Junior Alex Mondella spoke about this year’s lineup saying, “I’m really excited to see the bands that are coming. I think the bands that get chosen to come here are getting better and better.”
The concert will no longer be featuring Jack’s Mannequin, which disappointed some people. In their place, Cartel was added to co-headline the Fall Concert with The Starting Line. If Cartel’s music could be described with one word, it would be “fun,” and that is what everyone should expect when walking into the Rec Center on Oct. 21, a fun night.
Their new self-titled album was recorded inside a bubble in New York City as part of the MTV show “Band in a Bubble,” and brought new meaning to the term “sell out,” but the album is still solid. When asked about the band’s new album, junior Steve Callahan said, “It was definitely a downgrade from ‘Chroma,’ especially production-wise. A lot of the songs sound incomplete and it makes the album sort of forgettable. I was also very disappointed with the decision to record in the bubble and thought it was a complete marketing ploy that really drove away some loyal fans.”
As for their live show, expect a lot of variation. Cartel is fronted by lead singer Will Pugh and backed by band members Joseph Pepper, Nic Hudson, Jeff Lett, and Kevin Sanders. The band knows how to write the kind of catchy pop-punk music that is hard to get out of your head like “Honestly” and “Say Anything (Else),” which are sure to be played. However, they’ve also written slow ballads such a “Save Us” and “Wasted” which may find their way onto the set list as well.
The band will also provide a ton of energy that should have students jumping around and crowd surfing all night. Hopefully, the crowd will have enough energy left to do the same for the second band, The Starting Line.
The Starting Line just recently played at Toad’s Place, and are back in Connecticut to rock our school the same way. Freshman biology major Kyle Giorgi talked about the recent show at Toad’s Place saying, “I was extremely happy with their set list and the way they closed the show was incredible.”
Unfortunately, The Starting Line has not been playing fan favorite “Bedroom Talk” at their shows recently. This is mostly due to their former label, Geffen, having the rights to the song.
The Starting Line is currently on tour supporting their latest album “Direction.” Some stand out songs to look out for are their first single “Island,” which is receiving substantial radio play all over the country, “Birds” and the title track “Direction.” With that album, and two other solid releases under the belt, The Starting Line have enough great songs to blow students away regardless if they are fans of the band or not.
