Quality leftovers

I hate leftovers, especially when it comes to music, because B-sides almost never constitute a release. But this is not the case for Boston popsters Guster, whose 2006 effort, Ganging Up On The Sun, proved to be their most accomplished album yet. After a great demand for the album's B-sides, Guster has released a "Satellite" single/EP as a bit of an excuse to release these B-sides. Along with the four B-sides, there is also a remix and two live covers thrown in for good measure. \nThe EP opens up with the single "Satellite," a well-crafted space pop love song. It is followed by the four B-sides, starting with "G-major," perhaps the most talked about B-side and the most worthy of being on Ganging Up On The Sun. It is rather politically charged, as is "Timothy Leary," maybe being the reason they were left off the album. Then there is "Rise & Shine," the weakest of the B-sides, as it's stripped down, low-production approach makes it seem like the least fit for the album, as well as the most forgettable. "Timothy Leary" follows, which is a great driving track and would probably have made a nice lead-off track, if it wasn't for "Lightning Rod", Ganging Up On The Sun's moody opener. The last B-side is "I'm Through," which is actually an early version of Ganging Up On The Sun's "C'mon." The two share no lyrics, although their verse melodies are the same. While "I'm Through" is the more heartfelt of the two, it is not as well-produced and has an inferior chorus.\nThe last three tracks are unnecessary, but they provide a little more bang for the buck. The Astronaut remix of "Satellite" is simply "Satellite" if it were turned into house music. Then Guster takes on The Beatles, doing an acoustic radio station performance of "Two of Us." While they are no John and Paul, they do a fine job in that they make it their own with banjo and conga without perverting the song in anyway. The EP closes with a cover of Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse of the Heart," which features drummer Brian Rosenworcel on vocals, amusingly ruining an already terrible song. This cover captures the humor and improvisation that fans love about Guster's live shows. \nSo while we are still talking about a B-sides EP, this is one EP worth buying for fans of a band that just keeps getting better and better.