Mixed reviews for Fling show

"The Luckiest" Penn students were flinging at full force on Friday night in Wynn Commons.

The Spring Fling concert, headlined by Ben Folds and Third Eye Blind, was Friday's main event, and, despite cold temperatures, long waits between sets and a parking ticket issued to Third Eye Blind, the Social Planning and Events Committee labeled the sold-out evening a big success.

"I think the concert ran really smoothly," SPEC Concerts co-director and Wharton and Engineering senior Matt Mizrahi said. "Other than the somewhat cold weather, people were very happy with it and enjoyed the show very much."

"The number of people in the venue was a good number," Mizrahi added. "There was lots of empty space in the back because people, of course, push as far as they can to the front."

In the weeks leading up to the concert, debate arose regarding whether Wynn Commons was an appropriate venue for a concert in such high demand.

"It was crowded - someone passed out on me," College freshman Rose Feinberg said. "I think it could've been in a bigger location, but I noticed that a lot of people started to leave before it ended, so, by the end, space wasn't an issue."

Mizrahi also said there were no real problems with non-ticket holders trying to sneak in.

"We certainly had enough security for that," Mizrahi said, adding that the security was also sufficient to handle the one or two fights that broke out without major incident.

But despite high praise from SPEC officials, concert-goers pointed to a variety of setbacks that took away from the show.

One of the biggest complaints from students was about the long waits before the concert and in between sets.

"The almost-hourlong wait for Third Eye Blind to come on was inexcusable," College freshman Stephen Krewson said.

Third Eye Blind took the stage on schedule at 8:45 p.m.; the long wait was the result of problems with the opening act, Eef Barzelay, who was supposed to play from 8:00 to 8:30 but didn't, Mizrahi said.

There were also complaints about the speakers, which were loud and distorted at times.

"I think it would've been a much better concert if the sound quality had been better because the microphones were just really loud," College freshman Emma Edelman said. "You couldn't hear how incredible a pianist [Folds] is because it was so distorted."

But once the bands began to play, the air was filled with the sound of drums, guitars and college students singing along with big hits from the '90s.

"They were entertaining in a nostalgic way," Krewson said of Third Eye Blind.

"It definitely exceeded my expectations," Feinberg said.

The performers themselves delivered positive feedback to SPEC organizers.

"They loved the crowd and thought they were energetic and enthusiastic," said Mizrahi, who spoke with Folds and Third Eye Blind afterward.

In the end, though, Third Eye Blind's life was a little less than semi-charmed after receiving a parking ticket during the concert.

"They parked in a spot and we had it marked off for us, but I guess there was some confusion with the Philadelphia Parking Authority," Mizrahi said. "We're going to take care of that. They won't [have to] pay the ticket."

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