2008 Woodie Awards
Amethyst dishes 80s cover to Rowan crowd
Robert Press
Issue date: 9/20/07 Section: Features
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Around 60 students were stoked to crowd the Pit and totally rock out, with radically choice lead singer Kristy Talorico welcoming everyone via The Bangles' "Walk Like an Egyptian."
It was the first of many jams in a totally fresh set that spanned nearly two hours.
Among the gnarly hits Amethyst dropped were "Centerfold," "Rebel Yell," "Video Killed the Radio Star," "99 Red Balloons," "Love Shack," and an awesome version of "Sweet Child of Mine" that brought the house down.
While overall the set got a great reception, guitarist Mike Zaf admitted that the performance lost a bit of its impact on a crowd consisting largely of students born in 1989.
"We saw a few blank faces for one or two songs," Zaf said, "but I'd say overall things were great."
Amethyst got its start playing gigs when most of its members were in high school together.
"We started off playing these songs because that's what was new and popular at the time," Zaf said. "Then it kind of went away for a while and we went our separate ways, but it started coming back again … so here we are."
Students in attendance were invited to dance their hearts out to the 80s beats whether they were familiar or not. SUP members handed out t-shirts and sunglasses while dancing around the aisles and urging their fellow students to join them. A conga line, though perhaps not entirely appropriate for the music in question, snaked its way through the seats accompanied by the Profs' mascot, Whoo RU.
Obviously, this atmosphere was one of fun - and Amethyst's encyclopedic knowledge of 80s pop tunes made it possible. The band's Web site lists over 130 songs in the band's repertoire. While the band no longer plays around 30 of those songs, they've still got an extensive library.
Unlike many other shows in the Pit, Amethyst's performance didn't get washed out by excessive volume or overly produced sound. Everything from Talorico's vocals to keyboardist Dan O'Leary's keytar sounded crisp throughout, making it that much easier to appreciate the sound.
After the evening's festivities, Zaf expressed how pleased he was about the boss attendance.
"This was a really great turnout," he said. "A lot of colleges we go to have these huge rooms where only around a dozen people show up, and it's nice to see something different."
Next week's Turned Up Tuesday, Battle of the Comedians, will features 12 of Rowan's own masters of stand-up. The event starts at 9 p.m. in the Student Center Pit.
Come out for a laugh!
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