first inspired their formation. A major leap forward for lead vocalist Ryan Miller\, guitarist Adam Gardner\, drummer Brian Rosenworcel\, and multi-instrumentalist Luke Reynolds\, Ooh La La ultimately matches that wide-eyed spirit with a newly heightened sense of confidence\, conviction\, and commitment to the raw sincerity that&rsquo\;s made them so beloved.
\n\nFor Guster\, the open-hearted receptivity that catalyzed the creation of songs like &ldquo\;All Day&rdquo\; has served as a touchstone throughout the band&rsquo\;s history. But while their audience has grown exponentially since Guster got their start playing in dorm rooms at Tufts University in 1991\, they&rsquo\;ve sustained an extraordinarily strong connection with their fanbase over the years. To that end\, one of Guster&rsquo\;s most cherished endeavors is the On The Ocean Festival&mdash\;an annual event that began in 2017 in Gardner&rsquo\;s adopted hometown of Portland\, Maine\, with a reunion-like atmosphere and an eclectic mix of performers including Bahamas\, Lucius\, Madison Cunningham\, and Shakey Graves. &ldquo\;We feel lucky that we&rsquo\;ve created a dynamic where there&rsquo\;s no real separation between us and our fans&mdash\;we&rsquo\;re all part of a community\, and it&rsquo\;s theirs just as much as it&rsquo\;s ours\,&rdquo\; says Gardner. &ldquo\;One of the main reasons we&rsquo\;re still a band is the fans who&rsquo\;ve come to see us for years\, the people who show us the tattoos they&rsquo\;ve gotten with our lyrics\,&rdquo\; Miller adds. &ldquo\;It inspires us to stay creative and stay fearless\, instead of just making the same record over and over. Everything we do is in service of that connection\, and at this point I&rsquo\;d say we&rsquo\;re definitely lifers.&rdquo\;
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