Springfest offers University students music food, and games all in one huge festival - for free. The University Programs Council has been throwing Springfest for the past few years, and it has consistently hosted notable musicians like Ben Folds, OK Go and Sara Bareilles. This year's event also promises to be musically entertaining with guests Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Pompadour and The Hill and Wood. Apart from this selection of live bands, Springfest will amuse participants with other activities like the Vermonster Challenge, a graffiti wall, a caricature artist and a tie-dye station. Oh, and don't forget the infamous Gusburger eating competition, an event of both epic proportions and portions.
Springfest 2010 is similar to previous installments, but one major change will be quite noticeable. UPC decided to move the venue from Nameless Field to the Amphitheater. PKG Concerts Director Ben Schildkraut said this translocation will result in a more intimate environment for enjoying live music. Perhaps Nameless has finally passed its prime as the overused, multipurpose field, and UPC is moving on to bigger and better sites for their events. Part of the reason for using the Amphitheater also may be related to the expected attendance, which is estimated to be more than 3,000. This number includes students and the general public, which also will be admitted at no cost.
Springfest is an idealistic free concert - and the closest thing University students will get to Woodstock. Your opinion of this event, however, depends on the kind of music that you enjoy, and it is certainly difficult to please the entire student body when it comes to music selection. UPC successfully polled the student body earlier this year to determine the top three potential musical guests for Springfest. Unfortunately, students won't get to see their input come to fruition since none of the choices could be secured as performers. UPC went back to drawing board and developed plan B. They eventually settled on Robert Randolph and the Family Band, a group that combines soul, gospel, funk and rock in an eclectic mix. Robert Randolph will display his prodigious skills with the pedal steel guitar, which can only be described as a table-oriented doubled-necked guitar that is played with foot pedals and fingers - a very unusual and cool instrument. And although I can appreciate how this music blends genres and sounds, it does not seem entirely suitable for a college spring festival. The headlining band is sure to be entertaining, energetic and fun, but I think I speak for many students when I say I wish UPC had done more to schedule one of the choices from the poll last semester.
Even if Robert Randolph is not your cup of tea, there will be plenty of other musical incentives to attend Springfest. I had the privilege to talk with members of the student band Pompadour, which describes itself as power pop with indie and folk influence. As the winner of UPC's Battle of the Bands competition, the four-piece band will open for Robert Randolph and the Family Band. Pompadou's music is more than just an opening act, however. The vocals of fourth-year College student Jessie Love nicely accentuates the instrumental music, particularly when listening to the contrast of Love's angelic notes against fourth-year College student Jeff Doyle's harsher tones.
Pompadour frequently tears up the stage at local venues like the Tea Bazaar or the Outback Lounge, and the band seemed enthusiastic yet anxious about playing in front of so many people and opening for such a reputable band. This also is the first time that the group will perform for its peers, which led to concerns about whether students would identify with Pompadour's music. As fourth-year Engineering student Kaitlyn Howling, who drums for the band, jokingly remarked, "The worst thing when you're up on stage is to look out at a blank [faced] audience." But I don't think they'll have much to worry about. If Pompadour's success thus far is any indication, most students will be keen on the original sound and style.
So if you have missed out on previous Springfests, this is your official warning to mark your calendars for May 1. There is no reason to pass up a free concert, and there will certainly be enough variety of activities, music and food to fit the needs of anyone and everyone.
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