University Productions sponsors new concert series

University Productions is sponsoring a new concert series focused on involving local Bethlehem talent, as well as a variety of genres.

The LIVE at Lamberton Concert Series is funded through the Office of Student Activities and marketed to the student body by University Productions. The concert series has four performances, featuring local Bethlehem artists of different genres.

The most recent performance was Feb. 10,  and featured Trouble City All-Stars, a reggae band from the Bethlehem community.

“Overall, the series aims to further develop Lehigh’s party culture in a way that gives students a way to hangout and drink, if they wish, but instead of dancing around someone’s iPod in a basement every night, they’re dancing to a unique performance of live music put on by local musicians,” said Isaac Wellish, ’17, the small music events director of University Productions. “Right now it’s hard to get this message across to students especially given Lamberton’s reputation.”

University Productions has focused on reaching the most students in the past few years with artists that lie in the electronic music and rap areas, believing those genres appeal to more students. Wellish was approached by Andrea Barker, the assistant director of student activities, and asked to research local Bethlehem and Allentown bands to put together a concert series that featured a wide variety of music talent.

“I felt UP, as a result, has given off an impression of a lack of appreciation for other genres,” Wellish said. “As the small music events director of UP, my job is to help the organization put on smaller, more intimate shows for students that include a wider variety of genres.”

The series began Jan. 27 with an indie pop rock band called Scott Pine and the Conifers. The Lamberton Concert Series planned to attract students with interests in a variety of music genres and to provide students a low-key social option.

Brooke Bartels, ’18, was in attendance at the Trouble City All-Stars concert in Lamberton, and said that she had a positive experience.

“The concert was great,” Bartels said. “I liked the music and it was even cooler because it was a local artist. I am looking forward to seeing the rest of the bands, but the concerts need to be advertised better.”

Bartels said she found out about the series through a friend.

The next performance in the series will take place on March 24, and will feature student folk rock band Steel City Sunrise. Steel City Sunrise will be ending its spring break tour and playing its last show as a band at the Lamberton Concert Series.

“The group wants to go out with a bang and we have a lot of surprises in store for that night,” Wellish said.

Whiskey Uproar, a southern alternative band, will be the final performance of the series on April 14.

Every show in the concert series begins at 9 p.m. on Tuesdays and runs until 11 p.m.

“The reason we picked that time and day of the week is that we want students to make this the center of their evening but also be able to go to parties and other social events after the show if they wish,” Wellish said.

This concert series is a new idea for Lehigh and the series is adding an open bar at their future shows. As part of a pilot program, the Office of Student Activities is sponsoring alcohol service at the series’ shows starting in March.

“This decision has been something that our office and the division of Student Affairs has been working on for a while now,” Barker said. “It is our goal to create an entertaining and equitable environment for all students. After various conversations and meetings, it became clear that because of certain campus policies there was an in-equitable ability to host events on campus with alcohol.

“As a response to this, we decided to pilot the LIVE series as an event with alcohol. Since the focus of the event is not on alcohol we believe that we are offering students a entertaining event while still giving them the opportunity to engage in responsible and appropriate social drinking.”