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Concerts; a nice stress relief
Being able to bring bands to the university at a cost of $5 a ticket for students is one of the great privileges of being a poor college student. Ben Folds and Ben Lee brought a fresh and funky beat to the Romano Gymnasium Sunday evening while Jennings brought a melodic atmosphere to the Ballroom on Tuesday evening. Despite standing out in the cold, the Folds concert went well and was just what a lot of us were looking for.
It had been a couple years since we’ve had a popular band on campus and we lucked out with two in the same week, Mason Jennings and Ben Folds. Popular bands in the past included Yellow Card, Fall Out Boy and The Black Eyed Peas. Both Jennings and Folds being a little off beat, brought a fun and entertaining show to UMD during a time when students are beginning to feel the stress of the end of the school year.
Folds and Lee were able to make a stressed-out student crowd fill the room with laughter and applause while they told jokes and got the crowd involved in the show through call- and-response lyrics. Although Jennings’s atmosphere was a little less comical, the atmosphere was very relaxing and pleasant in the dim UMD ballroom.
Both concerts gave students the opportunity not only to come together in one place but also to celebrate a little Bulldog pride as well. The Kirby Program Board did a nice job and timed the concerts far enough away from finals that students had time to attend them while releasing the stress of another closing school year.
As students of the university we think that many of us can attest to the fact that a place to hold more concerts would be beneficial and would allow for a more suitable place for bigger bands to play. The ballroom and gymnasium seemed to have served their purpose, yet an auditorium of appropriate size would provide both better sound and seating for students and other general audiences.
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