POP MUSIC REVIEW : Nostalgic Foreigner at the Greek

The record-buying public may be ignoring Foreigner these days, but apparently the heavens are still listening. As if on cue, rain broke through the warm night air Friday at the Greek Theatre just as the veteran band was hitting the last notes of “Ready for the Rain” from its current album “Unusual Heat.”

The conjuring feat seemed to energize the crowd and the musicians, turning the remainder of what had been a mostly prosaic performance into an invigorating display of raw rock ‘n’ roll spirit. It didn’t change the fact that Foreigner’s music has become largely irrelevant--which, for any self-respecting band, is a fate worse than breaking up--but it did sharpen the group’s nostalgic appeal a bit.

Fronted by newcomer Johnny Edwards, Foreigner has become as ordinary as its new singer’s name. Its current material is rife with cliches--”Lowdown and Dirty” was a recent single--and Mick Jones’ guitar lines lack any sort of contemporary sensibility, though their fluid execution is as redoubtable as ever.

There’s not much left to Foreigner. Its distinctive singer, Lou Gramm, is gone, and its best material is now more than a decade old. But if you closed your eyes at the Greek during “Long, Long Way From Home” or “Double Vision” and didn’t listen too closely, it was easy to indulge in a little guilty--but undeniably fun--nostalgia.