SU's Spring Concert: Jack's Mannequin

Saturday night we headed over to Weber Chapel Auditorium for evening full of the piano-driven rock music of Jack’s Mannequin.

When I’d heard SU’s spring concert was going to be Jack’s Mannequin, Holly and I each bought two tickets, two for ourselves and two for my friends Jimmy and Sheri from back home, because Jack’s is one of Jimmy favorite bands. He’d seen the band twice already, but Saturday was Sheri’s first concert ever.

And, lucky for Sheri, it was a great concert. The second opening band, fun., had this really great rock-and-roll sound you don’t hear too much anymore, an ELO/Queen/Blood, Sweat, and Tears kind of sound. I downloaded their album Aim and Ignite off i-tunes three days ago and haven’t stopped listening to it.

Fun. playing a show in Los Angeles.

After fun. finished their set, Jack’s Mannequin took the stage, and they didn’t disappoint. They opened with a song called  “Crashing,” then Andy, the band’s pianist and front man, told us all how excited he was to be here at “Sus—ka—honna.” After the fans crowded around the front of the stage corrected him (“Sus—qwa—hanna!”) he played a great high-energy set. At one point in the show he was actually standing on top of his piano stomping on the keys.

For the encore, Andy came back out alone and played “Swim,” one of my favorite Jack’s Mannequin songs, and then the rest of the band joined him and they finished off the night with “Dark Blue.”

It was a great time.

"Swim" by Jack's Mannequin

Fat Tuesday on Friday - aka Mardi Gras at Trax

Friday night Holly, Karen, Andrew, and I followed the railroad tracks to Trax, Susquehanna's on-campus student-run nightclub, for some drinks and some dancing at the Mardi Gras party.

Trax frequently has "wristband" nights throughout the semester, nights where Trax serves free alcohol to students 21 years of age and older.  Students of age receive a three-tabbed wristband upon entering Trax to ensure no one gets overserved.  Students who aren't 21 yet are also welcome at Trax on wristband nights; they just get their hands stamped instead of a wrist band.

So after showing off some of my (terrible) dance moves, I had a glass of Land Shark Lager.

The Mardi Gras party also included mask-making, a raffle drawing for a flat screen HDTV, and lots of dancing.  DJ Novocane, a student DJ, took requests all night—Shakira, Lady Gaga, the Black-Eyed Peas, "The Cupid Shuffle," that sort of stuff.  At one point during the night, there was even some spontaneous break dancing.  It was a good night, a good good night.

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The Sock Hop

I showed up at Trax a half-hour early to help set up, but by the time I got there everything was already done. “Here,” Collin, the VP of SU Swings, said as he dropped his hat onto my head. “You look good.” And then there was nothing left to do but listen to the band warm up and wait for everybody to show up.

The Sock Hop hosted by SU Swings was well attended (thanks, in part, to the free root beer floats and milkshakes). The student jazz combo played a great hour-long set that we all danced to, and then it was DJ’d swing music until 2 AM. There were beginner lessons upstairs by the pool tables and free-dancing downstairs in front of the stage.

It was really a great Saturday night. My girlfriend looked beautiful in her green dress, and I don’t think I looked half-bad in Collin’s hat (but judge for yourself). It’s always a huge amount of fun dancing with so many of your close friends. All in all, it was an awesome evening, full of inside turns, outsides turns, dips, leans, cuddles, milkshakes, barrel rolls, pretzels, and even a few never-ending loops.

• More on SU Swings
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"Faculty Lounge" Rocks Trax

I don't think it's at just any university where you can go out on a Friday night, shoot pool, and listen to your girlfriend's history professor belt out "Highway to Hell" while your literature professor backs him up on the guitar.

At Susquehanna, you can.

Saturday night we walked over the railroad crossing to Trax, Susquehanna's on-campus student-run night club.  Trax holds all sorts of events throughout the semester, including concerts, dances formal and informal, casino nights, wine tastings, even a gaming convention.  What drew my friends and I out on this cold Friday night was the chance to hear Faculty Lounge play a set.

It turns out that Dr. Roth is not only an expert on literary theory, he's also a great guitarist.

The band is made up of Dr. Long, my music tech prof, on the drums; Dr. Roth, my lit prof, on guitar; Dr. Winegar, one of SU's deans, on bass; and Dr. Imhoof, Holly's European history professor, on keyboard and vocals. 

The band played a good mix of original stuff and solid covers, including "Hey Ya."  After Dr. Imhoof jumped off the stage and did a lap around the inside of the building, he closed the set by singing "Now I'm a Believer" – in German.

This was definitely worth braving the cold.

Listen to Faculty Lounge.
More on Trax.
More on Faculty Lounge.

The Sound of Music at Susquehanna

Last Saturday at Susquehanna, the hills were alive with the sound of music.  Okay, not literally, but this past weekend the theatre department did put on The Sound of Music.

Every fall the theatre department teams up with the music department to put on a musical for family weekend.  In past years they've put on shows like Hello, Dolly!, Chicago, and West Side Story.

This year, because they moved the show from the Weber Chapel Auditorium, which seasts 1,500, to the much smaller Degenstein Theater, the theatre department doubled the number of shows, performing during family weekend and during homecoming.

Which was great for me because my younger sister was busy with marching band stuff during family weekend but was free during homecoming weekend.  So after my friends and I saw the Brian Regan show, we squeezed her into Holly's car and brought her back with us.  My sister's involved with drama club at school, and I thought she'd really enjoy the play.

The theatre department did not disappoint.  The student who played Mother Abbess really nailed her part, and of course the student cast to play Maria was excellent.  Four of the six Von Trapp children in the show were played by actual children, the sons and daughters of university faculty and staff.  The kids all did an amazing job.

What I thought was best about the play was the musicianship in the pit orchestra.  The music was fantastic.

The whole production was really professional.  I think it really made my sister's visit a memorable experience.

More on Susquehanna's Theatre Department

88.9 WQSU-FM "The Pulse"

“You don’t have to keep backing up,” Kristen—that is, DJ K-Ri—tells me.

Sitting in a swivel chair behind the glowing mixing board in the WQSU control room has me feeling a little jumpy, but Kristen seems confident enough.

WQSU-FM is the 12,000-watt radio station in Susquehanna's campus center. The station broadcasts FM music and talk to places as far away as Bloomsburg and Williamsport and also streams its audio online.  I’ve walked past the place plenty of times—it’s got big glass windows that let you look in on the DJ as you walk by—but I’ve never been inside before.

The neon-blue clock in the corner is a reminder that everything has to be perfectly timed out. At the top of the hour, Kristen plays the station ID then the news report—which lasts exactly three minutes—before she goes on the air and gives the weather forecast.

Kristen is a creative writing/religion double major.  Her shifts at the station count as practicum for her broadcasting minor, but the station isn't reserved for communications students. The mic is open to any would-be DJs on campus.

After Kristen puts on “Poison” by Alice Cooper, she pulls off her headphones and turns to me. “Okay, we can talk now.”  The music plays softly through speakers that hang over our heads.

“So how do you make sure the news goes on right at 4:00?”

She smiles, nodding toward the paper and pencil sitting in front of her. “I use math.”

Once the music’s playing, things become more relaxed.  Kristen's friends pop in and out of the station, plopping down on the couch to talk to her for a few mintues before heading out again. 

Kristen mostly fills her two-hour shifts with contemporary, classic, and alternative rock with an occasional request mixed in. The station has two computers loaded with music: 15,000 songs on the one and another 18,000 on the other!

Half way through the Audio Slave track, a small strobe light above the telephone announces a call-in request. Kristen shakes her head as she hangs up the phone.  "I hate Bob Dylan," she says, but she cues up “Isis” anyway on the second Mac.  Bob Dylan is a step up from last week when she got a request for "Total Eclipse of the Heart." 

"Everyone walking by was looking at me like 'What are you doing?' and the song lasts like seven minutes."  Kristen shakes her head.  "It was awful."

Then as the Audio Slave song finishes up, she turns to the mixing board and fades the first computer out as she fades the second computer in.  A seamless transition.

Listen to WQSU-FM online.

More about WQSU.

Dave Matthews Concert

On the phone, Holly carefully explained it to her grandfather: yes, we’re going to a concert on a school night, but no, we’re not going to cut class. We finished all our homework ahead of time. We’re good kids.

Once Jimmy – a friend of mine from back home – got on campus, we threw his overnight stuff in my room, grabbed some dinner at Red Robin, and then the three of us headed out.

The Toyota Pavilion on Montage Mountain, a concert venue just outside Scranton, is about an hour and a half drive from Selinsgrove, east on I-80, north on I-81. We knew we were in for a long night, but we didn’t care. That’s a small sacrifice for a Dave Matthews Band concert.

The show was phenomenal. Dave’s violinist took several extended solos. They were incredible. He’s an amazing musician, but, then, you could say the same for any member of the band—the lead guitarist, the trumpeter, the saxophonist, even the bass player.

The drummer is the most fun to watch, though. He’s always smiling like he’s got the best job in the world. He chewed gum and popped bubbles throughout the show.

The band played for two hours straight and then came back out and covered “All Along the Watchtower” with some “Stairway to Heaven” thrown in for their encore.

It was an incredible night.