If Ben Folds seems like a familiar choice for this year's Spring Fling headliner, it's because he is.
Folds, who will perform at Penn on April 13, follows a line of music artists brought to Penn that all tend to play similar, alternative-pop styles of music.
In previous years, the Social Planning and Events Committee has chosen performers Howie Day, Rufus Wainwright and O.A.R.
And because these artists all generally cater to the same group of listeners, some students say they want a change.
"The bands that Penn brings in are just awful," College sophomore Nick Mayer said.
Mayer said SPEC should bring in other types of artists with a wider variety of styles, like electronic, folk or new wave.
College senior Pia Aliperti agreed. "I would like to see more alternative [and] indie" music, she said.
But SPEC officials say going with the flow is part of their goal: to appeal to the majority of students on campus.
"We have a tough job because we're walking a fine line between pleasing the campus and providing something that is musically interesting," said Matt Mizrahi, a Wharton and Engineering senior who serves as co-director of SPEC concerts, in reference to this year's choice. "There's no way we can please everybody for any show."
After bringing in Howie Day for its fall 2005 show, SPEC concerts made an "experimental choice" and brought in Sonic Youth - "pioneers of the grunge movement" - for Spring Fling, Mizrahi said.
But the relatively unknown band drew in only 400 students, a drop after the previous year's concert, which featured Wyclef Jean - a hip-hop musician - and attracted nearly 2,200 students.
Since then, SPEC has chosen mainstream artists for its concerts, citing general student disappointment with Sonic Youth as one of the reasons.
Still, Alperti, like most Penn students, said she is excited for Folds, whose performance announcement has garnered widespread approval around campus.
Mizrahi attributed this expressed satisfaction to SPEC's decision to select a Spring Fling performer based on student input.
College junior and co-chairman Tony Rizzo added that Ben Folds's - and previous artists' - student fan base is "possibly the most vocal group" of students on campus.
So far, the only complaint students seem to have about Folds is that his music is somewhat mellow - perhaps not right for the mood of Fling.
Folds's slow songs and depressing lyrics might not be right for a "weekend of hype and excitement" College freshman Jeff Wiener said.
College sophomore Andrew Julien echoed these sentiments.
"I would expect something upbeat - either hip hop or fast-paced alternative rock" - for Fling, he said.
Mizrahi countered that "anybody who has seen [Folds] live in the past knows that [his concerts] are lively, funny [and] interesting."
Further, for those students who prefer more diverse music, SPEC's Spectrum committee is bringing in rapper Juelz Santana for a concert on April 20.
