Glorious.

Bwog is a big music fan, especially of our own student music but lets face it: our weekends are sometimes too full of getting shwasty doing homework to come out and support every show.  Thankfully, Bwog’s Britt Fossum took some time out of her weekend to enjoy a performance by a couple of Columbia bands.

Morningsiders and Sun Looks Down, two of Columbia’s current bands in residence, performed this past Friday in an actual off-campus concert at Sullivan Hall. Sun Looks Down played an exhausting double-header, racing downtown from an earlier performance at a Newer Sounds back to school showcase of area bands. Featuring guitarist Jacob Sunshine, Spencer Horstman, David Su, and vocalist Diana Flanagan, the band played a comparatively heavy set of music. Flanagan in particular lent energy to the performance with delirious dance moves and an ethereal voice.

Morningsiders began their set at around 9 PM, with new bassist Sam Sugerman accompanying longtime members Reid Jenkins, Magnus Ferguson, and Rob Frech. Despite not being listed as a permanent member of the band, Reid’s sister Stephanie played banjo in several of the songs debuted at the concert. Although Morningsiders has simplified their instrumentation since the music video for Empress, the new songs ‘Shipwrecked’ and ‘Stairwell’ almost seem a return to the earlier sound. Thankfully, the ukulele only returned for one song.

Individual members displayed more confidence in playing: some of the highlights of the performance were the frequent violin and piano solos. While performances at Bacchanal and cramped brownstones over the course of last year had begun to sound like conventional folksy rock, new pieces suggest that they are now leaning towards a more exciting and eclectic sound with hints of bluegrass. The band closed with an encore cover of Long Tall Texan, and when they left so did the surprisingly large crowd of Columbia students.

There may or may not have been an actual adult band that played after Morningsiders, and I may or may not have recognized more people outside Sullivan Hall than I do in a usual walk across campus because none of the other Columbia students stayed for the band either.

Hints were made to a future performance on either October 15th or 17th.