When the doors to Alumni Arena opened for Spring Fest on Saturday, wave after wave of students and fans poured in. Slowly, they began to form a crowd that would jump, cheer, mosh and sing their hearts out before the night was over.
Surprising those who arrived early, well-traveled punksters A Wilhelm Scream commenced the festivities. The Massachusetts based punk rock band played with a level of intensity that rivaled most of the headliners that night. Unfortunately sound problems and their low level name kept the crowd unresponsive, staring blankly at the band with arms crossed and feet planted securely in place.
Before the first headliner for the night played, the crowd was made to endure the performance of Mayday. A local band whose set included covers of both "Semi-Charmed Life," originally done by Third Eye Blind, and "Dammit" by Blink 182. After butchering both songs and a couple others, they thankfully left the stage and it was time for the real show to start.
Framing Hanley was up first.
Though the band was tagged alongside Cartel, Brand New and Rise Against as a main attraction, the audience didn't seem to agree. Apart from the couple waltzing in the middle of the crowd, the ocean of student bodies was rather dead. Nobody jumped, moshed or even appeared to sing throughout the majority of their set.
The band closed with the one song people would know, "Lollipop." However, before playing it, front man Kenneth Nixon introduced the song as one he did for his grandmother. Joke or not, that's just plain creepy.
The next band to come to the Music Is Art stage between sets was local indie stars Bearhunter, giving a solid performance that inspired a few of their fans to form their own little dance floor. Don't be surprised to see more of this band in the future.
As The Lonely Island single "I'm on a Boat" blasted from the speakers, the ever-classy Cartel took their places on stage. The band opened up with "Luckie St.," prompting their fans to jump and sing in a true pop-punk fashion. This was the first time the crowd truly acted like a concert-going crowd should.
Cartel has recently switched to Wind Up records and is in the process of recording their third album, though they're finding it hard to get done.
"It's touring, touring, touring, a little time to write, more touring," said lead singer Will Pugh.
Despite the rare time they get to write new music, the band still treated the audience to a new song off their upcoming album. The song was well accepted, but not nearly as much as their cover of "Wonderwall" by Oasis. The band's rendition was a bit slower and more "emo" than the original.
Still, every mouth in the audience spat out the lyrics to this aging '90s classic with enthusiasm 13 years in the making. The excitement generated by a song everyone instantly recognized carried out through the rest of their performance, right up until the final chord was strummed to pop punk perfection on their closer "Honestly."
After another sideshow performance from the Music Is Art stage, the next headliner was up. The anticipation built to the breaking point and cheers rang throughout the arena even before Brand New took to the stage. The indie rock superstars put on a show that would pump up some and crush the expectation of others.
The band opened up with "You Won't Know," from their album The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me, with the addition of an extra three minutes on the intro that had some screaming for them to just get on with it already. As lead singer Jesse Lacey screamed each lyric, the audience yearned for more and more.
The band swiftly moved onto "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows," but not before a 10-minute break so that guitarist Vincent Accardi could tune his guitar and Lacey could issue some small talk with the audience in which he showed much more personality than he oftentimes does.
Brand New supplied the audience with several hits from their albums Deja Entendu and The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me, such as "Degausser" and "Jaws Theme Swimming."
The band even played one of their new songs, yet unnamed but currently known as "Trees/Brides" by their fans, from their upcoming summer release. Though their performance was adequate for Brand New fans, there was something missing for everyone else.
As any die-hard fan would have noticed, the band failed to play any songs from their first album, Your Favorite Weapon.
Though the audience was filled with requests for songs like "The Shower Scene" and "Failure By Design," the band refused to produce them, making the show a bit more indie than rock.
"Play Crack The Sky" was Brand New's closer of choice. With Lacey strumming on his acoustic guitar and Vincent Accardi banging out on the tambourine, Brand New closed out their set to a wide range of cheers and boos alike with some fans chanting for "one more song" while others were begging to hear "Jude Law and a Semester Abroad."
As with the main stage, the Music Is Art stage saved the best for last. Local ska band Abominable Killer Snowmen put on a show that had several fans skanking to their heart's content throughout their set. To show their appreciation, the band tossed out several free shirts that were ripped from the air by fans' hands.
Finally, the time had come. After an excruciatingly long wait filled with chanting and screaming, the fans finally got what they wanted. Punk rock legends Rise Against gave a performance that shook the arena to its core.
Kicking off their set with "Drones," Rise Against spawned a new breed of crowd that was not seen during any other performance that night. Within their first three minutes on stage, fans were already sporting bloody noses and crushed limbs with no signs of stopping.
Apart from being one of, if not the best punk rock band around, Rise Against has a stage presence unmatched by anyone. The band knows how to move a crowd and keep them moving. From inspiring speeches by lead singer Tim McIlrath, to fist pumping chants of "Rise!," the Rise Against audience was hands down the most lively of the night.
When asked about the show, sophomore anthropology major Carey Beyer shouted, "Rise Against. Bada*s. Woo!"
Apparently, she's a fan of brevity.
During their set, Rise Against played several of their well-known hits, including "Like the Angel" and the circle pit inspiring "State of the Union." McIlrath's raspy, yet harmonic vocals and Joe Principe's masterful bass playing gave the band an overpowering sound that could have convinced anyone to storm the capital and upset the status quo.
The band closed out their performance with their single "Prayer of the Refugee." With renewed energy that no one could've expected from the overly fatigued crowd, fans kicked, punched and screamed in a way that only Rise Against could inspire.
When the show came to a close, sweat soaked clothes and newly formed bruises were widespread. Despite their aching bodies, the audience trudged out of the arena into the cool rain filled night with grins firmly placed upon their faces.
From the melodramatic stylings of Brand New to the all out mosh pit-creating rifts of Rise Against, this Spring Fest was one that won't soon be forgotten.
Photo: Breadchastick / Wikimedia Commons
