College-rock icons O.A.R. played at the McDonald Theatre Friday night alongside openers The Dirty Heads as part of an 18-date fall tour that wraps up in a few days in Omaha, Neb. The night was a mixture of old and new, with something for everyone from the two very different touring outfits.
The Dirty Heads, a Huntington Beach, Calif., act steadily gaining national attention, opened the night with a lot of energy and good vibes. Their brand of reggae/dub/rock attracted a surprisingly vocal group of fans who sang along with most of the set.
“We actually came out to see The Dirty Heads,” said University senior Zach Hellman. “But of course we’re going to stay for O.A.R.”
Jared Watson and guitarist Dustin Bushnell led the band through a group of songs mostly coming from their 2008 album “Any Port in a Storm,” such as “Neighborhood,” “Stand Tall” and “Lay Me Down.” The most unexpected moment of the set was a dubstep cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Paint it Black” that put an even darker twist on the modern classic. As The Dirty Heads finished their set and the technicians switched the equipment on stage, the rest of the crowd of mostly high school students and older people filtered in to hear the main event.
Currently working on its seventh studio album, O.A.R. started off its set strong with an up-tempo version of popular crowd favorite “Hey Girl” followed by “The Stranger” off their 2005 album “Stories of a Stranger.” The band seemed to gain momentum as the set went on, returning to its jam-band roots with a parade of perfectly executed solos. Saxophonist Jerry DePizzo was by far the standout musician. Wailing mainly on his baritone sax, he traded it in at various times for an alto saxophone, a tenor saxophone, several different guitars and even a snare drum for an extended jam with the drummer and keys.
Front man Marc Roberge knows how to work a crowd, and his voice sounds as clear live as it does on record. He engaged the crowd during and between songs, even shouting out to Cheba Hut and complimenting a fan on his shouting
ability during a break: “You should be in a choir or something, man.”
Guitarist Richard On, bassist Benj Gershman and drummer Chris Culos held down the rhythm section with a tightness that can only come from having more than 15 years of experience playing with each other. No doubt the Eugene crowd was a long way from the band’s origins playing at fraternity and sorority parties at Ohio State, but it played with as much enthusiasm as it ever has.
In addition to being veterans of the music scene, O.A.R. is also an environmentally conscious band, as expressed through its “Green Dream” campaign to collect recyclables at each concert venue. The group collected more than 21,000 pounds of recyclables over the course of its 2010 summer tour and is trying to continue that success on the fall tour. On that same summer tour, the band maintained an environmental consciousness by being carbon neutral and offsetting its fuel usage.
After playing for an hour and a half, the band came out for a raucous encore that led off with “Night Shift” followed by some newer, slower material. Of course, it wouldn’t be an O.A.R. show without an extended version of “That Was a Crazy Game of Poker,” which the band delivered in spades to close the show. The encore left their fans feeling good.
University junior Bobby Mulvaney said, “They played great — I just wish it was a little louder.”
Maybe the audio mix was a little low for some tastes, but that’s about the only thing anyone could complain about as the multitude of O.A.R. fans young and old got a sterling performance with the perfect mixture of hits and new material.
Those who want to hear more can check out liveoar.com for concert downloads.
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