This past weekend, the Loras College Activities board was quite busy with running a couple different big events.

On Friday, the Pub was transformed into a Karaoke hot-spot, as amateur singers brought their talents out in grand fashion. One of the hottest acts of the night was Liz Brannon and Josh Utter, who did their rendition of “Your Love is My Drug” originally by Ke$ha. Brannon explained the dynamics behind the duo, “It’s an eclectic mix of classically trained soprano, and monotone baritone. It’s almost magical.”

Utter and Brannon were brought back on stage by (their own) popular demand to monotone the 90′s classic “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”.

There were other unforgettable performances that ensued over the two hours that the even took place during. Anna Davit, a member of the concert board for CAB, said that this is “one of the biggest crowds” that they have had for their now monthly karaoke night with 70 people in attendance Friday night.

CAB also provided a nice spread for the 70 people who attended. In addition to their usual juice and cookies that they put out, they were able to provide the attendees with a full nacho bar.

On Saturday night, a group of students headed down to the Mystique Community Ice Center to watch the United States Hockey League (USHL) Dubuque Fighting Saints take on Team USA’s U17 squad. The Saints are in their inaugural season in the USHL this year.

CAB bought a block of tickets and had all the proceeds go toward the Loras community Dance Marathon event. According to CAB’s Communication Executive, Shannon Lucas, CAB “Was able to raise a good deal of money that night and was able to treat the miracle families to a nice night out.” The miracle families were even honored on-ice during the game.

The event was a huge success for both Dance Marathon and CAB. CAB was able to sell nearly all of the tickets that they had bought. Lucas said that she believes that ”CAB will do an event like this again in the future because it was well received by the Loras community and because… It benefitted both organizations.”

                Baseball is America’s pastime. Many people love the game and are hyped to go to a stadium to watch one in person, even if they’re not fans of the teams playing. It’s all about the experience. But that experience is dampened significantly if the game itself turns out to be a bore.

                The game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Florida Marlins was supposed to be a fun matchup between two teams, even if neither team was playoff bound. That should have made all the more fun, nothing on the line, just a great game of baseball. However neither team managed to excite the crowd.

                This is, I repeat, not, CAB’s (College Activities Board) fault. They were amazing in the setup for the events before and after the game. On the way there two movies were watched, The Boondock Saints and She’s The Man. On the way back Up was watched to pass most of the time. The ride was fun with little traffic, even at the game itself, due in part to the early arrival of the bus before the game and the early departure of many disappointed Brewers fans during the game. Due to the early arrival the guests were allowed to spend an hour touring the stadium before going to sit alongside their peers in section 229, a place on the left side of the foul pole towards left field.

                Being that this was the second last home game for the Brewers; the stadium was giving away prizes for what they called Fan Appreciation Night. The first few people who entered the park got a poster of the Brewers team with a list of prizes to win. All you had to do was have the ticket for the right seat and you would win one of many prizes, including a motorcycle, gift certificates, a year’s bundle of phone, internet, and cable service from Time Warner, autographed jerseys of Brewers players, a sports bike, an autographed baseball, and gift packages among others. One lucky Duhawk won herself a 25 dollar gift certificate to Sentry, however that is a Wisconsin chain, though she could always go to Platteville for free groceries.

                With the opportunities only possible by being actually at the game, the game itself should have been the ultimate prize. It was that, if you were a fan of singles. Yes the occasion single filled up basically every hit by either team. It was not a matter of who had more hits, it was a matter of who had more hits in an inning so that someone could single to 1^st, and then slowly but surely get to home plate as their teammates proceeded to do the exact same thing.

In one inning the Brewers were able to get three singles to fill up the bases, but got nothing as the guy who was supposed to get them home (though with the way they were playing it would be either one or two at a time) flied out to center to end the inning. Maybe if they could have gotten some doubles or triples the Brewers could have scored more, or in this case, at all as the Brewers were shut out in their own stadium.

The Marlins key to victory was to get enough people to hit singles so that one person would get home an inning, and then let the defense do the rest, at least that’s what it seemed they were going for. With only one run in four innings each the Marlins managed to make even a shutout victory seem really boring.

Despite the failure of the teams themselves to provide a game of interest the experience of being there at least did not make the trip a complete bust. It was better than spending a Saturday afternoon and night doing homework.

Loras College Activity Board (CAB) has done it again. They are bringing in a professional band for us to enjoy during this year’s Spring Dionysia. Last year, it was Eve 6, a band known for its lyrical wordplay and catchy guitar riffs. Their themes for the lyrics related well to the college atmosphere, following the lines of angst, gender identity and romance. Junior Dan Dobson thought that the music was good, and he actually enjoyed the band that opened for Eve 6, named Jupiter One.

“At the end of the whole concert, Jupiter One was still around and talking to the students,” he said. “The crowd also got very rambunctious during Eve 6, which was disappointing, but quite understandable.”

photo by RAJENDRA THAKURATHI

This year’s band, named SafetySuit, is a quartet from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and they currently reside in Nashville, Tennessee. The band is formed by Douglas Brown, Dave Garofolo, Jeremy Henshaw and Tate Cunningham. They released their debut album “Life Left To Go” in 2008. While both SafetySuit and Eve 6 can be categorized  under the “alternative” genre, SafetySuit can also fall under the ‘contemporary’ genre. They have been mentioned in various lists, including the Adult Top 40.

Last year, Eve 6 was a band fading from popularity after suffering the loss of their main guitarist a year before. SafetySuit, on the other hand, is an up-and-coming band wanting to get as many supporters they can.

“The band contacted us and asked us to book them,” said Ellen Long, the CAB Concert Chair. She said that they had seen SafetySuit in 2009 at National Association of Campus Activities (NACA), so they were fairly cheap. 

Long said that when determining what bands could come to Loras, they look at cost and availability. In addition, whether or not the band has already been in the area becomes a consideration. SafetySuit fit both criteria, and that’s why they are here.

The concert is scheduled for Friday, 9 p.m. at the Rock Bowl, with a tailgate party and free food in front of Smyth Hall from 6-9 p.m.

The band can be accessed, including CD purchasing, at their website—www.safetysuitmusic.com—or at their Myspace page— www.myspace.com/safetySuit.