Alas! The day of Bacchanal has come and gone, leaving naught but hazy memories of intoxicated shenanigans and regrettable decisions. Because many of you may not recall what actually happened during this year’s not-really-so-historic-but-still-pretty-cool event, here’s a brief lo-down:
Student DJs Spicy Special kicked off the afternoon’s festivities, spinning some banging, nostalgia-inducing ’90s tracks, in conjunction with the day’s alleged theme. Their enthusiasm infectious, Spicy Special got the crowd sufficiently pumped despite the (initially) lackluster turnout and faint air of disappointment regarding the lineup. Given that not everyone was super drunk at that point, the overall positive response to Spicy Special’s set was definitely something to be commended.
Following Spicy Special was lo-fi, surf punk, weed rock act Wavves, composed of lead singer/guitarist Nathan Williams, bassist Stephen Pope, and drummer Jacob Cooper. For those familiar with them, it was to be expected that Wavves would deliver a killer set. Thankfully, although there was a fair amount of moshing, crowd surfing, head banging (y’know, the usual Ivy League stuff) no one was actually harmed ... we don’t think.
Next up was New Orleans rapper Curren$y, who, despite having dropped four albums in the past three years, seemed to be known by all of 12 frat guys and nine Louisiana residents in the crowd. Bacchanalians’ antics didn’t get quite as crazy as they did for Wavves, but the hip-hop interlude between noise pop and electro-jazz definitely generated a more chill vibe among spectators. Most of the rap connoisseurs by this point were highly inebriated (see what I did there?) and probably weren’t commenting on Curren$y’s unique flow, amazing collaborations with Stalley and Wale, or how underrated he is, but they were sure to notice the special guest appearance of none other than Harlem native and Kushed God, Smoke DZA.
Finally, those who weren’t yet passed out or otherwise incapacitated were treated to the musical stylings of Dominic Lalli and Jeremy Salken, aka Big Gigantic. Big Gigantic’s sound, as everyone undoubtedly gleaned from Wikipedia two weeks ago when the duo was announced as headliner, is a unique amalgamation of DJ-produced jazz, hip-hop, and electro. The apparent transcendence of genre was wildly welcomed by the remaining horde of Bacchanal attendees, many of whom, when abrasively interrogated afterward, admitted to having converted from former hater-ism and were actually pleasantly surprised by how much they enjoyed themselves.
Though the lineup might have seemed fairly odd, especially in comparison to last year’s, it appeared that by and large it was a good day at Columbia. Whether you raged to Wavves, pre-4/20-ed to Curren$y, or just kind of obliviously jammed along to Big Gigantic, it was a fun time for all. Now for finals.
