Campus Currents: Bumstock
A UMaine tradition refused to die quietly Saturday night thanks to three talented bands undaunted by the low attendance. Performances by State Radio, Bedouin Soundclash and Sparks the Rescue eclipsed any Bumstock in recent memory. They were almost enough to make up for the small crowd and miserable atmosphere.
This weekend marked the end of a 34-year era as State Radio played the final song at the last Bumstock ever. Despite the band’s pleas that Bumstock live on, it will come as a surprise if Student Entertainment plans another spring festival to replace it. Considering the many setbacks Bumstock planners faced this year – trouble getting a headliner due to scheduling, limitations in finding a venue and the cancellation of two bands at the last minute – it seems like the curtain call on the once-treasured UMaine tradition was inevitable.
In a five-year span, Bumstock has gone from having no-shows to being no more after this weekend.
Saturday will mark the last chapter in a 34-year concert series, which has suffered from a combination of dwindling attendance accompanied with complications of getting a big-name act to come to Orono over the last few years.
Chad Stokes’ former band Dispatch is the 10th most popular band at the University of Maine according to Facebook.com, making State Radio a natural fit for Bumstock.
Stokes said his new band “will be pretty familiar” to Dispatch fans. “It’s not night and day,” the guitarist and lead singer added.
The curtain is closing on a long-time University of Maine tradition.
Derek Mitchell, the vice president for student entertainment announced that Bumstock will not be continued after this year.
Mitchell made the announcement at the last meeting of the General Student Senate on March 28.
Committee decides to rock UMaine
For the first time in years, the Bumstock committee made a tough decision that benefits UMaine students. They decided to divert a significant portion of the Bumstock budget to bring mtvU’s Campus Invasion to UMaine.
Declining attendance and rising costs have put the university behind the eight ball on the issue of Bumstock.
MTV invades the University of Maine this spring with the help of bands Motion City Soundtrack, Straylight Run and Hellogoodbye. The May 5 event is the last date on the Campus Invasion Tour presented by mtvU, MTV’s college-targeted channel, and admission will be free for UMaine students.
As in the past, this year’s Bumstock will be free for students. However, public admission will be $20, a $10 raise from last year’s cost. In addition, non-students will have to accompany a student if they wish to attend UMaine’s signature music festival, in an effort to cut back on the number of non-students in attendance, said Derek Mitchell, vice president of Student Entertainment.
The Field House was a surreal experience this Friday night: a giant, spider-like bungee-jumping station throwing people up to the ceiling, a huge mechanical bull throwing them to the ground, and two stages front and center throwing out sound. The Winter Carnival and Battle of the Bands collided, bringing together heavy metal, classic rock, punk and laser tag.
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