Ska band Reel Big Fish will headline the UGBC’s annual outdoor Modstock concert this afternoon, May 3, beginning at 3:15 p.m. Opening acts will include Guy Dupont, LSOE ’13, aka ILO Productions, and The Dean’s List. The concert will also feature the winner of Boston College’s Battle of the Bands competition.
“We wanted to keep the tradition of an entertaining live band at Modstock alive,” said Mike Cavoto, UGBC executive director of campus entertainment and A&S ’13. “We explored some other options, but ultimately Reel Big Fish was the artist we decided on. They have the right combination of musical talent and entertainment value that we think the Boston College community enjoys.”
Following the annual Spring Concert, many worried that the UGBC might not have the funding left to put together a reputable Modstock act, and Cavoto acknowledged that funding was a little tighter than in previous years.
“We went all out for the Spring Concert to guarantee students had a great show,” Cavoto said. “It was a ‘welcome back’ of sorts after the Fall Concert was cancelled. Our budget was a little tight for Modstock, but because we sold out the spring show we had a pretty decent amount of funds.”
The UGBC loses money on each show they put on for the student body to ensure that ticket costs stay as low as possible. This year, ticket prices for the Spring Concert were raised slightly from previous years in an effort to offset the cost of relatively expensive artists Nelly and Third Eye Blind.
“We take a sizable loss on every show, and the artists were expensive for the Spring Concert, so that’s why we had to marginally increase ticket prices,” Cavoto said.
The administration also put restrictions on the Spring Concert this year as a result of high numbers of medical transports in the past, including an earlier start time and an earlier doors-close time. Cavoto said there were also some restrictions on the selection of artists for Modstock.
“The administration placed some loose restrictions on the type of artists we could have because of explicit lyrics,” Cavoto said. “The rationale behind this was that it is an outdoor show, and sometimes the music can be heard as far away as Cleveland Circle.”
Despite the restrictions, Cavoto expressed his overall satisfaction with the artists chosen for this year’s performance.
“I think that BC is going to truly enjoy this show,” Cavoto said. “The Dean’s List has a growing reputation, and Reel Big Fish is going to kill it.”
Reel Big Fish is a ska band from Huntington Beach, Calif., best known for the 1997 single “Sell Out.” The band was at the height of its popularity throughout the middle to late ’90s.
