Indie rockers grab the spotlight

Even the pouring rain couldn't dampen spirits at the Spring Fling concert Friday night.

Hosted by the concerts and SPEC-TRUM subcommittees of the Social Planning and Events Committee, the concert featured rock group OK Go and indie hip-hop band Gym Class Heroes along with rapper Ludacris, who headlined the show.

But although Ludacris was the most anticipated performer of the evening, students say that Gym Class Heroes stole the show.

College sophomore Madison Kramer, a self-described Ludacris fan, said Gym Class Heroes was his favorite band of the evening.

College freshman Natalie Capasso said she liked Gym Class Heroes's new material, especially "that index finger song." She added that the concert featured "a great juxtaposition of musical forces."

Gym Class Heroes drummer Matt McGinley said he enjoyed playing to a very receptive crowd. He added that the audience was "drunker" and better looking than their usual audience but "definitely more educated in terms of their scholastic pursuits."

College sophomore and SPEC concerts co-director Preston Hershorn said SPEC has heard "nothing but positive things" from concert-goers. He added that although they were worried about the rain beforehand, they were relieved to find students didn't mind getting wet.

The rain caused some, like Engineering freshman Arielle Evans, to leave halfway through Ludacris' performance, but College freshman Anna Zhu said the rain actually enhanced her experience.

"It was awesome to be soaking wet and dancing to Ludacris," Capasso said.

Even College senior Cory Nanus, who was in the first row of the mosh pit, said the rain didn't bother him.

The concert was larger than last year's in Wynn Commons by about 5,000 people, and Hershorn said that SPEC Concerts was pleasantly surprised when the tickets sold out around 9 or 9:30 Friday night.

But College sophomore Chris DiFeliciantonio said he enjoyed last year's concert more - he liked both last year's performers and venue better.

Some students say the larger crowd may have been too much for SPEC to handle.

College sophomore Leila Glass said she found the system of letting people into the stadium inefficient.

"We didn't get to see basically any of OK Go because we were stuck in this giant mosh pit trying to get into Franklin Field," she said, adding that she bought her ticket far enough in advance that she didn't think getting in would be a problem. "It was ridiculous how many people were there trying to go into a small opening."

DiFeliciantonio agreed that the security efforts, which included screening entrants with a hand-held metal detector, were poorly handled. "If you go in and the show has already started, you feel like you're missing out on what's happening, especially if you're already frustrated about trying to get in," he said.

But he added that his late arrival didn't entirely spoil his fun. After all, he still got to see Ludacris.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.