Students have mixed responses to choice of Guster for Fling

At this year's Spring Fling concert - which will take place at Franklin Field on April 17 - alternative rock group Guster will share the stage with hip-hop artist Akon.

Each year, Fling's musical guests are selected through the Social Planning and Events Committee's student-body survey. In past years, artists have included such a variety of artists as Ludacris, Gym Class Heroes, OK Go, O.A.R. and Ben Folds.

But last week's announcement that Guster will open for Akon brought a mixture of student reactions.

College and Wharton sophomore Yuqing Fan, a former DP business staff member and self-proclaimed Guster fan, said she could understand unhappiness with the choice.

"I love Guster's music," she said. "However, they're not really a Fling band because of the genre of music they are known for, so I can definitely see how and why people could be unhappy with the decision to have them perform."

As Liberal and Professional Studies student Kevin Hou, put it, "some people in my classes have argued that Guster's music is too predictable, very laid back and the type of music you can space out to."

But Wharton freshman William Doyle said he is looking forward to this year's Fling concert because Guster would look good on stage.

Preston Hershorn, College junior and SPEC Concerts co-director, described Guster as "a college jam band with hand percussions that is very chilled out and laid back, yet very upbeat."

SPEC chooses performers based on feedback from the student-body survey, Hershorn said, as well as the groups' finances and artists' availability.

"We want to have the best show we can, given the budget constraint and time of booking," he said, adding that artists are booked a year in advance.

"Over the past few years, Guster has been one of the top choices, along with Dave Matthews Band," Hershorn said. "Dave Matthews Band is too expensive, though."

College senior Caitlin Dardenne, who had never heard of Guster, reflected on previous years' concerts, musing that "Guster is probably there to balance out the other performer."

Hershorn agreed that Guster and Akon appeal to different audiences, but he said the combination was deliberate.

"We try to cover a wide range of people's musical interests," he said.

*This article was updated at 12:10 p.m. on 3/30/09 to reflect the fact that Yuqing Fan is a former DP staff member.

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