Students rock to Fling beat on Hill Field

For the first time in five years, Penn students were able to enjoy their Spring Fling concert under the stars. After years of indoor venues, about 6,000 students showed up at Hill Field Friday night for a concert held against the backdrop of a lit Philadelphia skyline. But while the outside setting was universally praised, students had mixed responses to the actual performances, with many saying the music dragged at times and that the line-up was poorly arranged. First on the bill was DJ Young Eller, who pumped up the crowd before co-headlining bands took the stage. The Roots played a pounding energetic set of hip hop, rap and soul, while Ben Folds slowed the night down with their eclectic piano-based ballads. "This concert is a long time coming," College junior Jeff Apostol said. "It is better than last year's acts." But others disagreed. "I have had more lively laxatives than this concert," College freshman Mike Foelster said. Still, Friday's turnout was even better than expected, with close to twice the attendance of last year's concert. According to Engineering junior Kyle Turley, a Social Planning and Events Committee member, 6,000 tickets were sold, which fills Hill Field's capacity. When they took the stage at around 8:30 p.m., the Roots had the crowd up and dancing with their powerful mix of rap and hip hop. The ground vibrated with the heavy base, and many students joined in on the lyrics. The Roots' lead singer interacted with the crowd. For example, when he asked the question, "How many people in Philly love music," he received a thunderous response. "The Roots were good, especially the medley at the end," Wharton junior Oggie Kapetanovic said. The energy level lagged after the Roots left the stage. And during the hour-long lull before Ben Folds Five appeared, many chose to leave the concert altogether. Ben Folds Five -- a guitar-free piano trio, known for their bittersweet love songs with lilting melodies -- played a more mellow set to a considerably smaller audience. After hearing the slow tempo, darker music from that group, many students said they would have preferred the Roots to have ended the show. "I loved the selection of bands," College freshman Andrew Pettit said. "But the order was poorly planned." Pettit added that the excitement and energy level of the crowd would have been built up if the Roots had played after Ben Folds Five. Some, however, were quick to laud the overall performance. College junior Mike Silverstein, co-chairman of the Fling planning committee and a 34th Street editor, said attendance was better than in years past mostly because the headlining bands were so well known. "Even people who weren't big music fans had heard of these groups," Silverstein said. "And each group had their own following as well." Last year, Run DMC and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones headlined the six-hour Fling concert. This year's show -- with two fewer opening bands -- lasted four hours. "It was wonderful," said Engineering senior Ari Jaffess, a member of SPEC's Concerts Committee. "I could not have imagined it going much better."

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