Kansas brings the power, heart to Hanover Theatre concert

WORCESTER - They took to the stage with lights pulsing, guitars blaring and every note clear and compelling, a celebration of past and present but without the haze of nostalgia.

On Oct. 12, Kansas stormed The Hanover Theatre & Conservatory for the Performing Arts with what every prog rock show should bring — unapologetically intricate instrumentation, pristine vocals, a visual spectacle to captivate the senses, introspective lyrics and an unrelenting surge of emotion.

The show was part of the band's 50th anniversary tour, "Another Fork in the Road." As the band commemorates five decades, only two members, drummer Phil Ehart and guitarist Rich Williams, remain from the original lineup.

But every song rang as clear and polished, fueled by intuition as much as practice, and concertgoers felt it, too. For them, every song was a favorite, from long-beloved hits to newer releases. Every band member played with a premium strength, and Ronnie Platt's vocals were perfect in range and interpretation of words and melodies.

The strongest responses came with the band's many signature anthems, including the high-voltage "Point of Know Return," from the 1977 album of the same name, and the stark beauty of the existential "Dust in the Wind."

The latter originated with a simple strumming of an acoustic guitar, but grew into a universally known piece. At the concert, just as it always has, the song proved uplifting despite its intimations of mortality. Perhaps because, like all Kansas songs, it rocks both hard and tender and speaks honestly, and that's enough for a fan to embrace with gratitude.

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Another song that became an early MTV staple, "Play the Game Tonight," about an inner struggle with fame, has been less revered over the years but was delivered with the same forceful beauty.

The most emotional moment surely came at the encore, evoking tragedies that have recently beset some members, including the death of a parent and of a spouse, and in 2021, the death of former Kansas violinist and vocalist, Robby Steinhardt.

With that, they launched into an exquisite rendition of "Carry on Wayward Son," with a spontaneous chorus of audience members who clearly knew every word, and every note, and perhaps channeling life losses of their own. A

Maybe it's true that "nothing lasts forever, but the Earth and sky," and even that's not a certainty, as scientists say the moon is slipping slowly away from our planet's gravitational pull. But there are songs whose sound will travel to those unknown reaches, with "Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind" surely carrying on among them.

This article originally appeared on Worcester Magazine: State of power: Kansas rocks Hanover Theatre concert