Spring Break
EDITORIAL: Concert choice offers a stiff cost and feels truly insipid
Editorial | 2/12/08
Posted online at 2:27 AM EST on 2/12/08
Student Events' announcement of the spring concert earlier this month brought two surprises. The first involved the headlining band, Third Eye Blind, a nostalgic pickthat has yet to produce a hit single this millennium. The second, disconcerting surprise derives from the news that tickets will cost $10 each for students, a 150 percent increase from last semester's Regina Spektor show.
Of course, $6 isn't a bank-breaking expense, but the difference is notable. Concert tickets have been reasonably priced in recent years, averaging roughly $4 to $5 dollars each in an effort to avoid a repeat of the 2005 John Mayer show for which SE charged $25 a pop and lost an immense amount of money.
We have faith that SE will avoid a repeat of that incident, but we remain concerned with the absence of a reasonable explanation for this year's increase in cost.
Ben Gordon '08, Student Events financial director, attributed the new price to the "name stature" of the headlining band. Musical taste aside, we find it difficult to accept Third Eye Blind as a band worthy of more than double the acclaim of past acts such as Wilco, Talib Kweli and the Wailers. The new, augmented cost just doesn't seem proportional.
To its credit, Gordon said Student Events has tried to appeal to a broader swatch of the student population. The group conducts research throughout the year, and Gordon claims the $10 tickets will be "worth everyone's money."
This may well turn out to be the case, but we wonder why Student Events didn't opt for some newer music. While some are nostalgic for alternative rock from the 1990s, there is certainly no lack of popular, relevant bands that aren't so far removed from their prime. Regina Spektor isn't quite as blockbuster an act as Third Eye Blind circa 1997, but she is an up-and-coming performer who put on a very well received show this fall at more than half the cost. If concerts like Regina Spektor's are more cost effective for the students, why is Student Events choosing to live in the past?
Of course, $6 isn't a bank-breaking expense, but the difference is notable. Concert tickets have been reasonably priced in recent years, averaging roughly $4 to $5 dollars each in an effort to avoid a repeat of the 2005 John Mayer show for which SE charged $25 a pop and lost an immense amount of money.
We have faith that SE will avoid a repeat of that incident, but we remain concerned with the absence of a reasonable explanation for this year's increase in cost.
Ben Gordon '08, Student Events financial director, attributed the new price to the "name stature" of the headlining band. Musical taste aside, we find it difficult to accept Third Eye Blind as a band worthy of more than double the acclaim of past acts such as Wilco, Talib Kweli and the Wailers. The new, augmented cost just doesn't seem proportional.
To its credit, Gordon said Student Events has tried to appeal to a broader swatch of the student population. The group conducts research throughout the year, and Gordon claims the $10 tickets will be "worth everyone's money."
This may well turn out to be the case, but we wonder why Student Events didn't opt for some newer music. While some are nostalgic for alternative rock from the 1990s, there is certainly no lack of popular, relevant bands that aren't so far removed from their prime. Regina Spektor isn't quite as blockbuster an act as Third Eye Blind circa 1997, but she is an up-and-coming performer who put on a very well received show this fall at more than half the cost. If concerts like Regina Spektor's are more cost effective for the students, why is Student Events choosing to live in the past?
Viewing Comments 1 - 7 of 7
Alan Royals
posted 2/12/08 @ 11:31 AM EST
Well said. Well said indeed.
Noy
posted 2/12/08 @ 11:52 AM EST
I graduated in 07 and am flying in to see this show.
Regina
posted 2/12/08 @ 1:09 PM EST
Noy, I bet you are a total hipster. *Cough* Seriously though, why is SE living in the past? This band was relevant in 1997, 2000 at best. This is 2008. (Continued…)
Kevin M.
posted 2/13/08 @ 8:24 PM EST
I like that the Justice eboard now plays the role of music critic.
James Sanders
posted 2/15/08 @ 1:40 PM EST
$6 to $10 increase is a 66% increase not a 150% increase...$4/$6=2/3 or 66%. You might want to print a correction and be less outraged next time...well just enough to get the math right. (Continued…)
James Sanders
posted 2/15/08 @ 1:42 PM EST
Unless I misread or misremembered and spector was $4 and not $6 then it is a 150% increase.
J
posted 2/16/08 @ 3:27 PM EST
I actually like Third Eye Blind.
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