Article and Photos: Jason Robey
TEMPE, AZ — Nostalgia filled the air Sunday at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, AZ as two monster touring bands of the 1990s repeated a double headlining bill last taken to the road 23 years ago. Toad the Wet Sprocket and Rusted Root both acknowledged their 1993 tour during their sets, and, judging by the crowd reaction, there were most likely some fans that were there for that one, too.
The evening started with a 30-minute solo acoustic set by Luke Wade. A recent contestant on the NBC singing competition, The Voice, Wade treated the audience to a handful of songs from his two albums. A highlight of his set was the cover of the Paul McCartney and Wings classic, “Maybe, I’m Amazed,” which he sang on the reality show. The crowd had already filled in nicely for the singer/songwriter, who mentioned his last performance in the valley, which only six people went out to see. He told a few stories between songs, closing his short opening set with his song “Till the Fighting is Through,” before inviting the audience members to come chat at the merchandise booth
After a short break, Rusted Root took the stage, sending the theatre full of people into a dancing frenzy with their opening song, “Martyr,” from their 1992 debut album, Cruel Sun. Lead vocalist/guitarist Michael Glabicki sang soulful lyrics over the roots-rock rhythm of bassist Patrick Norman and drummer Cory Caruso. The band kept the pace up for a string of fan-favorites, running through “Cover Me Up,” “Suspicious Minds,” and “Save Me.” The only time they slowed things down all night was for “Blue Diamonds,” which started with a beautiful vocal duet between Giabicki and percussionist Liz Berlin over a single acoustic guitar.
Before the set was over, Berlin would play no less than a dozen different hand percussion instruments, including a cowbell, tambourine, and maracas, as well as some lesser-known instruments in American rock like a talking drum, shekere, and an agogo. For the folky hoedown song, “Rain,” she even wore a large washboard that she played with one hand, while the other switched between several other instruments.
The audience went wild for the band’s cover of David Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel,” which started out true to the original, morphing into an extended jam and impressive drum solo by Caruso, eventually coming back out into “Ecstasy,” so smoothly it’s impossible to tell exactly where one ended and the other began.
Rusted Root’s 90-minute show came to climactic end when Caruso stepped out from behind his drum set to the front of the stage, with just a kick drum on the floor and a cajon strapped to his neck, and the band went into their biggest hit, “Send Me On the Way,” from their 1994 platinum album, When I Woke.
After another short break to change stage sets, the lights went down once again, as the members of Toad the Wet Sprocket walked out onto the stage, kicking off the opening of their 1995 hit single, “Good Intentions.” As the audience sang along to the song, it felt like no time had passed since the song was on the chart and on the radio, twenty years ago. That was just the beginning of an hour and a half of crowd-pleasing favorites, including hit singles and newer songs alike.
Vocalist/guitarist Glen Phillips has dropped his babyface look for a beard and flannel shirt that makes him look like he’d fit into the current crop of indie rock bands on the hipster circuit, though his tradition of performing barefoot has not changed at all, and his smooth voice sounds just as good, possibly even better, than it did when the bulk of these songs were recorded two decades ago.
Bassist Dean Dinning and Drummer Randy Guss drove the rhythm through well-known songs like “Crowing” and “Windmills,” from the band’s 1994 album, Dulcinea, as well as tracks from their 2013 comeback album, New Constellation, like “The Moment,” and “California Wasted.” The band also played about half of their 1992 hit album, Fear, which they announced they’re playing in full at many of the dates as a 25-year commemorative on this tour, but for some reason not tonight.
Guitarist Todd Nichols took the lead vocals for the band’s last single before breaking up for a decade, 1997’s “Crazy Life,” from the Coil album. Just as in the first phase of their career, he stayed subdued and introverted on the stage, until it was his turn to sing. The lineup for this tour also included Jonathan Kingham, who played keyboard on most songs, switching to slide guitar for “Fly From Heaven” and picking up a mandolin for “Come Back Down” and “Nightingale Song.”
Phillips let his quirky sense of humor show several times, once saying to the crowd, “somebody yell out Something’s Always Wrong! Ok, man, this one’s for you!” The band also played a song called “Amnesty,” from Phillips’ forthcoming solo album, to be released in October, though he’s selling copies at shows already.
After a run through of one of the most upbeat songs, their 1994 hit, “Fall Down,” they took a short encore break. They returned for three more songs; a cover of Roger Miller’s “Nothing Can Stop My Love,” from an upcoming Miller tribute album, the beautiful ballad, “I Will Not Take These Things For Granted,” and closed the evening with one of their best known songs, “Walk On the Ocean,” both from Fear.
Catch Rusted Root and Toad the Wet Sprocket on tour across the U.S. all summer.