Jumbonaroo 2015
Night 1: Rollersnakes, Blue Ives, and Waldo at ATO by Kristina Mensik
Rollersnakes opened the night, succeeding in infusing the crowd with energy and honoring Throwback Thursday by playing such crowd-pleasers as The White Stripes “7 Nation Army” and Weezer’s “Say it Ain’t So.” For members Erik Broess on drums, Mike Nuzzolo on bass, and both Harrison Kim and Dave Igliozzi on guitar and vocals, it was their second performance. After their set, Igliozzi and Broess spoke on behalf of the band. “We’ve only played JumBonaroo, and we will remain that way,” Igliozzi said, “until Saturday, when we have a show…opening up for Caves.” Though only their second show, Rollersnakes had clearly achieved their objective to “play upbeat stuff, try to have a good time, [and] get people to dance.”
In many respects, Blue Ives stole the night. For one, it was impressive to hear an eight-piece band. Members Travis Percy, Aidan Scrimgeour, Erik Broess, Gabe Rothman, Grant Steinhauer, Andrew Schneer, Gabe Terracciano, and Jackson Fulk-Logan’s set was perhaps so zealous because it was their first as a compete band. Additionally, their selection of well-rehearsed, soulful covers, including Usher’s “Caught Up,” Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together,” and, Beyoncé’s “Love on Top” hugely pleased the crowd and had people dancing throughout. The performance also spotlighted the group’s various instrumental skills in addition to Percy’s silky tenor. As Scrimgeour later acknowledged, their set was “well-received, people enjoyed it, and there was a lot of energy in the room.” So much so, in fact, that the crowd demanded an encore. Thus on a whim and without having practiced it before, Terracciano switched to vocals, and they threw down an amped rendition of “Shout” by Isley brothers. Their set could have gone on indefinitely and easily maintained the attention and enthusiasm of the night’s attendees.
Headlining the night was Waldo, whose members Jake Mills, Connor Cunningham, James Forward, and Jonathan Gilad clearly knew what they were doing and exuded well-rehearsed confidence. The anticipation surrounding their tight set and its seemingly flawless run-through made Waldo seem professional musicians rather than a student band.Night 2: MTSA, Dusty 9, and Everest at Sig Ep by Ross BrethertonSig Ep hosted an electronic-music heavy lineup Friday Night, kicking the evening off with DJ duo MTSA. To a small, but energetic crowd, MTSA threw down a set of trap hits, barely giving us time to breathe in between drops. Though their mixing skills were on par, and the set's energy was certainly high, I would have appreciated a more varied set to truly see the duo's full potential.
As Dusty 9 began their set, a crowd flooded into Sig Ep, hoping to catch the hip-hop act live. Dusty 9 threw down top notch rhymes despite sound system woes, and clearly took the spotlight for Friday. Finally, Everest finished the night with a set packed with EDM tracks and original mashups.Night 3: Yonas Dinkneh, Alex Spring, i-NU, Nitty Light at DU by Chelsea WangAn abrupt end to an otherwise very successful three nights of live music. After just one DJ set and brief performance by Market Basket, the night came to a halt after a student was sent to the hospital, most likely due to an alcohol-related medical situation.
